Minimum

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER delivers a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. The data shows a clear pattern: this combination is far more capable at 1080p, where it excels, than at 4K, where it struggles to maintain smooth framerates. The measured results indicate a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the 20-core processor has ample headroom to spare.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 111.9 FPS, but moving to 1440p High drops that to 71.5 FPS, a loss of roughly 36%. Scaling further to 4K High yields only 38.3 FPS, which is a 66% reduction from the 1080p figure. This is a classic sign of a GPU bottleneck; the RTX 2060 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus are being saturated as pixel count increases.

The pattern holds for every preset. On Low settings, the system hits 168.2 FPS at 1080p, but that falls to 108.8 FPS at 1440p and 58.4 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1440p to 4K is roughly 46%, which is more severe than the 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p. This suggests that the memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s becomes the limiting factor at 4K, as the GPU is forced to push nearly four times the pixels of 1080p.

The data indicates that 1440p is the practical ceiling for this pairing if you want to stay above 60 FPS on higher presets. At 4K, even the Low preset only manages 58.4 FPS, which is borderline for a smooth experience. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is also telling: 58.4 FPS versus 27.7 FPS. That 30.7 FPS difference highlights how much headroom the GPU has at lower fidelity, but it is simply not enough to brute-force 4K Ultra.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Raptor Lake Refresh generation, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its benchmark scores are exceptional, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 44534 and a single-core score of 6287. In the broader CPU landscape, it sits at the 96th percentile of all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 70074 puts it within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, which scores 70420.

For a game released in 2014, this processor is massively overqualified. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low, where the CPU would be most stressed relative to the GPU, the system hits 168.2 FPS. There is no scenario in the measured data where the CPU appears to be the limiting factor; the frame rate scales almost entirely with resolution and settings, which is the signature of a GPU-bound workload. The 33 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support are more than sufficient for this title's demands.

The processor's single-thread performance is strong, as evidenced by its Geekbench single-core score of 2932 and PassMark single-thread score of 4472. This matters for older games like Minimum, which often rely on a few heavily loaded threads. However, the data suggests that even a much weaker CPU would achieve similar frame rates at 4K, where the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The 14700K's role here is to ensure that frame pacing stays consistent and that there are no CPU-induced stutters, which its performance headroom guarantees.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the clear bottleneck in this pairing. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and its boost clock of 1650 MHz helps it reach a PassMark G3D score of 16462. The GPU sits at the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, and its average benchmark score of 19774 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070, which scores 19680 and is only 0.5% slower.

The measured FPS data aligns perfectly with the GPU's capabilities. At 1080p, the GPU can push 111.9 FPS on High and 81.2 FPS on Ultra, which are respectable numbers for a mid-range card from the Turing generation. However, the RTX 2060 SUPER's 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 105.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are simply not enough for 4K Ultra, where it drops to 27.7 FPS. The 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are present, but they are irrelevant for a 2014 title that predates ray tracing by several years.

The VRAM capacity is adequate for this game, as even 4K Ultra does not appear to exceed the 8 GB buffer based on the framerate data. The limiting factor is raw compute and memory bandwidth. The GPU's texture rate of 224.4 GTexel/s is taxed heavily at higher resolutions, which explains why the gap between Low and Ultra widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 87 FPS; at 4K, it is only 30.7 FPS, showing that the GPU runs out of shader throughput before it runs out of memory.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run the game at 4K 60 FPS?

A: No. The measured data shows the best 4K result is 58.4 FPS on Low settings. All other 4K presets fall below 50 FPS, with Ultra at 27.7 FPS.

Q: What is the best resolution for a smooth experience?

A: 1440p is the sweet spot. On High settings, it delivers 71.5 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Low settings at 1440p reach 108.8 FPS.

Q: How much faster is this CPU compared to its nearest rival?

A: The i7-14700K scores 70074, which is 0.3% slower than the AMD EPYC 9115 (69887) and 0.5% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X (70420). It is effectively tied with all of them.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. The FPS drops by roughly 46% from 1440p to 4K on Low settings, while CPU benchmarks show massive headroom. At 1080p Low, the system hits 168.2 FPS, a number the GPU cannot sustain at higher resolutions.

Q: What is the performance difference between High and Ultra at 1080p?

A: High settings yield 111.9 FPS, while Ultra yields 81.2 FPS. That is a 30.7 FPS drop for the highest preset, which may not be worth it visually.

Q: Does the GPU's VRAM cause any issues?

A: The data does not show VRAM-related frame drops. The 8 GB buffer appears sufficient, as even 4K Ultra produces a playable (if low) 27.7 FPS, indicating the limit is compute power, not memory capacity.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best performance. Low settings hit 168.2 FPS, Medium drops to 132.7 FPS, High comes in at 111.9 FPS, and Ultra falls to 81.2 FPS. All of these are well above the 60 FPS target, making 1080p a smooth experience on any preset.

At 2560x1440, the GPU starts to feel the load. Low settings still manage 108.8 FPS, but Medium drops to 81.5 FPS, High to 71.5 FPS, and Ultra to 53.6 FPS. The Ultra preset falls below the 60 FPS line, suggesting that High is the maximum viable preset for a locked 60 FPS experience.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles. Low settings produce 58.4 FPS, which is just shy of 60 FPS. Medium yields 46.7 FPS, High drops to 38.3 FPS, and Ultra plummets to 27.7 FPS. None of these are ideal for fast-paced third-person shooting, and the data clearly shows that 4K is not a viable target for this GPU in this game.

Settings Recommendations

For a 1080p monitor, the Ultra preset at 81.2 FPS is the best choice. The frame rate is still high enough to be fluid, and the visual uplift over High (which runs at 111.9 FPS) is significant in a game that relies on visibility. If you prioritize maximum smoothness, High is a safer bet, but Ultra is playable.

For 1440p, High settings at 71.5 FPS are the clear recommendation. This preset keeps the frame rate above 60 FPS while providing a substantial visual boost over Medium (81.5 FPS) and Low (108.8 FPS). Ultra at 53.6 FPS is borderline for a shooter, so it is best avoided unless you are willing to sacrifice responsiveness for image quality.

For 4K, the data suggests you should avoid the resolution entirely if possible. The only preset that approaches playability is Low at 58.4 FPS, and even that is not a locked 60 FPS. Medium at 46.7 FPS and High at 38.3 FPS are too slow for a genre where reaction time matters. If you must run 4K, Low is the only recommendation, but the experience will still be suboptimal. The measured data indicates that this system is best paired with a 1080p or 1440p display for Minimum.