Evolve

# Intel Core Ultra 5 235 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 in Evolve

This combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 produces a capable Evolve experience across all tested resolutions, though the title's age means even demanding settings remain playable. The data shows a system that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS at 1440p on High settings, while 4K Ultra pushes the hardware to its limits with a 40 FPS average. The pairing ranks in the 74th percentile of all tested combos for this game, indicating solid but not elite performance relative to the broader benchmark database.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows 2560x1440 as the sweet spot. At Medium settings, the combo delivers a 130 FPS average with a 111 FPS minimum, while High settings still produce 102 FPS. This provides a substantial visual upgrade over 1080p without the steep performance penalty seen at 4K.

Q: How does the RTX 3080's VRAM capacity affect Evolve performance?

A: The GPU features 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus with 760.3 GB/s bandwidth. The measured results show no indication of VRAM limitations, as even at 4K Ultra the bottleneck appears to be raw compute rather than memory capacity, given the consistent frame rates across settings.

Q: Is the Core Ultra 5 235 a bottleneck for the RTX 3080 in this game?

A: The CPU's 14 cores and 14 threads with a 5.00 GHz boost clock appear sufficient for Evolve. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 251 FPS average, suggesting the CPU can feed the GPU effectively even at high frame rates where CPU overhead typically becomes visible.

Q: What settings preset provides the most balanced experience at 1440p?

A: Medium settings at 2560x1440 deliver a 130 FPS average with a 111 FPS minimum, offering a strong balance between visual quality and smoothness. High settings still hold above 100 FPS, but Medium provides more headroom for demanding scenes.

Q: How does this combo compare to other tested configurations for Evolve?

A: The combo ranks 755th out of 2872 tested combinations, placing it in the top 26% of all configurations. This indicates above-average performance, though not in the top tier where specialized high-end pairings would typically reside.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Evolve?

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K High, the combo averages 58 FPS, which is playable. At 4K Medium, it improves to 74 FPS with a 63 FPS minimum. However, 4K Ultra drops to 40 FPS, which may feel less smooth for fast-paced FPS gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and RTX 3080 combination achieves a rank of 755 out of 2872 tested combos for Evolve, placing it in the 73.7th percentile. This is a solid mid-to-upper tier result, reflecting the GPU's position as a capable but not flagship performer in this title. The RTX 3080 itself sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs, while the Core Ultra 5 235 ranks at the 89th percentile among all CPUs — indicating the processor is comparatively stronger than the graphics card relative to their respective pools.

The GPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks show a tightly clustered field: the NVIDIA P106-100 sits 0.3% behind, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 is 0.3% behind, and the AMD Radeon RX 6600M trails by 0.4%. The AMD Radeon R9 M290X is also within 0.4%. This suggests the RTX 3080's raw compute performance is closely matched by several other cards, but in Evolve specifically, the measured FPS results show the card performing well above what these synthetic deltas might imply, thanks to the game's relatively modest requirements.

On the CPU side, the Core Ultra 5 235's average benchmark score of 46062 places it within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, 0.1% of the Intel Core i9-13900HX, and 0.2% of both the AMD EPYC 4364P and AMD EPYC 7303. This tight clustering indicates the CPU is competitive with a range of high-end processors, though none of these rivals appear in the measured FPS data for Evolve, so direct in-game comparisons are not available.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080, the data shows that even Ultra settings deliver a 106 FPS average, making this resolution entirely flexible. Low settings reach 251 FPS, Medium 195 FPS, and High 153 FPS. For competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays, Low or Medium would be preferable, but for visual fidelity, Ultra remains fully playable.

At 2560x1440, Medium settings provide the best overall experience with a 130 FPS average and 111 FPS minimum. High settings at 102 FPS are also viable, but the narrower margin above 60 FPS makes Medium the safer recommendation for consistent smoothness. Ultra at 71 FPS is technically playable but offers less headroom for frame-time spikes.

For 3840x2160, the recommendation shifts to Medium settings, which deliver a 74 FPS average with a 63 FPS minimum. High settings at 58 FPS are borderline, and Ultra at 40 FPS falls below the threshold for comfortable FPS gameplay. Low settings at 96 FPS are an option if raw smoothness is prioritized over visual quality.

The optimal preset across all resolutions is Medium, as it consistently provides the highest minimum frame rates relative to the visual quality delivered. This is particularly evident at 4K, where the gap between High and Medium is 16 FPS on average, while the visual difference in a fast-paced FPS is often minimal.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo demonstrates exceptional headroom. Low settings produce a 251 FPS average, Medium 195 FPS with a 165 FPS minimum and 224 FPS maximum, High 153 FPS, and Ultra 106 FPS. This resolution is clearly not a challenge for the hardware, as even the most demanding preset maintains over 100 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the scaling is linear and predictable. Low settings yield 168 FPS, Medium 130 FPS with a 111 FPS minimum and 150 FPS maximum, High 102 FPS, and Ultra 71 FPS. The step from High to Ultra represents a 31 FPS drop, the largest single-setting penalty at this resolution, indicating that Ultra's additional effects are particularly demanding.

