Lockdown Protocol

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

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is a 20-core, 20-thread Arrow Lake-S desktop processor built on a 3 nm TSMC process, with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and a 30 MB shared L3 cache. This configuration places it at the 97th percentile among all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 79,102. Its nearest rival, the Core Ultra 7 265KF, scores 79,240, a delta of -0.2%, meaning the 265K trails by a negligible margin. The i9-14900KF scores 79,245 (-0.2%), and the i9-14900K scores 79,824 (-0.9%), so the 265K sits within 1% of three top-tier Intel parts.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with frames, but the measured FPS data suggests this CPU is not the limiting factor at most settings. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 157.9 FPS, which is high enough to indicate the CPU can push well beyond standard 60 Hz displays. The single-core performance, as shown by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7,060, is strong for a game that depends on per-thread logic, though Lockdown Protocol's exact thread usage is not specified. The multi-core score of 50,009 in Cinebench R23 suggests headroom for background tasks or streaming, but the game's frame rates are more constrained by the GPU, especially at higher resolutions and quality presets. The 20 threads with no hyper-threading (20 cores, 20 threads) imply that the CPU's physical cores handle the game's workload directly, which can be beneficial for latency-sensitive FPS mechanics. However, the data does not show a scenario where the CPU becomes the bottleneck; even at 4K Ultra with 34.1 FPS, the GPU is clearly the constraint, as lowering settings to Low at the same resolution nearly doubles the frame rate to 77.7 FPS.

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

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Ultra settings for this combo?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 71.6 FPS. This is the lowest of the four settings at 1080p, with Low achieving 157.9 FPS, Medium 112.4 FPS, and High 98.2 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 19,774. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, scores 19,706, which is a delta of 0.3% — meaning the RTX 2060 SUPER is 0.3% ahead. The RTX 2070 scores 19,680 (0.5% ahead of the 2060 SUPER), and the Quadro K5200 scores 19,623 (0.8% ahead).

Q: Does the CPU's performance percentile suggest it is a top-tier processor?

A: Yes, the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K sits at the 97th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 79,102. This places it among the top 3% of processors tested, with its nearest rivals all within 1.2% of its score.

Q: What is the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 98.2 at 1080p to 73.1 at 1440p, and further to 48.7 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is a reduction of 49.5 FPS, which is approximately a 50% decrease in frame rate.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested combinations in Lockdown Protocol?

A: This combo ranks 1226 out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the lower-middle portion of the distribution, indicating that while it can play the game, many other combinations achieve higher frame rates.

Q: What is the boost clock of the CPU, and how might it affect gameplay?

A: The CPU's boost clock is 5.50 GHz, with a base clock of 3.90 GHz. Higher boost clocks can improve single-threaded performance, which is often critical in FPS games for physics, AI, and game logic. The measured Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7,060 reflects this capability.

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

The resolution scaling data reveals a clear pattern: as resolution increases, frame rates drop significantly, and the drop is steeper at higher quality settings. At Low settings, the FPS goes from 157.9 at 1080p to 115.2 at 1440p (a 27% drop), and then to 77.7 at 4K (a 33% drop from 1440p). At Ultra settings, the FPS goes from 71.6 at 1080p to 54.0 at 1440p (a 25% drop), and then to 34.1 at 4K (a 37% drop from 1440p). This scaling behavior is typical of a GPU-limited scenario: the RTX 2060 SUPER's workload increases with pixel count, while the CPU's frame generation capacity remains constant.

At 1080p Low, the 157.9 FPS is likely close to the CPU's maximum frame rate for this game, but the GPU can still deliver high numbers. As resolution increases, the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become the bottleneck. The RTX 2060 SUPER has an 8 GB GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth, which is adequate for 1080p but strained at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 34.1 FPS suggests the GPU is heavily saturated, while the 4K Low result of 77.7 FPS shows that reducing settings can relieve the GPU pressure but not fully overcome the resolution penalty. The data implies that the CPU is not the limiting factor at any resolution; even at 1080p Low, the frame rate is high, but the GPU's performance ceiling is reached earlier at higher resolutions and quality presets.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1226 out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This rank places it in the 75th percentile of combos (meaning 75% of tested combinations outperform it), which is a below-average position. The CPU's high percentile (97th) does not translate to a high combo rank, because the GPU's lower percentile (63rd) drags the overall performance down. The RTX 2060 SUPER's average benchmark score of 19,774 is modest compared to modern GPUs, and its nearest rivals are all older or lower-tier cards (GTX TITAN, RTX 2070, Quadro K5200, Tesla K40m).

