Downfall

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Downfall shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases, but the magnitude of the drop reveals where the bottleneck sits. At 1080p with Low settings, this combo produces 147.2 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 103.5 FPS, a reduction of roughly 30%. Stepping up to 4K at Low settings yields 64.8 FPS, which is another 37% drop from the 1440p figure. This steep decline as pixel count rises is the signature of a GPU-limited scenario.

The pattern holds across all settings tiers. At High settings, the frame rate falls from 98.4 FPS at 1080p to 73.3 FPS at 1440p, then to 45.7 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is about 25%, while the gap between 1440p and 4K is about 38%. This accelerating falloff indicates that the GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the primary constraint at higher resolutions; the CPU has ample headroom to feed frames, but the GPU simply cannot keep up with the increasing pixel workload.

The Ultra preset tells a similar story with even harsher numbers. At 1080p Ultra, the combo manages 59.7 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 45.9 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it collapses to 25.2 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is barely playable, while the 1080p Ultra result is acceptable for a horror title where atmosphere matters more than twitch response. The data strongly suggests that 4K is only viable on Low or Medium settings, and even then, the 64.8 FPS Low result is the only 4K figure that approaches smoothness.

What does this say about the limiting component? The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443 and single-core score of 5003 place it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Such a processor is not going to be the limiting factor in a 2016 horror game at any resolution. The GPU, by contrast, is a GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER, which sits in the 55th percentile of all GPUs with a PassMark G3D score of 12699. The resolution scaling data confirms that the GTX 1660 SUPER is the ceiling for this pairing.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with the TU116 chip, fabricated on a 12 nm process at TSMC. It contains 6,600 million transistors on a 284 mm² die. The GPU operates with a base clock of 1530 MHz and a boost clock of 1785 MHz. Memory is 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 1750 MHz, which translates to 14 Gbps effective.

These specifications directly explain the measured FPS results. The 6 GB VRAM capacity is adequate for Downfall's 1080p and 1440p presets, but at 4K with Ultra settings, the game's memory footprint likely pushes against this limit. The 192-bit bus and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are modest by modern standards, and the resolution scaling data shows that this becomes a serious constraint at 4K.

The GPU's shading resources include 1408 shading units, 88 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The pixel rate is 85.68 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 157.1 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 5.027 TFLOPS, with FP16 at 10.05 TFLOPS (2:1). These figures place the GTX 1660 SUPER in a mid-range tier, which is consistent with its 55th percentile ranking and PassMark G3D score of 12699.

The GPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11, which scores 14314 (a delta of -0.2%), and the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics at 14315 (-0.2%). The AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT scores 14389, which is -0.7% relative to the GTX 1660 SUPER. These are extremely tight margins, meaning the GTX 1660 SUPER is effectively performance-parity with these competitors. The data shows that in raw GPU compute terms, this card is not a standout; it is the CPU pairing that boosts the overall combo.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Downfall at 4K smoothly?

A: At 4K Low settings, the combo produces 64.8 FPS average, which is playable. At 4K Medium, it drops to 55.5 FPS, and at 4K High, it falls to 45.7 FPS. The 4K Ultra preset is not viable, yielding only 25.2 FPS.

Q: What is the best resolution for this pairing?

A: 1080p is the sweet spot. The combo delivers 147.2 FPS at Low, 121.1 FPS at Medium, 98.4 FPS at High, and 59.7 FPS at Ultra. All four presets at 1080p exceed the 4K Low result.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The GTX 1660 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 14286. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11, scores 14314, which is -0.2% different. The Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics at 14315 (-0.2%) and AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT at 14389 (-0.7%) are all within 1% of each other.

Q: Is the CPU holding back the GPU in this game?

A: No. The Intel Core i7-14700F has 20 cores and 28 threads, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443 and a single-core score of 5003. It ranks in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. The measured FPS drops with resolution indicate the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 1440p Low, the combo averages 103.5 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 45.9 FPS. That is a reduction of over 55% when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Does the 6 GB VRAM cause problems?

A: The data does not show explicit VRAM-related failures, but the steep drop from 4K High (45.7 FPS) to 4K Ultra (25.2 FPS) suggests that the Ultra preset at 4K exceeds what the GPU can comfortably handle, likely due to both memory capacity and bandwidth constraints.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1541 out of 1741 tested combos in Downfall. This places it in the lower 12th percentile of all combinations, which is a poor showing for a pairing that includes such a powerful CPU. The rank reflects the GPU's limitations more than the CPU's capabilities.

