Downfall

The Intel Core i5-9400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a playable experience across all tested settings in Downfall, but the benchmark data reveals a significant bottleneck that shifts depending on resolution. At 1080p, the combination achieves an average of 269.9 FPS on Low settings, but this drops to 179.2 FPS on Ultra, indicating that the CPU is heavily limiting performance at lower resolutions. As resolution increases to 1440p, the frame rate gap narrows, with Ultra producing 126.3 FPS, while at 4K, the Ultra preset falls to 77.6 FPS, showing the GPU taking on a more dominant role. The data suggests that this pairing is capable of high refresh-rate gaming at 1440p, but the aging six-core processor prevents the RTX 5080 from reaching its full potential in lighter scenes.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS values show a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases, but the rate of decline is not uniform across settings. From 1080p to 1440p, the High preset drops from 233.3 FPS to 202 FPS, a modest 13% reduction. However, moving from 1440p to 4K at High settings yields a more substantial drop from 202 FPS to 126 FPS, a 38% decrease. This non-linear scaling indicates that at 1080p, the i5-9400 is the limiting factor, as the RTX 5080 is not being fully utilized; the GPU has ample headroom to render more frames if the CPU could feed it faster. At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary constraint, as the pixel workload increases dramatically, and the frame rate scales more predictably with the GPU's compute capabilities.

The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling behavior. At 1080p, it reaches 179.2 FPS, which is 66% lower than the Low preset's 269.9 FPS. This suggests that even at 1080p, the Ultra settings introduce enough graphical complexity to engage the GPU more fully, but the CPU still holds back performance. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 77.6 is only 41% of the 1080p Low result, confirming that the RTX 5080's raw power is being taxed by the resolution increase. The data indicates that the sweet spot for this combo is 1440p, where the frame rates remain above 200 FPS on most presets, and the CPU bottleneck is less pronounced than at 1080p.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 is a six-core, six-thread processor from the Coffee Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. Its benchmark scores place it at the 50th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 2305. This mid-range positioning is reflected in the game's results, where the CPU's limited thread count and clock speed become apparent. In Cinebench R23, the processor scores 7969 in multi-core and 1125 in single-core, indicating that it has adequate single-thread performance for older titles like Downfall, but its multi-threaded capabilities are constrained by having only six threads.

The CPU's nearest rival, the Intel Core i3-10305, scores 2300 with a deltaPct of 0.2%, meaning they are virtually identical in overall performance. This similarity explains why the i5-9400 struggles to push frame rates higher at 1080p Low, where the CPU is the primary bottleneck. The 269.9 FPS at 1080p Low represents the maximum throughput the six cores can deliver, and increasing resolution does not improve this ceiling. The processor's 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for the game, but the lack of hyper-threading means that heavily threaded workloads could cause frame dips, though the measured data shows consistent averages without min FPS values to verify this.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a flagship GPU from the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 10752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 112 render output units, with a boost clock of 2617 MHz. The GPU's 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for high-resolution textures in Downfall. Its benchmark scores are impressive, with a Passmark G3D score of 36565 and a Geekbench OpenCL score of 264461, placing it at the 89th percentile among all GPUs.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 59188 puts it slightly ahead of the Intel Arc A570M, which scores 58239 with a deltaPct of 1.6%, and behind the Intel Arc Pro A60, which scores 60326 with a deltaPct of -1.9%. This indicates that the RTX 5080 is a top-tier performer, and its capabilities are only partially utilized in this pairing. At 4K Ultra, the GPU is working hard to produce 77.6 FPS, which is a playable result for a horror game, but the frame rate is far below what the GPU could achieve with a more powerful CPU. The 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 879.3 GTexel/s texture rate suggest that the GPU is not the limiting factor at 1080p or 1440p, where the CPU's inability to issue draw calls quickly enough caps performance.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested combos for Downfall, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 238 out of 1741 tested combinations. This places it in the top 14% of all systems tested, which is a strong result given the CPU's age. The rank is influenced by the GPU's high percentile score of 89, which pulls the average performance up, but the CPU's 50th percentile ranking prevents the combo from achieving a higher position. The data shows that many other combos with more modern processors and similar GPUs would outperform this pairing, particularly at lower resolutions where the CPU bottleneck is most pronounced.

