Downfall

The Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 produces a compelling dataset for Downfall, a 2016 horror title. The measured frames per second across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound, though the CPU’s capabilities set the ceiling for extreme frame rates. This analysis breaks down the numbers, contextualizes the performance against the hardware’s theoretical benchmarks, and provides a clear picture of what gamers can expect from this combination.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain high frame rates in Downfall?*

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440, the combo achieves an average of 159.9 FPS on High settings, which is a strong balance of visual fidelity and performance. At 1920x1080, the average jumps to 223.4 FPS on High, but the massive 337.5 FPS on Low suggests the GPU is no longer the primary limiter at that point.

Q: How much of a performance drop occurs when moving from 1080p to 4K?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 223.4 at 1920x1080 to 102.9 at 3840x2160. This represents a significant 54% reduction in frame rate, which is a typical scaling pattern for a GPU-heavy load as pixel count quadruples.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-14400F holding back the RTX 5070 in this game?

A: The evidence suggests the CPU is not a bottleneck at higher resolutions. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 65.1, indicating the GPU is working at its limit. However, at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the 337.5 FPS average approaches the CPU’s practical output limit, as its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21914 suggests strong but not unlimited headroom.

Q: Which settings preset offers the most significant FPS gain over Ultra?

A: Dropping from Ultra to High yields a substantial improvement. At 2560x1440, the average FPS increases from 101.2 to 159.9, a 58% uplift. This suggests that the Ultra preset introduces rendering features that are disproportionately demanding on the RTX 5070.

*Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations for Downfall?*

A: The combo ranks 357th out of 1741 tested combinations. This places it in the top 20.5% of all systems, indicating that while it is not a top-tier enthusiast setup, it delivers performance that is well above the median for this game.

Q: What is the launch MSRP for the components in this test?

A: The Intel Core i5-14400F has a launch MSRP of $196, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 has a launch MSRP of 549 USD.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is the dominant force in this configuration, and the Downfall data confirms its central role. The GPU’s 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for the textures and geometry in a 2016 title, even at 4K resolutions. The measured FPS at 3840x2160 with High settings (102.9 FPS) and Ultra settings (65.1 FPS) shows a clear performance scaling that is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the workload scales directly with the number of pixels and the complexity of the shaders.

The clock speeds are also a key factor. The base clock of 2325 MHz and boost clock of 2512 MHz allow the GPU to maintain high throughput. In a horror game like Downfall, which often relies on dynamic lighting and shadow effects to create atmosphere, the 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture are likely handling these effects efficiently. The data suggests that the GPU is capable of producing very high frame rates, as evidenced by the 337.5 FPS at 1080p Low, but this headroom is only fully realized when the CPU can keep up with the frame generation requests.

The PassMark G3D score of 29137 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5077 are synthetic benchmarks that align with the in-game results. The GPU’s performance percentile of 83 out of 100 (percentileVsAllGpus) indicates it is a high-end part, but its nearestRivals list includes the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090, which have similar average scores. This shows that while the RTX 5070 is powerful, its performance in Downfall is not an outlier; it is consistent with its position in the broader GPU landscape.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a classic resolution scaling curve for a GPU-bound workload. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at High settings, the average FPS drops from 223.4 to 159.9, a 28% decrease. This is a substantial but expected drop as the pixel count increases by roughly 78%. The scaling becomes more pronounced when moving to 3840x2160, where the High preset delivers 102.9 FPS, a 36% drop from the 1440p result. This pattern indicates that the RTX 5070 is the primary limiting component at all resolutions above 1080p.

The data at Low settings provides further insight. At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 337.5, which is extremely high. However, at 2560x1440, it drops to 238.4, and at 3840x2160, it falls to 149.3. The relative drop from 1080p to 1440p is 29%, which is similar to the High setting drop. This consistency suggests that even with minimal graphical load, the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth are the deciding factors. The fact that the 1080p Low result (337.5 FPS) is so much higher than the 1440p Low result (238.4 FPS) implies that the CPU is able to feed frames fast enough at the lower resolution, but the GPU’s pixel processing capability becomes the bottleneck as resolution increases.

