Downfall

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination delivers extraordinary performance in Downfall, securing the top spot among 2,928 tested combos. This pairing produces triple-digit frame rates even at 4K Ultra settings, making it a definitive benchmark for this horror title. The data reveals a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, with the CPU's capabilities becoming more relevant only at 1080p.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern across the three tested resolutions. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves an average of 324 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops this to 231 FPS, a reduction of approximately 28.7%. The jump to 4K further reduces the average to 144 FPS, which is a 37.7% decrease from the 1440p figure. This consistent decline indicates that the rendering load is scaling directly with pixel count.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced at lower settings. With Low settings, the system produces 482 FPS at 1080p, 345 FPS at 1440p, and 214 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops here are 28.4% from 1080p to 1440p, and 38.0% from 1440p to 4K. These figures are remarkably similar to the High settings scaling, which suggests the frame rate is being dictated by the same bottleneck across different quality presets.

At Medium settings, the system hits 395 FPS at 1080p, 282 FPS at 1440p, and 175 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset yields 202 FPS at 1080p, 144 FPS at 1440p, and 90 FPS at 4K. The relative performance drop from 1080p to 4K is 55.5% for Medium and 55.4% for Ultra, showing that higher settings slightly amplify the resolution penalty due to increased pixel shader work.

This scaling behavior indicates that the RTX 5090 D is the limiting component at 4K, as the frame rate drops are consistent with the increased pixel throughput requirements. At 1080p, the extremely high frame rates suggest the CPU begins to play a more significant role, though the Core Ultra 5 245's 14 cores and 5.10 GHz boost clock keep it from becoming a severe constraint. The fact that the percentage drop from 1440p to 4K remains near 38% across all settings confirms that the GPU's pixel pipeline is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

FAQ

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

A: The maximum recorded average is 482 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

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

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the system maintains an average of 90 FPS, which is still well above typical display refresh rates for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 324 at 1080p to 144 at 4K, representing a 55.6% reduction in performance.

Q: Does the Core Ultra 5 245 bottleneck the RTX 5090 D at any resolution?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, but at 1080p the extremely high frame rates (over 300 FPS at High) indicate the CPU is handling the workload effectively without becoming a major bottleneck.

Q: What are the minimum FPS figures recorded at Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS values are 335 at 1080p, 240 at 1440p, and 149 at 4K, all at Medium settings. These represent the lowest 1% lows in the dataset.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested combinations?

A: It ranks first out of 2,928 tested combos, making it the top-performing configuration for Downfall in the benchmark database.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the measured results. The GPU features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is crucial for a game like Downfall, which can exhibit high memory pressure at 4K Ultra settings. The 32 GB capacity ensures that the game's assets are entirely resident in VRAM, eliminating any potential stuttering from memory swapping.

The GPU's clock speeds are relatively modest for a flagship, with a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz. However, the sheer scale of the chip compensates for this. With 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 ROPs, the RTX 5090 D has an enormous amount of compute throughput. This is reflected in its 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which is the raw horsepower needed to sustain high frame rates at 4K.

The GPU's benchmark scores confirm its position. It achieves a Passmark G3D score of 44,065 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326. Its average benchmark score is 77,712, placing it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. Interestingly, the nearest rivals in the database are laptop GPUs like the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (scoring 78,940, which is 1.6% higher) and the RX 6650M XT (76,904, 1.1% lower), as well as the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe variants. This suggests that the RTX 5090 D's raw compute performance is comparable to some high-end mobile parts and older data center accelerators, though its gaming-specific features and driver optimizations make it far more effective in Downfall.

The 575 W TDP and 950 W suggested PSU indicate that this is a power-hungry card, but the performance payoff is clear in the measured FPS. The GPU's role is to provide the massive pixel throughput needed for 4K gaming, and the data shows it does so effectively, maintaining 144 FPS at 4K High and 90 FPS at 4K Ultra.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D achieves the rank of 1 out of 2,928 tested combos in Downfall. This is the top position, indicating that no other CPU-GPU pairing in the database produces higher average frame rates in this game. This is a significant achievement, as it places this configuration above all other combinations, including those using more expensive or higher-core-count CPUs.