The combo's rank is also affected by the game's release date of 2016, which means Downfall is not particularly demanding on modern hardware. The RTX 5080's 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for the game, and the GPU's raw compute power allows for high frame rates even at 4K. However, the i5-9400's six threads are sufficient for the game's engine, which likely does not scale well beyond six cores. The rank of 238 suggests that this is a well-balanced system for this specific title, but users seeking maximum performance would benefit from a CPU with higher single-thread performance or more cores.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to use with this combo for high refresh rates?

A: The data shows that 1440p is the optimal resolution, with the High preset achieving 202 FPS and Medium reaching 224.1 FPS. At 1080p, the CPU limits performance, so the gains from lowering resolution are minimal.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2305, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i3-10305's score of 2300, making them effectively equal in overall performance.

Q: Is the RTX 5080's 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: Yes, the 16 GB of GDDR7 memory is more than adequate for Downfall, as the game's Ultra preset only requires enough VRAM for high-resolution textures, and the GPU has ample bandwidth at 960.0 GB/s.

Q: Why does the FPS drop so much from 1080p to 4K on Ultra settings?

A: The frame rate drops from 179.2 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 77.6 FPS at 4K Ultra because the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the pixel workload increases and the CPU bottleneck is reduced.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all tested GPUs?

A: The RTX 5080 is in the 89th percentile, meaning it outperforms 89% of GPUs in the database, which is reflected in its high benchmark scores.

Q: Does this combo rank well compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 238 out of 1741 tested combinations, placing it in the top 14%, which is a solid result for a system with an older CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 269.9 FPS, which is the highest recorded value for this combo. The Medium preset reaches 253.1 FPS, High drops to 233.3 FPS, and Ultra falls to 179.2 FPS. This shows a clear progression of decreasing performance as settings increase, with the Ultra preset costing 34% of the Low preset's frame rate.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 243.5 FPS, Medium hits 224.1 FPS, High reaches 202 FPS, and Ultra produces 126.3 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 48%, which is larger than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more involved in rendering. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 188.6 FPS, Medium drops to 155.9 FPS, High falls to 126 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 77.6 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the lowest measured value, and it represents a 59% reduction from the 4K Low preset, demonstrating the significant impact of Ultra settings at this resolution.

Across all resolutions, the Medium preset offers a balanced performance point, with 253.1 FPS at 1080p, 224.1 FPS at 1440p, and 155.9 FPS at 4K. These numbers indicate that Medium settings provide a 25% performance uplift over High at 1440p, making it a viable choice for competitive play. The High preset at 4K, with 126 FPS, is also playable and offers a good balance between visual fidelity and smoothness.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset at 1440p delivers the best overall experience for this combo, averaging 224.1 FPS. This provides a high refresh rate that is well above the 144 Hz threshold for most monitors, while still offering improved visual quality over Low settings. The data shows that the CPU is not a limiting factor at 1440p Medium, as the frame rate is 89% of the 1080p Medium result, indicating that the GPU is being utilized effectively.

For users with 4K displays, the High preset at 126 FPS is the recommended setting, as it offers a smooth experience while maintaining decent visual detail. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 77.6 FPS, which is playable but may not be ideal for fast-paced sequences in a horror game. At 1080p, the Ultra preset at 179.2 FPS is viable for high refresh rate displays, but the CPU bottleneck means that lower settings do not yield significant frame rate improvements beyond 269.9 FPS on Low. The Low preset is not recommended unless aiming for maximum frame rates, as the visual compromise is substantial for a relatively small gain over Medium at 1440p.