Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol is a 2024-released FPS that behaves like a classic GPU-bound title with this particular pairing. The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combo produces a playable but not spectacular experience, with the data showing a clear ceiling imposed by the graphics card. Across the measured resolutions, the RTX 2060 SUPER demonstrates its age, while the modern 24-core processor ensures that frame pacing remains stable even when the renderer is saturated.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a textbook GPU-limited scenario. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo hits 159 FPS average, which is a high-refresh-rate territory figure. However, as resolution increases, the frame rate drops sharply. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at Low settings reduces the average from 159 FPS to 117 FPS, a 26% decline. The jump to 3840x2160 at Low settings brings the average down further to 75 FPS, representing a 53% drop from the 1080p baseline.

This scaling pattern is consistent across all quality presets. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 99 at 1080p to 72 at 1440p, then to 47 at 4K. The Medium preset shows a similar trajectory: 113 FPS at 1080p, 83 FPS at 1440p, and 53 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings are the most punishing, starting at 74 FPS at 1080p and collapsing to 54 FPS at 1440p and 35 FPS at 4K.

The data strongly indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the limiting component. The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus, with its 24 cores and boost clock of 5.50 GHz, is not the bottleneck here; if it were, we would see much flatter FPS numbers across resolutions. Instead, the proportional drops in performance as pixel count increases point directly at the GPU's rasterization throughput. The 4K results, particularly the 35 FPS average at Ultra, are indicative of a graphics card that is overwhelmed by the pixel fill rate demands of Lockdown Protocol at that resolution.

Interestingly, the delta between Low and Ultra at each resolution is substantial. At 1080p, the gap is 85 FPS (159 vs 74), while at 4K it narrows to 40 FPS (75 vs 35). This compression at higher resolutions reinforces the GPU-bound nature; when the card is already struggling to fill pixels, the settings overhead becomes relatively less impactful on the final frame rate.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Lockdown Protocol at 4K smoothly?

A: Only at Low settings, where it averages 75 FPS. At Medium, the average drops to 53 FPS, which is borderline, and at High it falls to 47 FPS. Ultra is not viable at 4K, averaging just 35 FPS.

Q: What is the best resolution for high refresh rate monitors?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo delivers 159 FPS average. If you want visual quality, the High preset at 1080p still provides 99 FPS, which is suitable for a 100Hz display, while Medium hits 113 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU influence performance in this game?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus has 24 cores and 24 threads with a 5.50 GHz boost clock. The benchmark data shows that FPS scales primarily with resolution and settings, not with CPU load, indicating the processor is not the limiting factor. The CPU's high single-thread performance, evidenced by its 2439 Cinebench R23 single-core score, ensures it can feed the GPU adequately.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER a good match for this CPU?

A: The data suggests a significant imbalance. The CPU ranks in the 96th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU sits in the 62nd percentile. In game, this combo ranks 2014th out of 2828 tested combos, indicating that the GPU drags down the overall potential of the processor.

Q: What settings should I use for a competitive edge?

A: For maximum frame rate, Low settings at 1080p yield 159 FPS. If you need a balance of visibility and performance, Medium at 1080p offers 113 FPS with a minimum of 96 FPS, ensuring no drops below the refresh rate of a standard 100Hz monitor.

Q: Does the game benefit from the CPU's multi-core capabilities?

A: The CPU's multi-core scores are impressive (44253 in Cinebench R23 multi-core), but the game's FPS numbers do not show a corresponding boost. Since the GPU is the bottleneck, the additional cores and threads of the 270K Plus do not translate to higher frame rates in this specific title at the tested settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is a formidable processor on paper, with 24 cores, 24 threads, and a boost clock reaching 5.50 GHz. Its benchmark results are strong, including a 44253 score in Cinebench R23 multi-core and a 2439 score in single-core. The processor also demonstrates high throughput in synthetic tests like Passmark integer math (175986) and floating point math (229491). In the context of Lockdown Protocol, however, these capabilities are largely untapped.

