Minimum

Minimum, a third-person shooter released in 2014, presents a demanding workload for the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H paired with the AMD Radeon 760M integrated graphics. The measured data reveals a combination that struggles to maintain fluid frame rates across most settings, with the integrated GPU acting as the primary constraint. This analysis breaks down the performance characteristics, scaling behavior, and component roles based strictly on the empirical results.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, underscoring the GPU-bound nature of this workload. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 58 at 1920x1080 to 37 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 36%, and then to 20 at 3840x2160, a further 46% drop from 1440p. This scaling pattern indicates that pixel throughput is the dominant limiting factor, as the Radeon 760M’s compute resources are saturated by the increasing resolution demands.

The High settings row shows a similar trajectory: 37 FPS at 1080p, 24 FPS at 1440p, and 13 FPS at 4K. The halving of frame rates between 1080p and 4K at both Low and High presets points to a linear scaling relationship typical of a system where the GPU is the bottleneck, with the CPU having ample headroom to feed the graphics pipeline. The data shows no evidence of CPU limitation at any resolution, as the frame rate deltas are purely proportional to the pixel count increase.

Medium settings exhibit the same pattern, with averages of 44 FPS at 1080p, 29 FPS at 1440p, and 15 FPS at 4K. The 4K result includes a measured minimum of 13 FPS and maximum of 18 FPS, indicating some frame time variance, but the overall trend remains consistent. Ultra settings are the most punishing, dropping from 28 FPS at 1080p to 18 FPS at 1440p and finally to 10 FPS at 4K, confirming that the combination is not viable at 4K regardless of quality preset.

The resolution scaling analysis suggests that this combo is only practical at 1080p, where even the heaviest preset maintains an average above 25 FPS. At 1440p, only the Low preset crosses the 30 FPS threshold, while all other settings fall below playable levels. The 4K results are uniformly sub-20 FPS, classifying them as slideshow territory for a fast-paced third-person shooter.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal experience for this hardware combination is achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings, which delivers an average of 58 FPS. This is the only configuration in the entire dataset that approaches a fluid 60 FPS target, making it the clear choice for responsive gameplay. The Low preset at 1080p provides a 32% performance uplift over High settings at the same resolution, which delivers 37 FPS.

For users willing to accept lower frame rates for improved visual fidelity, Medium at 1080p offers a compromise at 44 FPS average, with a measured range of 38 to 51 FPS. This stays above the 30 FPS playability floor but may feel inconsistent during intense action sequences. High at 1080p (37 FPS) is marginally playable, while Ultra at 1080p (28 FPS) dips below the threshold and is not recommended.

At 2560x1440, the only viable option is Low settings, which produces 37 FPS average. This matches the 1080p High result, indicating that the GPU is equally stressed by either doubling the resolution or increasing the quality preset. Medium at 1440p drops to 29 FPS with a minimum of 24 FPS, which will exhibit noticeable stutter. All 4K settings are effectively unplayable, with the best result being 20 FPS at Low.

The data suggests a clear hierarchy: prioritize resolution reduction over quality settings. Dropping from 1440p to 1080p at the same preset yields a 57% average FPS increase, while dropping from High to Low at the same resolution yields only a 36% improvement. Therefore, users should select 1080p Low as the baseline and only increase quality if they can tolerate sub-40 FPS averages.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon 760M is the decisive performance limiter in this combination. With a boost clock of 2599 MHz and 512 shading units, the integrated graphics solution produces a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 400 and a Passmark G3D score of 5310, placing it in the 35th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6400 (0.3% higher average score) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M (0.3% higher), indicating it performs at entry-level discrete GPU levels from several generations ago.

The GPU’s memory configuration is system-shared, with bandwidth listed as system-dependent, which directly impacts performance in a 2014 title like Minimum. The 4 nm Phoenix chip has a transistor count of 25,390 million and a die size of 178 mm², but these architectural details matter less than the raw throughput limitations. The FP32 compute of 5.323 TFLOPS is modest for modern standards, and the data confirms this translates to sub-60 FPS averages even at the lowest settings.

The measured frame rates align with the GPU’s benchmark profile. The 58 FPS at 1080p Low represents the ceiling of what this iGPU can achieve, and any increase in resolution or quality immediately exposes its weaknesses. The 4K results, ranging from 10 to 20 FPS, indicate that the Radeon 760M is operating at its absolute limit, with the 13 FPS minimum at Medium 4K showing potential frame time spikes.

The Radeon 760M’s DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 compatibility do not translate into practical performance gains for Minimum, as the game’s 2014 engine likely relies on older API paths. The Passmark DirectX 11 score of 52 and DirectX 12 score of 25 highlight that the GPU has limited headroom for modern API overhead, further cementing its role as the primary bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Minimum, this pairing ranks 3701 out of 3712 combos, placing it in the bottom 0.3% of all configurations. This near-bottom ranking is a direct consequence of using an integrated GPU, which is fundamentally mismatched for a third-person shooter that demands consistent frame delivery. The rank reflects that 99.7% of other tested CPU-GPU pairings achieve higher average frame rates in this specific title.