In practical terms, this combo is capable of running Lockdown Protocol at playable frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but it is far from the top of the rankings. The CPU's strength is wasted at higher resolutions where the GPU is the bottleneck, as evidenced by the 4K Ultra result of 34.1 FPS. The combo rank suggests that for this game, the GPU is the primary determinant of overall performance, and pairing this CPU with a stronger GPU would yield a much higher rank. The data shows that the 265K is a top-tier processor, but its benefits are only visible when the GPU can keep up — at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 157.9 FPS, which is respectable, but the rank indicates that many other combinations with similar or better GPUs outperform it.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and frame rate across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium achieves 112.4 FPS, which is smooth for competitive FPS gaming, while High drops to 98.2 FPS and Ultra to 71.6 FPS. At 1440p, Medium delivers 83.4 FPS, which is still above 60 FPS, while High drops to 73.1 FPS and Ultra to 54.0 FPS. At 4K, Medium drops to 52.3 FPS, which is borderline, but High (48.7 FPS) and Ultra (34.1 FPS) are less playable.

Low settings provide the highest frame rates (157.9 at 1080p, 115.2 at 1440p, 77.7 at 4K) but sacrifice visual detail. For a game like Lockdown Protocol, which is an FPS, frame rate is often prioritized over graphical fidelity. The Medium preset at 1080p or 1440p appears to be the sweet spot: at 1440p Medium, the 83.4 FPS is above the 60 FPS threshold for most displays, and the visual improvement over Low is likely substantial. At 1080p Medium, the 112.4 FPS provides headroom for high-refresh-rate monitors (up to 120 Hz). If the player has a 4K display, Low settings (77.7 FPS) are the only way to get near 60 FPS, but Medium (52.3 FPS) is still playable for less demanding scenarios. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution, as the FPS drops below 60 at 1440p and below 40 at 4K.

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

The measured FPS data is as follows:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 157.9 FPS
• Medium: 112.4 FPS
• High: 98.2 FPS
• Ultra: 71.6 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 115.2 FPS
• Medium: 83.4 FPS
• High: 73.1 FPS
• Ultra: 54.0 FPS

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 77.7 FPS
• Medium: 52.3 FPS
• High: 48.7 FPS
• Ultra: 34.1 FPS

The pattern is consistent: at every resolution, Low settings provide the highest frame rate, followed by Medium, High, and Ultra in descending order. The gap between Low and Medium is significant at 1080p (45.5 FPS difference), but narrows at 4K (25.4 FPS difference). The gap between High and Ultra is smaller: 26.6 FPS at 1080p, 19.1 FPS at 1440p, and 14.6 FPS at 4K. This suggests that the Ultra preset adds a substantial visual load but returns diminishing frame rate benefits. The data also shows that the 4K Ultra result of 34.1 FPS is the lowest measured, indicating that this combo is not viable for 4K gaming at maximum settings.

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, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1470 MHz, boosting to 1650 MHz, with memory clocked at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). The GPU has 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 34 RT cores, and 272 tensor cores, with a peak FP32 performance of 7.181 TFLOPS. It sits at the 63rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19,774, and its nearest rival, the GTX TITAN, is only 0.3% behind.

In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU's role is dominant, as the FPS scaling with resolution and settings demonstrates. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p at most settings, but at 4K, the higher resolution textures and effects may strain the memory capacity, contributing to the low FPS at Ultra (34.1 FPS). The GPU's memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s is a limiting factor at 4K, where the pixel throughput demand is quadrupled compared to 1080p. The RTX 2060 SUPER's 12 nm process node and 175 W TDP make it a mid-range card from the GeForce 20-series, and its performance in this game reflects its age. The data shows that the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K and at higher quality settings, as evidenced by the large FPS differences between Low and Ultra at the same resolution. The GPU's percentile rank of 63rd is below the CPU's 97th percentile, confirming that the GPU is the weaker link in this combo.