Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol, a 2024 FPS title, shows a clear performance hierarchy when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher settings, while the processor’s strong single-thread performance ensures high refresh rates at lower resolutions. The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1440p and 1080p gaming, with 4K requiring more moderate settings to maintain smooth gameplay.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K demonstrates how the RTX 4080 becomes the limiting factor as pixel count increases. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 333 at 1920x1080 to 244 at 2560x1440, a 26.7% reduction, and then to 157 at 3840x2160, a further 35.7% reduction from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU’s rendering workload dominates, and the CPU has ample headroom to feed frames.

Moving to High settings, the scaling pattern changes. The 1080p average is 206 FPS, which falls to 151 FPS at 1440p (a 26.7% drop) and then to 98 FPS at 4K (a 35.1% drop from 1440p). The consistent percentage drops across Low and High settings suggest that resolution scaling is uniform, with the GPU being the primary bottleneck at both 1440p and 4K. At 1080p High, the 206 FPS average is still far below the CPU’s potential, as evidenced by the 333 FPS Low result at the same resolution.

Ultra settings amplify the GPU bottleneck. The 4K Ultra average of 73 FPS is 52.9% lower than the 1080p Ultra average of 155 FPS. This is a larger relative drop than what is seen at Low or High settings, which implies that the combination of high resolution and maxed-out graphical features stresses the RTX 4080’s memory bandwidth and shading units significantly. The 1440p Ultra result of 113 FPS sits between the 1080p and 4K extremes, reinforcing that the GPU is the limiting component across all Ultra presets.

The data suggests that Lockdown Protocol scales almost linearly with resolution when the CPU is not a constraint. The 1080p Low result of 333 FPS is the only scenario where the processor might influence performance, but even then, the 4K Low result of 157 FPS shows that the GPU is still the dominant factor. For users targeting 4K, the difference between Low (157 FPS) and High (98 FPS) is 60.2%, which is a substantial performance cost for higher visual quality. At 1440p, the gap narrows to 61.6% between Low (244 FPS) and High (151 FPS), but the absolute numbers remain playable on high-refresh displays.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 offers the best balance. At High settings, the average FPS is 151, which is well above 144Hz refresh rates, while 4K High drops to 98 FPS. The 1440p Medium preset achieves 173 FPS, giving headroom for competitive play, and even Ultra at 1440p maintains 113 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 compare to its closest rival in terms of benchmark scores?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score is 54247, which is 0.1% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER (54209). It trails the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X by 1.1% (54828) and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB by 2.6% (55698), as well as the AMD Radeon 8060S by 2.7% (55757).

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: At 1080p Low, the average FPS reaches 333, which is exceptionally high. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2439 and multi-core score of 44253 indicate strong processing power. The data shows that at 1080p High (206 FPS) and Ultra (155 FPS), the GPU is still the limiting factor, so the CPU is not a bottleneck in most scenarios.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Medium and Ultra at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the Medium preset averages 112 FPS, while Ultra averages 73 FPS. This is a 34.8% reduction in performance when moving from Medium to Ultra. The Medium preset also has a recorded minimum FPS of 95, which ensures smoother frame pacing compared to the Ultra result.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for Lockdown Protocol?

A: The combo ranks 205 out of 3714 tested combinations. This places it in the top 5.5% of all tested systems, indicating that it is a high-performance pairing for this game, though not at the absolute top tier.

Q: Does the CPU’s benchmark performance align with its rivals?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score is 93785, which is effectively tied with the Intel Xeon 6520P (93786, 0% delta). It is 1.5% behind the AMD EPYC 4564P (95183), 1.9% behind the AMD EPYC 9175F (95615), and 2.1% behind the AMD EPYC 4565P (95764). This places it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 achieves a rank of 205 out of 3714 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This position places it in the top 5.5% of all systems tested, which is a strong showing for a desktop setup. The ranking reflects the balance between the CPU’s 96th percentile performance and the GPU’s 86th percentile standing among their respective component classes.

The CPU’s average benchmark score of 93785 places it just behind the Intel Xeon 6520P (93786) and ahead of the AMD EPYC 4564P (95183) by 1.5%. In the context of gaming, the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus benefits from a high boost clock of 5.50 GHz and a substantial 36 MB of L3 cache, which helps maintain high frame rates in CPU-light scenarios. The GPU, with an average score of 54247, is nearly identical in performance to the RTX 4080 SUPER (54209), showing that this is not a cut-down version of the 4080.

The rank of 205 suggests that while this combo is excellent, there are 204 other combinations that deliver higher average frame rates in Lockdown Protocol. These likely include systems with more powerful GPUs, such as the RTX 4090 or newer generation cards, which would push 4K Ultra performance beyond the 73 FPS measured here. However, for the vast majority of tested combos (over 3500 of them), this setup delivers superior results.

