Downfall

# Downfall with Intel Core Ultra 5 225 + AMD Radeon RX 9060

The data for Downfall with the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and AMD Radeon RX 9060 shows a system positioned at the 59th percentile of all GPUs and the 85th percentile of all CPUs, with a combo rank of 2185 out of 3716 tested combinations. This pairing delivers playable frame rates across most resolution and settings combinations, but the scaling pattern reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a consistent and predictable drop as resolution climbs from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 210 FPS at 1080p to 150 FPS at 1440p, then to 93 FPS at 4K. This represents a 29% reduction when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 38% reduction when moving from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is steep, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiting factor even at lower settings.

At Medium settings, the pattern continues: 172 FPS at 1080p, 123 FPS at 1440p, and 76 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 28% and 38% respectively, nearly identical to the Low settings scaling. This consistency suggests that the Radeon RX 9060's rendering pipeline is being stressed uniformly regardless of the quality preset, with the 128-bit memory bus and 8 GB GDDR6 configuration becoming increasingly significant as pixel count grows.

High settings show a slightly different story. The drop from 141 FPS at 1080p to 101 FPS at 1440p is a 28% reduction, but the drop to 63 FPS at 4K is a 38% reduction. The absolute numbers at 4K High (63 FPS) versus 4K Medium (76 FPS) reveal that the GPU is nearing its practical ceiling at 4K, as the gap between Medium and High narrows compared to lower resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Medium and High is 31 FPS (172 vs 141), but at 4K that gap shrinks to 13 FPS (76 vs 63).

Ultra settings exhibit the most dramatic scaling. The 1080p Ultra average of 88 FPS drops to 63 FPS at 1440p (a 28% reduction) and then to 39 FPS at 4K (a 38% reduction). This 4K Ultra result is the only sub-60 FPS measurement in the entire dataset, and it confirms that the RX 9060 cannot sustain a smooth experience at maximum quality and maximum resolution simultaneously. The data indicates that the CPU, with its 10 cores and 10 threads, is not the bottleneck at 4K; the GPU's 1792 shading units and 21.43 TFLOPS FP32 throughput are simply overwhelmed by the pixel workload.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Downfall?*

A: The data shows 2560x1440 as the optimal balance. At Medium settings, the combo delivers 123 FPS average with a 104 FPS minimum, while High settings yield 101 FPS. Both are comfortably above 60 FPS and avoid the steep 4K penalties.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Downfall?*

A: Yes, but only at Medium settings, where the average is 76 FPS with a 65 FPS minimum. High settings at 4K produce 63 FPS average, while Ultra drops to 39 FPS, which is not smooth for a horror game requiring responsive controls.

Q: Why does 1080p Ultra (88 FPS) underperform 1440p High (101 FPS)?

A: This counterintuitive result comes from the different workload characteristics. At 1080p, the CPU has more headroom, but the Ultra preset's additional GPU load still limits performance. At 1440p High, the reduced settings allow the GPU to render more efficiently relative to the pixel count, resulting in higher average FPS.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RX 9060's average benchmark score of 16014 is 0.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129) and 1% above the AMD Radeon RX 7700 (15852). This places it in the same performance tier as these cards, with the 4 nm Navi 44 chip providing competitive throughput.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 holding the GPU back?

A: No. The CPU's 25891 Cinebench R23 multi-core score and 3655 single-core score place it at the 85th percentile of all CPUs. At 1080p Low, the 210 FPS result indicates the GPU is still the limiting factor, as the CPU can feed frames faster than the GPU can render them.

Q: What settings preset should be avoided?

A: The 4K Ultra preset at 39 FPS average is the only unplayable configuration. Even 1440p Ultra (63 FPS) is marginal, while 1080p Ultra (88 FPS) is acceptable but not optimal given that High settings at 1440p achieve 101 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with 20 MB of shared L3 cache. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25891 and single-core score of 3655 demonstrate strong per-thread performance, which is critical for Downfall's horror gameplay that often involves physics calculations and AI-driven enemy behavior.

The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 4412 and multithread score of 30459 indicate balanced performance. In Downfall, the CPU's role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 210 FPS, which is the highest measurement in the entire dataset. This suggests that the CPU can sustain high frame delivery when the GPU is not heavily loaded, but the data does not show CPU bottlenecking even at this extreme frame rate.

The 10-core configuration, while not hyperthreaded, provides sufficient parallelism for modern game engines. The 3 nm process node and 17,800 million transistors contribute to efficient power delivery, with the 65 W TDP indicating that thermal throttling is unlikely to be a concern in most chassis. The memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s over dual-channel DDR5 is adequate for feeding the GPU, though the RX 9060's 288.0 GB/s bandwidth means the GPU is not starved for data.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the CPU sits within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F (36945 vs 36938 average score) and 0.4% below the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (37018). This places it in a competitive mid-range position, but the 4.90 GHz boost clock gives it an edge in single-threaded tasks that Downfall may leverage for frame pacing and input response.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimal settings. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers 172 FPS average with a 146 FPS minimum, which is more than sufficient for any display. The Low preset at 210 FPS offers diminishing returns for competitive play, but the jump from Low to Medium costs only 38 FPS (18%) while likely improving visual quality substantially. The High preset at 141 FPS remains smooth, but the Ultra preset at 88 FPS represents a significant visual quality gain for a 49% performance loss relative to Medium.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the sweet spot at 123 FPS average with a 104 FPS minimum. This is the only 1440p configuration that maintains a minimum above 100 FPS. High settings at 101 FPS are still smooth, but the 104 FPS minimum for Medium provides better frame consistency for a horror game where sudden movements can cause stuttering. The Ultra preset at 63 FPS is borderline, and the Low preset at 150 FPS sacrifices too much visual fidelity for marginal gains over Medium.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset at 76 FPS average with a 65 FPS minimum is the only recommended configuration. High settings at 63 FPS are playable but leave no headroom for demanding scenes, while Ultra at 39 FPS is not viable. The Low preset at 93 FPS is smooth but undermines the purpose of 4K resolution by reducing texture quality and effects.

