Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol with an Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 6600 presents a classic 1080p-focused pairing that scales predictably as resolution climbs. The measured data shows this combination is capable of high refresh rates at 1080p but becomes increasingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, where the RX 6600’s 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory interface start to limit performance. The numbers indicate a system that is well-balanced for competitive FPS play at 1080p, but users targeting 4K will need to make significant graphical compromises.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 is steep and consistent across all settings, which clearly identifies the GPU as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 90 FPS at 1080p to 66 FPS at 1440p, a 26.7% reduction, and then to 43 FPS at 4K, which is a 52.2% drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern is typical for a mid-range GPU like the RX 6600, which has the raw compute power for 1080p but lacks the memory bandwidth and fill rate to sustain high frame rates at 4K.

The Low settings data reinforces this GPU-bound conclusion. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 146 FPS, which drops to 107 FPS at 1440p and 69 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 52.7%, nearly identical to the High settings drop of 52.2%. This consistency across settings indicates that the resolution scaling is driven by the GPU's pixel throughput and memory bandwidth, not by CPU limitations or settings-specific effects. The RX 6600’s 224.0 GB/s bandwidth and 159.4 GPixel/s pixel rate are simply insufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K, regardless of how low the graphical fidelity is set.

The Medium settings data provides the only min/max FPS measurements in the entire dataset. At 4K Medium, the average is 49 FPS with a minimum of 42 and maximum of 56. At 1440p Medium, the average is 76 FPS with a minimum of 64 and maximum of 87. At 1080p Medium, the average is 103 FPS with a minimum of 88 and maximum of 119. The 1080p Medium result shows a 31 FPS spread between min and max, which indicates some frame pacing inconsistency, but the average remains well above the 60 FPS threshold. The 4K Medium result shows only a 14 FPS spread, suggesting that at 4K the system is more consistently GPU-limited, with less variance because the GPU is saturated.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Lockdown Protocol at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at playable frame rates on Low settings, where it averages 69 FPS. At Medium settings, the average drops to 49 FPS, and at Ultra settings, it falls to 32 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combination?

A: The data strongly favors 1920x1080. At High settings, the system averages 90 FPS, and at Low settings, it reaches 146 FPS. These are the only resolution and settings combinations where the average frame rate comfortably exceeds 100 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 6600 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 6600 has an average benchmark score of 19036, which is nearly identical to the NVIDIA Quadro K6000 (19030, 0% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile (19049, -0.1% delta). It is slightly ahead of the NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation (18954, 0.4% delta).

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-11400F a strong performer for this game?

A: The i5-11400F has a percentile rank of 71 against all CPUs, meaning it outperforms 71% of processors. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 7H12, scores 17120, which is only 0.3% lower than the i5-11400F’s average benchmark score of 17177.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1440p with this setup?

A: At 1440p, the system averages 107 FPS on Low settings, 76 FPS on Medium, 66 FPS on High, and 50 FPS on Ultra. The 66 FPS High result is playable, but the 50 FPS Ultra result is borderline.

Q: Does the system have enough VRAM for Lockdown Protocol?

A: The RX 6600 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory. The measured data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 32, which suggests the memory capacity and bandwidth are being stressed at this resolution and settings level.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Rocket Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This is a 14 nm part with a 65 W TDP, and its benchmark results indicate a solid mid-range performer. In Cinebench R23, it scores 14340 in multi-core and 2024 in single-core, which are respectable numbers for a 6-core processor. The PassMark multithread score is 16908, and the single-thread score is 2981.

For Lockdown Protocol, an FPS title, the single-thread performance is often more critical than raw multi-core throughput. The i5-11400F’s PassMark single-thread score of 2981 and Geekbench single-core score of 1777 suggest it has enough per-core strength to avoid being a bottleneck at 1080p. This is confirmed by the measured FPS data, where at 1080p Low, the system achieves 146 FPS, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU with enough frames to reach high refresh rates. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1691 and 4-thread score of 3171 further support that the CPU has adequate single and lightly threaded performance for gaming.

