Downfall

Downfall, a horror title from 2016, proves to be surprisingly demanding on modern hardware when pushed to its limits. The data for the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER combination reveals a system where the GPU is consistently the primary bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions and quality presets. This analysis walks through the measured performance data to determine the optimal settings and understand the balance between the CPU and GPU in this specific pairing.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all tested resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 120 FPS with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS, providing a smooth and responsive experience. This is a significant jump from the High preset, which averages 99 FPS, and it keeps the frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold. While the Low preset achieves a higher average of 147 FPS, the visual fidelity drop is substantial for a horror game where atmosphere is key.

The case for Medium becomes even more compelling at higher resolutions. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset still maintains a playable average of 86 FPS, with a minimum of 73 FPS and a maximum of 99 FPS. This is a much better experience than the High preset, which drops to 71 FPS average. At 3840x2160, Medium is the only preset that keeps the average FPS in a playable range at 54 FPS, with a minimum of 45 FPS. The High preset at this resolution falls to 44 FPS, and Ultra is barely playable at 27 FPS.

The data suggests that the Ultra preset is not a viable option for this hardware combination. At all resolutions, the average FPS is below 62, and at 4K, it drops to a stutter-prone 27 FPS. The performance cost of Ultra is disproportionate to its visual gains. The Low preset provides the highest frame rates, but the Medium preset offers a substantial upgrade in visual quality for a modest performance penalty of 27 FPS at 1080p and 19 FPS at 1440p. Therefore, for a consistent and visually satisfying experience, the Medium preset is the recommended choice.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and GTX 1660 SUPER in Downfall?

A: The Medium preset is the most balanced option. It delivers an average of 120 FPS at 1080p and 86 FPS at 1440p, maintaining high frame rates while offering significantly better visuals than the Low preset.

Q: Can this hardware combination run Downfall at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The Medium preset achieves an average of 54 FPS at 3840x2160. The High preset averages 44 FPS, and the Ultra preset is not playable, averaging only 27 FPS.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High in terms of performance?

A: The performance cost is severe. At 1080p, the average FPS drops from 99 on High to 62 on Ultra, a decrease of 37 FPS. At 1440p, it drops from 71 to 44 FPS, and at 4K, from 44 to 27 FPS.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Medium presets?

A: The Low preset is faster but not by a huge margin. At 1080p, Low averages 147 FPS compared to Medium's 120 FPS. At 1440p, Low averages 105 FPS versus 86 FPS. The visual upgrade to Medium is generally worth the frame rate cost.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game with this hardware?

A: The benchmark data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck. This is clear from the "Resolution Scaling" section, which shows a significant FPS drop as resolution increases, a classic sign of a GPU-limited scenario.

Q: How does this combination compare to other tested systems in the database?

A: This specific combo ranks 2505 out of 2928 tested combinations for Downfall. This places it in the lower half of all systems tested, indicating that while it can run the game, it is not a high-end performer.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. This pattern is a definitive indicator that the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the limiting component in this configuration. When the CPU is the bottleneck, resolution changes have a minimal impact on frame rates. Here, the opposite is true.

At the Medium preset, the average FPS drops from 120 at 1080p to 86 at 1440p, a 28% decrease. Moving from 1440p to 4K, the average FPS drops further to 54, a 37% decrease. This steep decline with each resolution increase is a hallmark of GPU-bound performance. The graphics card is being required to render an increasing number of pixels, and its processing power is being exhausted.

The High preset shows an even more pronounced scaling effect. It starts at 99 FPS at 1080p, falls to 71 FPS at 1440p, and then plummets to 44 FPS at 4K. The gap between the 1440p and 4K scores highlights the GPU struggling to maintain performance. The data strongly suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield the most significant performance improvements in Downfall, as the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 has ample headroom to feed a more powerful graphics card.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive look at the performance across different resolutions and settings.

1920x1080: This is the resolution where the combo performs best. The Low preset achieves the highest average at 147 FPS. The Medium preset provides a strong 120 FPS average, with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS. The High preset delivers a solid 99 FPS average. The Ultra preset is the weakest performer at this resolution, with an average of 62 FPS, which is a significant drop from High.

2560x1440: Performance remains strong at this resolution. The Low preset maintains an average of 105 FPS. The Medium preset is still very smooth, with an average of 86 FPS, a minimum of 73 FPS, and a maximum of 99 FPS. The High preset averages 71 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 44 FPS, which is below the ideal threshold for smooth gameplay.

3840x2160: This resolution is challenging for the GTX 1660 SUPER. The Low preset is the only one that provides a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 65 FPS. The Medium preset is borderline playable, with an average of 54 FPS and a minimum of 45 FPS. The High preset drops to an average of 44 FPS, and the Ultra preset is not playable at 27 FPS. The data shows that 4K gaming is only feasible with significantly reduced graphical settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the comprehensive database of tested hardware combinations for Downfall, this specific pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 2505 out of 2928. This places it in the 85th percentile of performance, meaning it outperforms only about 15% of all tested systems. This ranking underscores that while the combination is functional and can play the game, it is not a high-performance setup for this title.

The ranking reflects the age and tier of the GTX 1660 SUPER, which is a deciding factor in this game. The CPU is a modern, high-end processor, but its power is largely untapped due to the GPU's limitations. The data suggests that the overall system ranking is dragged down by the graphics card. The combo's rank of 2505 is a quantitative measure of its overall capability in Downfall, and it confirms that users with this setup will need to rely on optimized settings, such as the Medium preset, to achieve a satisfactory experience.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 42,216 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 5,960 in single-core, placing it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 4464P, has an average benchmark score that is 0.3% lower, while the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F is 0.3% higher.

However, the benchmark results in Downfall indicate that the CPU's extensive capabilities are not the primary factor in the game's performance. The FPS scaling with resolution points directly to the GPU as the bottleneck. The CPU is more than capable of handling the game's physics and AI calculations at 1080p, as evidenced by the high frame rates (up to 147 FPS on Low). The fact that the frame rate drops so significantly at 4K, where the CPU workload per frame is relatively similar, confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor. The 20 cores and high boost clock provide a robust foundation, but the game's engine does not appear to be heavily reliant on multi-threading, meaning the CPU's power is held in reserve.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the decisive component in this analysis. It is based on the Turing architecture and features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its core clocks are 1530 MHz base and 1785 MHz boost. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 12,699 in Passmark G3D, placing it in the 53rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, scores 0.4% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 580 is 0.4% lower.

The GPU's performance in Downfall is the primary constraint. The data shows that as the resolution increases, the frame rate drops steeply, a clear sign of the GPU hitting its limits. The 6 GB of VRAM is sufficient for the Medium preset at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K with higher textures, it may become a factor. The measured FPS at 4K on Ultra is just 27, which is unplayable. The GTX 1660 SUPER is not a 4K gaming card, and this benchmark data confirms that. Its performance is adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming at medium-to-high settings, but pushing it to higher resolutions quickly exposes its limitations. The GPU's 125 W TDP and 5.027 TFLOPS of FP32 performance are consistent with its mid-range classification.