Evolve

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Evolve with the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti reveals a steep performance cliff as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo averages 61.4 FPS, which drops to 39.2 FPS at 2560x1440 and further to 24.6 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 36% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and another 37% reduction from 1440p to 4K at the same Low preset. The pattern is consistent across all settings, indicating that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

Examining the Medium preset, the frame rate falls from 47.5 FPS at 1080p to 31.6 FPS at 1440p, then to 16.8 FPS at 4K. The High preset shows a similar trajectory: 35.2 FPS at 1080p, 26.8 FPS at 1440p, and 11.6 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, delivering 26.8 FPS at 1080p, 17 FPS at 1440p, and just 9.6 FPS at 4K. The data shows that at 4K, even the Low preset fails to reach 25 FPS, making the game effectively unplayable at that resolution regardless of settings.

The scaling behavior points to a clear conclusion: the GTX 1050 Ti's 4 GB GDDR5 memory and 112.1 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for 4K workloads in this title. The GPU's 768 shading units and 32 ROPs simply cannot sustain the pixel throughput required at 3840x2160. The 14 nm Pascal architecture, while efficient, was designed for 1080p gaming, and the benchmark results confirm this. At 1080p, the combo can deliver playable frame rates at Low and Medium settings, but the drop-off to 1440p and 4K is steep, with the GPU being the limiting component in all measured scenarios.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo achieves playable frame rates across multiple presets. At Low settings it hits 61.4 FPS, at Medium 47.5 FPS, and at High 35.2 FPS. The 2560x1440 resolution tops out at 39.2 FPS on Low, while 3840x2160 never exceeds 24.6 FPS.

Q: How does the GTX 1050 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark performance?

A: The GTX 1050 Ti has an average benchmark score of 5316, placing it in the 30th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce 930A with a score of 5317 (0% delta), followed by the NVIDIA GeForce 940M at 5297 (0.4% ahead), the AMD Radeon R7 240 at 5280 (0.7% ahead), and the AMD Radeon R7 M445 at 5361 (0.8% behind).

Q: Is the Core i5-10400F a strong CPU for gaming in this context?

A: The i5-10400F sits in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 14168. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 7552, scores 14115 (0.4% behind), while the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C scores 14277 (0.8% ahead). With 6 cores and 12 threads, the CPU is not the bottleneck in Evolve; the GPU is.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 31.6 FPS. This is marginally playable but below the 60 FPS threshold. Dropping to Low settings at 1440p raises the average to 39.2 FPS, which is still below ideal for competitive FPS play.

Q: How does the Ultra preset perform at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo averages 26.8 FPS. This is the same frame rate achieved at 1440p with High settings (26.8 FPS), illustrating that Ultra at 1080p imposes a similar load as High at 1440p for this GPU.

Q: What is the combo's ranking among tested configurations for Evolve?

A: This combo ranks 1692 out of 1695 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 0.2% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the GPU's 30th percentile performance and the CPU's 73rd percentile performance, with the GPU dragging the overall result down significantly.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F brings substantial processing capability to this pairing, featuring 6 cores and 12 threads with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. The Comet Lake architecture, built on Intel's 14 nm process, includes 12 MB of shared L3 cache and 64 KB of L1 cache per core, along with 256 KB of L2 cache per core. Memory support is DDR4 with dual-channel configuration and a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i5-10400F shows strong multi-threaded performance: Cinebench R23 multicore scores 10297, while single-core scores 1453. Geekbench multicore reaches 5783 and single-core 1454. The 3DMark results demonstrate scaling from 1350 at 2 threads to 4748 at 16 threads, indicating good thread utilization. PassMark tests show a multithread score of 12115 and single-thread score of 2541.

For Evolve specifically, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU. The game's measured FPS scales primarily with resolution and settings, both of which impact the GPU more than the CPU. At 1080p Low, the CPU can theoretically push beyond 61.4 FPS, but the GTX 1050 Ti's 2.138 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 66.82 GTexel/s texture rate limit the output. The CPU's 73rd percentile ranking versus the GPU's 30th percentile confirms this imbalance. The i5-10400F's 65 W TDP and PCIe Gen 3 x16 interface are not constraining factors; the GPU's 75 W TDP and 112.1 GB/s memory bandwidth are the limiting specs.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 1692 out of 1695 tested combinations in Evolve, placing it in the bottom 0.2% of all configurations. This rank is heavily influenced by the GPU's weak standing: the GTX 1050 Ti sits in the 30th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 5316. Its nearest rivals are all within 0.8% in either direction, showing that the GPU sits in a dense cluster of low-end parts. The AMD Radeon R7 M445 is the closest competitor at 5361 (0.8% higher), while the NVIDIA GeForce 930A matches at 5317 (0% delta).

The CPU, by contrast, performs much better in isolation. The i5-10400F's average benchmark score of 14168 places it in the 73rd percentile, with the AMD EPYC 7552 (14115, 0.4% lower) and AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277, 0.8% higher) as nearest rivals. This creates a significant mismatch: a top-quartile CPU paired with a bottom-third GPU. The measured FPS data reflects this imbalance, as the frame rates are consistently low across all resolutions and settings, with the best result being 61.4 FPS at 1080p Low.

In practical terms, this combo's rank means users will need to make substantial compromises to achieve playable frame rates. The data shows that only the 1080p Low preset (61.4 FPS) and 1080p Medium preset (47.5 FPS) approach acceptable performance. All other configurations deliver below 40 FPS, with 4K Ultra at 9.6 FPS being the worst case. The combo's rank of 1692 out of 1695 is a direct consequence of the GPU's inability to handle Evolve's rendering demands at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1920x1080 with Low settings, which delivers 61.4 FPS average. This is the only configuration that achieves a frame rate above 60 FPS, making it the clear choice for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 1080p offers 47.5 FPS, which is playable but with noticeable dips below 60 FPS. For users prioritizing visual quality over frame rate, the High preset at 1080p provides 35.2 FPS, which remains above the 30 FPS floor for basic playability.

At 2560x1440, the best option is Low settings at 39.2 FPS, which is marginally playable but requires a tolerance for lower visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 1440p drops to 31.6 FPS, and High falls to 26.8 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p produces only 17 FPS, which is not recommended for any gameplay scenario. At 3840x2160, no preset achieves playable frame rates: Low gives 24.6 FPS, Medium 16.8 FPS, High 11.6 FPS, and Ultra 9.6 FPS. The 4K resolution should be avoided entirely with this hardware.

The data indicates that the GPU's 4 GB memory capacity and 128-bit memory bus are insufficient for Evolve's texture requirements at higher settings. The Low preset likely reduces texture streaming and shadow quality enough to keep memory usage within limits, explaining why it performs disproportionately better than Medium at all resolutions. The GTX 1050 Ti's 32 ROPs also limit fill-rate-heavy operations, which are more prevalent at higher resolutions. For the best balance of performance and visual quality, the 1080p Low preset is the recommended configuration, with 1080p Medium as a viable alternative for users who prioritize visuals over frame rate consistency.