Downfall

# Downfall with Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus + AMD Radeon RX 580

The combination of Intel's flagship 24-core Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and AMD's aging Polaris-based Radeon RX 580 produces a striking imbalance in Downfall, a 2016 horror title. The benchmark data shows a system where the GPU is clearly the bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU's immense processing power remains largely untapped. This pairing ranks near the bottom of all tested combinations, at position 2670 out of 2928, placing it in the 8th percentile of systems evaluated for this game. The measured FPS across all resolutions and settings tells a consistent story: the RX 580, with its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth, struggles to deliver smooth frame rates beyond 1080p, while the CPU's 24 cores and 5.80 GHz boost clock sit mostly idle.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combo in Downfall?

A: The data clearly favors 1920x1080. At this resolution, the combo achieves 102 FPS on Low settings, 83 FPS on Medium, and 68 FPS on High. At 2560x1440, these numbers drop to 73, 60, and 49 FPS respectively, while 4K (3840x2160) falls to 45, 37, and 30 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 580 compare to its nearest rivals based on benchmark scores?

A: The RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 12928, which is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940, -0.1% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER (12986, -0.4%). It sits just 0.5% above the AMD Radeon 740M (12870) and 0.6% above the AMD FirePro W5100 (12847).

Q: Is the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus a high-performing CPU relative to others?

A: Yes, the CPU ranks in the 96th percentile among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score is 84003, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (83807) and 1.1% higher than the AMD EPYC 4584PX (83090). It also outperforms the AMD EPYC 9135 (82980) by 1.2%.

Q: What frame rates can players expect at 1080p Ultra settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the measured average FPS is 43. This is less than half of the 102 FPS achieved at Low settings, indicating a steep performance cost for maximum visual quality.

Q: Does the RX 580 support modern graphics APIs?

A: Yes, the RX 580 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. Its benchmark scores for these APIs include 43 in Passmark DirectX 12, 60 in Passmark DirectX 11, and 124 in Passmark DirectX 9.

Q: What is the GPU's memory configuration and how does it affect performance?

A: The RX 580 features 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective). This configuration is sufficient for 1080p gaming but appears to be a limiting factor at higher resolutions in Downfall.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is the dominant component in determining this system's Downfall performance. With a base clock of 1257 MHz and a boost clock of 1340 MHz, this Polaris 20 chip (built on a 14 nm process) delivers 6.175 TFLOPS of FP32 compute. The GPU has 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 raster operations pipelines, producing pixel and texture rates of 42.88 GPixel/s and 193.0 GTexel/s respectively.

The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR5 memory with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth is a critical factor in the measured results. At 3840x2160, the frame rates are consistently low: 45 FPS at Low, 37 FPS at Medium (with a min of 32 and max of 43), 30 FPS at High, and only 19 FPS at Ultra. These numbers suggest that the memory bandwidth and capacity are being saturated at 4K, as the GPU cannot maintain playable frame rates even on Low settings.

Interestingly, the RX 580's benchmark percentile places it at 53rd among all GPUs, putting it in the middle of the pack. Its average benchmark score of 12928 is nearly identical to mobile and older desktop GPUs like the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile and GTX 1660 SUPER. This mid-range positioning is reflected in the Downfall results, where the GPU manages 1080p gaming well but falls apart at higher resolutions.

The GPU's power characteristics include a 185 W TDP and a recommended 450 W PSU, with a dual-slot design and a single 8-pin power connector. These specifications are modest by modern standards, but the RX 580's age is evident in its DirectX benchmark scores: 46 in DirectX 10, 60 in DirectX 11, and 43 in DirectX 12. The relatively low DirectX 12 score hints that the GPU may not be efficiently utilizing modern API features in Downfall, which could explain why frame rates drop so sharply as settings increase.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, strongly indicating GPU-bound behavior. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 102 FPS at 1920x1080 to 73 FPS at 2560x1440 (a 28% decrease) and further to 45 FPS at 3840x2160 (a 56% decrease from 1080p). This scaling is consistent with a GPU that is hitting its memory bandwidth or fill-rate limits.

At Medium settings, the scaling shows a similar trend: 83 FPS at 1080p, 60 FPS at 1440p (a 28% drop), and 37 FPS at 4K (a 55% drop). The High settings row follows the same pattern: 68 FPS at 1080p, 49 FPS at 1440p (a 28% drop), and 30 FPS at 4K (a 56% drop). This consistent ~28% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and ~55% reduction from 1080p to 4K across all settings suggests that the GPU is the limiting component, as a CPU bottleneck would typically show less severity at higher resolutions.

The Ultra settings data reinforces this interpretation. At 1080p Ultra, the system achieves 43 FPS, which drops to 31 FPS at 1440p and 19 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 19 FPS is barely playable, and the frame rate reduction from 1080p to 4K is 56%, matching the pattern seen at other settings. This uniformity across settings points to a GPU constraint rather than a CPU limitation, since the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus should easily handle the game's logic at any resolution.

The fact that the RX 580's memory bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s is paired with an 8 GB frame buffer explains why 4K is so problematic. Downfall, as a 2016 horror game, likely has high-resolution textures that exceed the GPU's capabilities at 4K, causing the steep performance cliff observed in the data.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific configuration ranks 2670 out of 2928 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the bottom 9% of all systems evaluated. This poor ranking is primarily attributable to the RX 580, which is an end-of-life product that launched in April 2017 with a launch MSRP of 229 USD. The GPU's 53rd percentile standing among all GPUs contrasts sharply with the CPU's 96th percentile ranking, creating a substantial bottleneck.