The CPU’s 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support with 51.2 GB/s bandwidth are typical for this class of processor. The data shows that at 1080p, the system is not CPU-limited, as frame rates scale with settings reductions, which is a GPU-bound behavior. However, at 4K, the CPU’s role diminishes further, as the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. The i5-11400F’s percentile rank of 71 against all CPUs places it ahead of the AMD EPYC 7H12, which has a 0.3% lower average score, and the Intel Core i5-12450H, which is 0.4% lower. This indicates that the CPU is a competent partner for the RX 6600, providing sufficient processing power for this game without holding back the GPU at standard gaming resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels. At 3840x2160, the system averages 69 FPS on Low, 49 FPS on Medium, 43 FPS on High, and 32 FPS on Ultra. The Medium setting has a documented minimum of 42 FPS and maximum of 56 FPS. This makes 4K Low the only playable option, as it exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, while Medium and High are borderline playable and Ultra is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

At 2560x1440, performance improves significantly. The system averages 107 FPS on Low, 76 FPS on Medium, 66 FPS on High, and 50 FPS on Ultra. The Medium setting has a minimum of 64 FPS and maximum of 87 FPS. This resolution offers a good balance, with High settings providing 66 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS target, and Low settings delivering a very smooth 107 FPS. The Ultra setting at 50 FPS is the only option at 1440p that falls below the 60 FPS threshold.

At 1920x1080, the system performs at its best. The averages are 146 FPS on Low, 103 FPS on Medium, 90 FPS on High, and 68 FPS on Ultra. The Medium setting has a minimum of 88 FPS and maximum of 119 FPS. All four settings levels at 1080p exceed 60 FPS, meaning the system can handle the game at maximum quality while maintaining a playable frame rate. The 68 FPS Ultra result is the lowest at this resolution, but it still provides a smooth experience. The data shows that 1080p is the sweet spot for this combination, where even the most demanding settings are playable, and the Low setting approaches the 144 Hz refresh rate territory.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture using a 7 nm process from TSMC. It features 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with 28 ray tracing cores. The GPU has a base clock of 1626 MHz, a game clock of 2044 MHz, and a boost clock of 2491 MHz. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) across a 128-bit bus, providing 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU’s FP32 performance is 8.928 TFLOPS, and its pixel rate is 159.4 GPixel/s.

The RX 6600’s synthetic benchmark scores show it is a solid mid-range GPU. Its PassMark G3D score is 15096, and its Geekbench Vulkan score is 67623. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1492. The GPU has a percentile rank of 63 against all GPUs, and its average benchmark score of 19036 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA Quadro K6000 (19030, 0% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile (19049, -0.1% delta). This places it in a competitive position against older workstation and newer mobile parts.

In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU’s role is dominant at higher resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the limiting factor at 1440p and 4K, as reducing settings yields significant FPS gains. At 4K, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 37 FPS (69 vs 32), which is a 53.6% improvement from Ultra to Low. At 1440p, the difference is 57 FPS (107 vs 50), a 53.3% improvement. At 1080p, the difference is 78 FPS (146 vs 68), a 53.4% improvement. This consistent percentage across resolutions indicates that the GPU’s compute and memory resources scale linearly with settings, and the 8 GB VRAM is sufficient at 1080p but may be a constraint at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS falls to 32.

The GPU’s 224.0 GB/s bandwidth is a key limitation at 4K, as the higher pixel count requires more memory traffic. The 128-bit memory bus is narrow for a modern GPU, but the 14 Gbps effective speed helps compensate. The data suggests that for optimal performance, users should stick to 1080p or 1440p with this GPU, as 4K requires Low settings to maintain playable frame rates.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this system is at 1920x1080 with High settings, which provides an average of 90 FPS. This is a strong balance between visual quality and performance, as the game will look good while maintaining a frame rate well above the 60 FPS target. For players with 144 Hz monitors, the Low setting at 1080p, which averages 146 FPS, is the recommended choice to fully utilize the display’s refresh rate. The Medium setting at 1080p, averaging 103 FPS, is also an excellent option for those who want a mix of quality and speed.

At 2560x1440, the High setting, which averages 66 FPS, is the recommended choice for a playable experience with good visuals. The Low setting at 1440p, averaging 107 FPS, is the best option for competitive play where frame rate is prioritized over graphics. The Ultra setting at 1440p, averaging 50 FPS, should be avoided as it dips below the 60 FPS threshold, which can cause noticeable stuttering in a fast-paced FPS.

For 4K gaming, the only viable option is the Low setting, which averages 69 FPS. This provides a playable frame rate, but the visual fidelity will be significantly reduced. The Medium setting at 4K, averaging 49 FPS, is borderline and not recommended for competitive play, while the High and Ultra settings at 43 FPS and 32 FPS, respectively, are not suitable for smooth gameplay. In summary, the data indicates that 1080p High is the sweet spot for this hardware combination, with 1440p Low as a viable alternative for higher resolution, and 4K reserved only for those who prioritize resolution over frame rate.