The CPU component, the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H, is not the limiting factor in this ranking. Its average benchmark score of 34083 places it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, with rivals like the Intel Core Ultra 5 338H (0.3% higher score) and AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (0.5% higher score) showing similar raw processing power. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 multicore score of 14551 and single-core score of 1759 indicate it has sufficient computational headroom for gaming workloads.

The disparity between CPU and GPU performance tiers explains the low combo ranking. While the CPU sits in the top 16% of all processors, the GPU sits in the bottom 35% of all graphics cards, and this imbalance cripples the overall system performance. The 3701st place ranking is a cautionary tale about pairing a high-end mobile CPU with an entry-level iGPU for gaming purposes.

The data shows that the combo’s position is not due to any specific driver issue or game optimization problem, but rather the fundamental limits of the Radeon 760M. Even the best-case scenario of 58 FPS at 1080p Low would rank poorly against dedicated GPUs, which likely achieve 100+ FPS at higher settings in this older title.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 165H provides substantial processing capability that remains largely underutilized in Minimum. With 16 cores and 22 threads, a base clock of 3.80 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, this mobile processor is well-equipped for multi-threaded workloads. Its Passmark multithread score of 25933 and single-thread score of 3509 demonstrate strong performance that is rarely challenged by a 2014 game.

The CPU’s 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB L2 per core provide ample memory hierarchy for game logic and asset streaming. The 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth, while shared with the iGPU, is sufficient for the CPU’s needs. The fact that frame rates scale linearly with resolution, rather than plateauing due to CPU bottlenecks, confirms that the processor is never the limiting component in this pairing.

Benchmark results show the CPU’s capability: Cinebench R20 multicore score of 9233 and single-core score of 1303, with Passmark integer math at 89415 and floating-point math at 66273. These scores indicate that even at 1080p Low with 58 FPS, the CPU is likely operating well below its maximum capacity, with headroom for higher frame rates if paired with a stronger GPU.

The CPU’s 84th percentile ranking among all processors, and its proximity to the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (0.5% higher average score), suggests that it could drive a much more powerful discrete GPU without becoming a bottleneck. In Minimum specifically, the CPU’s 16 cores and 22 threads are overkill for a game from 2014, which likely uses only a handful of threads. The measured performance is therefore entirely dictated by the GPU’s capabilities.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings spectrum was measured. Low settings produce 58 FPS average, the highest result in the entire dataset. Medium settings yield 44 FPS average with a minimum of 38 FPS and maximum of 51 FPS. High settings drop to 37 FPS average, while Ultra settings are the weakest at 1080p with 28 FPS average. The step-down from Low to Medium is 24%, from Medium to High is 16%, and from High to Ultra is 24%, showing consistent quality scaling.

At 2560x1440, the results degrade predictably. Low settings achieve 37 FPS average, matching the 1080p High result. Medium settings produce 29 FPS average, with a minimum of 24 FPS and maximum of 33 FPS. High settings fall to 24 FPS average, and Ultra settings are nearly unplayable at 18 FPS average. The resolution increase from 1080p to 1440p costs between 24% (Low) and 36% (High) of the frame rate.

At 3840x2160, all settings are below 20 FPS. Low settings top out at 20 FPS average, Medium at 15 FPS average with a minimum of 13 FPS and maximum of 18 FPS, High at 13 FPS average, and Ultra at 10 FPS average. The jump from 1440p to 4K costs between 44% (Low) and 46% (High) of the frame rate. The 4K Medium result’s minimum of 13 FPS indicates significant frame pacing issues, with the 18 FPS maximum showing that even momentary spikes cannot reach playable levels.

The complete dataset shows no measured minimum or maximum values for Low, High, and Ultra presets at any resolution, indicating that only Medium settings were subject to frame time recording. This suggests that the Medium preset’s variance (e.g., 38-51 FPS at 1080p) is representative of the system’s stability, while other presets may exhibit similar or worse variance without explicit measurement.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware?

A: The optimal configuration is 1920x1080 with Low settings, producing 58 FPS average. This is the only measured setting that exceeds 50 FPS, and it provides a 32% improvement over High settings at the same resolution.

Q: Can this combo handle 1440p gaming in Minimum?

A: Only at Low settings, which yields 37 FPS average. Medium at 1440p drops to 29 FPS with a minimum of 24 FPS, and High/Ultra fall below 25 FPS, making them unsuitable for smooth gameplay.

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

A: The GPU is entirely the bottleneck. The Intel Core Ultra 7 165H ranks in the 84th percentile of CPUs with a 34083 average score, while the AMD Radeon 760M ranks in the 35th percentile with a 6019 average score. The linear FPS scaling with resolution confirms GPU limitation.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested systems?

A: It ranks 3701 out of 3712 combinations, placing it in the bottom 0.3% of all tested systems for Minimum. This near-bottom placement is directly attributable to the integrated GPU’s performance ceiling.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 4K resolution?

A: All 4K settings produce averages between 10 and 20 FPS. Low settings achieve 20 FPS, Medium 15 FPS, High 13 FPS, and Ultra 10 FPS, rendering 4K unplayable for this title on this hardware.

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

A: The Radeon 760M’s average benchmark score of 6019 is within 0.5% of the AMD Radeon RX 6400, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M, and NVIDIA Quadro P2000. Its Passmark G3D score of 5310 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 400 illustrate its entry-level positioning.