Lockdown Protocol

# Lockdown Protocol with Intel Core Ultra X9 388H + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060

FAQ

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking among tested system configurations for Lockdown Protocol?

A: This pairing ranks 2473 out of 3714 tested combos, placing it in the lower third of all systems benchmarked for this title. The rank suggests that while the hardware is capable, it is not optimized for top-tier performance in this particular FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H compare to its nearest CPU rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score is 44466, which is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D (44573, deltaPct -0.2%), the Intel Core i9-13950HX (44342, deltaPct 0.3%), the AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 (44309, deltaPct 0.4%), and the Intel Core i5-13600 (44240, deltaPct 0.5%). The differences are all within one percentage point, indicating a tightly competitive field.

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system reaches 163 FPS average. This is the highest score across all tested resolution and settings combinations, indicating that the hardware can deliver high refresh rates when graphical demands are minimized.

Q: Does the RTX 5060's benchmark score place it ahead of or behind its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 26331, with the AMD Radeon 860M at 26401 (deltaPct -0.3%), the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 at 26421 (deltaPct -0.3%), and the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary at 26553 (deltaPct -0.8%) all slightly ahead. The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT trails at 26011 (deltaPct 1.2%), meaning the RTX 5060 sits in a narrow band where none of its closest competitors are more than 1.2% apart.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread performance relative to its multi-thread performance?

A: The Cinebench R23 single-core score is 2200.5, while the multi-core score is 18911, giving a ratio of roughly 8.6:1. This indicates strong scaling across the 16 cores, though the single-thread score places it in the 88th percentile among all CPUs, suggesting competitive per-core performance for gaming workloads.

Q: Is there a settings preset that offers a playable experience at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, only Low settings (77 FPS average) and Medium settings (55 FPS average) exceed the 30 FPS threshold for basic playability. High settings drop to 48 FPS, while Ultra falls to 36 FPS, meaning all presets are technically playable but none reach the 60 FPS mark at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2473 out of 3714 places this system in the 33rd percentile of all tested combinations for Lockdown Protocol. This is a surprisingly low position given the hardware's individual benchmark percentiles — the CPU ranks in the 88th percentile of all CPUs, and the GPU in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs. The disconnect between component-level rankings and the in-game combo rank suggests that Lockdown Protocol's engine does not scale linearly with raw compute power, or that the mobile-oriented CPU (with its 25W TDP) throttles under sustained gaming loads.

Examining the measured FPS data, the bottleneck becomes clearer. At 1080p Low, the system delivers 163 FPS, which is respectable but not exceptional for a modern discrete GPU. The RTX 5060's nearest GPU rivals all score within 1.2% of each other on average benchmarks, indicating that this GPU class is tightly clustered — there is no standout performer. The CPU, meanwhile, trades blows with the Ryzen 5 7500X3D and Core i9-13950HX, with all four nearest rivals within 0.5% deltaPct.

The rank itself implies that many other combos — likely those with desktop-class CPUs and higher-tier GPUs — achieve better frame rates in Lockdown Protocol. The 16-core, 16-thread configuration of the Ultra X9 388H is unusual (no hyperthreading), which may impact games that rely heavily on thread scheduling. The data shows that this combo is competent but not competitive at the top end, making it a mid-pack performer that trades on efficiency rather than raw throughput.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H is a 16-core, 16-thread processor based on the Panther Lake architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. Its base clock of 2.10 GHz boosts up to 5.10 GHz, and it carries 18 MB of shared L3 cache alongside 3 MB of L2 per core. The lack of hyperthreading means 16 threads total, which is a deliberate design choice that prioritizes power efficiency (25W TDP) over multi-threaded throughput.

In Lockdown Protocol, the CPU's performance is best understood through its Cinebench scores. The R23 multi-core score of 18911 places it in the 88th percentile of all CPUs, while the single-core score of 2200.5 is competitive with desktop parts. The PassMark single-thread score of 4280 reinforces this — the CPU can handle per-core workloads well, which matters for FPS games that often rely on a few heavily loaded threads.

However, the benchmark data reveals a potential weakness. The PassMark physics score of 3226 is notably low relative to the multi-thread score of 36811, suggesting that the CPU's physics simulation capabilities — often a bottleneck in FPS games — are not proportionally strong. This could explain why the combo ranks lower than component percentiles would suggest. The game's engine may be spawning physics-heavy scenarios that this CPU handles less efficiently than its raw compute scores indicate.

The memory bandwidth of 153.6 GB/s (dual-channel LPDDR5X) is another factor. While not directly benchmarked in the fact pack, this bandwidth feeds both the CPU and the integrated Arc B390 graphics (which is not used in this configuration). For a game like Lockdown Protocol, the data suggests the CPU is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming but may struggle to maintain high frame rates at 4K, where the GPU becomes the primary constraint.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system shows a clear progression across settings. Low settings deliver 163 FPS average, which drops to 116 FPS at Medium (with a range of 99-133 FPS), 101 FPS at High, and 76 FPS at Ultra. The gap between Low and Medium is 47 FPS, while the gap between High and Ultra is 25 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a significant additional load that the hardware struggles to absorb.

