Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol is a fast-paced FPS that scales aggressively with resolution, and the measured data for the Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 shows a clear story: at 1080p, the CPU is the primary driver, while at 4K, the GPU takes over as the bottleneck. This combination ranks 6th out of 1637 tested combos in the game, placing it in the top tier of configurations, though the scaling behavior reveals that even this flagship hardware has limits depending on your target resolution and settings.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a dramatic drop in average FPS when moving from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, which is typical for a game that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 350.4 FPS, but at 4K with the same settings, that number falls to 180.9 FPS—a reduction of roughly 48%. This indicates that at 1080p, the RTX 5090 is not being fully utilized; the i7-14700K’s 20 cores and 28 threads are likely the limiting factor, as the GPU has headroom to render more frames but is waiting on the CPU to feed it data.

Moving to 2560x1440, the scaling becomes more balanced. At Low settings, the average FPS is 277.4, which is still very high but shows a 21% drop from 1080p. This suggests that at 1440p, the GPU begins to take on more of the workload, though the CPU still plays a significant role. At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, especially at higher settings. For instance, at Ultra settings, the 4K average is 83.8 FPS, compared to 129.8 FPS at 1440p and 177.6 FPS at 1080p. The delta between 1440p and 4K at Ultra is about 35%, which is a substantial hit and points to the RTX 5090’s raw compute limits under heavy load.

The trend across all settings is consistent: 1080p delivers the highest FPS, 1440p is a middle ground, and 4K is the most demanding. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is narrower than the gap between 1440p and 4K, which is typical for modern GPUs. For example, at High settings, 1080p yields 238.8 FPS, 1440p yields 172.7 FPS, and 4K yields 112.8 FPS. This indicates that the RTX 5090, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, is well-suited for 1440p gaming, but at 4K, the pixel throughput demands become the primary constraint.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the measured rows suggest that Medium settings at 2560x1440 offer an excellent balance. The average FPS at this configuration is 198.5, which is well above the 144Hz refresh rate common on high-end monitors, and the visual quality is significantly better than Low. If you prefer 1080p, Medium settings at 272.5 FPS are nearly as good as Low (350.4 FPS) but with much better visuals, making it the sweet spot for competitive play where high frame rates matter most.

At 4K, the choice is more nuanced. High settings at 112.8 FPS is playable and looks great, but if you have a 120Hz or 144Hz display, you may want to drop to Medium at 130.8 FPS to get closer to that target. Ultra at 4K is the most demanding, yielding 83.8 FPS, which is still playable but not ideal for fast-paced FPS gameplay where smoothness is critical. The data suggests that for most players, Medium or High at 1440p is the recommended preset, as it provides a high frame rate without sacrificing too much visual fidelity. For 4K enthusiasts, High is the best option, as it keeps the frame rate above 100 FPS while offering a significant visual upgrade over Medium.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 350.4, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How much does the frame rate drop when moving from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings?

A: At Ultra settings, the average FPS drops from 177.6 at 1080p to 83.8 at 4K, a reduction of about 53%.

Q: Is this configuration better suited for 1440p or 4K gaming?

A: The data shows that at 1440p, the combo delivers 172.7 FPS on High and 129.8 FPS on Ultra, which is more fluid than 4K’s 112.8 FPS on High and 83.8 FPS on Ultra. It is better suited for 1440p if you prioritize high frame rates.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra at 2560x1440?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings achieve 277.4 FPS, while Ultra settings achieve 129.8 FPS, meaning Ultra is about 53% slower but offers much higher visual quality.

Q: How does the RTX 5090’s memory configuration affect performance?

A: The RTX 5090 has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory with a 512-bit bus and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, which is more than enough for Lockdown Protocol at any resolution, ensuring that memory bandwidth is not a bottleneck.

Q: What is the rank of this CPU-GPU combination in the game’s benchmark database?

A: This combo ranks 6th out of 1637 tested combinations, placing it in the top 0.4% of all configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system shows its highest performance. With Low settings, the average FPS is 350.4, which is ideal for competitive play. Medium settings reduce this to 272.5 FPS, still very high, while High settings yield 238.8 FPS. Ultra settings bring the average down to 177.6 FPS, which is still smooth but shows a significant drop from Low due to increased graphical load.

Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers scale down as expected. Low settings produce 277.4 FPS, Medium drops to 198.5 FPS, High to 172.7 FPS, and Ultra to 129.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is about 53%, which is consistent with the 1080p results. At 3840x2160, the GPU is pushed hard. Low settings achieve 180.9 FPS, Medium 130.8 FPS, High 112.8 FPS, and Ultra 83.8 FPS. The 4K results show that even with the RTX 5090, Ultra settings are demanding, and players may need to adjust settings to maintain high refresh rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this system for Lockdown Protocol, particularly at higher resolutions. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory is far more than the game requires, so VRAM is never a limiting factor. The 512-bit memory bus and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth ensure that texture streaming and high-resolution assets are handled with ease. The GPU’s boost clock of 2407 MHz and base clock of 2017 MHz, combined with its 21,760 shading units, provide the raw compute power necessary for the frame rates observed.

Benchmark results show the RTX 5090 scores 39,650 in Passmark G3D and 14,411 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, placing it in the 94th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the RTX 5090 D, scores 84,241 in the average benchmark, a mere 0.1% difference, indicating that the 5090’s performance is at the top of its class. The GPU’s role becomes more pronounced at 4K, where the pixel fill rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s are stressed. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the system drops to 83.8 FPS, which is still respectable but indicates the GPU is the bottleneck, as lowering settings to Low at 4K boosts performance to 180.9 FPS, a 116% increase.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K plays a supporting role in Lockdown Protocol, but it is crucial for high frame rates at 1080p. With 20 cores and 28 threads, the CPU provides ample processing power for game logic and physics, and its boost clock of 5.60 GHz ensures strong single-thread performance. In Cinebench R23, the i7-14700K scores 44,534 in multicore and 6,287 in single-core, which are strong results. Its Passmark multithread score of 52,392 and single-thread score of 4,472 confirm that it can handle the demands of modern FPS games.

The CPU’s role is most evident at 1080p, where the frame rates are highest. At Low settings, the system hits 350.4 FPS, which is likely limited by the CPU’s ability to issue draw calls and process game state. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, and the CPU’s load decreases relative to the GPU. The i7-14700K’s 33 MB of shared L3 cache helps with game data access, and its support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory allows for flexible system configurations. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-14700KF, scores 70,104 in average benchmarks, a 0% difference, meaning the K-series chip performs identically, just without integrated graphics. The CPU’s 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is well above average for this game, but the data shows that for 4K gaming, the GPU’s performance is the primary determinant of frame rates.