Lockdown Protocol

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER pairing in Lockdown Protocol presents a study in component balance, where the CPU's substantial headroom is frequently capped by the GPU's output limits. The 7700X is an 8-core, 16-thread Zen 4 processor with a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, built on a 5 nm process. Its benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core result of 30325 and a single-core score of 4281, place it in the 89th percentile among all CPUs. This indicates a processor with exceptional multi-threaded and single-threaded capabilities, making it well-suited for the computational demands of a modern FPS title.

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

The 7700X's architecture provides a robust foundation for Lockdown Protocol. With 8 cores and 16 threads, the CPU can handle game logic, physics calculations, and background tasks without becoming a bottleneck. The high boost clock of 5.40 GHz ensures strong per-core performance, which is critical for frame pacing in fast-paced shooters. In the measured FPS data, the CPU's influence is most apparent at lower resolutions and settings, where the graphics card is less stressed. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 159.9 FPS, a figure that highlights the CPU's ability to feed frames rapidly when the GPU is not the limiting factor. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR5 memory also contribute to low latency and high throughput, which are beneficial for maintaining consistent frame times.

The CPU's benchmark performance relative to its nearest rivals reinforces its strength. It scores within 0.4% of the Intel Core i5-13500 and 0.5% of the Intel Core i7-12800HX, while being 0.8% slower than the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H. This grouping indicates that the 7700X is comfortably in the upper echelon of desktop processors, providing ample computational power for any game scenario. However, the measured FPS data shows a clear pattern: as resolution and settings increase, the frame rate drops, suggesting the GPU becomes the primary constraint. For instance, at 4K Ultra, the average FPS falls to 38.1, a dramatic reduction from the 1080p Low figure. This is not a sign of CPU weakness but rather a demonstration of the graphical load overwhelming the RTX 2060 SUPER.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the highest average FPS achieved by this CPU and GPU combination in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 159.9, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 7700X compare to its closest rival, the Intel Core i5-13500?

A: The Ryzen 7 7700X has an average benchmark score of 34313, which is 0.4% higher than the Intel Core i5-13500's average score of 34175.

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking among all tested CPU and GPU pairings in this game?

A: This pairing ranks 1155th out of 1637 total tested combinations, placing it in the lower portion of the overall performance spectrum.

Q: Which resolution and settings combination yields an average FPS closest to 60?

A: At 2560x1440 with High settings, the combo achieves an average of 74.8 FPS. At 4K (3840x2160) with Medium settings, it drops to 55.1 FPS, and at 4K High it reaches 47.2 FPS.

Q: Does the GPU's benchmark score place it above or below the average GPU?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has a percentile rank of 63, meaning it performs better than 63% of all GPUs in the benchmark database.

Q: What is the difference in average FPS between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the difference is 87.5 FPS, with Low settings producing 159.9 FPS and Ultra settings producing 72.4 FPS.

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

Analyzing the measured FPS rows, the most balanced experience for smooth gameplay appears to be at 1920x1080 with High settings, delivering 101.3 FPS. This provides a significant margin above the 60 FPS threshold while maintaining higher visual fidelity than Low or Medium presets. At 1080p, the drop from High to Medium is only 13.5 FPS (from 114.8 to 101.3), but the visual quality increase from Medium to High is typically substantial. For players with 1440p monitors, the High preset at 2560x1440 yields 74.8 FPS, which remains playable and is a better choice than Medium (85.3 FPS) or Ultra (52 FPS). The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it consistently produces the lowest frame rates, including a sub-60 FPS experience at 1440p (52 FPS) and a very choppy 38.1 FPS at 4K. The data suggests that High settings offer the best compromise between visual quality and performance across all tested resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1155th out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This percentile position, roughly in the 70th percentile of all tested systems, indicates that while this setup is fully capable of running the game, it is not among the high-end configurations. The ranking reflects the GPU's mid-range status, as the RTX 2060 SUPER's benchmark scores (e.g., a Passmark G3D score of 16462) place it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, on the other hand, is a top-tier part in the 89th percentile. This disparity suggests that the combo's overall ranking is dragged down by the graphics card, and a more powerful GPU would likely move this setup significantly higher in the rankings. The data implies that this is a bottlenecked configuration, where the CPU's potential is not fully realized in graphically intensive scenarios.

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

The FPS scaling across resolutions provides clear evidence of a GPU-bound system. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 159.9 at 1080p to 116.7 at 1440p, a 27% reduction, and then to 72.9 at 4K, a 54% reduction from the 1080p figure. This steep decline is characteristic of a graphics card that is saturated by the increasing pixel count. At High settings, the trend continues: 101.3 FPS at 1080p drops to 74.8 FPS at 1440p and further to 47.2 FPS at 4K. The most dramatic scaling occurs at Ultra settings, where the 4K result of 38.1 FPS is less than half of the 1080p result of 72.4 FPS. These patterns indicate that the RTX 2060 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient to maintain high frame rates at higher resolutions, especially with demanding presets. The CPU, with its high core count and clocks, does not exhibit similar scaling limitations in this data, confirming that the GPU is the primary bottleneck for this pairing.

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

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are: Low 159.9, Medium 114.8, High 101.3, and Ultra 72.4. Moving to 2560x1440, the scores drop to: Low 116.7, Medium 85.3, High 74.8, and Ultra 52. At 3840x2160, the performance is significantly lower: Low 72.9, Medium 55.1, High 47.2, and Ultra 38.1. The data reveals a consistent pattern where each increase in resolution or settings tier results in a substantial FPS loss. For example, at 1080p, moving from Medium to High costs 13.5 FPS, while moving from High to Ultra costs 28.9 FPS. At 4K, the difference between Medium and High is only 7.9 FPS, but the overall frame rates are already below the 60 FPS threshold for most presets. The only configuration that consistently exceeds 100 FPS is at 1080p with Low or Medium settings, while 1440p Low and 1080p High also provide excellent playability.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. Its base clock is 1470 MHz with a boost clock of 1650 MHz, and it features 2176 shading units. The GPU's benchmark scores, including a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2011 and a Passmark G3D score of 16462, position it as a solid mid-range performer, ranking in the 63rd percentile. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is a critical factor in Lockdown Protocol, as higher resolutions and Ultra settings likely push texture and geometry data beyond this limit, causing performance to degrade. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU's limitations become pronounced at 1440p and 4K, where the memory bandwidth and fill rate are insufficient to maintain high frame rates. The GPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals, such as the RTX 2070 (which it trails by 0.5%), suggests that this card is at the edge of its capabilities for modern FPS games at high visual fidelity. The data clearly shows that the GPU, not the CPU, is the limiting factor in this pairing, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops when graphical load increases.