Downfall

# Downfall with AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a benchmark set that is dominated by the GPU at higher resolutions but reveals CPU headroom at 1080p. Across twelve measured FPS rows, the combination ranks 64th out of 1,741 tested hardware combos in Downfall, placing it in the top 4% of all configurations. The data indicates a system capable of exceeding 400 FPS at the lowest settings, yet dropping below 80 FPS at 4K Ultra, which highlights the extreme scaling demands of this horror title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent pattern: performance degrades sharply as resolution increases, with the magnitude of the drop varying by settings preset. From 1080p Low to 4K Low, average FPS falls from 423 to 187.2, a reduction of 235.8 FPS (55.7%). For High settings, the drop is from 286.8 at 1080p to 128.3 at 4K, a 158.5 FPS decline (55.3%). The scaling factor is nearly identical across Low and High presets, suggesting that the rendering load scales proportionally with pixel count, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario.

The Medium preset follows the same trajectory: 348.3 FPS at 1080p, 245.8 at 1440p, and 153.7 at 4K. The 1440p-to-4K drop for Medium is 92.1 FPS (37.5%), while the 1080p-to-1440p drop is 102.5 FPS (29.4%). This asymmetry indicates that the GPU becomes progressively more saturated as pixel count rises. At 1080p Medium, the system is likely approaching CPU limitations, given the Ryzen 7 9800X3D's single-thread score of 1,212 in 3dmark and 4,800 in Cinebench R23.

For Ultra settings, the scaling is more severe. Average FPS drops from 176.3 at 1080p to 128.6 at 1440p (27.1% decline), then to 78.6 at 4K (38.9% decline from 1440p). The 4K Ultra result of 78.6 FPS is the lowest in the entire dataset, and the gap between Ultra and High at 4K (49.7 FPS) is larger than the gap at 1080p (110.5 FPS). This indicates that Ultra settings introduce additional GPU load that compounds with resolution, pushing the RTX 5080 closer to its limits.

The data suggests that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p Low, the 423 FPS result is far above typical display refresh rates, and the CPU's multithreaded score of 10,067 in 3dmark max threads indicates sufficient headroom. At 4K Ultra, the GPU's 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth are likely the primary constraints, as the frame rate falls to a level where even high-refresh monitors would not be fully utilized.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the dominant component in these results, and its specifications explain much of the observed scaling. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2,295 MHz and a boost clock of 2,617 MHz, with memory clocked at 1,875 MHz (30 Gbps effective). The 16 GB GDDR7 frame buffer on a 256-bit bus provides 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is substantial for 4K rendering but still finite. The GPU's 10,752 shading units and 112 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 293.1 GPixel/s, which directly impacts fill-rate-heavy scenes common in horror games.

The RTX 5080's benchmark scores reinforce its position. The 3dmark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8,637 and Passmark G3D score of 36,565 place it at the 89th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database include the Intel Arc A580 (2.5% higher average score), the Intel Arc A570M (1.6% higher), and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (2.6% higher). These small deltas suggest that the RTX 5080 is clustered with mid-range competitors in synthetic tests, but the measured game FPS tells a different story. In Downfall, the RTX 5080's real-world performance is strong enough to push 4K High to 128.3 FPS, which is well above playable thresholds.

The VRAM capacity of 16 GB is never explicitly stressed in the measured data, but the 4K Ultra result of 78.6 FPS compared to 4K High's 128.3 FPS (a 38.8% reduction) suggests that the Ultra preset increases memory pressure and shader complexity. The GPU's 84 RT cores and 336 tensor cores are likely engaged at Ultra, given the horror genre's use of dynamic lighting and shadows, though the fact pack does not specify per-preset feature toggles. The 56.28 TFLOPS FP32 compute rate is the raw throughput available for these workloads, and the data implies that 4K Ultra consumes nearly all of it.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in Downfall?

A: The highest average FPS in the measured dataset is 423, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is followed by 348.3 FPS at 1080p Medium and 301.1 FPS at 1440p Low.

Q: How does the RTX 5080 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5080's average benchmark score of 59,188 is 1.6% lower than the Intel Arc A570M, 1.9% lower than the Intel Arc Pro A60, 2.5% higher than the Intel Arc A580, and 2.6% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X. It sits at the 89th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p Ultra and 4K Ultra?

A: At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 176.3, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 78.6. This represents a 97.7 FPS reduction, or a 55.4% decrease in frame rate when moving from 1080p to 4K at the same Ultra preset.

