Evolve

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX paired with the AMD Radeon 8050S lands at rank 2122 out of 2872 tested combos in Evolve, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the database for this title. While the individual components hold respectable positions in their respective charts, the combination’s overall standing in this specific game suggests a pairing that delivers playable but not exceptional results, with the measured frame rates indicating a strong dependence on graphical settings and resolution to achieve a smooth experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 2122 out of 2872 tested configurations places it in the 26th percentile of all tested pairings for Evolve. This is a modest result, indicating that the majority of tested combos outperform it in this particular title. The ranking is likely dragged down by the GPU’s performance characteristics at higher settings, as the CPU itself is a top-tier mobile part. Benchmark results show the Ryzen 9 8945HX holds the 95th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 76212, placing it in elite company. However, the Radeon 8050S sits at the 89th percentile against all GPUs with an average score of 62108, which is strong but not flagship-level. The gap between the CPU’s high percentile and the GPU’s slightly lower one suggests that in Evolve, the graphics card is the primary bottleneck, preventing the combo from climbing higher in the rankings.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the data shows a tightly contested field. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX scores 76155, a mere 0.1% behind the AMD chip. The AMD EPYC Embedded 8224P and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX are also within 0.4% of the 8945HX’s score, while the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 0.6% ahead. This clustering indicates that the 8945HX is performance-competitive with the best desktop and mobile processors, yet none of this CPU headroom translates into a high combo rank in Evolve because the game’s frame rates are constrained by the GPU. For the GPU, the nearest rivals show a similar pattern; the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M is 0.3% behind, while the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56, AMD Radeon RX 7600M, and AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT LP are 2.5% to 2.7% ahead. These small deltas suggest the 8050S is a mid-pack performer, and its position in the combo ranking reflects that.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon 8050S is the limiting factor in this combo for Evolve. Its memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning it relies on the host system’s DDR5 memory rather than dedicated VRAM, with bandwidth listed as "System Dependent." This architecture is typical of integrated-class parts, though the 8050S is built on the Strix Halo chip with RDNA 3.5 architecture on a 4 nm process. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1295 MHz and a boost clock of 2800 MHz, with a TDP of 55 W. It features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units, along with 32 ray tracing cores. The pixel rate is 179.2 GPixel/s and the texture rate is 358.4 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance rated at 11.47 TFLOPS. These specifications are competitive for a mobile integrated GPU, but the shared memory subsystem is a critical constraint in a game like Evolve, which can be sensitive to memory bandwidth and latency.

The GPU’s benchmark scores reflect its capability: it achieves 65818 in Geekbench OpenCL and 58398 in Geekbench Vulkan. These scores place it at the 89th percentile against all GPUs, which is a solid showing for an integrated solution. However, the measured frame rates in Evolve reveal the practical impact of the shared memory. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 157 FPS on average, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 25 FPS. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU that runs out of memory bandwidth or fill rate as resolution and settings increase. The 8050S’s boost clock of 2800 MHz helps at lower resolutions, but the system-shared memory cannot sustain high frame rates at 4K, particularly with high-quality textures and effects enabled. The data indicates that the GPU is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming at moderate settings, but it struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K, especially on Ultra presets.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, confirming that the GPU is the dominant bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo averages 157 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low, the average drops to 105 FPS, a 33% reduction. At 4K Low, the average falls to 60 FPS, a further 43% drop from 1440p. This scaling suggests that the GPU is being pushed harder at each resolution step, with the shared memory bandwidth becoming a limiting factor. The transition from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings shows a drop of 52 FPS, while the transition from 1440p to 4K at Low shows a drop of 45 FPS. The consistent decline indicates a linear relationship between resolution and performance, typical of a GPU-bound scenario.

At Medium settings, the scaling is similar. 1080p Medium averages 122 FPS, 1440p Medium averages 82 FPS, and 4K Medium averages 46 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 40 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K is 36 FPS. This pattern holds for High settings as well, with 96 FPS at 1080p, 64 FPS at 1440p, and 36 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling, with 66 FPS at 1080p, 44 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K. The data reveals that the frame rate drops by roughly 33% to 40% at each resolution step, regardless of the quality preset. This uniform scaling is a strong indicator that the GPU’s rendering throughput and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, not the CPU. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the scaling would be less pronounced at lower resolutions where the CPU has more influence, but the consistent drops across all settings point squarely at the Radeon 8050S.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience in Evolve depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 66 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a fast-paced FPS where higher frame rates provide a competitive advantage. The High preset at 1080p jumps to 96 FPS, a significant improvement that offers a smoother experience while still maintaining good visual quality. For competitive play, the Low preset at 1080p achieves 157 FPS, which is well above the threshold for high-refresh-rate displays and provides the most responsive gameplay. The Medium preset at 122 FPS is a good middle ground, offering a balance between visual fidelity and performance, with minimum frame rates of 104 FPS ensuring minimal stuttering.

