Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol is a demanding FPS title, and the measured results for the Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER reveal a configuration that is heavily constrained by the graphics card at higher resolutions, yet capable of delivering high refresh rates at 1080p. The data indicates a system that thrives in esports-style settings but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K with maximum visual fidelity.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is stark, clearly identifying the GPU as the primary limiting factor. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 107.4 FPS at 1920x1080 to 79 FPS at 2560x1440, and then plummets to 49.6 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 53.8% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K, a scaling pattern typical of a GPU-bound scenario where the RTX 2070 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are saturated by the increasing pixel count.

The scaling behavior changes dramatically when moving to Low settings. The 1080p result of 174.4 FPS drops to 131.3 FPS at 1440p, and further to 82.1 FPS at 4K. While the drop from 1080p to 4K is still significant at 52.9%, the absolute frame rates are much higher, suggesting that the CPU has more headroom to feed the GPU at lower graphical loads. However, the fact that the 4K Low result (82.1 FPS) is higher than the 4K High result (49.6 FPS) proves that the GPU still remains the bottleneck even when settings are reduced; it simply has fewer pixels to process.

Notably, the scaling between Medium and High presets is tighter than the jump to Ultra. At 1440p, the difference between Medium (92.6 FPS) and High (79 FPS) is 13.6 FPS, while the gap from High to Ultra (62.1 FPS) is a larger 16.9 FPS. This pattern is repeated at 1080p, where the High-to-Ultra delta (26.4 FPS) is more than double the Medium-to-High delta (17.5 FPS). This indicates that the Ultra preset introduces disproportionately heavy rendering effects that exact a severe toll on the Turing architecture's 9.062 TFLOPS of FP32 compute.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested CPU-GPU combinations for Lockdown Protocol, this pairing sits at rank 1039 out of 1637 combos. This places it in the lower-middle tier of tested systems, which is expected given the GPU's age. The RTX 2070 SUPER scores in the 65th percentile among all GPUs, while the i7-13700K is in the 93rd percentile among CPUs. This disparity in percentile rankings confirms that the graphics card is holding back the processor.

The CPU itself is a top-tier performer, with an average benchmark score of 47282. Its nearest rivals in synthetic tests include the Intel Core i7-13700KF (score 47334, delta -0.1%), the AMD EPYC 4364P (score 47131, delta 0.3%), and the Intel Core i9-12900F (score 47081, delta 0.4%). The differences are negligible, meaning the 13700K is effectively tied with these parts. However, this CPU strength does not translate into high frame rates in this game because the GPU is the binding constraint.

The combo's rank of 1039 suggests that many other configurations, likely featuring newer GPUs, will outperform this pairing in Lockdown Protocol. The data implies that users with this setup will see substantial gains from a GPU upgrade, whereas a CPU upgrade would yield almost no measurable improvement in this specific title. The bottleneck is unambiguous: the RTX 2070 SUPER's 12 nm Turing architecture is simply outclassed by the demands of the game at higher settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is the central figure in these results, operating with a base clock of 1605 MHz and a boost clock of 1770 MHz. Its memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. In Lockdown Protocol, this memory configuration appears to be a critical limiting factor at 4K Ultra, where the average frame rate falls to just 38.1 FPS, making the game effectively unplayable at that preset.

The GPU's 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs are tasked with rendering the game's visuals. The pixel rate of 113.3 GPixel/s and texture rate of 283.2 GTexel/s provide theoretical limits, but the measured frame rates show that the card is unable to sustain high performance under Ultra settings. The dramatic drop from 49.6 FPS at 4K High to 38.1 FPS at 4K Ultra highlights the cost of the Ultra preset's additional effects on the GPU's compute resources.

The RTX 2070 SUPER's synthetic benchmark scores reinforce its mid-range standing. It achieves a Passmark G3D score of 18169 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1651. In the database, its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA RTX A400 (score 22307, delta -0.5%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (score 22006, delta 0.9%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile (score 22729, delta -2.3%). The close margins to these parts confirm that the 2070 SUPER is a solid, but aging, performer that sits just below the performance tier of modern entry-level cards.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the configuration demonstrates its best performance. Low settings produce an average of 174.4 FPS, which is more than sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium settings reduce this to 125.9 FPS, while High settings yield 107.4 FPS. Ultra settings drop the average to 81 FPS, which is still smooth but represents a 53.5% reduction from Low.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance begins to strain. Low settings average 131.3 FPS, a solid result. Medium settings drop to 92.6 FPS, and High settings run at 79 FPS. Ultra settings fall to 62.1 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 69.2 FPS, showing the significant cost of graphical fidelity.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 2070 SUPER is clearly overwhelmed. Low settings average 82.1 FPS, which is respectable, but Medium drops to 59.7 FPS. High settings run at 49.6 FPS, and Ultra settings bring the system to its knees at 38.1 FPS. The 4K results show a consistent degradation, with the delta between each preset level ranging from 10.1 FPS (Ultra vs High) to 22.4 FPS (Low vs Medium). This data suggests that 4K gaming is only viable on the Low preset, and even then, frame rates will dip below 60 FPS in demanding scenes.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy for optimal playability. For high-refresh-rate 1080p displays, the High preset at 107.4 FPS offers the best balance of visual quality and speed, though Medium at 125.9 FPS is preferable for competitive play where frame rate is paramount. The Ultra preset at 81 FPS is acceptable for single-player experiences but introduces unnecessary graphical overhead for a marginal visual gain.

For 1440p displays, the Medium preset at 92.6 FPS is the strongest recommendation, providing a smooth experience above 90 FPS while retaining decent visual fidelity. The High preset at 79 FPS is still playable, but the drop below 80 FPS may be noticeable to sensitive users. Ultra at 62.1 FPS should be avoided for fast-paced action, as the frame pacing will suffer.

At 4K, the only viable preset is Low, which achieves 82.1 FPS. This is a significant compromise on visuals, but it is the only way to maintain frame rates above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 59.7 FPS is borderline, and High (49.6 FPS) and Ultra (38.1 FPS) are not recommended for any serious gameplay. The data indicates that users prioritizing visual quality at 4K will need to upgrade the GPU, as the RTX 2070 SUPER cannot handle the pixel throughput required by this game at higher settings.