Minimum

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 ranks 832nd out of 2,939 tested combos in Minimum. This places the combination in the 72nd percentile of all tested systems, meaning it outperforms roughly seven out of every ten configurations in this third-person shooter. The ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component dramatically bottlenecks the other across the tested resolution and settings matrix.

Examining the individual components' standings provides context for this overall rank. The CPU sits in the 85th percentile among all processors, while the GPU holds the 69th percentile among all graphics cards. The gap between these percentile positions suggests the graphics card is the more limiting component in most scenarios, dragging the combo's overall rank below what the processor alone might achieve. The data supports this interpretation: at 1080p Low, the system reaches 262 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it drops to 45 FPS — a spread that points to GPU-bound performance at higher resolutions and settings.

The combo's rank of 832 is not a statement about absolute weakness; rather, it reflects the mid-to-high tier positioning of both parts. With the GPU's average benchmark score of 23,877 and the CPU's average of 36,938, the pairing shows a reasonable match where the CPU can feed frames quickly enough at lower resolutions, but the GPU becomes the ceiling as pixel count rises. In Minimum, a game from 2014, this combination delivers playable frame rates at every tested setting, which many higher-ranked combos achieve only at specific resolutions.

# GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 brings 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock reaches 2520 MHz, with a game clock of 2070 MHz and a base clock of 1330 MHz. The GPU contains 3,584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 128 raster operations pipelines, along with 56 ray tracing cores. These specifications place it in a competitive position, though its percentile rank of 69 among all GPUs indicates it sits below the top tier.

In Minimum, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution scales. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 134 FPS (262 vs. 128), demonstrating that the GPU has headroom at lower settings but is still taxed by Ultra presets. Moving to 1440p, the Ultra preset yields 83 FPS while Low produces 169 FPS — a halving of performance that tracks with the increased pixel workload. At 4K, the gap narrows proportionally: Low hits 91 FPS while Ultra drops to 45 FPS, showing that at this resolution, even the lowest settings stress the GPU significantly.

The GPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (0.6% higher average score), the AMD Radeon RX 6800S (0.8% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile (1.1% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (1.2% lower). These deltas are small, placing the RX 9070 in a tightly contested performance band. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is notable for a game like Minimum, which launched in 2014 and does not require large memory pools; the capacity is unlikely to be a limiting factor at any tested resolution.

The pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s suggest the GPU can handle the fill-rate demands of a third-person shooter efficiently. The FP32 throughput of 36.13 TFLOPS provides ample compute for the game's shader workloads. In practice, the measured frames at 1080p Medium (201 FPS average, 171 minimum, 231 maximum) and 1440p Medium (130 FPS average, 110 minimum, 149 maximum) indicate that the GPU maintains consistent frame delivery without severe drops, as evidenced by the minimum-to-average ratios in the Medium preset rows.

# CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The L3 cache is 20 MB shared, while each core has 192 KB of L1 and 3 MB of L2 cache. Memory support is dual-channel DDR5 with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s, and the CPU connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 lanes.

In Minimum, the CPU's influence is most visible at lower resolutions and settings where the GPU is not saturated. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 262 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. This suggests the CPU can drive frame rates well above 200 FPS when the GPU workload is light. However, at 4K Ultra, the frame rate falls to 45 FPS, indicating that the GPU fully dominates performance at that extreme. The CPU's benchmarks support its capability: Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25,891 and single-core score of 3,655, with PassMark single-thread at 4,412.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F (0% delta), AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (-0.2%), AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (-0.4%), and Intel Core i9-12900T (-0.5%). These near-zero deltas indicate the Ultra 5 225 performs essentially identically to these alternatives in average benchmark scores. The 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs means it outperforms most processors, which aligns with the high frame rates seen at 1080p in Minimum.

The 10-core, 10-thread configuration without hyperthreading is sufficient for this 2014 title, which likely does not scale beyond a handful of threads. The boost clock of 4.90 GHz provides strong single-threaded performance, which is typically more important for older game engines. The integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 16EU is present but irrelevant for this discrete GPU configuration. The CPU's memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s is ample for feeding the RX 9070, though the GPU's own 644.6 GB/s bandwidth vastly exceeds this, reinforcing that the GPU is the performance ceiling in most scenarios.

# FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Minimum?*

A: The data shows 1440p High as a strong choice, delivering 109 FPS average. At 1440p Medium, the average is 130 FPS with a minimum of 110 FPS. Both provide smooth gameplay, while 4K High drops to 59 FPS, which is playable but less fluid.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 has an average benchmark score of 36,938, which is essentially identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F (36,945, 0% delta), AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (37,018, -0.2%), AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (37,093, -0.4%), and Intel Core i9-12900T (37,112, -0.5%). Performance differences are negligible.

Q: Is the GPU the limiting factor at 4K?

A: Yes. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 45 FPS, while 1080p Ultra reaches 128 FPS. The GPU's percentile rank of 69 versus the CPU's 85 indicates the graphics card constrains performance at higher resolutions. The CPU has headroom that the GPU cannot exploit at 4K.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1080p Medium?

A: The measured data shows an average of 201 FPS, with a minimum of 171 FPS and a maximum of 231 FPS. This provides a consistently high frame rate well above typical display refresh rates.

Q: Does the 16 GB VRAM matter for this game?

