Downfall

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER delivers a playable but resolution-dependent experience in Downfall. Across the measured matrix, the combination shows a clear pattern of scaling that shifts the performance bottleneck between the GPU and CPU as resolution and settings change. The data indicates that this pairing is best suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p and 1440p gaming, while 4K requires careful settings management to maintain fluid frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance drop as resolution increases, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound workload at higher pixel counts. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces an average of 141 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average falls to 101 FPS, a reduction of approximately 28%. Stepping up to 4K High yields only 63 FPS, which is a 55% drop from the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern indicates that the RTX 2070 SUPER's rendering throughput—not the Ryzen 9 7900X's processing power—becomes the limiting factor as pixel count rises.

The gap between 1080p and 1440p is notable but less severe than the leap to 4K. At Medium settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (172 FPS) to 2560x1440 (123 FPS) results in a 28.5% performance loss. The same settings tier shows a further drop to 77 FPS at 4K, a 37.4% decline from the 1440p result. The consistency of these percentage drops across settings tiers suggests a stable scaling behavior where the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the primary constraints.

Ultra settings amplify the resolution penalty dramatically. The combo manages 88 FPS at 1080p Ultra, which drops to 63 FPS at 1440p Ultra—a 28.4% reduction. At 4K Ultra, the average plummets to 39 FPS, a 55.7% loss from 1440p and a 55.7% loss from 1080p. This non-linear scaling at 4K Ultra indicates that the 8 GB VRAM buffer and the GPU's compute resources are severely strained, causing the frame rate to fall below the 60 FPS threshold that many users consider the minimum for smooth gameplay.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with a TU104 chip manufactured on a 12 nm process. Its specifications include 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 raster operation units. The card operates at a base clock of 1605 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz, and it features 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores. Memory configuration consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. These figures place the GPU in the 65th percentile of all tested graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 20282.

In Downfall, the GPU's performance ceiling is most evident at 4K resolution. Even at Low settings, the card only achieves 94 FPS at 3840x2160, while the same settings at 1080p produce 210 FPS—a 55.2% difference. This indicates that the GPU's pixel processing rate and memory bandwidth are insufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K, regardless of the reduced shading load from lower settings. The 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 8 GB VRAM capacity become bottlenecks when handling the larger frame buffers and texture sets required at 4K resolution.

The RTX 2070 SUPER's nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M, which scores 20480 (1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile at 20534 (1.2% higher), and the Intel Arc B570 at 20556 (1.3% higher). These comparisons show that the 2070 SUPER sits at the lower end of its performance tier, and the measured FPS in Downfall reflects this positioning. At 1440p Ultra, the card produces 63 FPS, which is identical to its 4K High result—indicating that the Ultra preset at 1440p imposes a similar load to the High preset at 4K.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 7000 series, built on the Zen 4 architecture (codenamed Raphael) using a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features a base clock of 4.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with a TDP of 170 W. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 64 KB L1 per core, 1 MB L2 per core, and a shared 64 MB L3 cache. Memory support is DDR5 with dual-channel configuration, offering a bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s. The processor sits in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53288.

In the context of Downfall, the Ryzen 9 7900X's role is to feed the GPU with geometry and draw calls. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 210 FPS, which is the highest measured result in the entire matrix. This suggests that the CPU is capable of sustaining very high frame rates when the GPU is not the limiting factor. The CPU's strong single-thread performance—evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1093 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2016.5—likely contributes to this headroom.

However, the CPU's influence diminishes at higher resolutions. When comparing the 1080p Low result (210 FPS) to the 1440p Low result (150 FPS), the 28.6% drop indicates that the GPU is becoming the bottleneck. The gap between 1440p Low (150 FPS) and 4K Low (94 FPS) is even larger at 37.3%, further confirming that the GPU's rendering capacity is the primary constraint. The CPU's 12 cores and 24 threads provide ample processing power for Downfall's workloads, and the benchmark results show no signs of CPU-induced frame rate caps at any resolution tested.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimizing the balance between visual quality and performance. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 172 FPS with a minimum of 146 FPS, which is well above the threshold for high-refresh-rate displays. The High preset at the same resolution produces 141 FPS, still offering a smooth experience, while Ultra drops to 88 FPS—a significant reduction that may not be justified by the visual improvements in a horror game where atmosphere matters more than fine detail.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the strongest recommendation. It achieves 123 FPS with a minimum of 105 FPS, ensuring consistent frame delivery without dips below the 100 FPS mark. The High preset at 101 FPS is also viable, but the 17.9% performance penalty compared to Medium may not translate to a proportional visual benefit. The Ultra preset at 63 FPS is usable but puts the experience on the edge of the 60 FPS threshold, and any demanding scenes could cause noticeable stutter.