The measured FPS data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor. If the 270K Plus were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS numbers regardless of resolution, because the CPU workload would remain constant while the GPU work increased. Instead, the FPS drops proportionally with resolution, a clear sign that the GPU is saturated. The processor's role is to feed the RTX 2060 SUPER with draw calls and physics calculations, and it does so without introducing stutters or frame time spikes, as evidenced by the consistent average FPS figures.

The CPU's 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample headroom for game logic and asset streaming. Its 115.2 GB/s memory bandwidth ensures data is delivered quickly to the GPU. The 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs suggests that this is a top-tier part, but in this specific game, it is effectively waiting on the graphics card. The data shows that even at 1080p Low, where the GPU work is lightest, the frame rate is 159 FPS, which is likely near the point where the game engine or the CPU's single-thread performance would start to matter, but it never gets there because the GPU is still the primary constraint.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested configurations, this pairing sits at rank 2014 out of 2828 combos for Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the lower half of all tested systems, which is a poor showing given the quality of the CPU. The combo's position is heavily skewed by the GPU's performance. The RTX 2060 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 18093, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the RTX 3060 Mobile (0.4% faster) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (0.5% faster), all of which are within a 2% margin of performance.

The CPU, by contrast, is a top-tier part. With an average benchmark score of 93785, it sits in the 96th percentile. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon 6520P, has a nearly identical score with a 0% delta, while the AMD EPYC 4564P trails by 1.5%. This mismatch between a high-end CPU and a mid-range GPU results in a combo rank that does not reflect the potential of the processor. The data suggests that pairing this CPU with a stronger GPU would yield a dramatically better rank, as the CPU has significant headroom to drive higher frame rates. The current rank of 2014 indicates that for every 100 tested combos, roughly 71 perform better than this one in Lockdown Protocol, which is a direct consequence of the GPU's age and performance ceiling.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on which preset to use based on your target resolution and performance goal. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, averaging 113 FPS with a minimum of 96 FPS. This ensures that the frame rate stays above 90 FPS even in demanding scenes, making it ideal for smooth competitive play. The High preset at 1080p is also viable, averaging 99 FPS, but the Medium preset's higher minimum frame rate (96 vs the unknown minimum for High) suggests better frame pacing consistency.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only option for high refresh rate gaming, delivering 117 FPS average. The Medium preset drops to 83 FPS average with a minimum of 70 FPS, which is acceptable for a 75Hz monitor but not ideal for fast-paced FPS action. The High preset at 1440p averages 72 FPS, which is on the edge of playability for a 60Hz display but lacks the headroom for higher refresh rates.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset is the only playable option, averaging 75 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 53 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution, as they yield the lowest frame rates: 74 FPS at 1080p, 54 FPS at 1440p, and 35 FPS at 4K. The data clearly shows that the Ultra preset's quality enhancements are not worth the significant frame rate cost on this GPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance envelope is as follows: the Low preset produces the highest average FPS at 159, followed by Medium at 113 FPS (with a minimum of 96 FPS and maximum of 130 FPS), then High at 99 FPS, and finally Ultra at 74 FPS. The 1080p results show a 85 FPS spread between the lowest and highest quality settings, giving users a wide range of options depending on their preference for speed or visuals.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures are: Low at 117, Medium at 83 FPS (minimum 70, maximum 95), High at 72, and Ultra at 54. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across all presets, with Low experiencing a 42 FPS reduction, Medium a 30 FPS reduction, High a 27 FPS reduction, and Ultra a 20 FPS reduction. This pattern shows that the lower quality presets are more sensitive to resolution scaling, as they are less bound by the GPU's fill rate limits.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low at 75, Medium at 53 FPS (minimum 45, maximum 62), High at 47, and Ultra at 35. The 4K results are the most telling for the GPU's capabilities. The Ultra preset at 4K produces a 35 FPS average, which is unplayable for a shooter. The High preset at 4K barely reaches 47 FPS, while Medium sits just below the 60 FPS threshold at 53 FPS. Only the Low preset at 4K achieves a smooth experience with 75 FPS average. The data shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER is only capable of delivering a comfortable frame rate at 4K when the graphical load is minimized, and even then, the 75 FPS average is not ideal for high refresh rate displays.