The data suggests that Medium settings at 1440p provide the best overall experience, balancing the 123 FPS average with the 65 FPS minimum at 4K demonstrating the GPU's capability. For users prioritizing frame rate over resolution, 1080p High (141 FPS) offers excellent responsiveness, while those with 4K displays should accept Medium settings as the practical ceiling.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and AMD Radeon RX 9060 achieves a combo rank of 2185 out of 3716 tested combinations in Downfall. This places it in the 41st percentile of all tested combos, meaning roughly 59% of combinations tested outperform it. The rank reflects the GPU's position at the 59th percentile of all GPUs, which is the primary constraint, as the CPU's 85th percentile ranking is comparatively stronger.

The GPU's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, has an average score that is 0.7% higher, which would likely translate to a slightly higher combo rank in Downfall. Conversely, the AMD Radeon RX 7700, with a score 1% lower, would likely rank slightly lower. The deltaPct values of 1% and 2.1% for the R9 370X and Pro W5500 respectively indicate that the RX 9060 is in a tightly contested performance band.

The combo rank of 2185 suggests that this system is positioned in the middle of the pack, suitable for 1080p and 1440p gaming but not competitive at 4K Ultra settings. The CPU's strong single-core performance (3655 Cinebench R23) prevents it from being a limiting factor, but the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus cap its potential at higher resolutions. The 288.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is sufficient for most scenarios, but the 4K Ultra result of 39 FPS indicates that texture-heavy scenes may exceed the VRAM capacity, causing performance to plummet.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The dataset provides 12 distinct measurements across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 210 FPS, Medium achieves 172 FPS with a 146 FPS minimum and 198 FPS maximum, High achieves 141 FPS, and Ultra achieves 88 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a performance reduction of 58%, with each step up in settings costing approximately 20-30 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset delivers 150 FPS, Medium delivers 123 FPS with a 104 FPS minimum and 141 FPS maximum, High delivers 101 FPS, and Ultra delivers 63 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra is 58% as well, matching the 1080p pattern exactly in relative terms. The minimum FPS at Medium (104) is notably higher than the Ultra average (63), highlighting the significant performance cliff at Ultra settings.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset produces 93 FPS, Medium produces 76 FPS with a 65 FPS minimum and 88 FPS maximum, High produces 63 FPS, and Ultra produces 39 FPS. The Low to Ultra reduction is 58% again, but the absolute values are lower across the board. The 4K Medium minimum of 65 FPS is the lowest acceptable measurement, while the 4K Ultra average of 39 FPS is the only result below 60 FPS in the entire dataset.

The minimum FPS data points, provided only for Medium settings, show consistent frame pacing: 146 at 1080p, 104 at 1440p, and 65 at 4K. These minimums are 85%, 85%, and 86% of their respective averages, indicating that the RX 9060 maintains stable frame delivery without major spikes or drops. The maximum FPS values (198, 141, 88) are 115%, 115%, and 116% of the averages, showing a tight distribution.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the Navi 44 chip with RDNA 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It features 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units, with 28 ray tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1700 MHz, a game clock of 2400 MHz, and a boost clock of 2990 MHz, producing 21.43 TFLOPS of FP32 compute throughput. The 8 GB GDDR6 memory runs at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) across a 128-bit bus, yielding 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Downfall, the GPU's role is decisive across all measured configurations. The 1080p Low result of 210 FPS demonstrates that the GPU can exceed typical display refresh rates when unburdened, but the 4K Ultra result of 39 FPS shows its limitations under maximum load. The pixel rate of 191.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 334.9 GTexel/s are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K workload of 8.3 million pixels per frame taxes the 64 ROPs significantly.

The GPU's 59th percentile ranking among all GPUs is consistent with its nearest rival comparisons. The 0.7% deficit to the RTX 3060 Ti and 1% advantage over the RX 7700 place it in a crowded mid-range segment. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is adequate for Downfall at Medium settings across all resolutions, but the 4K Ultra result suggests that the Ultra preset may exceed this capacity, causing the 39 FPS average that is 33% lower than the 4K High result of 63 FPS.

The passmark G3D score of 17631 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3322 confirm the GPU's position. The DirectX 12 score of 44 in PassMark indicates that the RDNA 4.0 architecture's DX12 implementation is not the primary strength, but the 12 Ultimate (12_2) API support ensures compatibility with modern titles. The 132 W TDP and single 8-pin power connector make this GPU accessible for most power supplies, with the suggested 300 W PSU being modest.