Greedfall

Greedfall on the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 combination delivers a playable experience across most settings, but the data clearly points to the GPU as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions and quality presets. The measured frame rates show a system that excels at 1080p and 1440p with medium to high settings, while 4K Ultra remains out of reach. This analysis breaks down the specific roles of the CPU and GPU, the optimal settings, and the scaling behavior across resolutions based strictly on the measured data.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 5 125H is a 14-core, 18-thread mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 7 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.50 GHz, with 18 MB of shared L3 cache. The processor's benchmark scores indicate it sits in the 79th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27507. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 (avg score 27535, delta -0.1%), Intel Core i5-12600K (avg score 27578, delta -0.3%), and AMD Ryzen 7 5700X (avg score 27578, delta -0.3%), placing the Core Ultra 5 125H essentially at parity with these desktop-class parts in synthetic workloads.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role is evident from the frame rate data at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 156 FPS average, which is the highest measured result across all configurations. This suggests that at this resolution and setting, the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to reach high frame rates. However, the gap between 1080p Low (156 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (71 FPS) is substantial, indicating that the workload shifts heavily toward the GPU as settings increase. The processor's single-thread performance, as measured by Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1647.5, appears sufficient for Greedfall's demands, since even at 1080p High the system maintains 111 FPS average.

The multi-threaded capabilities of the Core Ultra 5 125H, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 12804.5 and Passmark multithread score of 21100, provide headroom for background tasks and game engine overhead. The Passmark physics score of 1439 and floating point math score of 51670 further indicate that the CPU handles computational workloads efficiently. Notably, the processor's performance is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with all deltas within 0.5%, meaning any frame rate differences in Greedfall are unlikely to stem from CPU limitations but rather from the GPU's capabilities.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimizing the Greedfall experience on this hardware combination. At 1080p, the Medium preset delivers 122 FPS average with a minimum of 104 FPS and maximum of 141 FPS. This represents an excellent balance, offering a significant improvement over High (111 FPS average) while maintaining smooth frame times. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 71 FPS average, which is still playable but sacrifices the fluidity that the Medium preset provides. For players prioritizing frame rate consistency, Medium at 1080p is the recommended choice, as it stays well above 100 FPS even at minimum.

At 1440p, the Medium preset yields 85 FPS average with a minimum of 72 FPS and maximum of 98 FPS. This is a strong result for a 1440p experience, keeping the frame rate above the 60 FPS threshold even in demanding scenes. The High preset at 1440p produces 77 FPS average, which is also viable, but the Medium preset's minimum of 72 FPS provides more consistent performance. The Ultra preset at 1440p falls to 49 FPS average, which may be acceptable for slower-paced gameplay but is not ideal for action sequences. The data suggests that Medium at 1440p offers the best experience for this resolution, balancing visual quality with performance.

At 4K, the situation changes dramatically. The Medium preset achieves 51 FPS average with a minimum of 43 FPS and maximum of 58 FPS. This is borderline playable, but the minimum frame rate dips below 45 FPS, which could cause noticeable stuttering in combat. The High preset at 4K drops to 46 FPS average, and Low produces 64 FPS average. For 4K, the Low preset appears to be the most practical option, as it maintains an average above 60 FPS. However, the visual compromise may not be worth it for all players. The data indicates that 1440p Medium is the sweet spot for this hardware, offering the best combination of visual fidelity and performance across all measured configurations.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling data reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At Medium settings, the frame rate drops from 122 FPS at 1080p to 85 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 37 FPS, and then to 51 FPS at 4K, another reduction of 34 FPS. This pattern demonstrates that the RTX 5060 is the limiting factor as resolution increases. The CPU's performance remains constant across resolutions, so the frame rate decline is directly attributable to the GPU's rendering workload. At 1080p Medium, the system achieves 122 FPS, but at 4K Medium, it falls to 51 FPS, a 58% decrease in performance.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High settings shows a drop from 111 FPS to 77 FPS, a 34 FPS reduction. From 1440p to 4K High, the frame rate falls from 77 FPS to 46 FPS, a 31 FPS reduction. These consistent drops across resolutions indicate that the GPU is being saturated at higher pixel counts. The Low settings show a similar trend: 156 FPS at 1080p, 108 FPS at 1440p, and 64 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are roughly proportional, confirming that the GPU's fill rate and bandwidth are the primary constraints.

The memory bandwidth of the RTX 5060 is 448.0 GB/s, which is substantial for a mobile GPU, but the 128-bit bus width limits the data throughput at higher resolutions. The 8 GB VRAM capacity also plays a role, as Greedfall at 4K Ultra likely exceeds this amount, causing the frame rate to plummet to 29 FPS average. The data strongly suggests that players should stay at 1080p or 1440p for optimal performance, as the GPU's capabilities diminish significantly at 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware in Greedfall?

