Downfall

Downfall, a 2016 horror title, stresses hardware differently than modern shooters. This analysis of the Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT shows a combination that is heavily influenced by resolution and graphics presets. The benchmark data reveals a system capable of high refresh rates at 1080p, but one that buckles under the strain of 4K Ultra settings, where the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frames per second (FPS) data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo delivers 194.1 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops that to 138.8 FPS, a significant reduction of 55.3 FPS. The jump to 4K High further reduces performance to 88.7 FPS, which is a 50.1 FPS drop from the 1440p result. This trajectory indicates that while the CPU has ample headroom at lower resolutions, the GPU’s workload grows exponentially with pixel count.

The scaling becomes even more dramatic when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 287 FPS. At 1440p Low, it still manages 209.7 FPS, and at 4K Low, it falls to 131.7 FPS. The 4K Low result is still highly playable, but the 155.3 FPS difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low highlights how the Radeon RX 6800 XT’s rendering pipeline is the primary constraint in this scenario. The data suggests that at 1080p, the Intel Core i7-13700K is able to feed the GPU efficiently, but as resolution climbs, the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth become the limiting factors.

The most telling data point is the Ultra preset. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS collapses to 51.5, which is a 37.2 FPS drop from the already demanding 4K High setting. This steep decline from High to Ultra at 4K (88.7 to 51.5 FPS) indicates that the Ultra preset introduces effects that disproportionately tax the GPU’s compute units and memory subsystem. In contrast, the scaling from 1080p Ultra (122.9 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (88.6 FPS) is a 34.3 FPS drop, which is proportionally similar but starts from a higher base. The 4K Ultra figure is the only one in the entire dataset that falls below the 60 FPS threshold, marking it as the definitive point where this hardware combination loses its smoothness.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all tested hardware combinations for Downfall, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i7-13700K and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT secures a rank of 584 out of 1741 tested combos. This places it in the upper third of all configurations, suggesting that it is a capable performer for this title. However, the ranking also indicates that a substantial number of combinations deliver higher average frame rates, likely due to more powerful GPUs or configurations better optimized for this specific game engine.

The GPU’s individual standing helps explain this rank. The Radeon RX 6800 XT sits at the 87th percentile among all GPUs, which is a strong position. Its nearest rivals in the database include the Intel Arc A550M, which is 0.5% ahead, and the NVIDIA RTX A1000, which is 1.7% ahead. The fact that the GPU is neither at the top nor the bottom of the pack means the combo’s rank is a function of the CPU keeping pace without becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios. The Intel Core i7-13700K is at the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, which is higher than the GPU’s percentile. This data suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this pairing; instead, the GPU determines the overall rank.

When looking at the CPU’s direct rivals, the Intel Core i7-13700KF is virtually identical, with a delta of -0.1%, meaning it scores marginally lower. The AMD EPYC 4364P is 0.3% ahead, and the Intel Core i9-12900F is 0.4% ahead. These are all within a very tight margin, confirming that the CPU’s processing power is not what separates this combo from others in the same tier. The rank of 584 is therefore a direct reflection of the RX 6800 XT’s performance ceiling in Downfall, particularly at higher resolutions and settings where the GPU is saturated.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is a RDNA 2.0 architecture part with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU’s boost clock is rated at 2250 MHz, with a game clock of 2015 MHz. These specifications are crucial for understanding Downfall’s performance, as the game’s horror environments often rely on heavy texture detail and lighting effects. The 16 GB frame buffer is not a limiting factor in this game; none of the measured results indicate a memory capacity issue, even at 4K Ultra.

Instead, the data points to the GPU’s raw compute and memory bandwidth as the primary drivers of the FPS results. The 4K Ultra result of 51.5 FPS is a clear indicator that the GPU’s shading units and ROPs are overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and maximum effects. The 128 ROPs and 4608 shading units are simply not sufficient to maintain high frame rates when the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K. The FP32 performance of 20.74 TFLOPS provides the theoretical ceiling, but the measured results show that the memory interface, while wide, is still a bottleneck for the most demanding settings.

The GPU’s benchmark scores reinforce its mid-to-high-tier status. Its Passmark G3D score is 24980, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 3689. These are respectable numbers, but the Geekbench OpenCL score of 154506 and Vulkan score of 152200 are more indicative of its general compute capabilities rather than gaming-specific performance. In Downfall, the GPU’s role is clear: it provides a solid experience at 1080p and 1440p across all presets, but it cannot sustain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra. The 11 FPS difference between 4K Medium (104.3 FPS) and 4K High (88.7 FPS) shows that the GPU is sensitive to even incremental setting changes at high resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset provides a comprehensive view of performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the results are uniformly high. The Low preset achieves 287 FPS, Medium hits 237.4 FPS, High reaches 194.1 FPS, and Ultra still manages a robust 122.9 FPS. This shows that at standard HD resolution, the Intel Core i7-13700K is more than capable of driving the RX 6800 XT to its limits, and the GPU is never the limiting factor.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain strong but show the expected decline. Low drops to 209.7 FPS, Medium to 169.6 FPS, High to 138.8 FPS, and Ultra to 88.6 FPS. The 1440p Ultra result is notable because it is nearly identical to the 4K High result (88.7 FPS), suggesting that the GPU workload is similar for these two very different configurations. This is a strong indicator that the GPU’s fill rate is the limiting factor for both scenarios.

At 3840x2160, the breakdown is stark. Low delivers 131.7 FPS, which is still very smooth, and Medium offers 104.3 FPS, which is excellent for 4K. High drops to 88.7 FPS, which is playable. However, Ultra falls to 51.5 FPS, which is below the standard for smooth gameplay. The progression from Low to Ultra at 4K is a drop of 80.2 FPS, highlighting the massive performance cost of the highest preset. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K being viable only for those willing to compromise on settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this hardware combination is achieved by prioritizing resolution over preset quality. For players targeting 1080p, all presets are viable, but the Medium preset at 237.4 FPS offers a perfect balance between visual fidelity and headroom for high refresh rate monitors. The High preset at 194.1 FPS is also excellent, but Ultra at 122.9 FPS, while playable, represents a significant performance hit for marginal visual gains in a horror title where atmosphere is key.

For 1440p, the Medium preset at 169.6 FPS is the sweet spot. It provides a smooth, high-refresh-rate experience that maximizes the GPU’s capabilities without pushing it to its limits. The High preset at 138.8 FPS is also a strong choice, but the drop to 88.6 FPS at Ultra is too steep to recommend, as it sacrifices the fluidity that the lower presets offer. The 1440p Low preset at 209.7 FPS is overkill for most displays, but it demonstrates the combo’s headroom.

At 4K, the recommendation is clear: use the Medium preset. The 104.3 FPS average is smooth and maintains a high level of visual quality. The Low preset at 131.7 FPS is faster but sacrifices too much detail. The High preset at 88.7 FPS is acceptable, but the Ultra preset at 51.5 FPS is not recommended for consistent gameplay. The data indicates that the Ultra preset should be avoided entirely with this combo; even at 1440p, the 88.6 FPS result is only marginally better than the 4K High result, meaning players gain nothing by using Ultra at a lower resolution when they could use High at a higher resolution. The best experience is 1440p Medium or 4K Medium, depending on the player’s preference for resolution versus frame rate.