Minimum

Minimum, the 2014 third-person shooter, still behaves like a game of its era when paired with an Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060. The measured data reveals a title that is heavily dependent on the graphics card at high resolutions, yet becomes increasingly CPU-bound at lower settings. With a combo rank of 2292 out of 2939 tested configurations, this pairing sits in the lower-middle tier of the database, suggesting that while the CPU is a top-tier performer (96th percentile), the aging RTX 2060 (58th percentile) holds the experience back in this particular title.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows offer a clear hierarchy for this specific hardware combination, with the data suggesting that the "High" preset provides the most balanced experience for most users. At 1920x1080, High delivers a smooth 100 FPS average, which is 24 FPS faster than the Medium preset’s 119 FPS and 24 FPS slower than the Low preset’s 155 FPS. The jump from Medium to Low yields a 36 FPS improvement, but the visual fidelity trade-off is often not worth the gain for a game of this age.

For 2560x1440, the High preset remains viable with a 64 FPS average, which is playable for a third-person shooter. Dropping to Medium reduces the average to 77 FPS, while Low pushes it to 100 FPS. The Ultra preset at this resolution falls to 49 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold that most players consider standard. The data indicates that High at 1440p is the sweet spot, as it maintains a playable framerate without sacrificing the visual quality that the Ultra preset would demand.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 2060 struggles significantly. High settings yield only 35 FPS, Medium drops to 41 FPS, and Ultra falls to a slideshow-like 26 FPS. Even the Low preset, which achieves 54 FPS, cannot maintain a consistent 60 FPS experience. The data strongly suggests that 4K is not a viable resolution for this GPU in Minimum, regardless of settings. For users who must play at 4K, the Low preset is the only option that approaches playability, but the 54 FPS average will still be noticeable in fast-paced combat.

The Medium preset deserves special mention for its consistency. At every resolution, it is the only setting with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, providing a stable frame pacing profile. At 1080p, it delivers 119 FPS average with a minimum of 101 FPS, ensuring no severe drops. At 1440p, the minimum is 65 FPS, and at 4K, the minimum is 35 FPS. This suggests that Medium is the most predictable setting for this hardware, making it the recommended choice for users who prioritize consistent frame delivery over absolute maximums.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the primary bottleneck in this configuration for Minimum, particularly at higher resolutions. The GPU features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is adequate for a 2014 title at 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K data suggests that the 6 GB frame buffer becomes a limiting factor when pushing higher pixel counts. The measured FPS drops from 100 at 1080p High to 64 at 1440p High, a 36% reduction, and then to 35 at 4K High, a further 45% reduction.

The GPU’s clock speeds are modest by modern standards, with a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz. These clocks, combined with the 1920 shading units, produce a peak FP32 performance of 6.451 TFLOPS. This compute capability is sufficient for Minimum’s older rendering techniques, but the data shows that the GPU saturates quickly as resolution increases. The texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s are also factors, as the game’s texture-heavy environments at High settings can tax these units.

The RTX 2060’s benchmark scores place it in the 58th percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 15290. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580, scores nearly identically at 15283, a delta of 0%. This indicates that the RTX 2060’s raw rasterization performance in older APIs is not far ahead of a much older card, though the RTX 2060 benefits from modern features like DirectX 12 Ultimate support. The PassMark DirectX 11 score of 110 versus DirectX 12 score of 53 suggests that the game may be using an older API path, which could limit the GPU’s efficiency.

The GPU’s 160 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for its generation, and the 1x 8-pin power connector supports a suggested 450 W PSU. The card’s 229 mm length makes it compatible with most mid-tower cases. While the GPU is end-of-life, its performance in Minimum at 1080p remains serviceable, but the 4K results clearly show its architectural limits when pushed beyond its designed resolution envelope.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combination in Minimum?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution, with all four settings presets achieving playable framerates. The High preset delivers 100 FPS, which is ideal for a smooth experience. At 2560x1440, only Low and Medium maintain averages above 77 FPS, while 3840x2160 results in sub-60 FPS performance across all settings.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: According to the average benchmark scores, the RTX 2060 scores 15290, which is virtually identical to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (15283, 0% delta) and AMD Radeon 680M (15270, 0.1% delta). It is slightly ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (15199, 0.6% delta) and AMD Radeon RX 7600 (15171, 0.8% delta).

Q: Does the Ultra preset provide a meaningful performance advantage over High?

A: The data indicates that Ultra is significantly more demanding. At 1080p, Ultra averages 76 FPS compared to High’s 100 FPS, a 24% performance loss. At 1440p, the gap widens to 49 FPS versus 64 FPS, and at 4K, Ultra drops to 26 FPS versus 35 FPS. The visual improvement from High to Ultra is not justified by the substantial framerate cost.

Q: Why is the Medium preset the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values?

A: The database includes min/max data only for the Medium preset at all three resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 101-137 FPS; at 1440p, it is 65-88 FPS; and at 4K, it is 35-47 FPS. This suggests that Medium offers the most stable frame delivery, making it a reliable choice for consistent performance.

