Downfall

# Downfall with Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a formidable gaming experience in Downfall, a horror title from 2016. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four settings presets show a system capable of maxing out high-refresh-rate displays at 1080p and 1440p, while remaining highly playable at 4K. The combo ranks 230th out of 3,716 tested combinations, placing it in the top 6.2% of all configurations evaluated for this game.

FAQ

*Q: What is the combo's overall ranking in Downfall?*

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination ranks 230th out of 3,716 tested combos, placing it in the top 6.2% of all configurations evaluated for this game.

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system reaches 400 average FPS. With Medium settings, it drops to 327 average FPS, and with High settings, it maintains 268 average FPS.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this hardware?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160, the system delivers 178 average FPS on Low, 145 average FPS on Medium, and 119 average FPS on High settings. Even Ultra settings remain playable at 74 average FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus has an average benchmark score of 93,785, essentially matching the Intel Xeon 6520P at 93,786 (0% delta). It trails the AMD EPYC 4564P by 1.5%, the AMD EPYC 9175F by 1.9%, and the AMD EPYC 4565P by 2.1%.

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile relative to all tested graphics cards?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 sits in the 86th percentile of all GPUs in the database. Its average benchmark score of 54,247 places it nearly identical to the RTX 4080 SUPER (54,209, 0.1% higher).

Q: Does the system maintain consistent frame pacing at Medium settings?

A: The Medium preset shows min/max FPS ranges that indicate consistency. At 1080p, the range spans 278 to 376 FPS (327 average); at 1440p, 198 to 268 FPS (233 average); and at 4K, 123 to 167 FPS (145 average).

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the primary driver of frame rates in Downfall, and the data shows a clear scaling pattern tied to its memory and clock specifications. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock of 2205 MHz boosts to 2505 MHz, and the memory runs at an effective 22.4 Gbps. These specifications position the RTX 4080 in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54,247.

Within its nearest rival group, the RTX 4080 performs nearly identically to the RTX 4080 SUPER (54,209, deltaPct 0.1), while slightly outperforming the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54,828, deltaPct −1.1), the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698, deltaPct −2.6), and the AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757, deltaPct −2.7). The negative deltaPct values indicate the RTX 4080's score is lower than those rivals, but the margins are small—all within 2.7%.

In Downfall, the GPU's capabilities translate directly to measured performance. At 1080p Ultra, the system hits 168 average FPS; at 1440p Ultra, it maintains 120 average FPS; and at 4K Ultra, it produces 74 average FPS. The progression from High to Ultra settings at each resolution shows the GPU's headroom: at 4K, High settings produce 119 FPS versus 74 FPS on Ultra, a 60.8% increase in performance. The RTX 4080's 9728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output pipelines provide the raw throughput needed for these results.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data across all three resolutions suggests that High settings offer the best balance of visual quality and performance for most users. At 1080p, High settings deliver 268 average FPS, which is sufficient for any high-refresh-rate monitor. At 1440p, High settings produce 191 average FPS, comfortably above the 144 Hz threshold for most displays. At 4K, High settings yield 119 average FPS, which is smooth for a horror title where atmospheric tension matters more than competitive frame rates.

The Medium preset is the only one with min/max FPS data recorded, providing insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the system ranges from 278 to 376 FPS with a 327 average—an exceptionally tight window. At 1440p Medium, the range is 198 to 268 FPS (233 average), and at 4K Medium, it spans 123 to 167 FPS (145 average). This consistency suggests Medium delivers stable performance without dips.