This scaling behavior is important for players. It suggests that for a 1440p monitor, the combo is perfectly suited, as it can push well over 150 FPS on High. For 4K, the system is still very playable, but users will need to make a choice between High settings (102.9 FPS) and Ultra settings (65.1 FPS), with the latter sacrificing significant performance for marginal visual gains in a title from this era.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 357 out of 1741 tested combinations places it in the upper echelon of systems tested for Downfall. This ranking is a strong indicator that the pairing of the i5-14400F and RTX 5070 is well-balanced for this specific game. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus of 88 and the GPU’s percentileVsAllGpus of 83 both contribute to this high standing. The data suggests that while there are more powerful combinations available, this one is capable of delivering a high-refresh-rate experience at 1440p and a solid 4K experience, which is more than sufficient for the vast majority of gamers.

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i7-12800H has an average score of 32513, which is nearly identical to the i5-14400F’s average of 32508. The deltaPct of 0 between them indicates that in synthetic tests, they are functionally equivalent. For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 has an average score of 41441, which is slightly lower than the RTX 5070’s 41687, putting the newer card at a 0.6% advantage. This contextualizes the combo’s performance: it is essentially matching the output of a previous-generation high-end card and a mobile high-end CPU, which confirms the efficiency of the current components.

The rank of 357 suggests that the system sits comfortably in the top 20% of all tested configurations. It is not a top-10 contender, but it is far from a budget setup. For Downfall, this means the combo will handle all scenarios with ease, and the primary consideration for the user will be choosing between maximizing frame rate or visual fidelity, rather than worrying about playability.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1920x1080, the High preset is the clear recommendation. It delivers an average of 223.4 FPS, which is well above the 144Hz refresh rate common on modern monitors, and it offers a significant visual upgrade over the Medium preset (275.9 FPS). The Ultra preset at this resolution (139.6 FPS) is also viable for 120Hz displays, but the performance cost is steep relative to the High preset.

At 2560x1440, the High preset is again the sweet spot, providing an average of 159.9 FPS. This is an excellent result for a 1440p high-refresh-rate monitor. The Medium preset (198.8 FPS) is an option for players who prioritize competitive frame rates over visuals, but the jump from Medium to High is generally worth the 20% performance drop in a horror game where atmosphere is key. The Ultra preset at 101.2 FPS is playable but may feel less smooth on a 144Hz panel.

For 3840x2160, the recommendation changes. The High preset (102.9 FPS) is the best choice for a smooth 4K experience, as it allows the game to run at over 100 FPS on a 4K display. The Ultra preset (65.1 FPS) is only recommended for players with a 60Hz 4K monitor who want the absolute best visual quality. The data clearly shows that the jump from High to Ultra at this resolution is not worth the 37% performance penalty, as the visual difference in a game from 2016 is likely to be minimal.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table breaks down the average FPS results for each resolution and settings preset:

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS |

|:--------- |:------- | ------: |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 337.5 |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 275.9 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 223.4 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 139.6 |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 238.4 |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 198.8 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 159.9 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 101.2 |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 149.3 |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 123.2 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 102.9 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 65.1 |

The data shows a consistent pattern: as resolution increases, the FPS drops proportionally across all settings. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 197.9 FPS, which narrows to 84.2 FPS at 4K. This suggests that the GPU’s raw compute power is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, while at lower resolutions, the CPU’s ability to issue draw calls becomes more relevant, as evidenced by the 337.5 FPS result.

CPU Role

While the GPU handles the majority of the graphical workload, the Intel Core i5-14400F plays a critical role in ensuring the system can reach its maximum frame rates. The CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads, based on the Raptor Lake architecture, provide ample processing power for game logic and physics. Its boost clock of 4.70 GHz is high enough to prevent it from becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios, but the data suggests that at 1080p with Low settings, the CPU is nearing its limit.

The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21914 and single-core score of 3093 indicate a strong processor. The single-core performance is crucial for gaming, as many game engines still rely heavily on a few threads for main loop updates. The fact that the 1080p Low result (337.5 FPS) is not significantly higher than the 1440p Low result (238.4 FPS) suggests that the CPU is struggling to feed the GPU with enough frames at the lower resolution. This is a common scenario where the CPU becomes the bottleneck, and the frame rate is capped by the processor’s ability to process the game’s logic.

The CPU’s nearestRivals list includes the Intel Core i7-12800H and AMD Ryzen 7 250, which have similar average benchmark scores. This shows that the i5-14400F is a capable mid-range processor that competes well with other high-end mobile and desktop parts. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache is ample for gaming, and its support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory allows for flexibility in system configuration. In Downfall, the CPU is not the star of the show, but it is a reliable workhorse that enables the RTX 5070 to perform at its best, especially at higher resolutions where the GPU load is more intensive.