Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol is a fast-paced FPS that stresses both the CPU and GPU depending on how you configure it. With the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, the data shows a clear story: this is a combo that scales predictably with resolution and settings, but its behavior at 4K versus 1080p reveals where the bottleneck truly lies.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep performance curve as resolution climbs. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 189 FPS average. Moving to 2560x1440 on Low drops that to 138 FPS, a 27% reduction. At 3840x2160 on Low, the average falls to 89 FPS, which is 53% below the 1080p Low result. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets, indicating that the RTX 4070 is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions.

Look at the High preset for a clearer picture. At 1080p High, the average is 117 FPS. At 1440p High, it drops to 86 FPS, and at 4K High it bottoms out at 55 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 1440p is 31 FPS, while the gap between 1440p and 4K is another 31 FPS. That's a nearly linear scaling, which suggests the GPU is being pushed steadily harder as pixel count increases. The RTX 4070's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth appear sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K the frame rates suggest the card is hitting its compute limits rather than a memory ceiling.

The Medium preset tells a similar story with more granularity. At 1080p Medium, the average is 134 FPS with a min of 114 and max of 154. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 98 FPS with a min of 83 and max of 113. At 4K Medium, the average is 63 FPS with a min of 54 and max of 73. The min-to-max spread narrows as resolution increases, going from 40 FPS at 1080p to 30 FPS at 1440p to 19 FPS at 4K. This tightening range at higher resolutions indicates the GPU is becoming the consistent bottleneck, reducing the variance that CPU-bound scenarios can introduce.

The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 88 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it's 64 FPS. At 4K Ultra, it's just 41 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 24 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K is another 23 FPS. This is a near-linear decline, confirming that the RTX 4070 is the limiting component at Ultra settings across all resolutions. The CPU, with its 24 cores and 24 threads, is not the constraint here; the data shows the GPU's raw throughput is what governs frame rates in this title.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Lockdown Protocol with this combo?

A: The data shows 2560x1440 as the sweet spot. At High settings, 1440p delivers 86 FPS average, which is playable for competitive FPS. 1080p High gives 117 FPS, but the visual jump to 1440p only costs 31 FPS. 4K High at 55 FPS is borderline for fast-paced gameplay.

Q: How does the Low preset compare to Medium at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low averages 189 FPS while Medium averages 134 FPS. That's a 55 FPS difference. The Low preset clearly prioritizes frame rate over visual fidelity, and the data shows it's the only setting that pushes this combo past 180 FPS at 1080p.

Q: Is the RTX 4070's 12 GB VRAM enough for 4K in this game?

A: Based on the measured results, 12 GB appears sufficient for the settings tested. The 4K Medium result of 63 FPS with a min of 54 suggests the GPU is compute-limited rather than VRAM-limited. If VRAM were the bottleneck, you'd expect stutters and min FPS dips below 50, which the data does not show.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested configurations?

A: The comboRankInGame places this combination at rank 2043 out of 3714 tested combos. That puts it in the 45th percentile overall, meaning roughly 55% of tested combos perform better in this specific game.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, High averages 86 FPS while Ultra averages 64 FPS. The 22 FPS gap is substantial. Given that High already looks good, the data suggests Ultra's additional visual effects are not worth the performance cost for this GPU.

Q: Can this combo maintain 60+ FPS at 4K?

A: Only at Low settings. The 4K Low result is 89 FPS, which is above 60. 4K Medium drops to 63 FPS, which is barely above the threshold. 4K High at 55 FPS and 4K Ultra at 41 FPS both fall below 60 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is the workhorse in this pairing, and the benchmark data confirms it. The GPU's boost clock of 2475 MHz and base clock of 1920 MHz are standard for the Ada Lovelace architecture, but the real story is in the memory subsystem. With 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, the card delivers 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This is the figure that matters most for Lockdown Protocol, as the game's FPS scaling with resolution is nearly linear.

The GPU's 5888 shading units and 184 TMUs handle the rasterization workload. At 1080p Low, the card produces 189 FPS, which indicates it's not the limiting factor at that resolution. However, the 41 FPS result at 4K Ultra shows the card's limits. The FP32 performance of 29.15 TFLOPS is what drives the pixel rate of 158.4 GPixel/s, and at 4K Ultra, the card is clearly saturated.

The RTX 4070's 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores are present but not directly evident in the measured FPS data. Given that Lockdown Protocol is an FPS title, the rasterization performance is the primary driver. The card's 64 ROPs handle the final pixel output, and the data shows that at 4K, the ROP throughput becomes a constraint. The 40% FPS drop from 1080p Ultra to 1440p Ultra (88 to 64 FPS) and the additional 36% drop to 4K Ultra (64 to 41 FPS) are consistent with the GPU's fill rate limits.