The data indicates that the combo’s strength lies in high-refresh 1440p gaming. With a 244 FPS average at 1440p Low and 173 FPS at Medium, it easily exceeds 144Hz and approaches 240Hz capabilities. At 1080p, the 333 FPS Low result is among the fastest measured for this game, suggesting that the CPU is not holding back the GPU even at such high frame rates. The rank of 205 out of 3714 underscores that this is a premium pairing, but not the absolute best for those who prioritize 4K Ultra over all else.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings presets, providing a complete picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 333 FPS, which is the highest measured result across all configurations. Medium at 1080p averages 236 FPS, with a minimum of 201 FPS and a maximum of 272 FPS. High at 1080p averages 206 FPS, while Ultra averages 155 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 53.5%, showing that graphical settings have a significant impact even at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 244 FPS, a 26.7% reduction from 1080p Low. Medium at 1440p averages 173 FPS, with a minimum of 147 FPS and a maximum of 199 FPS. High at 1440p averages 151 FPS, while Ultra drops to 113 FPS. The Medium preset’s minimum of 147 FPS is particularly noteworthy, as it suggests that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays above 144Hz, making it ideal for high-refresh monitors.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 157 FPS, which is still smooth for most displays. Medium at 4K averages 112 FPS, with a minimum of 95 FPS and a maximum of 129 FPS. High at 4K averages 98 FPS, while Ultra averages 73 FPS. The 4K Medium result is the only Ultra HD configuration with a recorded minimum FPS, and at 95 FPS, it remains playable on VRR displays. The Ultra preset at 4K, with 73 FPS, is the only measured result below 100 FPS, indicating that this is the most demanding configuration.

Comparing settings across resolutions, the Low preset shows the smallest performance drop from 1080p to 4K (52.9% reduction), while Ultra shows the largest (52.9% reduction as well, but from a lower base). The Medium preset’s minimum FPS figures provide useful data for frame pacing, with 201 FPS at 1080p, 147 FPS at 1440p, and 95 FPS at 4K. These minimums are all within 10% of their respective averages, indicating consistent performance without major stutters.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the primary driver of Lockdown Protocol’s frame rates, as evidenced by the dramatic scaling across resolutions. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is well-suited for 4K gaming, where texture and geometry data demands are highest. The measured 4K Ultra average of 73 FPS suggests that while the 16 GB capacity is sufficient, the bandwidth is taxed by the game’s highest settings.

The GPU’s boost clock is 2505 MHz, with a base clock of 2205 MHz. These clocks, combined with 9728 shading units and 76 RT cores, deliver the raw compute needed for modern FPS titles. The FP32 performance of 48.74 TFLOPS places it in the upper tier of GPUs, and the PassMark G3D score of 34457 reflects this. The GPU’s 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs shows that it is a high-end part, though not the absolute fastest available.

In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU’s role becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions. At 1080p Low, the CPU could theoretically push higher frame rates, but the 333 FPS average is likely near the game’s engine limit. At 4K Ultra, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, with the 73 FPS result being 56.8% lower than the 1080p Ultra score of 155 FPS. The RTX 4080’s 16 GB of VRAM is not exceeded by this game, as even at 4K Ultra, there are no reported memory-related stutters in the data.

The GPU’s nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, has an average score of 54209, which is 0.1% lower than the RTX 4080’s 54247. This negligible difference means that in practice, these two GPUs perform identically in Lockdown Protocol. The AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, with a score of 55698, is 2.6% higher, but it has a different memory configuration and is not directly comparable in this game’s measured results.

The TDP of 320 W and the suggested 700 W PSU indicate that this GPU requires substantial power, but the benchmark data does not include power consumption measurements. The triple-slot cooler and 310 mm length are physical characteristics that matter for case compatibility, but they do not affect in-game performance. The PCIe 4.0 x16 interface is sufficient for this game, as the 48.74 TFLOPS of compute power can be fully utilized through that bus.

Settings Recommendations

For 1440p displays, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. The average FPS of 173, with a minimum of 147, ensures that the game stays above 144Hz even in demanding scenes. This is superior to the High preset’s 151 FPS average, which may dip below 144Hz in some areas. The Ultra preset at 1440p, with 113 FPS, is playable on 120Hz displays but does not take full advantage of 144Hz or higher refresh rates.

At 1080p, the High preset is recommended for most users, as it delivers 206 FPS average. This is more than enough for 144Hz monitors and provides better visual fidelity than Medium’s 236 FPS. For competitive players who prioritize frame rate above all else, the Low preset’s 333 FPS average offers the smoothest experience, but the visual downgrade is significant. The Ultra preset at 1080p, with 155 FPS, is a viable option for those with 144Hz displays who want maximum quality without sacrificing playability.

For 4K, the Medium preset is the clear choice. The 112 FPS average, with a minimum of 95, provides a smooth experience on 120Hz or 144Hz displays with VRR. The High preset at 98 FPS is also playable, but the difference in visual quality between Medium and High may not justify the 12.5% performance drop. The Ultra preset at 73 FPS is below the 80 FPS threshold that many consider necessary for smooth gameplay, making it less recommended unless the display is capped at 60Hz.

The data shows that the Low preset is the only configuration that consistently exceeds 240 FPS at 1080p (333 FPS) and 1440p (244 FPS). For users with 240Hz monitors, this preset offers the best competitive advantage. However, the Medium preset at 1440p (173 FPS) and 1080p (236 FPS) provides a better balance of visuals and speed, making it the recommended starting point for most players.

Ultimately, the choice of settings depends on the display’s refresh rate and the user’s preference for visual fidelity. The measured data indicates that this combo can drive 240Hz at 1080p Low, 144Hz at 1440p Medium, and 120Hz at 4K Medium. These are all excellent results for a game released in 2024, and the system shows no signs of CPU limitation in any of the tested configurations.