Ultra settings, while visually demanding, still maintain playable frame rates across all resolutions. At 1080p, Ultra produces 168 average FPS; at 1440p, it drops to 120 average FPS; and at 4K, it falls to 74 average FPS. For users prioritizing maximum visual fidelity, Ultra at 1440p provides a strong experience. The Low preset, meanwhile, shows the hardware's ceiling: 400 FPS at 1080p, 285 FPS at 1440p, and 178 FPS at 4K—numbers that exceed any current display's refresh rate.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination holds the 230th position out of 3,716 tested combos in Downfall. This places the system firmly in the upper echelon of configurations, with roughly 93.8% of tested combos ranking below it. The ranking reflects the synergy between the CPU's strong synthetic performance and the GPU's high percentile standing.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 93,785 places it in the 96th percentile of all processors. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Xeon 6520P (93,786, 0% delta), the AMD EPYC 4564P (95,183, −1.5% delta), the AMD EPYC 9175F (95,615, −1.9% delta), and the AMD EPYC 4565P (95,764, −2.1% delta). These deltas are minimal, indicating the CPU performs on par with enterprise-class server processors in general benchmarks.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 54,247 places it in the 86th percentile of all graphics cards. Its nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, scores 54,209 with a 0.1% delta, meaning the two cards are effectively tied in synthetic tests. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54,828, −1.1% delta), the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55,698, −2.6% delta), and the AMD Radeon 8060S (55,757, −2.7% delta) all outpace the RTX 4080 by modest margins.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus contributes to Downfall's performance through its substantial core configuration and high clock speeds. The processor features 24 cores and 24 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. This Arrow Lake Refresh part, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC, includes 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB of L2 cache per core. The CPU supports DDR5 memory with dual-channel configuration and 115.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU demonstrates strong multicore and single-thread performance. The Cinebench R23 multicore score reaches 44,253, while the single-core score hits 2,439. The Passmark multithread score of 68,574 and single-thread score of 5,068 further confirm the CPU's capabilities. The 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates this processor outperforms the vast majority of alternatives in general compute tasks.

For Downfall, a 2016 horror title, the CPU's role becomes more pronounced at lower resolutions and settings where the GPU is less stressed. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 400 average FPS, a figure that suggests the CPU can feed the GPU with enough frames to reach such heights. The 24 cores and 5.50 GHz boost clock provide ample headroom for game logic, physics, and AI computations typical of the horror genre. The CPU's Passmark physics score of 4,064 and floating-point math score of 229,491 indicate strong computational throughput that benefits frame generation.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce 400 average FPS, Medium settings yield 327 average FPS with a range of 278 to 376 FPS, High settings maintain 268 average FPS, and Ultra settings produce 168 average FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 232 FPS, representing a 58% reduction in performance when moving to the highest preset.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain impressive but show the expected scaling. Low settings deliver 285 average FPS, Medium settings produce 233 average FPS with a range of 198 to 268 FPS, High settings maintain 191 average FPS, and Ultra settings yield 120 average FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p at each setting shows a consistent reduction: Low drops by 28.8%, Medium by 28.7%, High by 28.7%, and Ultra by 28.6%.

At 3840x2160, the system still maintains playable frame rates across all presets. Low settings deliver 178 average FPS, Medium settings produce 145 average FPS with a range of 123 to 167 FPS, High settings maintain 119 average FPS, and Ultra settings yield 74 average FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 74 FPS is the lowest measured value in the dataset but remains above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Comparing 1440p to 4K, the reductions are: Low drops by 37.5%, Medium by 37.8%, High by 37.7%, and Ultra by 38.3%.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K reveals the balance between CPU and GPU limitations in Downfall. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440, the average FPS decreases by approximately 28-29% across all settings. This consistent scaling suggests neither component becomes a bottleneck at this transition; both the CPU and GPU handle the increased pixel count proportionally.

The jump from 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 shows a more pronounced drop of approximately 37-38% across all settings. This larger reduction indicates the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K, as the RTX 4080 must process significantly more pixels. The 4K Ultra result of 74 FPS versus 120 FPS at 1440p Ultra highlights this GPU-bound behavior. The RTX 4080's 716.8 GB/s memory bandwidth and 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are taxed more heavily at 4K, while the CPU's 5.50 GHz boost clock and 24 cores remain underutilized.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU plays a more significant role. The 400 FPS result at Low settings indicates the system is not GPU-limited, as the RTX 4080 would likely deliver higher frame rates if the CPU could keep up. The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus, with its 24 threads and high boost clock, provides sufficient processing power to reach these extreme frame rates. However, the 168 FPS result at 1080p Ultra versus 74 FPS at 4K Ultra shows that the GPU becomes the primary constraint as resolution increases.

At Medium settings, where min/max FPS data is available, the frame pacing remains consistent across resolutions. The 1080p range of 278 to 376 FPS (a 98 FPS spread) narrows to 198 to 268 FPS at 1440p (a 70 FPS spread) and further to 123 to 167 FPS at 4K (a 44 FPS spread). This tightening range at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU's workload becomes more uniform, reducing variance in frame delivery times.