Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H paired with the AMD Radeon 890M delivers playable frame rates in Lockdown Protocol, but it is firmly positioned at the lower end of the performance spectrum. The data indicates a fundamental GPU bottleneck that becomes increasingly pronounced at higher resolutions, with the combo ranking in the 5th percentile of all tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable yet steep decline in performance as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 78 FPS, which drops to 58 FPS at 1440p and further to 37 FPS at 4K. This represents a 26% performance loss when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a 53% loss from 1080p to 4K at Low settings. The scaling pattern indicates that the AMD Radeon 890M's rendering capabilities are the primary constraint, as the frame rate drops are directly proportional to the pixel count increase.

Under High settings, the scaling is even more punishing. The 49 FPS at 1080p falls to 36 FPS at 1440p (a 27% reduction) and then to 23 FPS at 4K (a 53% reduction from 1080p). The 4K High result of 23 FPS is barely above the threshold for playability, suggesting that the integrated GPU is overwhelmed by the combination of high detail settings and the 3840x2160 resolution.

The Medium settings row provides the most complete picture, with both minimum and maximum FPS recorded. At 1080p Medium, the combo produces 56 FPS average with a minimum of 47 FPS and maximum of 64 FPS. Moving to 1440p Medium drops the average to 41 FPS with a range of 35-47 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 26 FPS with a range of 22-30 FPS. The narrowing FPS range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is consistently saturated, leaving little headroom for scene complexity variations.

Ultra settings at 4K produce a 17 FPS average, which is essentially unplayable for a fast-paced FPS title. The Ultra preset at 1080p manages 36 FPS, which is the same as the High preset at 1440p, highlighting how resolution and settings trade-offs can yield similar performance outcomes. The data clearly shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with 1440p being viable only at lower settings, and 4K reserved for static scenes or benchmarking rather than active gameplay.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where all settings presets achieve playable frame rates above 30 FPS. At 1080p, even Ultra settings reach 36 FPS, while 1440p Ultra falls to 27 FPS and 4K Ultra drops to 17 FPS.

Q: How does the AMD Radeon 890M compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Radeon 890M has an average benchmark score of 9210, placing it within 1% of the AMD Radeon Vega 8 (9221), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 (9273), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 (9294). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M (9302) by 1%.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The CPU's performance metrics, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11875.5 and a Passmark single-thread score of 3521, suggest it has sufficient processing power for this title. The 78 FPS at 1080p Low indicates the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU ranks in the 81st percentile of all CPUs.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows a 41 FPS average at 2560x1440 with Medium settings, with a minimum of 35 FPS and maximum of 47 FPS. This provides a playable experience for most FPS scenarios, though competitive players might prefer the higher frame rates available at 1080p.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 2675 out of 2828 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 5% of all systems tested with Lockdown Protocol. This indicates that while the game is playable at lower settings, most other hardware combinations deliver superior performance.

Q: Is the 4K Ultra preset usable for any scenario?

A: At 17 FPS average, the 4K Ultra preset is not suitable for active gameplay. It could be used for screenshot purposes or cinematic viewing of static scenes, but the data suggests that 1080p or 1440p presets provide a far better experience for actual play.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H brings 14 cores and 18 threads to the system, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. This Meteor Lake architecture processor features an 18 MB shared L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory through a dual-channel configuration with 89.6 GB/s bandwidth. The CPU's performance profile, as indicated by its benchmark scores, suggests it is more than capable of feeding the integrated GPU in Lockdown Protocol.

The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11875.5 and single-core score of 1700 demonstrate solid computational throughput. The Passmark multi-thread score of 22422 and single-thread score of 3521 reinforce that the CPU is not the primary constraint in this gaming scenario. The CPU's nearest rivals in overall benchmark performance include the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (29123, delta -0.1%), Intel Xeon Phi 7210 (29245, delta -0.5%), and AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT (28940, delta 0.5%), all of which have similar average scores around 29000.

The 14-core configuration with 18 threads provides ample parallelism for modern game engines, and the 4.60 GHz boost clock ensures responsive single-thread performance for game logic and physics calculations. The 28W TDP indicates this is a power-efficient mobile processor, but the performance data shows it does not compromise gaming capability in this title.