At 3840x2160, the options are more constrained. The Low preset at 94 FPS is the only configuration that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS, while Medium at 77 FPS (with a minimum of 65 FPS) provides a playable experience with better visuals. The High preset at 63 FPS is borderline, and Ultra at 39 FPS is not recommended for serious gameplay. For 4K users, the Medium preset offers the best compromise, as it maintains a minimum FPS above 60 while providing more visual fidelity than Low.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in Downfall?*

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 and 2560x1440 both deliver excellent results. At 1080p Medium the combo averages 172 FPS, and at 1440p Medium it averages 123 FPS. The 4K resolution is playable but requires settings management to stay above 60 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2070 SUPER compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 2070 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 20282, which is 1% lower than the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (20480), 1.2% lower than the RTX 3070 Mobile (20534), and 1.3% lower than the Intel Arc B570 (20556). In Downfall, this translates to the measured FPS values across all resolutions.

Q: Is the Ryzen 9 7900X a bottleneck at any resolution?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 210 FPS, demonstrating that the CPU can push very high frame rates. The performance drops at higher resolutions align with GPU limitations rather than CPU constraints.

Q: What FPS can I expect at 1440p Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 Ultra is 63 FPS. This is identical to the 4K High result, suggesting that the Ultra preset at 1440p imposes a similar rendering load to High at 4K.

Q: Should I use the Ultra preset at 1080p?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset delivers 88 FPS average. While this is playable, it represents a 38.8% reduction compared to the Medium preset (172 FPS). If you prioritize frame rate consistency, Medium or High is preferable.

Q: How does the 4K Medium preset perform?

A: At 3840x2160 Medium, the combo averages 77 FPS with a minimum of 65 FPS. This is the only 4K setting tier that maintains a minimum above 60 FPS, making it the recommended choice for 4K displays.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance hierarchy is clear across the four settings tiers. The Low preset produces an average of 210 FPS, which is the highest measured result in the entire resolution/settings matrix. Medium delivers 172 FPS with a minimum of 146 FPS and a maximum of 198 FPS, providing a wide margin above the 60 FPS threshold. High settings yield 141 FPS, while Ultra drops to 88 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 58.1% reduction in average frame rate, indicating that the Ultra preset places a substantial additional load on the GPU's shading and memory subsystems.

The 2560x1440 results follow a similar pattern but at lower absolute values. Low settings produce 150 FPS, Medium achieves 123 FPS with a minimum of 105 FPS and a maximum of 141 FPS, High delivers 101 FPS, and Ultra falls to 63 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is 17.9%, while the jump from High to Ultra is 37.6%. This suggests that the Ultra preset at 1440p introduces rendering features that disproportionately impact the RTX 2070 SUPER's performance.

At 3840x2160, the data shows a compressed range of playable options. Low settings reach 94 FPS, Medium averages 77 FPS with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS, High drops to 63 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 39 FPS. The difference between Medium and High is 18.2%, while the fall from High to Ultra is 38.1%. The 4K Ultra result of 39 FPS is the lowest measured value in the entire matrix and falls well below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER ranks 2157th out of 3716 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the 42nd percentile of all configurations. This mid-pack ranking reflects the GPU's position in the performance hierarchy—the RTX 2070 SUPER sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, while the Ryzen 9 7900X is in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. The disparity between these two percentiles indicates that the GPU is the limiting component in this pairing.

The combo's ranking is consistent with its measured performance. At 1080p Medium, the 172 FPS average places it in a competitive range for high-refresh-rate gaming, but the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and older Turing architecture prevent it from competing with more modern configurations at higher resolutions. The 4K Ultra result of 39 FPS is particularly telling, as it shows the combo struggling with the most demanding settings that newer GPUs handle with greater ease.

The rank of 2157 out of 3716 suggests that there is substantial performance headroom available in other combinations that pair the Ryzen 9 7900X with more powerful graphics cards. The CPU's high percentile ranking (91%) means that it is not the constraining factor in this system, and upgrading the GPU would yield significant improvements in Downfall across all resolutions and settings tiers.