The VRAM capacity of 12 GB is adequate for this game across all tested settings. The min FPS values at Medium settings (114 at 1080p, 83 at 1440p, 54 at 4K) show smooth frame delivery without evidence of memory swapping. The GPU's 200 W TDP is the power envelope, and the 550 W suggested PSU is a reasonable pairing for a mobile HX CPU that can draw up to 55 W.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimizing the experience. For competitive play where frame rate is paramount, the Low preset at 1920x1080 is the clear winner. The 189 FPS average is nearly double the 1080p High result of 117 FPS. Even at 1440p Low, the 138 FPS average is strong enough for high-refresh monitors.

For balanced visual quality and performance, Medium at 1440p is the recommended sweet spot. The 98 FPS average with a min of 83 FPS ensures smooth gameplay without major dips. This setting offers a 12 FPS advantage over High at the same resolution, while the visual difference between Medium and High in this game is often subtle, as the data suggests the GPU has headroom.

The High preset is the best choice for players who prioritize image quality over raw frame rate. At 1440p High, the 86 FPS average is still above the 60 FPS threshold, and the 1080p High result of 117 FPS is excellent. However, at 4K, High drops to 55 FPS, which is not ideal for a fast-paced FPS. The Ultra preset is only viable at 1080p, where the 88 FPS average is playable, but the 64 FPS at 1440p and 41 FPS at 4K make it a poor choice for serious play.

The data indicates that the Medium preset at 1440p offers the best balance of frame rate and visual fidelity for this specific combo. The min FPS of 83 at that configuration shows the frame pacing is consistent, reducing the risk of stutters during intense firefights. If you have a 144 Hz monitor, the Low preset at 1440p (138 FPS average) is the only way to get close to that refresh rate, but the visual compromise is significant.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame places this configuration at 2043 out of 3714 tested combos. This is a median result, meaning the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and RTX 4070 pairing is neither exceptional nor underperforming in Lockdown Protocol. The CPU's percentileVsAllCpus of 94 indicates it is a top-tier mobile processor, but the GPU's percentileVsAllGpus of 81 shows the RTX 4070 is a mid-to-high-range part, not a flagship.

The CPU's nearest rivals provide context. The Intel Xeon w5-3525 is 0.3% slower, the AMD EPYC 4484PX is 0.5% slower, and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5955WX is 0.6% slower. The Intel Xeon 6515P is 0.7% faster. These are all workstation-class processors, which suggests the Core Ultra 9 275HX is performing at a level comparable to much larger desktop parts in synthetic benchmarks. However, in gaming, the GPU is the bottleneck, so the CPU's strength does not translate to a higher combo rank.

The GPU's nearest rivals show a tight cluster. The NVIDIA Tesla P4 is 0.1% slower, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is 0.4% slower, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile is 1.3% faster. The AMD Radeon PRO W6400 is 1.3% slower. This grouping indicates the RTX 4070's synthetic benchmark score is well-established, but in Lockdown Protocol specifically, the rank suggests the game's engine favors other architectures slightly more.

The rank of 2043 out of 3714 means this combo sits just below the median. For a mobile CPU paired with a mid-range desktop GPU, this is a reasonable result. The data shows that the combo is not CPU-limited in this game, as evidenced by the resolution scaling pattern. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would not drop as sharply as it does when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080:

• Low: 189 FPS average
• Medium: 134 FPS average, 114 min, 154 max
• High: 117 FPS average
• Ultra: 88 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 138 FPS average
• Medium: 98 FPS average, 83 min, 113 max
• High: 86 FPS average
• Ultra: 64 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 89 FPS average
• Medium: 63 FPS average, 54 min, 73 max
• High: 55 FPS average
• Ultra: 41 FPS average

The data reveals a consistent pattern where each settings tier costs roughly 20-30 FPS at the same resolution. At 1080p, the jump from Low to Medium costs 55 FPS, Medium to High costs 17 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 29 FPS. At 1440p, the same jumps cost 40, 12, and 22 FPS respectively. At 4K, they cost 26, 8, and 14 FPS.

The min FPS values for Medium settings show the frame time consistency. At 1080p, the min is 114 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 1440p, the min is 83 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 4K, the min is 54 FPS, which is 86% of the average. This consistency suggests the game engine is well-optimized for this hardware combination, with no sudden spikes in rendering complexity.

The max FPS values for Medium settings indicate the upper ceiling. At 1080p, the max of 154 FPS is 15% above the average. At 1440p, the max of 113 FPS is 15% above the average. At 4K, the max of 73 FPS is 16% above the average. This uniform variance across resolutions further confirms the GPU is the primary driver of performance, with the CPU providing consistent frame delivery.