At 1440p, the High preset averages 64 FPS, which is borderline for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 82 FPS is a better choice, providing a comfortable margin above 60 FPS with minimums of 69 FPS. The Low preset at 105 FPS is the recommended option for 1440p gaming, as it delivers high frame rates without sacrificing too much visual detail. The Ultra preset at 44 FPS is not recommended for this resolution, as it falls below the playable threshold for an FPS title. At 4K, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset averages 60 FPS, which is the minimum for a playable experience, but it requires significant visual compromises. The Medium preset at 46 FPS and High at 36 FPS are not viable for smooth gameplay, and Ultra at 25 FPS is unplayable. For 4K, the Low preset is the only reasonable option, and even then, the experience may feel less fluid than at lower resolutions.

The data suggests that the best experience is achieved at 1080p with High settings, offering 96 FPS average with a good balance of visual quality and performance. For players prioritizing frame rate, the Low preset at 1080p provides the highest headroom. At 1440p, Medium is the sweet spot, delivering 82 FPS with acceptable visual quality. The 4K resolution should be avoided for this title unless the user is willing to accept Low settings and a 60 FPS cap, which is the practical limit of this combo.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1080p, the combo’s performance is strong across all settings. The Low preset delivers an average of 157 FPS, the highest measured in the entire dataset. Medium settings average 122 FPS, with minimums of 104 FPS and maximums of 140 FPS, indicating consistent frame pacing. High settings average 96 FPS, and Ultra settings average 66 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 91 FPS, showing that the GPU has significant headroom at this resolution, but the Ultra preset still maintains playable frame rates. The 1080p results are the most favorable for this combo, with even the highest quality settings staying above 60 FPS.

At 1440p, the performance drops noticeably. Low settings average 105 FPS, which is still excellent for a higher resolution. Medium settings average 82 FPS, with minimums of 69 FPS and maximums of 94 FPS. High settings average 64 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra settings average 44 FPS, which dips below the playable threshold for an FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 61 FPS, a smaller absolute difference than at 1080p, but the relative impact is greater because the starting point is lower. The minimum frame rates at Medium (69 FPS) suggest that the combo can handle 1440p gaming without severe stuttering, but Ultra is not recommended.

At 4K, the performance is severely limited. Low settings average 60 FPS, which is the only setting that achieves a playable frame rate. Medium settings average 46 FPS, with minimums of 40 FPS and maximums of 53 FPS, showing significant frame time variance. High settings average 36 FPS, and Ultra settings average 25 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra at 4K is 35 FPS, and the frame rates at Medium, High, and Ultra are all below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. The 4K results confirm that the Radeon 8050S’s shared memory architecture cannot handle the demands of Evolve at this resolution, and even Low settings are only marginally playable.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Dragon Range, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a TDP of 55 W. The CPU features 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 cache per core, and 64 MB of L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, with a memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s. The processor’s benchmark scores are impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42713 and a single-core score of 6030. In Passmark, it achieves a multi-thread score of 51405 and a single-thread score of 3907. These scores place it at the 95th percentile against all CPUs, showing that it is a top-tier mobile processor.

In Evolve, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with data and handle game logic, physics, and AI. Given the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions, the CPU is rarely the bottleneck in this combo. The measured frame rates show that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 157 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s limit for this game, but at higher settings and resolutions, the GPU takes over as the limiting factor. The CPU’s high single-thread performance, as evidenced by the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6030, ensures that it can keep up with the GPU’s demands even at lower resolutions. The 16 cores and 32 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and streaming, but Evolve is not a highly threaded game, so the multi-core performance is less critical. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX (0.1% behind) and the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D (0.6% ahead), show that the 8945HX is competitive with the best available processors, but this advantage does not translate into higher frame rates in Evolve because the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU’s 5.40 GHz boost clock and 64 MB of L3 cache are more than sufficient for this title, and the data indicates that the processor is not a constraint at any resolution or setting tested.