Downfall

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Downfall with the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the High settings preset, the average frame rate drops from 176 FPS at 1080p to 126 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 50 FPS. Moving further to 4K at 3840x2160, the average falls to 78 FPS, which is a 98 FPS difference from the 1080p result. This scaling behavior indicates that the GPU becomes the primary limiting component at higher resolutions, particularly when moving from 1440p to 4K where the pixel count increase places substantially more demand on the rendering pipeline.

The Low settings preset shows the steepest absolute drop across resolutions. At 1080p, the system delivers 263 FPS average, which falls to 188 FPS at 1440p and then to 117 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is approximately 55.5%, which is slightly larger than the High preset's drop of approximately 55.7% — nearly identical relative scaling. This consistency across presets suggests that the resolution scaling is primarily a function of pixel throughput rather than specific settings-dependent effects.

At Medium settings, the measured rows include minimum and maximum frame times, which provide additional insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the average is 215 FPS with a minimum of 183 FPS and maximum of 247 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 154 FPS with a range of 131 to 177 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 96 FPS with a range of 81 to 110 FPS. The spread between minimum and maximum remains relatively narrow at each resolution, indicating stable frame delivery without severe spikes or hitches.

The Ultra preset at 4K produces the lowest measured performance, with an average of 49 FPS. This is a dramatic reduction from the 110 FPS at 1080p Ultra, representing a 55.5% decrease. The gap between High and Ultra at 4K is particularly notable: 78 FPS versus 49 FPS, a 29 FPS difference that suggests the Ultra preset introduces rendering features that are disproportionately expensive at higher resolutions. This pattern reinforces the interpretation that the GPU's compute and memory resources are heavily taxed at 4K, and the additional visual fidelity from Ultra settings comes at a significant performance cost.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT sits in the middle of the performance spectrum among GPUs tested in the database, holding a 67th percentile ranking versus all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 22549 places it close to several rivals: it is 0.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile, 0.8% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile, 1.5% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, and 1.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5700. These narrow margins indicate that the RX 7700 XT is competitively positioned within its performance class, though the overall percentile ranking shows that a substantial portion of GPUs outperform it.

The GPU's memory configuration is a significant factor in Downfall's results. The RX 7700 XT features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 4K Ultra result of 49 FPS suggests that the game's highest settings may be approaching the limits of what this memory subsystem can handle, though the absence of minimum frame data for most presets limits deeper analysis. The memory clock is rated at 2250 MHz, operating at 18 Gbps effective, which is a moderate speed for this class of GPU.

The GPU's clock behavior shows a base clock of 1435 MHz and a boost clock of 2544 MHz, with a game clock of 2171 MHz. The substantial difference between base and boost clocks indicates that the GPU can scale its frequency significantly under load, which is typical for modern graphics cards. The measured frame rates in Downfall, particularly at 1080p where the system reaches 263 FPS at Low settings, suggest that the GPU is capable of high throughput when the resolution and settings are not overly demanding.

The RX 7700 XT's architecture is RDNA 3.0, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It has 3456 shading units, 216 texture mapping units, and 96 raster operations units, along with 54 ray tracing cores. The pixel rate is 244.2 GPixel/s and the texture rate is 549.5 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 35.17 TFLOPS. These specifications are consistent with a GPU that can handle 1440p gaming well but begins to struggle at 4K with demanding settings, which matches the observed data.

The GPU's power characteristics include a TDP of 245 W, requiring a suggested PSU of 550 W and two 8-pin power connectors. The dual-slot design and 267 mm length are typical for this performance class. In Downfall specifically, the GPU's role is clearly dominant: at 4K Ultra the frame rate drops to 49 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold that many users consider acceptable for smooth gameplay, while at 4K High it recovers to 78 FPS, indicating that reducing settings from Ultra to High provides a substantial performance boost.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT ranks 1041 out of 2928 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the 64.5th percentile of all combinations in the database. This ranking reflects the mid-range positioning of both components: the CPU sits at the 90th percentile versus all CPUs, while the GPU sits at the 67th percentile versus all GPUs. The combination's overall rank is heavily influenced by the GPU's lower percentile, as Downfall appears to be a GPU-bound title based on the resolution scaling analysis.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database provide context for its contribution to this combo's performance. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 has an average benchmark score of 48995, which is 0.4% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, 0.6% ahead of the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H, and 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600K. These extremely tight margins — all within 1% — indicate that the CPU is well-matched with its direct competitors, and its performance is unlikely to be the bottleneck in most gaming scenarios.

The GPU's nearest rivals similarly show a tight cluster of performance. The RX 7700 XT's average benchmark score of 22549 is within 1.5% of all four listed rivals, from the RTX 2080 above it to the RX 5700 below it. This clustering suggests that in GPU-bound scenarios like Downfall at higher resolutions, the choice between these GPUs would yield similar results, and the combo rank is therefore representative of what users could expect from any of these pairings.

Given that the combo ranks 1041 out of 2928, it sits in the upper-middle portion of all tested combinations. This means that roughly one-third of all tested combos perform better in Downfall, while two-thirds perform worse. The ranking is consistent with the component-level percentiles: the CPU is in the top 10% of all CPUs, but the GPU's 67th percentile pulls the overall combo down, as Downfall's frame rates are predominantly limited by the GPU across all measured resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate achieved by this combo in Downfall?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 263 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo delivers an average of 49 FPS, which is the lowest measured result across all resolution and settings combinations.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Downfall?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 263 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 49 FPS, showing that the GPU's rendering capacity is the constraint as pixel count increases.

