Minimum

Minimum, a third-person shooter from 2014, pairs the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT in this benchmark analysis. The data set provides a clear picture of how this combination performs across 1080p, 1440p, and 4K resolutions with varying quality presets, offering insights into both the CPU's substantial headroom and the GPU's capabilities.

Settings Recommendations

For 4K Ultra HD (3840x2160), the High preset delivers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, with an average of 58 FPS. While this is below the 60 FPS threshold for perfectly smooth gameplay, it is substantially better than the Ultra preset's 44 FPS average. The Medium preset at 4K offers 69 FPS, which is playable, but the jump to High sacrifices only 11 FPS for a notable visual upgrade. Low at 4K reaches 90 FPS, but the graphical compromises are likely too steep for a modern title. For the most immersive experience without chasing maximum settings, High is the recommended choice at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the High preset shines with 107 FPS average, providing excellent smoothness. The Medium preset hits 128 FPS, but given that High remains well above 100 FPS, users with 144Hz monitors will prefer it for the better image quality. Ultra at 82 FPS is still playable, but the gap between High and Ultra in visual terms is typically less impactful than the 25 FPS difference. Low at 167 FPS is only for competitive play where maximum frame rates matter more than visuals.

For 1920x1080, the CPU's power becomes apparent as even Ultra settings produce 127 FPS. The High preset delivers a robust 166 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays. Medium achieves 198 FPS, and Low pushes to 259 FPS, making this combo capable of driving very fast panels. The optimal choice here is High, as it combines solid graphical detail with frame rates that exceed most monitors' refresh rates. Ultra, while visually superior, drops to 127 FPS, which is still smooth but not worth the performance cost for most users.

FAQ

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The data shows the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus has an average benchmark score of 84003, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K's 83807. It also leads the AMD EPYC 4584PX by 1.1% and the AMD EPYC 9135 by 1.2%, while trailing the AMD EPYC 7F72 by 1.3%.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 90 FPS, while Ultra drops to 44 FPS. This represents a 46 FPS difference, or roughly a 51% reduction in performance when maxing out the settings. Medium sits in between at 69 FPS, and High at 58 FPS.

Q: Is the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT a bottleneck at 1080p in this game?

A: The data indicates that at 1920x1080, the average frame rates range from 127 FPS on Ultra to 259 FPS on Low. These high numbers suggest the GPU is not heavily constrained at this resolution, with the CPU's strong single-thread performance allowing the graphics card to operate near its potential.

Q: How does the GPU's benchmark score position it against the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT has an average benchmark score of 48477, which is 3% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti's 49957. It also trails the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 by 3%, but leads the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile by 1.5% and the Intel Arc A550M by 2.5%.

Q: What is the best resolution to use for a 60 FPS experience on High settings?

A: The data shows that at 4K on High, the average FPS is 58, which is just shy of 60. At 1440p on High, it jumps to 107 FPS, and at 1080p on High, it reaches 166 FPS. Therefore, 1440p on High provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, while 4K is borderline.

Q: What do the minimum and maximum FPS values indicate about frame pacing at Medium settings?

A: The only setting with recorded min and max values is Medium. At 1080p, the range is 168 to 228 FPS, at 1440p it is 109 to 147 FPS, and at 4K it is 59 to 79 FPS. These ranges show consistent frame delivery with no severe stutters, as the minimums stay reasonably close to the averages.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested combinations for Minimum, this pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT holds a combo rank of 877 out of 2939 tested combinations. This places it in the top 30% of all tested systems for this specific game, indicating strong overall performance.

The CPU is a major contributor to this ranking. With a percentile of 96 against all CPUs, the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus sits near the top of the performance hierarchy. Its average benchmark score of 84003 is competitive with server-class processors like the AMD EPYC 9135 and EPYC 4584PX, showing that it brings exceptional processing power to this gaming workload. The GPU, while less dominant, still performs well with a percentile of 85 against all GPUs, and its score of 48477 is respectable for a last-generation flagship.