At 3840x2160, the performance curve steepens considerably. Low settings average 96 FPS, Medium 74 FPS with a 63 FPS minimum and 85 FPS maximum, High 58 FPS, and Ultra 40 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 56 FPS total drop, with the High-to-Ultra step alone costing 18 FPS. This resolution exposes the GPU's limits, as the RTX 3080's 10 GB VRAM and 29.77 TFLOPS FP32 throughput become the limiting factors.

The minimum FPS data, available only for Medium settings, shows consistent behavior: 165 FPS at 1080p, 111 FPS at 1440p, and 63 FPS at 4K. These minimums are tightly grouped relative to the averages, suggesting stable frame pacing without severe dips. The maximum FPS values at Medium follow a similar pattern, with 224 FPS at 1080p, 150 FPS at 1440p, and 85 FPS at 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is the primary driver of Evolve's performance, particularly at higher resolutions. Its GA102 chip on Samsung's 8 nm process contains 28,300 million transistors across a 628 mm² die, with 8704 shading units, 272 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. This hardware configuration delivers 29.77 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and a texture rate of 465.1 GTexel/s.

The GPU's clock behavior shows a 1440 MHz base and 1710 MHz boost, with memory running at 1188 MHz or 19 Gbps effective. The 10 GB GDDR6X frame buffer on a 320-bit bus provides 760.3 GB/s of bandwidth, which is ample for Evolve's 2015-era textures and effects. The VRAM capacity never appears to be a limiting factor in the measured results, as even 4K Ultra maintains consistent frame rates rather than suffering from texture streaming stutters.

The RTX 3080's 68 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are largely irrelevant for Evolve, which predates widespread ray tracing adoption. The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) ensures full compatibility, but the game's engine likely utilizes older DirectX 11 paths, as reflected in the PassMark DirectX 11 score of 207 versus the DirectX 12 score of 100. The GPU's 164.2 GPixel/s pixel rate and 465.1 GTexel/s texture rate are more indicative of its Evolve performance.

The GPU's percentile ranking at 68% of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23172, places it in the upper-mid range. Its nearest rivals in synthetic tests — the P106-100, Radeon Pro Vega 16, RX 6600M, and R9 M290X — all sit within 0.4% in average score, yet the RTX 3080's real-world Evolve results benefit from its architectural efficiency and driver maturity.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 provides a robust foundation for Evolve, though the game's modest CPU demands mean the processor rarely becomes the limiting factor. Built on TSMC's 3 nm process with 17,800 million transistors in a 243 mm² die, this Arrow Lake-S chip features 14 cores and 14 threads — notably without hyperthreading — running at a 3.40 GHz base and 5.00 GHz boost clock.

The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 192 KB L1 per core, 3 MB L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration, combined with dual-channel DDR5 memory support yielding 102.4 GB/s bandwidth, ensures the processor can feed the GPU without bottlenecking. In Evolve's CPU-light scenes, the 1080p Low result of 251 FPS demonstrates the CPU's ability to sustain high frame rates, though this figure likely approaches the game engine's own limits.

Synthetic benchmarks show the Core Ultra 5 235's strengths: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14769 and single-core score of 2085, with PassMark single-thread performance of 4516. The 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms its high-end positioning, and its average benchmark score of 46062 places it in a virtual tie with the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, Core i9-13900HX, EPYC 4364P, and EPYC 7303 — all within 0.2% delta.

The CPU's 65W TDP and 5.00 GHz boost clock are well-suited to gaming workloads, and the lack of ECC memory support and locked multiplier are irrelevant for this use case. The integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 24EU is present but unused when the RTX 3080 is installed, and the PCIe Gen 5 interface with 20 CPU lanes provides ample bandwidth for the GPU's PCIe 4.0 x16 connection.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the RTX 3080 as the primary bottleneck as resolution increases. At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 195 at 1080p to 130 at 1440p — a 33.3% reduction — and then to 74 at 4K, a further 43.1% reduction. This pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where pixel count directly impacts frame rate.

At High settings, the scaling is similar: 153 FPS at 1080p, 102 FPS at 1440p (a 33.3% drop), and 58 FPS at 4K (a 43.1% drop from 1440p). The consistent percentage drops across settings suggest the CPU is not introducing variable bottlenecks, as the relative performance loss remains stable regardless of the preset.

The Low settings curve shows slightly different behavior: 251 FPS at 1080p, 168 FPS at 1440p (a 33.1% drop), and 96 FPS at 4K (a 42.9% drop). The near-identical scaling percentages across all settings confirm that resolution, not settings, drives the performance degradation. This indicates the RTX 3080's fill rate and memory bandwidth, rather than its compute units, are the limiting factors at higher resolutions.

Ultra settings exhibit the steepest absolute drops: 106 FPS at 1080p, 71 FPS at 1440p (a 33.0% drop), and 40 FPS at 4K (a 43.7% drop). The 4K Ultra result of 40 FPS represents the system's weakest performance point, showing that the combination of maximum pixel count and maximum visual effects exceeds the GPU's comfortable operating range.

The scaling pattern strongly indicates that the Core Ultra 5 235 is not limiting performance at any resolution. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS drops from 1080p to 4K would be less pronounced, as the GPU would have more headroom to work with at lower resolutions. Instead, the consistent 33%/43% scaling suggests the RTX 3080 is fully utilized across all tested configurations.