Q: How does the CPU’s 96th percentile ranking affect gameplay in Minimum?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus ranks in the 96th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84003. This high ranking means the CPU is unlikely to be a bottleneck in Minimum, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is the limiting factor. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 155 FPS, indicating the CPU can handle high frame rates.

Q: Can this configuration achieve a consistent 60 FPS experience?

A: At 1080p, the High preset’s 100 FPS average ensures a consistent 60 FPS experience. At 1440p, the High preset’s 64 FPS average is just above the threshold, but the Medium preset’s 77 FPS provides a safer margin. At 4K, no preset achieves a 60 FPS average, with the best being Low at 54 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured data shows a clear progression from Low to Ultra. The Low preset achieves the highest average at 155 FPS, followed by High at 100 FPS, Medium at 119 FPS, and Ultra at 76 FPS. The Medium preset has a recorded minimum of 101 FPS and maximum of 137 FPS, indicating a tight frame pacing window. The performance delta between Low and Ultra is 79 FPS, representing a 51% reduction in performance when maximizing visual quality.

Moving to 2560x1440, all averages decrease significantly. Low drops to 100 FPS, High falls to 64 FPS, Medium settles at 77 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 49 FPS. The Medium preset again provides the only min/max data, with a range of 65 to 88 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a 35% reduction for High settings, but only a 28% reduction for Medium, suggesting that the GPU’s memory bandwidth becomes a factor at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 2060 struggles to maintain playable framerates. Low achieves 54 FPS, Medium 41 FPS, High 35 FPS, and Ultra 26 FPS. The Medium preset’s min/max range of 35 to 47 FPS shows that even the most stable setting cannot hold above 50 FPS. The 4K results represent a 65% reduction from 1080p for High settings, and a 66% reduction for Medium settings, indicating that the GPU’s 6 GB frame buffer and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for this resolution class.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: the RTX 2060 performs admirably at 1080p, adequately at 1440p with reduced settings, and poorly at 4K. The High preset at 1080p offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, with a 100 FPS average that will satisfy most players. For those seeking maximum smoothness, the Low preset’s 155 FPS at 1080p provides a near-doubling of frame rate with minimal visual compromise in this older title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 100 at 1080p to 64 at 1440p, a 36% reduction, and then to 35 at 4K, a 45% reduction from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting component, as the workload scales directly with pixel count. The RTX 2060’s 6 GB frame buffer becomes increasingly saturated, and the 192-bit memory bus struggles to feed the shading units at higher resolutions.

For Low settings, the scaling is slightly more linear: 155 FPS at 1080p, 100 FPS at 1440p (a 35% drop), and 54 FPS at 4K (a 46% drop from 1440p). This consistency suggests that even at the lowest quality settings, the GPU remains the bottleneck. The CPU, with its 24 cores and 24 threads, does not show signs of limiting performance, as the frame rates remain high enough to indicate headroom.

The Medium preset shows the most interesting scaling behavior. At 1080p, it delivers 119 FPS; at 1440p, 77 FPS (a 35% drop); and at 4K, 41 FPS (a 47% drop from 1440p). The min/max data at each resolution shows that the frame delivery remains stable, with no severe spikes or drops. This suggests that the Medium preset is well-optimized for the GPU’s architecture, providing a consistent experience even as resolution increases.

The scaling factors point to a GPU-bound scenario throughout. The CPU’s single-thread performance, as indicated by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303, is more than sufficient for a 2014 title. The data shows that even at 1080p Low, the system achieves 155 FPS, which is likely close to the game’s engine limit rather than a CPU constraint. For users seeking higher frame rates, reducing resolution or settings will yield predictable gains, but the RTX 2060’s fundamental performance ceiling is reached at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is an exceptionally powerful processor that plays a minimal role in limiting Minimum’s performance. With 24 cores and 24 threads, the CPU offers massive multi-threaded capacity, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 51731. However, Minimum, being a 2014 title, is unlikely to utilize more than a few cores effectively. The CPU’s single-thread performance is equally strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303 and a PassMark single-thread score of 4823.

The CPU’s boost clock of 5.80 GHz, combined with its 3 nm process node and Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, ensures that it can handle the game’s physics and game logic without breaking a sweat. The data supports this: at 1080p Low, the system achieves 155 FPS, which is a frame rate that typically requires a capable CPU to sustain. The CPU’s 96th percentile ranking among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 84003, places it in the top tier of available hardware.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, which scores 83807 (a 0.2% delta), and the AMD EPYC 4584PX at 83090 (a 1.1% delta). These comparisons show that the 290K Plus is at the forefront of desktop performance. In Minimum, this CPU headroom means that frame rates are almost entirely determined by the GPU, especially at higher resolutions where the pixel workload dominates.

The CPU’s memory support for DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and 115.2 GB/s bandwidth provides ample data throughput for the game’s assets. The 36 MB of shared L3 cache, along with 3 MB per core of L2 cache, ensures that frequently accessed data is stored close to the cores. While these specifications are impressive, the data indicates that they do not become a limiting factor in Minimum. The measured FPS at 1080p across all settings shows a clear GPU bottleneck, as the CPU is capable of delivering far higher frame rates than the RTX 2060 can produce.