Greedfall

Greedfall, a 2019 Action RPG, presents an interesting challenge for the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination. The benchmark data indicates this pairing delivers playable performance across most settings, but the game's engine places distinct demands on both the processor and the graphics card. The measured results show a system that excels at high refresh rates in 1080p and 1440p, yet encounters limitations at 4K Ultra that point to a shift in bottleneck behavior.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is a mobile processor featuring 14 cores and 18 threads, a configuration that is well-suited for modern gaming workloads, including those of an Action RPG like Greedfall. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.60 GHz provide the single-thread performance necessary for game logic and physics calculations. This processor is built on the Meteor Lake architecture with a 7 nm process node and has an 18 MB shared L3 cache, which helps in keeping frequently accessed data close to the cores.

The benchmark results for this CPU show a percentile ranking of 81 among all tested processors, indicating it performs better than the majority of its peers. In the cinebench_r23_multicore test, the chip scored 11875.5 points, while its single-core score was 1700 points. This data suggests a balanced performance profile. The processor's average benchmark score of 29093 places it in a tight competitive group. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, has an average score of 29123, a difference of only -0.1%. Similarly, the Intel Core i5-13500HX scores 29270, which is -0.6% higher. These negligible differences imply that in CPU-bound scenarios, the Core Ultra 5 135H will perform nearly identically to these desktop-class alternatives.

In the context of Greedfall, the CPU's role is to manage the game's world, AI routines for enemies and NPCs, and the overarching game systems. The measured frame rates suggest that at lower resolutions like 1080p, the CPU is more than capable of feeding the GPU. For instance, at 1080p Low settings, the system reaches an average of 261 FPS. This high frame rate indicates that the CPU is not a limiting factor at this resolution and settings level. The strong multi-threaded performance from its 18 threads likely helps maintain consistent frame pacing in busy areas of the game world, where numerous AI entities might be active. The data shows that as resolution increases, the CPU's relative importance diminishes, which is typical for games that are primarily GPU-bound at higher graphical loads.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is a flagship-class GPU with a substantial 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. Its core is based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and features a base clock of 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz. This GPU is designed to handle extreme resolutions and graphical settings with ease. Its benchmark percentile of 92 places it in the top tier of graphics cards, with a passmark_g3d score of 39650.

The GPU's performance in Greedfall is substantial. At 4K with Medium settings, it delivers an average of 85 FPS, demonstrating its ability to handle high pixel counts. However, the game's engine appears to have a significant performance ceiling at the highest settings. The data shows a large drop when moving from High to Ultra at 4K, with average frame rates falling from 77 FPS to 49 FPS. This is a 36% reduction in performance, which suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that are particularly taxing on the GPU, likely related to shadow quality, ambient occlusion, or post-processing filters. The 32 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for Greedfall, as the game is from 2019 and would not require anywhere near that capacity, even at 4K with Ultra settings. The GPU's raw compute power, measured at 104.8 TFLOPS for FP32, is the driving force behind the high frame rates observed in this test, though the game's engine seems to struggle to fully utilize this power at the highest quality preset.

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

Analyzing the frame rate scaling across resolutions reveals the dynamic between the CPU and GPU. At 1080p High settings, the system produces an average of 186 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 129 FPS, and at 4K High, it falls to 77 FPS. This pattern shows a clear and consistent decline as the pixel count increases. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is a 30.6% decrease, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is a more significant 40.3% decrease. The larger percentage drop between 1440p and 4K indicates that the GPU is becoming the primary limiting factor at the higher resolution.