The CPU alone is a powerhouse. Its Cinebench R23 scores of 51731 multicore and 7303 single-core place it among the top processors available. In Passmark tests, it achieves 60860 in multithread and 4823 in single-thread performance. The nearest CPU rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, scores only 0.2% lower on average, while the AMD EPYC 4584PX trails by 1.1%. This CPU would likely deliver excellent frame rates in Downfall if paired with a more capable GPU.

The GPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score are all within 0.6% of the RX 580's 12928, but none of these are high-performance cards. The GTX 1660 SUPER (12986) and RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940) are similarly mid-range, while the AMD Radeon 740M (12870) and FirePro W5100 (12847) are integrated or workstation parts. This grouping confirms that the RX 580 is firmly in the mid-range segment, which is insufficient for demanding resolutions in Downfall.

The combination's rank of 2670 out of 2928 suggests that most other systems tested for this game either have more balanced GPU-CPU pairings or use GPUs with better high-resolution performance. The data implies that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it achieves playable frame rates across all settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels. At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results: Low settings produce an average of 102 FPS, Medium settings hit 83 FPS (with a minimum of 71 and maximum of 96), High settings achieve 68 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 43 FPS. These numbers indicate smooth gameplay at 1080p for all but the most demanding visual presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease significantly. Low settings average 73 FPS, Medium settings reach 60 FPS (with a min of 51 and max of 69), High settings manage 49 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 31 FPS. While 1440p is playable at Low and Medium settings, the High and Ultra presets hover near the edge of acceptable performance for a horror game that may benefit from higher frame rates.

At 3840x2160, the results are marginal. Low settings average 45 FPS, Medium settings drop to 37 FPS (with a min of 32 and max of 43), High settings reach only 30 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 19 FPS. These numbers suggest that 4K gaming is only viable at Low settings, and even then, the frame rate is not ideal for a smooth experience.

The spread between settings at each resolution is notable. At 1080p, there is a 59 FPS difference between Low (102 FPS) and Ultra (43 FPS), representing a 58% reduction in performance for maximum visual quality. At 1440p, the spread is 42 FPS (73 to 31), a 58% reduction. At 4K, the spread narrows to 26 FPS (45 to 19), also a 58% reduction. This consistent percentage reduction suggests that the GPU's compute resources scale uniformly with settings changes, further indicating a GPU-bound scenario.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, High settings (68 FPS) offer the best balance between visual quality and smoothness, as the frame rate is well above the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings (83 FPS) provide an even smoother experience with only a minor visual compromise, while Low (102 FPS) is ideal for competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays.

For 2560x1440, Medium settings (60 FPS) appear to be the sweet spot, delivering exactly 60 FPS average with a minimum of 51 FPS. High settings (49 FPS) may be acceptable for players who prioritize visuals over smoothness, but the frame rate dips below 50 FPS could be noticeable in a horror game. Low settings (73 FPS) provide the most headroom, while Ultra (31 FPS) is not recommended due to its low frame rate.

At 3840x2160, only Low settings (45 FPS) approach playability. Medium (37 FPS) and High (30 FPS) settings produce frame rates that are borderline, while Ultra (19 FPS) is essentially unplayable. For 4K gaming, players should stick to Low settings or consider reducing the resolution to 1440p.

The data suggests that the best overall experience is at 1080p with High settings, pairing the 68 FPS average with the visual fidelity of the High preset. This configuration avoids the frame rate drops seen at Ultra while maintaining a significant quality improvement over Medium. For players with 1440p monitors, Medium settings at 60 FPS provide a smooth experience, though they may need to accept lower visual quality than they would prefer.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The CPU features 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache, totaling 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die.

Despite this enormous processing power, the CPU's role in Downfall appears minimal based on the measured FPS data. The consistent frame rate reductions across resolutions and settings indicate that the GPU is the limiting factor, not the CPU. Even at 1080p Low settings (102 FPS), the CPU is unlikely to be stressed, as Downfall is a 2016 horror game that does not require particularly high thread counts or clock speeds.

The CPU's benchmark scores, however, show its theoretical capability. It achieves 5214 in Cinebench R15 multicore, 736 in single-core, and scales to 21727 and 3067 in Cinebench R20 respectively. The Passmark results include 60860 in multithread, 4823 in single-thread, and 3315 in physics tests. These scores place the CPU in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is far more powerful than needed for this game.

The CPU's memory support includes DDR5 with dual-channel configuration and 115.2 GB/s bandwidth, along with ECC support. It connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 lanes and features integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics with 64 execution units. These specifications are irrelevant for Downfall performance given the discrete GPU, but they show the CPU's overall capability.

Ultimately, the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus provides ample processing headroom for Downfall, but its power is wasted in this pairing. The RX 580 is the clear bottleneck, and the data suggests that even a modest CPU upgrade would not improve frame rates without a corresponding GPU upgrade. The system's rank of 2670 out of 2928 combos reflects this imbalance, making it a poor choice for high-resolution gaming despite the CPU's exceptional performance.