At 2560x1440, the pattern continues but with lower absolute values. Low settings produce 120 FPS average, Medium drops to 85 FPS (range 72-98 FPS), High falls to 74 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 56 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 26-27% of performance across most settings — for example, Low goes from 163 to 120 FPS, a 43 FPS drop.

At 3840x2160, the system is clearly GPU-limited. Low settings yield 77 FPS, Medium 55 FPS (range 47-63 FPS), High 48 FPS, and Ultra 36 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is barely playable at 36 FPS, while Medium offers a more stable experience with a minimum of 47 FPS. The 4K Low result of 77 FPS is notable — it shows the GPU can still produce playable frame rates at 4K when settings are minimized, but the headroom for visual quality is severely limited.

Across all resolutions, the Medium preset consistently provides a playable frame rate with a documented minimum FPS (47 at 4K, 72 at 1440p, 99 at 1080p). This makes Medium the only preset where the data includes a minimum FPS figure, suggesting it is the most stable configuration tested.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and reveals the limiting component. At Low settings, the system goes from 163 FPS at 1080p to 120 FPS at 1440p (a 26.4% drop) and then to 77 FPS at 4K (a 35.8% drop from 1440p). The total reduction from 1080p to 4K is 52.8%, which is substantial but not the 75% reduction one might expect from a purely GPU-bound scenario with four times the pixels.

At Ultra settings, the progression is 76 FPS at 1080p, 56 FPS at 1440p (26.3% drop), and 36 FPS at 4K (35.7% drop from 1440p). The percentage drops are nearly identical to Low settings, indicating that the scaling behavior is consistent regardless of preset. This consistency suggests the GPU is the primary limiting factor at all resolutions, as the CPU's load does not change significantly with resolution.

However, the absolute numbers tell a more nuanced story. At 1080p Ultra, the system only achieves 76 FPS, which is below what many gaming systems would target for a high-refresh display. If the GPU were the sole bottleneck, one might expect 1080p Ultra to be closer to 1080p Low performance, given that the resolution is the same. The 87 FPS gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p (163 vs 76) indicates that the GPU is heavily taxed by the Ultra preset's additional graphical effects, even at lower resolutions.

The data implies that neither component is entirely dominant. At 1080p and 1440p, the GPU's workload from higher settings is the primary limiter. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed, as evidenced by the fact that even Low settings cannot reach 90 FPS. The CPU, with its 88th percentile ranking, appears sufficient for the game's logic at all tested resolutions, but the RTX 5060's 72nd percentile ranking means it cannot keep pace with the CPU at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring 3840 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. It has 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's boost clock is 2497 MHz, and it delivers 19.18 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. Its 30 RT cores and 120 tensor cores support DirectX 12 Ultimate, though the game's specific RT usage is not detailed in the measured data.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 26331 places it in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs, with its nearest rivals all within 1.2% deltaPct. This tight clustering suggests the RTX 5060 is a mainstream performer, not a high-end part. The PassMark G3D score of 20891 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3628 reinforce this positioning — the GPU is capable but not exceptional.

In Lockdown Protocol, the GPU's role is most evident at 4K, where even Low settings produce only 77 FPS. The 8 GB VRAM is likely a constraint at higher resolutions and settings, though the fact pack does not include VRAM usage data. The memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s is adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K with Ultra settings, the GPU's 36 FPS result indicates it is saturated.

The RTX 5060's 145W TDP and dual-slot design suggest it is a mobile-oriented part, which may explain its relatively modest performance compared to desktop GPUs. The data shows that this GPU is best suited for 1080p gaming at high settings (101 FPS) or 1440p at medium settings (85 FPS), with 4K gaming possible only at reduced quality presets.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear hierarchy of settings for this combo, and the optimal choice depends on the target resolution and refresh rate.

For 1080p gaming, Low settings deliver 163 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh displays. Medium settings drop to 116 FPS but offer a documented minimum of 99 FPS, ensuring consistent frame pacing. High settings at 101 FPS are still smooth, but Ultra at 76 FPS begins to approach the threshold where frame drops become noticeable. For competitive play, Low or Medium is recommended; for visual quality, High provides the best balance of fidelity and performance at 1080p.

At 1440p, Low settings produce 120 FPS, which is still excellent for most displays. Medium at 85 FPS (minimum 72 FPS) is the sweet spot for a smooth experience with better visuals. High at 74 FPS is playable but approaching the edge of comfort for fast-paced FPS gameplay. Ultra at 56 FPS is not recommended, as the frame rate dips below 60 FPS, which can introduce perceptible stutter in a shooter.

At 4K, the recommendation is more constrained. Low settings at 77 FPS is the only preset that delivers a consistently smooth experience. Medium at 55 FPS (minimum 47 FPS) is playable but may feel sluggish in intense firefights. High at 48 FPS and Ultra at 36 FPS are below the ideal threshold for competitive FPS play, though they remain technically playable for casual sessions.

The best overall experience, balancing visual quality and performance, is Medium settings at 1440p. This configuration delivers 85 FPS average with a minimum of 72 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay while still providing a significant visual upgrade over Low settings. For players prioritizing frame rate above all else, Low at 1080p (163 FPS) is the clear choice. For those who must play at 4K, Low settings are the only viable option for maintaining high frame rates.