The story is similar for Medium and Low settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 261 FPS, which drops to 181 FPS at 1440p and 108 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p on Low settings is a 30.6% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K is a 40.3% reduction. The consistency of these percentage drops across different settings is telling. It suggests that the frame rate is scaling primarily with the number of pixels being rendered, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU is likely not the bottleneck at these resolutions, as the frame rates are still very high. The data indicates that the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is sufficiently powerful to keep the RTX 5090 fed with data, even at 1080p where CPU overhead is typically the highest. The GPU's rendering capabilities are what dictate the final frame rate, and the scaling pattern confirms that the RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this pairing for this game.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 achieves a rank of 813 out of 3703 tested combos in Greedfall. This places it in the top 22% of all tested systems, a strong showing that reflects the high-end nature of the GPU. The rank indicates that while the RTX 5090 is a top-tier card, the mobile CPU holds the combo back from reaching the very top of the charts, where systems with desktop-class flagship CPUs would reside.

The data for the CPU shows it is a near-perfect match for the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X in terms of average benchmark scores, with a delta of only -0.1%. Similarly, it is only -0.6% behind the Intel Core i5-13500HX. This suggests that the Core Ultra 5 135H is not a weak link in the system for most workloads. However, in a game like Greedfall, which may rely heavily on single-core performance for certain tasks, the CPU's cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 1700 might be a contributing factor to its rank. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB, have an average score that is 0.3% higher, but this is a professional-grade card and not a direct consumer gaming comparison. The combo's rank of 813 out of 3703 is a clear indicator that this system is capable of delivering a high-performance gaming experience, but it is not at the absolute pinnacle of the benchmark database for this specific title.

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

The measured frame rates provide a comprehensive view of the system's performance across a matrix of settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the system exhibits exceptional performance. The Low preset yields an average of 261 FPS, which is extraordinarily high. The Medium preset averages 205 FPS, with a minimum of 174 FPS and a maximum of 236 FPS, showing very stable performance. High settings produce an average of 186 FPS, while the Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, still manages an average of 119 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the system is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay on any display, including high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 2560x1440, performance remains very strong. The Low preset averages 181 FPS, and Medium settings provide an average of 142 FPS, with a minimum of 121 and maximum of 163. High settings average 129 FPS, which is still excellent for a 1440p gaming experience. The Ultra preset at this resolution averages 82 FPS, which is perfectly playable and offers a high level of visual fidelity. Moving to 3840x2160, the system still delivers solid results, but the demands of 4K are evident. The Low preset averages 108 FPS, while Medium averages 85 FPS, with a minimum of 72 and maximum of 98. High settings average 77 FPS, which is a good result for 4K. The Ultra preset is the only configuration that drops below the 60 FPS threshold, averaging 49 FPS. This data shows a clear hierarchy of performance, with the system being more than capable at 1080p and 1440p, and only struggling to maintain high frame rates at 4K with the maximum settings.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combination depend on the user's target resolution and preference for visual quality versus frame rate. For 1920x1080 displays, the Ultra preset is the clear choice. With an average of 119 FPS, it provides a significant visual upgrade over the High preset's 186 FPS, but the frame rate is still high enough for a very smooth experience. The system has enough headroom at 1080p to afford the performance cost of Ultra settings, making it the best experience in terms of image quality without sacrificing playability.

For 2560x1440, the High preset presents the best balance. It offers an average of 129 FPS, which is excellent for a competitive or immersive experience. While the Ultra preset is also viable at an average of 82 FPS, the jump from High to Ultra comes with a substantial 36% performance penalty. The High preset is likely to provide a more consistent and higher frame rate, which is often more beneficial than marginal visual improvements. The Medium preset at 142 FPS is also a good choice for those who prioritize frame rate above all else, but High is the recommended sweet spot.

At 3840x2160, the choice is more nuanced. The High preset averages 77 FPS, which is a great result for 4K and provides a high level of detail. This is the recommended setting for a quality 4K experience. The Medium preset, at 85 FPS, is also a strong option and offers a slight performance buffer. The Ultra preset, with an average of 49 FPS, is not recommended for general play as it falls below the standard 60 FPS target. The data suggests that for a 4K experience, players should choose between High for maximum fidelity within a playable range, or Medium for a higher frame rate. The Low preset at 108 FPS is a viable option for those who want the highest possible frame rate at 4K, but it significantly reduces the game's visual quality.