The combination of a top-tier CPU and a high-end GPU results in a system that is well-balanced for this 2014 title. The rank of 877 suggests that while many systems may achieve high frame rates in Minimum, this specific configuration is among the more capable ones, likely due to the CPU's ability to maintain high minimum frame rates and handle any physics or simulation tasks the game requires.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptional performance across all presets. The Low setting produces an average of 259 FPS, which is exceptionally high and indicates the CPU is feeding the GPU efficiently. Medium averages 198 FPS with a minimum of 168 and maximum of 228. High averages 166 FPS, and even Ultra maintains a strong 127 FPS average. This resolution clearly shows the CPU's strength, as the frame rates scale well with the GPU's capabilities.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance remains impressive but shows the expected reduction from the increased pixel count. Low averages 167 FPS, a 92 FPS drop from 1080p. Medium averages 128 FPS with a range of 109 to 147. High averages 107 FPS, which is still excellent for 1440p gaming. Ultra drops to 82 FPS, which is playable but shows the GPU beginning to work harder.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor. Low averages 90 FPS, which is a substantial drop from 1440p. Medium averages 69 FPS with a minimum of 59 and maximum of 79, putting it right at the edge of smooth gameplay. High averages 58 FPS, which is slightly below the 60 FPS target. Ultra averages 44 FPS, which is noticeably less smooth but still usable for slower-paced sections.

The pattern across resolutions shows a clear progression: at 1080p, the system is CPU-limited at Low settings, as evidenced by the 259 FPS result. As resolution increases, the load shifts to the GPU, and the frame rates become more dependent on the Radeon RX 6800 XT's rasterization capabilities.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important information about which component is the limiting factor. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 166 at 1080p to 107 at 1440p, a reduction of 35.5%. Going from 1440p to 4K, the average drops from 107 to 58 FPS, a reduction of 45.8%. This steepening decline indicates that the GPU is becoming the bottleneck at higher resolutions.

For Medium settings, the scaling is similar: 198 FPS at 1080p falls to 128 FPS at 1440p (a 35.4% drop), then to 69 FPS at 4K (a 46.1% drop). This consistent pattern across settings suggests that the GPU's performance scales predictably with pixel count, which is typical for a rasterization-bound workload.

At Low settings, the scaling is slightly different: 259 FPS at 1080p drops to 167 FPS at 1440p (a 35.5% decline), and then to 90 FPS at 4K (a 46.1% decline). The fact that the percentage drops are nearly identical across all settings indicates that the CPU is not a bottleneck even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is still able to render frames at a very high rate.

This scaling behavior points to the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT as the primary limiter at 4K. The GPU's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 512.0 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for this game, but the raw compute power of 20.74 TFLOPS is what determines the frame rates at higher resolutions. The CPU, with its 24 cores and 24 threads, is clearly not the constraint, as evidenced by the high frame rates even at 1080p.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture. Its base clock of 3.70 GHz and boost clock of 5.80 GHz provide substantial single-thread performance, as shown by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303 and Passmark single-thread score of 4823. This is critical for Minimum, where frame rates at 1080p exceed 250 FPS, indicating the CPU can keep pace with even the fastest GPU output.

In multi-threaded workloads, the CPU's 24 cores deliver a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 51731 and a Passmark multi-thread score of 60860. These scores place it in the 96th percentile among all CPUs, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, is only 0.2% slower on average. This processing power ensures that any background tasks or game logic won't cause frame drops.

The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. This large cache helps reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for game performance. The dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 115.2 GB/s bandwidth provides ample data throughput for the GPU, though the game's age means it likely doesn't stress this interface heavily.

For Minimum specifically, the CPU's role is to maintain high minimum frame rates and ensure consistent frame pacing. The data shows this is achieved, as the minimum FPS values at Medium settings are 168 at 1080p, 109 at 1440p, and 59 at 4K, all of which are close to their respective averages. The combination of high clock speeds and many cores makes this CPU more than adequate for this title, and it is unlikely to be the limiting factor in any scenario tested.