Outriders

Outriders is a looter shooter that scales heavily with resolution and GPU load, and the combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 shows a clear performance curve across the three tested resolutions. At 1080p, the system is often CPU-limited or running into the engine’s high refresh rate ceiling, while at 4K the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck. The data shows a 16-core, 32-thread processor paired with a 16 GB GDDR6X graphics card, and the measured frame rates reflect a balanced setup that favors high-refresh 1440p gaming rather than maximum 4K eye candy.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 is steep, but the pattern is not linear. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 169 FPS at 1080p to 107 FPS at 1440p, then to 56 FPS at 4K. That is a 37% reduction going from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 48% reduction from 1440p to 4K. This tells you that the RTX 4080 is the limiting component at higher resolutions, with the pixel count increase demanding more from the GPU’s 716.8 GB/s memory bandwidth and its 9728 shading units.

The Low settings row shows an even more dramatic scaling pattern. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 241 FPS, which drops to 196 FPS at 1440p and 102 FPS at 4K. The 1440p to 4K drop here is 48%, similar to High, but the absolute numbers are much higher because the GPU is less stressed. At 1080p Low, the 241 FPS average suggests the CPU or the game’s frame pacing is now the primary limiter, since the GPU has plenty of headroom. The Ryzen 9 8945HX, with its 5.40 GHz boost clock and 64 MB L3 cache, is doing the heavy lifting to feed the GPU at that low graphical load.

Medium settings provide the only rows with min and max FPS values, which gives insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the average is 214 FPS with a min of 182 and max of 246. Moving to 1440p Medium, the average drops to 142 FPS with a min of 121 and max of 164. At 4K Medium, the average is 74 FPS with a min of 63 and max of 86. The delta between min and max is roughly 30% at each resolution, indicating that the game keeps frame pacing stable even when the GPU load increases fourfold from 1080p to 4K.

The Ultra settings row tells the clearest story about the GPU bottleneck. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 122 FPS, which is still very playable. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 77 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it falls to 40 FPS. That 4K Ultra result is below the 60 FPS target most gamers expect, and it shows that the RTX 4080 is not enough for maxed-out 4K in Outriders. The scaling from 1440p Ultra to 4K Ultra is a 48% reduction, which is consistent with the other settings, but the starting point is lower, making the final number less comfortable for competitive play.

The resolution scaling analysis points to a system that is best used at 1440p for a balance of visual quality and frame rate. At 1080p, you are leaving GPU performance on the table, especially at Low settings where the CPU is the limiting factor. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, and you would need to drop to Medium settings to approach a smooth 74 FPS average.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank for Outriders is 712 out of 2913 tested combinations. That places this CPU-GPU pairing in the 75th percentile of all tested combos, meaning it outperforms roughly three-quarters of the systems in the database for this specific game. The data indicates this is a high-end mobile setup, but not the absolute top tier, as there are more powerful desktop or newer configurations that score higher.

Looking at the individual component benchmarks, the Ryzen 9 8945HX has a percentileVsAllCpus of 95, putting it in the top 5% of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX with a deltaPct of 0.1, meaning they are essentially tied in average benchmark score. The AMD EPYC Embedded 8224P and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX are 0.4% behind, and the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 0.6% ahead. These are all close scores, within 1% of each other, which shows the 8945HX is competitive with the best processors available.

The RTX 4080 has a percentileVsAllGpus of 86, which is lower than the CPU’s 95. Its nearest rival is the RTX 4080 SUPER with a deltaPct of 0.1, meaning the SUPER is essentially identical in average benchmark score. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X is 1.1% behind, the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB is 2.6% behind, and the AMD Radeon 8060S is 2.7% behind. The GPU is strong, but it is not the top-tier card in the database, which explains why the combo rank is lower than the CPU rank alone.

The combo rank of 712 out of 2913 is a holistic measure. It reflects that the RTX 4080, while excellent, is not the fastest GPU on the market, and Outriders is a game that responds well to raw GPU throughput. The CPU is not holding the system back in this ranking, as its 95th percentile performance is more than adequate for the game’s threading model. The bottleneck is purely on the graphics side, especially at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with an AD103 chip, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It has 9728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output processors. The boost clock is 2505 MHz, while the base clock is 2205 MHz. Memory is 16 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus, delivering 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock is listed as 1400 MHz with 22.4 Gbps effective speed.

These specifications directly influence the measured FPS in Outriders. The 16 GB VRAM is more than enough for this game, even at 4K Ultra, where the game’s textures and effects are unlikely to exceed 12 GB. The memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s is critical at 4K, where the pixel throughput demands a lot of data movement. The 4K High average of 56 FPS and 4K Ultra average of 40 FPS show that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU has plenty of headroom at those resolutions.

The GPU’s benchmark scores reinforce this. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 6567. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 263779, and in OpenCL it scores 214739. The Passmark G3D score is 34457, with a GPU compute score of 20671. These scores place the RTX 4080 in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, which is strong but not the top. The nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, is only 0.1% ahead in average benchmark score, which is within the margin of error.