The rank is particularly noteworthy because the CPU is not a top-tier enthusiast part. The Core Ultra 5 245 has an average benchmark score of 48,995, placing it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49,196, 0.4% higher), the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49,228, 0.5% higher), the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48,698, 0.6% lower), and the Intel Core i5-14600K (48,618, 0.8% lower). This places the CPU in a competitive mid-to-high range, but not at the absolute top.

Despite this, the combo's rank of 1 suggests that the RTX 5090 D is so dominant that the CPU choice has minimal impact on the final frame rates in Downfall. The game appears to be heavily GPU-bound, especially at higher resolutions, which allows the Core Ultra 5 245 to keep up with more powerful CPUs when paired with the flagship GPU. This confirms the GPU's ability to push frame rates to levels where CPU limitations would only appear at extremely high FPS, which the data shows is happening at 1080p.

The rank also implies that the Core Ultra 5 245 is sufficient to feed the RTX 5090 D with enough data to maintain its top-tier status. If the CPU were a bottleneck, we would expect to see lower ranks or a significant drop in performance at 1080p, where CPU load is highest. Instead, the system achieves 482 FPS at 1080p Low, suggesting the CPU is doing its job effectively.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 plays a supporting role in this configuration, but its specifications are still relevant to the overall performance. The CPU features 14 cores and 14 threads, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. Its architecture is Arrow Lake-S, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC, which contributes to its 65 W TDP. The L3 cache is 24 MB shared, and the CPU supports dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

The CPU's benchmark results show it is a capable performer. In Cinebench R23, it scores 32,924 in multi-core and 4,648 in single-core. Its Passmark multithread score is 38,706, with a single-thread score of 4,394. These numbers indicate that the CPU has solid multi-threaded throughput for its class, though it is not a flagship part. Its average benchmark score of 48,995 places it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs.

In the context of Downfall, the CPU's role is to prepare frames for the GPU. At 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed, the CPU's single-thread performance becomes more important. The boost clock of 5.10 GHz is high, which helps maintain high FPS in CPU-bound scenarios. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 482 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that requires quick CPU processing of game logic and draw calls.

However, the CPU's 14 cores and 14 threads (notably lacking Hyper-Threading) may be a limitation if the game is well-optimized for multi-threading. The Passmark physics score of 2,569 is moderate, suggesting that the CPU's computational physics performance is adequate but not exceptional. Despite this, the combo still achieves rank 1, indicating that the GPU is the primary driver of performance in this title.

The CPU's memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s is sufficient for the game's needs, and the dual-channel DDR5 support ensures that the GPU has access to data without significant delays. The 24 MB L3 cache helps keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing latency. Overall, the Core Ultra 5 245 provides enough computational power to avoid being a bottleneck, allowing the RTX 5090 D to operate at its full potential.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across all settings and resolutions. Starting at 1920x1080, the system achieves its highest frame rates. At Low settings, the average FPS is 482. Moving to Medium, the average drops to 395 FPS, with a minimum of 335 and a maximum of 454. High settings yield 324 FPS on average, and Ultra settings reduce this further to 202 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 58.1% reduction in frame rate, which is expected given the increased graphical complexity.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low settings produce an average of 345 FPS. Medium settings average 282 FPS, with a minimum of 240 and a maximum of 324. High settings achieve 231 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 144 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 58.3%, which is very similar to the 1080p scaling, indicating consistent GPU behavior.

At 3840x2160, the system still maintains high frame rates. Low settings average 214 FPS. Medium settings average 175 FPS, with a minimum of 149 and a maximum of 202. High settings produce 144 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 90 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 4K is 57.9%, again showing a consistent pattern.

The minimum FPS data is only available for Medium settings at each resolution. At 1080p, the minimum is 335 FPS; at 1440p, it is 240 FPS; and at 4K, it is 149 FPS. These minimums are relatively close to the averages, suggesting that frame pacing is stable and there are no major stutters. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 149, which is above 144 FPS, meaning the system can maintain a consistent experience on high-refresh-rate displays.

Overall, the data shows a smooth performance curve with no anomalous dips. The system delivers playable frame rates even at the most demanding 4K Ultra setting, making it an excellent choice for high-end gaming. The consistency across settings and resolutions indicates a well-balanced configuration where the GPU scales effectively with workload.