A: Minimum launched in 2014 and is unlikely to require large memory allocations. The 16 GB capacity provides substantial headroom and is not a bottleneck at any tested resolution or setting. The memory bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s is more relevant to performance.

Q: How does the combo rank overall?

A: It ranks 832nd out of 2,939 tested combos, placing it in the 72nd percentile. This is a solid mid-to-high tier position, reflecting the GPU's 69th percentile and CPU's 85th percentile standings.

# Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals clear scaling patterns as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 262 FPS at 1080p to 169 FPS at 1440p (a 35.5% decrease) and further to 91 FPS at 4K (a 65.3% decrease from 1080p). At High settings, the progression is 169 FPS at 1080p, 109 FPS at 1440p (35.5% drop), and 59 FPS at 4K (65.1% drop). Medium settings show 201 FPS at 1080p, 130 FPS at 1440p (35.3% drop), and 70 FPS at 4K (65.2% drop). Ultra settings produce 128 FPS at 1080p, 83 FPS at 1440p (35.2% drop), and 45 FPS at 4K (64.8% drop).

The consistency of these percentage drops across settings — all hovering around 35% from 1080p to 1440p and 65% from 1080p to 4K — indicates that resolution scaling affects all settings proportionally. This pattern suggests the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, as the workload scales with pixel count rather than being limited by CPU frame delivery. The fact that 1080p Low reaches 262 FPS while 4K Ultra drops to 45 FPS (a 5.8x difference) reinforces that the GPU's rendering capacity is the determining factor.

The limiting component analysis points to the GPU because the CPU's performance headroom is evident at 1080p, where frame rates exceed what most displays can show. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect diminishing returns when lowering GPU load at 1080p, but the data shows Low settings producing nearly double the frame rate of Ultra (262 vs. 128), indicating the GPU is fully utilized across all settings. At 4K, even Low settings only reach 91 FPS, confirming the GPU cannot keep pace with the pixel workload regardless of quality preset.

# Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings balance depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, all settings deliver playable frame rates, with Ultra at 128 FPS and Low at 262 FPS. For users with 144 Hz or 165 Hz displays, High at 169 FPS or Medium at 201 FPS provide the best experience, keeping frame rates above typical refresh rates while maintaining visual quality. Ultra at 128 FPS is also viable for 120 Hz displays, though the 34 FPS drop from High to Ultra may not justify the visual gains.

At 1440p, High at 109 FPS and Medium at 130 FPS are the strongest choices, with Medium offering a higher average and a minimum of 110 FPS that ensures smooth gameplay. Ultra at 83 FPS is acceptable for 60-75 Hz displays but may feel less fluid on higher refresh monitors. Low at 169 FPS is excessive for most displays and sacrifices visual quality unnecessarily.

At 4K, High at 59 FPS is marginal for 60 Hz displays, while Medium at 70 FPS provides better headroom with a minimum of 59 FPS. Low at 91 FPS is the smoothest option but significantly reduces visual fidelity. Ultra at 45 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and likely to feel stuttery during fast movement. For 4K, Medium offers the best compromise between frame rate and visual quality, with Low as a fallback for users prioritizing smoothness.

Across all resolutions, the Medium preset consistently provides the best balance of average FPS and minimum frame stability. The minimum-to-average ratios for Medium are 0.85 at 1080p (171/201), 0.85 at 1440p (110/130), and 0.84 at 4K (59/70), showing consistent frame delivery without severe dips. This consistency makes Medium the recommended starting point, with adjustments toward High for visual quality or Low for higher frame rates as needed.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

1080p (1920x1080):

• Low: 262 FPS average
• Medium: 201 FPS average, 171 FPS minimum, 231 FPS maximum
• High: 169 FPS average
• Ultra: 128 FPS average

1440p (2560x1440):

• Low: 169 FPS average
• Medium: 130 FPS average, 110 FPS minimum, 149 FPS maximum
• High: 109 FPS average
• Ultra: 83 FPS average

4K (3840x2160):

• Low: 91 FPS average
• Medium: 70 FPS average, 59 FPS minimum, 80 FPS maximum
• High: 59 FPS average
• Ultra: 45 FPS average

The Medium preset is the only setting with complete minimum and maximum data across all three resolutions, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the spread from minimum to maximum is 60 FPS (171 to 231), at 1440p it is 39 FPS (110 to 149), and at 4K it is 21 FPS (59 to 80). This narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU's workload becomes more uniform as pixel count increases, reducing the variance between heavy and light scenes.

The frame rate deltas between settings are consistent across resolutions: Low to Medium averages about 23% lower FPS, Medium to High averages about 16% lower, and High to Ultra averages about 24% lower. These consistent deltas suggest that each settings tier has a similar computational cost, regardless of resolution. The largest absolute drop occurs from Low to Medium at 1080p (61 FPS), which is proportionally similar to the drop at 4K (21 FPS) when adjusted for the lower baseline.

The data shows no anomalous frame rate behavior, such as unusually low minimums that would indicate stuttering or hitches. The minimum FPS values for Medium presets are all within 85% of the average, indicating stable performance. This stability, combined with the high average frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, makes this combo well-suited for Minimum across a wide range of display configurations, with the GPU serving as the primary determinant of performance at higher resolutions and settings.