The GPU’s role in this combo is to provide high frame rates at 1440p and playable frame rates at 4K with reduced settings. At 1080p, the GPU is often underutilized, as the 241 FPS at Low settings shows. The data suggests that the RTX 4080 is best paired with a high refresh 1440p monitor, where it can deliver over 100 FPS at High or Medium settings. At 4K, you will need to accept Medium settings for a 74 FPS average, or drop to Low for 102 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 241 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play. Medium settings drop to 214 FPS, with a min of 182 and max of 246. High settings average 169 FPS, and Ultra settings average 122 FPS. The 1080p results show that even at Ultra, the system is well above 120 FPS, making it suitable for high refresh rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain strong but show the GPU starting to work harder. Low settings average 196 FPS, which is still very high. Medium settings average 142 FPS, with a min of 121 and max of 164. High settings average 107 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 77 FPS. The 1440p results are the sweet spot for this combo, as you can run High settings at over 100 FPS or Medium settings at nearly 150 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. Low settings average 102 FPS, which is playable but requires dropping the visual quality significantly. Medium settings average 74 FPS, with a min of 63 and max of 86. High settings average 56 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 40 FPS. The 4K results indicate that the RTX 4080 is not a 4K Ultra card for Outriders, but it can handle 4K Medium at a playable 74 FPS average.

The settings breakdown across resolutions shows a consistent pattern. Ultra settings are roughly 30-40% slower than High settings at each resolution. For example, at 1440p, High averages 107 FPS while Ultra averages 77 FPS, a 28% reduction. At 4K, High averages 56 FPS while Ultra averages 40 FPS, a 29% reduction. The gap between Low and Medium is smaller, with Medium being about 10-15% faster than High at most resolutions.

The min and max FPS values for Medium settings give a sense of frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the min is 182 and max is 246, a range of 64 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the min is 121 and max is 164, a range of 43 FPS. At 4K Medium, the min is 63 and max is 86, a range of 23 FPS. The absolute range shrinks as resolution increases, but the relative range stays around 30% of the average, indicating that Outriders does not have major frame pacing issues with this hardware.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Dragon Range. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The L3 cache is 64 MB, with 1 MB L2 cache per core and 64 KB L1 cache per core. It is manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC, with 13,140 million transistors on a dual-chip design of 2x 71 mm². Memory support is DDR5 with dual-channel configuration, providing 83.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Outriders, the CPU’s role is most evident at 1080p Low settings. The 241 FPS average is likely near the engine’s limit or the CPU’s single-thread performance ceiling. The Cinebench R23 single-core score is 6030, which is strong, and the multi-core score is 42713. The Passmark single-thread score is 3907, and the multithread score is 51405. These numbers indicate a processor that can handle high frame rates without becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios.

The CPU’s benchmark performance is exceptional, with a percentileVsAllCpus of 95. Its average benchmark score is 76212, which is nearly identical to the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX at 76155 (0.1% delta). The Ryzen 9 9950X3D is slightly ahead at 75779, but that is within 0.6%. This level of performance means the CPU is not the limiting factor in Outriders, even at 1080p High or Ultra.

At 1440p and 4K, the CPU’s influence diminishes as the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The data shows that at 1440p High, the average is 107 FPS, which is likely GPU-limited, as the CPU could push higher frame rates if the GPU allowed. The 16 cores and 32 threads are more than Outriders can utilize, as the game is a looter shooter that likely scales well with a few strong cores rather than many weaker ones.

The CPU’s memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s is adequate for this game, though the 64 MB L3 cache helps with data locality. The boost clock of 5.40 GHz is high for a mobile processor, and the Cinebench R20 single-core score of 2532 confirms strong single-thread performance. For Outriders, the CPU is a non-issue; it provides more than enough power to drive the RTX 4080 at any resolution tested.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the best experience depends on your display resolution and refresh rate. For a 1080p 144Hz or 165Hz monitor, the Medium preset is the sweet spot. It averages 214 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate, and the min of 182 FPS ensures you stay above 144 FPS in most scenes. Dropping to Low would give you 241 FPS, but the visual quality loss is not worth it when Medium already exceeds the refresh rate.

For a 1440p 144Hz monitor, the High preset is the best choice. It averages 107 FPS, which is below 144 Hz, but the visual quality is much better than Medium. If you prefer higher frame rates, Medium averages 142 FPS, which is close to 144 Hz, and the min of 121 FPS means it will occasionally dip below. For competitive play, Medium is the better option; for visual fidelity, High is the choice.

At 4K, the situation is different. If you have a 60Hz 4K display, the Medium preset is the only viable option for a smooth experience. It averages 74 FPS, which is above 60 FPS, and the min of 63 FPS stays above the 60 FPS threshold. High settings average 56 FPS, which will cause noticeable stutter on a 60Hz display. Low settings average 102 FPS, but the visual quality is significantly reduced.

For 4K 120Hz displays, this combo cannot maintain 120 FPS at any setting. The best you can do is Low settings at 102 FPS, which is close but not quite there. Medium settings at 74 FPS would require VRR to feel smooth. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it provides only a marginal visual improvement over High while costing 28-29% of the frame rate.

The data suggests that the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. It is the only preset where min and max FPS are recorded, indicating the game’s performance is stable there. At 1080p Medium, you get 214 FPS; at 1440p Medium, 142 FPS; and at 4K Medium, 74 FPS. These are all playable numbers, and the Medium preset avoids the extreme performance hits of Ultra while providing better visuals than Low.

For gamers who prioritize frame rate over visuals, Low settings at 1440p give 196 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play. The RTX 4080 and Ryzen 9 8945HX combo is capable of delivering high refresh rates at 1440p, making it a versatile system for both casual and competitive Outriders play. The final recommendation is to use Medium at 4K, High at 1440p, and Medium or High at 1080p, depending on your refresh rate.