Downfall

Downfall, a 2016 horror title, shows a wide performance spread with the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 depending on resolution and quality settings. The measured data provides a clear picture of how this combination handles the game, from high-refresh 1080p to demanding 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the data shows the system is capable of very high frame rates across all settings. The Ultra preset delivers 93 FPS average, which is smooth, but the High preset jumps to 149 FPS, and Low reaches 223 FPS. For players with high-refresh monitors, the High preset at 1080p offers an excellent balance, providing a 60% improvement over Ultra in average FPS while still maintaining a visually detailed scene. Medium at 1080p yields 182 FPS, which is also a strong option if slightly lower visual fidelity is acceptable for an even higher frame rate.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down but remains highly playable. The High preset produces 107 FPS, which is ideal for a 100Hz+ monitor. Ultra at this resolution falls to 67 FPS, which is still playable but a significant drop from High. The Medium preset at 130 FPS is the standout choice here, offering a 21% increase over High and a 94% increase over Ultra, making it the most effective way to enjoy 1440p with high refresh rates. Low at 1440p results in 159 FPS, but the visual compromise is often too great for a horror game where atmosphere matters.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 5070 starts to show its limits. The High preset delivers 66 FPS, which is just at the edge of smoothness for many players. Medium at 4K averages 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS, making it the best choice for a consistent 4K experience. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 42 FPS, which is not recommended for a smooth experience. Low at 4K reaches 99 FPS, but again, the visual downgrade is substantial.

Overall, the data suggests that for a balanced experience, Medium is the sweet spot at 1440p and 4K, while High is best suited for 1080p. Ultra is only viable at 1080p where the hardware has enough headroom to maintain a playable frame rate. The measured frame times for Medium settings at all resolutions show a consistent gap between average and minimum FPS, indicating stable performance without severe hitches.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve over 100 FPS on high settings?

A: The data shows that at 1920x1080 with High settings, the average FPS is 149. At 2560x1440 with High settings, it drops to 107. Both are above 100 FPS, but 1080p provides a much larger margin.

Q: Is the Ultra preset playable at 4K?

A: No. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 42. This is below the 60 FPS threshold typically considered smooth for most players.

Q: How does the Medium preset at 1440p compare to High at 4K?

A: Medium at 2560x1440 averages 130 FPS, while High at 3840x2160 averages 66 FPS. The 1440p Medium setting offers nearly double the frame rate while likely providing a similar level of visual clarity due to the lower resolution scaling.

Q: Does the game show a big performance difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: Yes. The average FPS at 1080p Low is 223, while at Ultra it is 93. This represents a 140% increase in frame rate when dropping from Ultra to Low.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this combo in Downfall?

A: The lowest average FPS is 42, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with the Ultra preset.

Q: Are there any settings where the minimum FPS is recorded?

A: Yes, min FPS data is only available for the Medium preset at all three resolutions: 155 at 1080p, 111 at 1440p, and 69 at 4K. This suggests the Medium preset has the most stable frame pacing in the dataset.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is the primary driver of performance in Downfall, as evidenced by the significant frame rate scaling with resolution. The GPU has 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s. Its boost clock is rated at 2512 MHz. In this game, the GPU's load is clearly the bottleneck at higher resolutions.

The benchmark results indicate that the RTX 5070 sits in the 82nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals, based on average benchmark score, include the AMD Radeon Pro 580 and the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile. The RTX 5070's average benchmark score is 40377, which is 0.1% higher than the Radeon Pro 580 and 2% higher than the RTX A500 Mobile. This data shows that while the GPU is powerful, it's not at the very top of the performance heap.

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is a direct result of the GPU's rendering workload. At 1080p High, the average is 149 FPS, but at 4K High, it falls to 66 FPS. This 56% reduction in frame rate shows how resolution-sensitive the GPU is. The VRAM capacity of 12 GB is not shown to be a limiting factor in the measured data, as even the Ultra preset at 4K, which would use the most memory, still runs, albeit at a low 42 FPS. The GPU's compute capabilities, shown by its Passmark G3D score of 29137, are sufficient for this 2016 title, but the raw pixel throughput at 4K Ultra is simply insufficient for a high frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

Among all tested combinations in the database, this specific pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks 1570 out of 2928 total combos for Downfall. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all possible system configurations. This ranking is a holistic measure that considers performance across various settings and resolutions.

