Fortnite

Fortnite’s performance with the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER shows a clear progression from a highly responsive experience at 1080p to a demanding slideshow at 4K Ultra. The measured data indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary limiting factor as resolution increases, while the i5-14400F provides ample headroom to push frame rates at lower resolutions. This combination ranks 1102 out of 1564 tested combos in the database, placing it in the lower-middle tier for this specific title, yet the actual FPS results reveal a system capable of smooth gameplay with the right settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 is dramatic and consistent across all settings. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 207 at 1080p to 68.7 at 4K, a reduction of 138.3 frames. This steep decline is a classic sign of GPU-bound operation: as pixel count quadruples, the RTX 2060 SUPER’s shading units and texture units are overwhelmed. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is also significant, with Low settings dropping from 207 to 131.3 FPS, indicating that even at mid-range resolutions, the GPU is already struggling to maintain the high frame rates the CPU can theoretically deliver.

Looking at High settings, the scaling is similar but with lower absolute values: 112.8 FPS at 1080p, 72 at 1440p, and 40.5 at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 36%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is about 44%. This non-linear behavior suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth (448.0 GB/s) and pixel fill rate (105.6 GPixel/s) become increasingly taxed as resolution rises. At Ultra settings, the system falls below 60 FPS at 1440p (47 FPS) and drops to a barely playable 24.1 FPS at 4K, confirming that the 8 GB GDDR6 frame buffer and the 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are insufficient for maxed-out settings at high resolutions.

The data reveals that the i5-14400F is not the bottleneck in this scenario. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 207 FPS, which is exceptionally high and suggests the CPU can feed the GPU efficiently. The Core i5-14400F has 10 cores and 16 threads with a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, and its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21914 places it in the 88th percentile among all CPUs. Even at 1080p High, the 112.8 FPS average indicates that the GPU is still the limiting factor, as the CPU has more than enough single-thread performance (3,093 in Cinebench R23) to handle Fortnite’s game logic and draw calls.

FAQ

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER capable of running Fortnite at 1440p?

A: Yes, but only with adjustments. The data shows 72 FPS at High settings and 90.1 FPS at Medium settings for 2560x1440, both playable. However, Ultra settings at the same resolution drop to 47 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth competitive play.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve high refresh rates?

A: At 1920x1080, the system delivers 146.2 FPS on Medium and 112.8 FPS on High. These are the only settings where the average exceeds 100 FPS, making 1080p the target for high-refresh monitors. Low settings reach 207 FPS, which is well into the range of 144Hz and 165Hz displays.

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

A: The i5-14400F has an average benchmark score of 32508, which is nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-12800H (32513, 0% delta) and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (32446, 0.2% delta). It is virtually tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 250 (32584, -0.2% delta), showing that its performance is competitive with both desktop and mobile high-end parts.

Q: Does the GPU’s VRAM capacity affect 4K performance?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 24.1, which is not just a compute limitation but likely also a memory capacity issue, as the game’s texture requirements at this resolution can exceed 8 GB. Lowering settings reduces memory pressure, as seen with 68.7 FPS at 4K Low.

Q: What is the ranking of this combo among all tested systems?

A: This specific CPU and GPU pairing ranks 1102 out of 1564 total combinations for Fortnite. This places it in the 70th percentile of all tested combos, meaning there are many faster configurations, but also hundreds of slower ones.

Q: Can the CPU handle the frame rates the GPU produces?

A: The data suggests yes. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 207 FPS, and the CPU’s Passmark multi-thread score of 25783 and single-thread score of 3723 indicate strong performance. The i5-14400F’s 20 MB of L3 cache also helps maintain smooth frame pacing in a game like Fortnite, which often has many players and building objects on screen.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, Medium settings at 1920x1080 are the clear choice. The measured 146.2 FPS average is well above the 60 FPS baseline and close to the 144 Hz refresh rate that many competitive players use. High settings at 1080p are also viable, with 112.8 FPS, but the drop of 33 frames from Medium to High suggests that the GPU is working harder without a proportional visual benefit for most users. If the goal is maximum smoothness for competitive play, Low settings at 1080p provide 207 FPS, which is ideal for 240 Hz panels, though the visual fidelity is significantly reduced.

For 1440p, Medium settings (90.1 FPS) are the recommended starting point, as they maintain a playable frame rate above 60 FPS while offering better image clarity than 1080p. High settings at 1440p (72 FPS) are acceptable for casual play, but Ultra should be avoided due to the 47 FPS average. At 4K, the system is not suitable for High or Ultra settings, with averages of 40.5 and 24.1 FPS respectively. Low settings at 4K (68.7 FPS) are the only playable option, but this defeats the purpose of the resolution upgrade. The data indicates that this system is best used at 1080p with Medium or High presets, or 1440p with Medium.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers a wide range of performance depending on the preset. Low settings produce an average of 207 FPS, which is the highest score in the entire dataset. Medium settings drop to 146.2 FPS, still excellent for most displays. High settings yield 112.8 FPS, a solid number for standard monitors. Ultra settings, however, bring the average down to 76.7 FPS, showing a sharp performance penalty for the highest quality shadows and effects.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease noticeably. Low settings maintain a high 131.3 FPS, allowing for smooth gameplay on 1440p monitors. Medium settings fall to 90.1 FPS, which is still very playable. High settings produce 72 FPS, which is borderline for fast-paced action. Ultra settings drop to 47 FPS, making the game feel stuttery and unresponsive during intense build battles.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 2060 SUPER begins to struggle. Low settings achieve 68.7 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. Medium settings drop to 47 FPS, and High settings fall to 40.5 FPS. Ultra settings bottom out at 24.1 FPS, which is below the threshold for a smooth experience and is only suitable for screenshots or static scenes. The progression from 1080p to 4K clearly shows the GPU’s limitations with pixel throughput.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the dominant factor in this system’s Fortnite performance, particularly at higher resolutions. Its Turing architecture, built on a 12 nm process at TSMC, includes 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, with a peak FP32 throughput of 7.181 TFLOPS. This compute capacity is what drives the 207 FPS at 1080p Low, but it is insufficient for the 4K Ultra workload, which requires 4 times the pixel processing.

The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a crucial spec for Fortnite, as the game loads many high-resolution textures for skins, weapons, and the environment. At 4K Ultra, the combination of high memory usage and heavy shader work reduces the average to 24.1 FPS. The GPU’s 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are present, but Fortnite does not heavily utilize ray tracing in these benchmarks, so their impact is minimal. The benchmark scores for the GPU, such as a Passmark G3D score of 16462 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2011, confirm that the RTX 2060 SUPER sits in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, which aligns with its role as a mid-range performer.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F provides the engine for this system, and its performance is more than adequate for Fortnite. With 10 cores (6 performance and 4 efficiency) and 16 threads, it has the multi-threaded muscle to handle background tasks, while its 4.70 GHz boost clock ensures strong single-thread performance for game logic. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21914 and single-core score of 3093 place it in the 88th percentile of all CPUs, which is a significant advantage over many older processors.

The benchmarks for the i5-14400F show it is well-balanced: Geekbench multi-core score of 11209 and single-core of 2333, with a Passmark multi-thread score of 25783. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for Fortnite’s frequent asset streaming. The CPU’s support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory, with a dual-channel bus, means it can pair with various memory speeds without bottlenecking. In the measured FPS data, the CPU never appears to be the limiting factor, as the GPU becomes the constraint at 1440p and 4K. At 1080p Low, the 207 FPS result suggests the CPU can push well beyond 200 FPS, making it a future-proof choice for this game if the GPU were upgraded.