Q: Which settings preset provides the largest FPS jump from Low to Medium at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, the Low preset averages 301.1 FPS, while Medium averages 245.8 FPS. This is a 55.3 FPS difference, which is smaller than the 74.9 FPS gap between Medium and High (245.8 to 203.1) at the same resolution.

Q: How does the CPU's single-thread performance relate to the 1080p results?

A: The Ryzen 7 9800X3D scores 1,212 in 3dmark single-thread and 4,800 in Cinebench R23 single-core. These scores support the high 1080p frame rates, as the 423 FPS Low result and 286.8 FPS High result indicate that the CPU can feed the GPU at lower resolutions without becoming a bottleneck.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested hardware configurations?

A: The combo ranks 64th out of 1,741 configurations in Downfall, placing it in the top 3.7% of all tested hardware combinations. The CPU alone ranks at the 90th percentile among all CPUs.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the data shows a spread of 246.7 FPS across the four settings presets. Low settings produce an average of 423 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium settings reduce this to 348.3 FPS, a 74.7 FPS drop. High settings further reduce performance to 286.8 FPS, a 61.5 FPS decline from Medium. Ultra settings produce 176.3 FPS, which is 110.5 FPS below High. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is a 58.3% reduction in frame rate, indicating that each preset level adds significant rendering work.

At 2560x1440, the pattern is similar but with lower absolute values. Low settings average 301.1 FPS, which is 121.9 FPS lower than the 1080p Low result. Medium averages 245.8 FPS, a 102.5 FPS drop from 1080p Medium. High averages 203.1 FPS, an 83.7 FPS drop from 1080p High. Ultra averages 128.6 FPS, a 47.7 FPS drop from 1080p Ultra. The 1440p results show that the GPU is still capable of high refresh rates at Low and Medium, but Ultra dips below the 144 Hz threshold that many monitors target.

At 3840x2160, the performance envelope tightens considerably. Low settings average 187.2 FPS, which is still highly playable. Medium averages 153.7 FPS, a 33.5 FPS drop from Low. High averages 128.3 FPS, a 25.4 FPS drop from Medium. Ultra averages 78.6 FPS, a 49.7 FPS drop from High. The 4K Ultra result is the only measured value below 100 FPS, and it represents a 58.2% reduction from 4K Low. The gap between High and Ultra at 4K (49.7 FPS) is larger than the gap at 1440p (74.5 FPS) or 1080p (110.5 FPS) in relative terms, showing that the Ultra preset's additional effects are most punishing at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal preset depends on the target resolution and display refresh rate. For 1080p, all presets deliver above 176 FPS, so the Ultra preset is the clear choice for maximum visual fidelity. The 176.3 FPS average at 1080p Ultra exceeds the refresh rate of most 144 Hz monitors, and even 240 Hz displays would be nearly saturated. The High preset at 286.8 FPS is only necessary for 360 Hz esports-style displays, which are uncommon for a horror game.

At 1440p, the High preset provides the best balance, with an average of 203.1 FPS. This comfortably exceeds 144 Hz and 165 Hz refresh rates while retaining most visual features. The Ultra preset at 128.6 FPS is still above 120 Hz, making it viable for users with 120 Hz displays who prioritize image quality. The Medium preset at 245.8 FPS is unnecessary unless targeting 240 Hz, and Low at 301.1 FPS offers no practical benefit over High for most users.

At 4K, the High preset is the recommended starting point, with an average of 128.3 FPS. This is above 120 Hz and provides a smooth experience on 4K high-refresh displays. The Medium preset at 153.7 FPS is also viable and offers a 19.8% FPS improvement over High, which may be preferable for users sensitive to frame rate dips. The Ultra preset at 78.6 FPS is only suitable for 60 Hz displays or users who prioritize absolute visual quality over smoothness. The Low preset at 187.2 FPS is excessive for 4K, as the visual quality loss is significant and the FPS gain over High is only 45.9%.

The data suggests that the High preset is the sweet spot across all resolutions, with 4K High being the most demanding configuration that still maintains a high refresh rate. Users with 60 Hz 4K displays could consider Ultra, but the 49.7 FPS drop from High is substantial. For the best experience per the measured rows, 1440p High delivers the highest frame rate above 200 FPS while maintaining balanced visual quality, and 4K High is the strongest 4K option for those with 120 Hz+ monitors.