Q: How does the RX 7700 XT compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RX 7700 XT's average benchmark score of 22549 is 0.5% ahead of the RTX 5060 Mobile, 0.8% behind the RTX 4060 Mobile, 1.5% behind the RTX 2080, and 1.7% ahead of the RX 5700.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 1041 out of 2928 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the upper-middle portion of the database.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS recorded at Medium settings is 183 FPS at 1080p, 131 FPS at 1440p, and 81 FPS at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor from the Core Ultra Series 2, built on the Arrow Lake architecture using a 3 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock is 3.50 GHz with a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, and it has a TDP of 65 W. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration with a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

In CPU benchmark tests, the Core Ultra 5 245 demonstrates strong multi-threaded performance with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924, while its single-core score is 4648. The Passmark multi-thread score is 38706, and the single-thread score is 4394. The CPU's average benchmark score of 48995 places it at the 90th percentile versus all CPUs, indicating that it outperforms the majority of processors in the database.

In Downfall, the CPU's role is less critical than the GPU's due to the game's scaling behavior. The fact that reducing resolution from 1440p to 1080p at High settings increases the frame rate from 126 FPS to 176 FPS — a 50 FPS gain — while reducing settings from High to Low at 1080p increases from 176 FPS to 263 FPS — an 87 FPS gain — suggests that both resolution and settings have significant impacts. However, the CPU's high single-thread performance, evidenced by its 4648 Cinebench R23 single-core score, should be sufficient to avoid bottlenecking the GPU at lower resolutions where frame rates are very high.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database all have average scores within 1% of the Core Ultra 5 245, which means that swapping in any of these processors would likely produce nearly identical results in Downfall. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900, which is 0.5% ahead of the Core Ultra 5 245, might provide a marginal improvement in CPU-bound scenarios, but given the GPU's dominance in this game, the practical difference would be negligible.

The CPU's 14 cores and 14 threads are notable in that it does not support simultaneous multi-threading, meaning each core handles one thread. For a game like Downfall, which is a horror title from 2016, the threading requirements are likely modest, and the CPU's high boost clock of 5.10 GHz is more relevant than its core count for ensuring consistent frame delivery.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo in Downfall depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, all settings presets deliver playable frame rates, with Low at 263 FPS, Medium at 215 FPS, High at 176 FPS, and Ultra at 110 FPS. Even the most demanding Ultra preset at 1080p stays well above 100 FPS, so users with 1080p displays can choose Ultra settings without concern for performance.

At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 126 FPS, which is smooth for most display refresh rates. The Medium preset at 154 FPS offers a buffer for high-refresh-rate monitors, while the Low preset at 188 FPS is suitable for competitive play. The Ultra preset at 79 FPS is still above 60 FPS and could be acceptable for users who prioritize visual quality over maximum frame rates, though the drop from High to Ultra is 47 FPS, which is a significant cost for the additional visual features.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes markedly. The High preset delivers 78 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a good balance of visual quality and performance. The Medium preset at 96 FPS is even better for users who want to maintain higher frame rates at 4K. The Low preset at 117 FPS is the highest-performing option at 4K, though it sacrifices visual fidelity. The Ultra preset at 49 FPS falls below 60 FPS and may result in noticeable stuttering or reduced responsiveness, making it the least recommended option at this resolution.

The data shows that the Medium preset offers the best overall balance across all three resolutions, with frame rates of 215 FPS at 1080p, 154 FPS at 1440p, and 96 FPS at 4K. The Medium preset also includes measured minimum frame data, showing a minimum of 183 FPS at 1080p, 131 FPS at 1440p, and 81 FPS at 4K, which indicates that even the minimum frame rates remain at playable levels. For users who prioritize visual quality, the High preset is a strong choice at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K the gap to the Ultra preset is substantial, making High the superior choice for maintaining smooth gameplay.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured results show a clear progression across settings. The Low preset achieves an average of 263 FPS, which is the highest result in the entire dataset. The Medium preset delivers 215 FPS average, with a minimum of 183 FPS and a maximum of 247 FPS. The High preset produces 176 FPS average, and the Ultra preset yields 110 FPS average. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 153 FPS, demonstrating the significant impact of settings on performance at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the results show a similar pattern with lower absolute values. The Low preset achieves 188 FPS average, the Medium preset delivers 154 FPS with a minimum of 131 FPS and a maximum of 177 FPS, the High preset produces 126 FPS, and the Ultra preset yields 79 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 109 FPS, which is a smaller absolute difference than at 1080p but a similar relative reduction.

At 3840x2160, the results show the greatest impact of resolution. The Low preset achieves 117 FPS average, the Medium preset delivers 96 FPS with a minimum of 81 FPS and a maximum of 110 FPS, the High preset produces 78 FPS, and the Ultra preset yields 49 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra at 4K is 68 FPS, which is the smallest absolute spread but the lowest absolute performance across all resolutions.

The Medium preset is the only settings level with complete minimum and maximum frame data at all three resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 183 to 247 FPS, representing a 64 FPS spread. At 1440p, the range is 131 to 177 FPS, a 46 FPS spread. At 4K, the range is 81 to 110 FPS, a 29 FPS spread. The narrowing ranges at higher resolutions indicate that frame pacing becomes more consistent as the GPU becomes more heavily loaded, which is a positive characteristic for gameplay smoothness.

The overall dataset shows that this combo can handle Downfall at playable frame rates across most resolution and settings combinations, with the exception of 4K Ultra, which drops below 60 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings typically reduces frame rates by 28-30%, while the transition from 1440p to 4K reduces frame rates by an additional 38-40%. These percentages are consistent across the Low, Medium, and High presets, indicating that the GPU's scaling behavior is predictable regardless of the specific settings configuration.