The fact that frame rates scale nearly linearly with resolution changes suggests the CPU is delivering consistent frame times regardless of the rendering load. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS across different resolutions, but the data shows substantial drops from 1080p to 4K, confirming that the GPU is the limiting component.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2675 out of 2828 tested combinations places this system in the bottom 5.4% of all configurations tested with Lockdown Protocol. This ranking reflects the integrated GPU's limitations rather than the CPU's capabilities, as the processor alone ranks in the 81st percentile of all CPUs.

Looking at the GPU's performance in isolation, the Radeon 890M sits at the 45th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 9210. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon Vega 8 (9221), which is 0.1% faster, and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 (9273), which is 0.7% faster. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 8076 and DirectX 12 score of 37 indicate modest DirectX 12 performance, which is relevant given the game's FPS genre and modern API requirements.

The combination of an 81st percentile CPU with a 45th percentile GPU creates a significant imbalance, with the CPU's potential being largely untapped in this gaming workload. The 2675 rank reflects this mismatch, as systems with more balanced configurations or more powerful GPUs occupy the upper ranks.

For perspective, the GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 590 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 40808 provide reference points for its compute capabilities. The FP32 performance of 5.939 TFLOPS and texture rate of 185.6 GTexel/s are indicative of its rendering throughput, which is simply insufficient for high-resolution gaming in this title.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the user's resolution and performance priorities. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 78 FPS, which provides the smoothest experience for competitive play. The Medium preset at 56 FPS offers a balance between visual quality and performance, while the High preset at 49 FPS is still playable for most users. The Ultra preset at 36 FPS is the minimum recommended for those who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate smoothness.

For 2560x1440, the Low preset at 58 FPS is the only setting that maintains a consistently high frame rate. The Medium preset at 41 FPS is playable but may experience noticeable frame drops during intense scenes, as indicated by the 35 FPS minimum. The High preset at 36 FPS is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 27 FPS is not recommended for active gameplay.

At 3840x2160, only the Low preset at 37 FPS approaches playability, and even this is marginal for a fast-paced FPS. The Medium preset at 26 FPS and High at 23 FPS are only suitable for less demanding scenarios, while Ultra at 17 FPS is strictly for static scenes.

The data suggests that the best experience for most players would be 1080p Medium settings, which provides 56 FPS average with a minimum of 47 FPS. This configuration offers a good balance between visual quality and performance, maintaining frame rates above the 30 FPS threshold even during demanding sequences. For competitive players seeking maximum responsiveness, 1080p Low at 78 FPS is the clear choice, while 1440p Low at 58 FPS offers a reasonable middle ground for those prioritizing resolution over settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data across all resolutions and settings is as follows:

At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 78 FPS average, representing the highest performance of any configuration tested. The Medium preset delivers 56 FPS average with a minimum of 47 FPS and maximum of 64 FPS, providing a stable experience. The High preset produces 49 FPS average, while the Ultra preset falls to 36 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset reaches 58 FPS average, which is a 26% reduction from the 1080p result. The Medium preset averages 41 FPS with a range of 35-47 FPS, showing a similar minimum-to-average ratio as the 1080p Medium result. The High preset drops to 36 FPS average, and the Ultra preset manages only 27 FPS average.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset produces 37 FPS average, representing a 53% reduction from 1080p Low. The Medium preset averages 26 FPS with a range of 22-30 FPS, which is the only 4K configuration with recorded minimum and maximum values. The High preset falls to 23 FPS average, and the Ultra preset bottoms out at 17 FPS average.

The performance deltas between settings presets at each resolution follow a consistent pattern. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium costs 22 FPS, from Medium to High costs 7 FPS, and from High to Ultra costs 13 FPS. This non-linear scaling suggests that the Medium preset represents an efficiency sweet spot, with diminishing returns at High and a significant performance hit for Ultra.

At 1440p, the Low to Medium transition costs 17 FPS, Medium to High costs 5 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 9 FPS. At 4K, Low to Medium costs 11 FPS, Medium to High costs 3 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 6 FPS. The shrinking absolute differences at higher resolutions indicate that the GPU is increasingly saturated, leaving less headroom for settings adjustments.