To put this in perspective, the CPU alone ranks in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54097. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, scores 54450, a delta of -0.6%. The Intel Xeon Phi 7290 scores 53469, which is +1.2% relative to the i7-14700F. The AMD EPYC 7313P is +1.7% with a score of 53206. These are all high-end processors that would excel in CPU-bound scenarios.

The GPU, however, ranks in the 55th percentile of all GPUs. The combination of a top-tier CPU with a mid-range GPU results in a combo that is heavily constrained by the graphics card. The data shows that in Downfall, a game from 2016, this pairing underperforms relative to what the CPU alone would suggest. The combo rank of 1541 out of 1741 indicates that most other tested combinations deliver better overall performance in this specific title.

The lesson from the ranking data is clear: the GTX 1660 SUPER is the weak link. Even though the CPU is in the top 6% of all processors, the combo rank is dragged down by a GPU that is only average. For a horror game like Downfall, which relies on atmosphere and lighting effects, the GPU's rendering capabilities matter more than the CPU's raw compute power.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the user's target resolution and frame rate preference. The data shows that 1080p is the most forgiving resolution, with all presets producing playable frame rates. At 1080p High, the combo delivers 98.4 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. This is the recommended preset for most users, as it balances visual quality with performance headroom.

For users with 1440p monitors, the Medium preset at 84.5 FPS is the best choice. It provides a solid frame rate while maintaining reasonable visual fidelity. The High preset at 73.3 FPS is also acceptable, but the Medium preset leaves more headroom for demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 45.9 FPS is borderline and should be avoided unless the user prioritizes visual quality over smoothness.

At 4K, the options are limited. The Low preset at 64.8 FPS is the only 4K setting that approaches smoothness. The Medium preset at 55.5 FPS is playable but may feel sluggish in intense moments. The High preset at 45.7 FPS and Ultra at 25.2 FPS are not recommended for 4K gaming. Users with 4K displays should either accept Low settings or consider lowering the resolution to 1440p for a better experience.

The Ultra preset is consistently the worst performer across all resolutions. At 1080p Ultra, the combo manages 59.7 FPS, which is just below the 60 FPS target. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 45.9 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 25.2 FPS. The performance cost of Ultra settings is substantial, and the visual benefit in a horror game may not justify the frame rate penalty.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured frame rates for this combo in Downfall is as follows:

At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 147.2 FPS. The Medium preset averages 121.1 FPS. The High preset averages 98.4 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 59.7 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 87.5 FPS, showing that settings have a massive impact at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 103.5 FPS. The Medium preset averages 84.5 FPS. The High preset averages 73.3 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 45.9 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 57.6 FPS, which is narrower than at 1080p but still significant.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 64.8 FPS. The Medium preset averages 55.5 FPS. The High preset averages 45.7 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 25.2 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 39.6 FPS, and the Ultra result is the worst measured value in the entire dataset.

Comparing across resolutions, the 1080p Low result of 147.2 FPS is the highest measured value, while the 4K Ultra result of 25.2 FPS is the lowest. The data shows that the combo can achieve smooth frame rates at 1080p with any preset, but 4K gaming requires significant compromises.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Core 14th Gen series, based on the Raptor Lake architecture on a 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus.

The benchmark data shows this is an exceptionally capable processor. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 35443, with a single-core score of 5003. Geekbench scores are 16571 multi-core and 2711 single-core. PassMark multithread score is 41765, and single-thread score is 4261. The average benchmark score is 54097, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs.

In the context of Downfall, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with frames. The game was released in 2016, and its engine is not likely to utilize 20 cores fully. However, the high single-core performance, evidenced by the 5003 Cinebench R23 single-core score, ensures that the CPU can handle any game logic or physics calculations without becoming a bottleneck. The data shows that the FPS drops are entirely attributable to the GPU, as the CPU has far more compute headroom than the GTX 1660 SUPER can consume.

The nearest CPU rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X with an average score of 54450 (-0.6% delta), the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D at 54681 (-1.1%), the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 at 53469 (+1.2%), and the AMD EPYC 7313P at 53206 (+1.7%). These are all high-end parts, and the i7-14700F sits comfortably among them. The CPU is not the issue in this pairing; it is the GPU that holds back the overall combo rank of 1541 out of 1741.