The combo's position suggests that while it can handle the game well at lower resolutions, it struggles to maintain high frame rates at the most demanding settings. This is consistent with the measured FPS data, which shows a steep performance cliff at 4K Ultra. The rank of 1570 implies that a significant number of other CPU-GPU pairings achieve better overall performance in this specific title. This could be due to the CPU's mobile-oriented design or the GPU's positioning in the mid-to-high range, but the data shows the combination is not optimized for maximum 4K performance in Downfall.

The gap between this combo and higher-ranked ones is not directly quantifiable from the rank data alone, but the raw FPS numbers show that the system is much more capable at 1080p and 1440p than at 4K. For a game from 2016, this configuration is more than adequate for high-refresh 1080p gaming, but falls short of being a top-tier 4K performer.

Resolution Scaling

The effect of resolution on frame rate is dramatic and clearly indicates the GPU as the limiting factor. From 1920x1080 to 2560x1440, and then to 3840x2160, the performance drops are consistent across all settings. For example, on High settings, the average FPS progression is 149 at 1080p, 107 at 1440p, and 66 at 4K. This represents a 28% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 38% drop from 1440p to 4K.

The scaling is similar on other presets. At Medium settings, the average FPS is 182 at 1080p, 130 at 1440p, and 81 at 4K. At Low settings, it's 223 at 1080p, 159 at 1440p, and 99 at 4K. The proportional decrease is relatively uniform, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU is not able to offset the increased pixel count, so the GPU's workload scales almost linearly with the resolution.

This data indicates that the limiting component at higher resolutions is unambiguously the GPU. The RTX 5070's raw pixel processing power is the primary constraint. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller performance differences between 1440p and 4K, as the CPU would be doing the same amount of work regardless of resolution. The fact that the FPS drops so significantly with each resolution increase confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor in all scenarios. Players seeking higher frame rates at 4K would need a more powerful GPU, not a faster CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. The Low preset achieves an average of 223 FPS. The Medium preset averages 182 FPS, with a minimum of 155 FPS and a maximum of 210 FPS. High settings average 149 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 93 FPS. All of these are very playable, with even Ultra being a smooth experience.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains strong. Low averages 159 FPS. Medium averages 130 FPS, with a minimum of 111 FPS and a maximum of 150 FPS. High averages 107 FPS. The Ultra preset sees a significant drop to 67 FPS, which is the first point where the experience might start to feel less fluid for some users.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's load becomes apparent. Low settings average 99 FPS. Medium averages 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS. High averages 66 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, averaging only 42 FPS. This is the only setting and resolution combination that falls below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and Ultra widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference is 130 FPS. At 1440p, it's 92 FPS. At 4K, it's 57 FPS. This indicates that the visual complexity of the Ultra preset becomes more punishing at higher resolutions, further confirming the GPU bottleneck.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is a 14-core, 18-thread processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The CPU's benchmark scores show it performs well in both single and multi-threaded tasks. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 11875.5, and its single-core score is 1700. It sits in the 81st percentile of all CPUs.

In Downfall, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU, given the consistent frame rate scaling with resolution. The CPU's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, has an average score that is 0.1% lower, indicating comparable performance. This suggests the Ultra 5 135H has sufficient processing power to feed the RTX 5070 at most settings.

However, at lower resolutions like 1080p, the CPU's performance could become more relevant. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 223 FPS. This high frame rate requires the CPU to process a large number of game logic and draw calls per second. The CPU's strong single-thread performance, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1700, is likely what allows it to maintain these high frame rates. The 4.60 GHz boost clock is crucial for this.

Despite the CPU's capability, the data shows that the GPU is the definitive bottleneck at 1440p and 4K. The CPU is not the limiting factor in this game for resolutions above 1080p. Its 18 threads provide ample multi-tasking headroom, but a game like Downfall, which relies more on single-thread performance, benefits most from the high boost clock. The CPU's performance is sufficient to avoid being a constraint in this specific title, allowing the GPU's capabilities to be the sole determinant of the final frame rate.