A: The measured data shows that 1440p Medium offers 85 FPS average with a minimum of 72 FPS, providing the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 1080p Medium, the system achieves 122 FPS average, which is smoother but at lower resolution.

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

A: Yes, but with compromises. At 4K Low, the system achieves 64 FPS average, while 4K Medium drops to 51 FPS average. 4K Ultra is not recommended, as it falls to 29 FPS average, which is below playable thresholds.

Q: How does the RTX 5060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5060 has an average benchmark score of 26331, placing it in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs. It is within 1.2% of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT (score 26011) and within 0.8% of the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (score 26553).

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H a bottleneck in Greedfall?

A: The data suggests not. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 156 FPS average, indicating the CPU can deliver high frame rates. The CPU's average benchmark score of 27507 is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with deltas under 0.5%.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this hardware in Greedfall?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 43 FPS, observed at 4K Medium settings. The highest minimum is 104 FPS at 1080p Medium. The 1440p Medium configuration has a minimum of 72 FPS.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High across resolutions?

A: At 1080p, Ultra delivers 71 FPS average versus High's 111 FPS, a 40 FPS difference. At 1440p, Ultra produces 49 FPS average versus High's 77 FPS, a 28 FPS difference. At 4K, Ultra achieves 29 FPS average versus High's 46 FPS, a 17 FPS difference. The performance cost of Ultra is significant at all resolutions.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB206 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 5 nm process. It features 3840 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs, with 30 RT cores and 120 tensor cores. The GPU has a base clock of 2280 MHz and a boost clock of 2497 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's synthetic benchmarks show a Passmark G3D score of 20891 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3628, placing it in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 26331.

In Greedfall, the GPU's role is dominant. The measured frame rates show that the RTX 5060 handles 1080p and 1440p well, but struggles at 4K, particularly at higher settings. The 8 GB VRAM capacity appears to be a limiting factor at 4K Ultra, where the frame rate drops to 29 FPS average. This suggests that the game's texture and geometry data at Ultra settings exceed the available VRAM, causing performance degradation. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K the 128-bit bus width becomes a constraint.

The GPU's compute capabilities, as measured by the Passmark GPU compute score of 10899 and Geekbench OpenCL score of 112787, indicate strong general-purpose performance. The DirectX 12 benchmark score of 77 in Passmark is relatively low compared to other API scores, but this does not appear to impact Greedfall's performance negatively, as the game runs well at lower resolutions. The nearest rivals to the RTX 5060 include the AMD Radeon 860M (score 26401, delta -0.3%), NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (score 26421, delta -0.3%), and AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary (score 26553, delta -0.8%), all of which are within 1% of the RTX 5060's average score, suggesting similar performance levels in synthetic tests.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the system's performance across all configurations. At 1920x1080, the system achieves the highest frame rates: Low settings produce 156 FPS average, Medium produces 122 FPS average with a minimum of 104 FPS and maximum of 141 FPS, High produces 111 FPS average, and Ultra produces 71 FPS average. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a steady decline, with the largest drop occurring between High (111 FPS) and Ultra (71 FPS), a 40 FPS reduction. This indicates that Ultra settings introduce a significant additional load on the GPU.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are lower but still respectable. Low settings achieve 108 FPS average, Medium achieves 85 FPS average with a minimum of 72 FPS and maximum of 98 FPS, High achieves 77 FPS average, and Ultra achieves 49 FPS average. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings: Low falls by 48 FPS, Medium by 37 FPS, High by 34 FPS, and Ultra by 22 FPS. The smaller absolute drop at Ultra settings suggests that the GPU is already heavily loaded at 1080p Ultra, so the additional resolution has a less pronounced effect.

At 3840x2160, the system's performance diminishes significantly. Low settings produce 64 FPS average, Medium produces 51 FPS average with a minimum of 43 FPS and maximum of 58 FPS, High produces 46 FPS average, and Ultra produces 29 FPS average. The 4K Ultra result of 29 FPS is the lowest measured value and indicates that this configuration is not suitable for playable frame rates. The 4K Medium minimum of 43 FPS is also concerning, as it falls below the 45 FPS threshold commonly associated with smooth gameplay. The data shows that 4K is only viable at Low settings, where the system maintains 64 FPS average, but even this is a significant compromise compared to 1440p Medium's 85 FPS average.

The combination's overall ranking in Greedfall is 1922 out of 2938 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle range of all possible hardware configurations. This ranking, combined with the measured frame rates, suggests that while the system is capable of running Greedfall well at 1080p and 1440p, it is not optimized for 4K gaming. The data indicates that players should target 1440p Medium or 1080p Medium for the best experience, as these configurations offer the highest frame rates with acceptable visual quality. The 4K Ultra setting, with its 29 FPS average, should be avoided entirely.