Overpower

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 pairs with the Intel Arc B370 to deliver a highly constrained gaming experience in Overpower, a 2023 action title. Benchmark results show a system that struggles to maintain smooth frame rates, with the GPU’s integrated-class performance acting as the primary bottleneck. The data indicates a 14-core CPU with a 5.00 GHz boost clock paired against a graphics solution whose 3DMark Steel Nomad score places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. This combination yields playable results only at lower resolutions and settings, while higher presets drop below acceptable thresholds. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and settings, explores the roles of the CPU and GPU, and contextualizes the combo’s ranking among 2,980 tested configurations.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for this system?

A: The only measured configuration that exceeds 60 FPS is 1920x1080 with Low settings, achieving an average of 65 FPS. At 2560x1440 Low, the average drops to 58 FPS, while 3840x2160 Low yields 49 FPS. For a smoother experience, 1080p Low is the sole preset that clears the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score of 46,062. Its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, scores 46,030, a delta of 0.1%. The Intel Core i9-13900HX scores 46,098, which is 0.1% higher. The AMD EPYC 4364P and AMD EPYC 7303 score 45,970 and 45,960 respectively, both 0.2% lower.

Q: What is the GPU’s performance percentile relative to all other GPUs?

A: The Intel Arc B370 sits in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, based on its average benchmark score of 1,184 from the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. This places it in the bottom tier of graphics hardware, far below most dedicated gaming solutions.

*Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in Overpower?*

A: No, the data suggests the opposite. The CPU’s 89th percentile ranking (above 89% of all CPUs) indicates strong performance, while the GPU’s 5th percentile ranking reveals a weak graphics solution. The FPS drops as settings increase, which points to GPU limitations rather than CPU constraints.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested combos in this game?

A: The combo ranks 2,742nd out of 2,980 tested configurations in Overpower. This places it in the bottom 8% of all combos, consistent with the GPU’s low percentile and the measured FPS results.

Q: How much FPS is lost when moving from Low to Ultra at the same resolution?

A: At 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 65 on Low to 31 on Ultra, a loss of 34 FPS. At 2560x1440, it drops from 58 to 28 (30 FPS loss). At 3840x2160, it drops from 49 to 24 (25 FPS loss). The absolute decrease is largest at 1080p.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data clearly shows that Low settings are the only viable option for a smooth experience. At 1920x1080 Low, the system achieves 65 FPS average, which is the only preset to cross the 60 FPS line. Medium settings at 1080p drop to 41 FPS, High to 38 FPS, and Ultra to 31 FPS. This pattern holds across all resolutions: Low is consistently the only preset that approaches or exceeds 60 FPS, while Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below 42 FPS at any resolution.

For users who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate, Medium at 1080p offers a compromise at 41 FPS, but the jump from Low to Medium costs 24 FPS (from 65 to 41). High settings at 1080p provide 38 FPS, only 3 FPS less than Medium, which suggests diminishing returns for the additional quality. Ultra at 1080p yields 31 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS minimum for playable action games. At 1440p, Low is the only setting that stays above 50 FPS (58 FPS), while Medium, High, and Ultra all sit between 28 and 36 FPS. At 4K, even Low drops to 49 FPS, and Ultra falls to 24 FPS.

The data implies that the best experience is 1080p Low, as it is the only measured configuration that avoids stutter-prone territory. If a user insists on higher settings, 1080p Medium at 41 FPS is the next best option, but the frame rate penalty is steep. Given the GPU’s 5th percentile ranking, the system simply lacks the headroom for High or Ultra presets without significant FPS losses. The 14-core CPU with its 5.00 GHz boost clock is more than capable of feeding frames, but the Arc B370 cannot translate that CPU power into high FPS at demanding settings.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU as the limiting component. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 65 at 1920x1080 to 58 at 2560x1440 (a 10.8% decrease) and then to 49 at 3840x2160 (a 24.6% decrease from 1080p). This scaling is relatively gradual, indicating that even at 4K, the GPU is not completely overwhelmed at Low settings. However, the frame rates at 4K Low (49 FPS) are still below the 60 FPS threshold.

At Medium settings, the FPS drops from 41 at 1080p to 36 at 1440p (a 12.2% decrease) and then to 31 at 4K (a 24.4% decrease from 1080p). The pattern is similar: each resolution step costs roughly 5 FPS. At High settings, the drop is from 38 at 1080p to 34 at 1440p (10.5% decrease) and then to 28 at 4K (26.3% decrease from 1080p). At Ultra, the FPS goes from 31 at 1080p to 28 at 1440p (9.7% decrease) and then to 24 at 4K (22.6% decrease from 1080p).

The consistent ~10-12% FPS loss from 1080p to 1440p and ~22-26% loss from 1080p to 4K across all settings suggests that the GPU is the bottleneck, not the CPU. If the CPU were limiting, the FPS would remain flat or even increase at lower resolutions, but the data shows steady declines as pixel count rises. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235, with its 89th percentile ranking and 14 cores, has ample headroom. The Arc B370, with its 5th percentile ranking and 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 performance, struggles to maintain frame rates as resolution increases. The scaling pattern is classic for a GPU-bound scenario: the FPS drops are proportional to the increase in pixel workload, confirming that the graphics card is the primary constraint.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results. Low settings average 65 FPS, Medium averages 41 FPS with a minimum of 34 and maximum of 47, High averages 38 FPS, and Ultra averages 31 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is substantial at 24 FPS, while the gap between Medium and High is only 3 FPS, and between High and Ultra is 7 FPS. This suggests that Medium settings offer a visual improvement over Low at a significant FPS cost, but High and Ultra provide diminishing returns.

At 2560x1440, Low settings average 58 FPS, Medium averages 36 FPS (minimum 31, maximum 42), High averages 34 FPS, and Ultra averages 28 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 22 FPS, from Medium to High is 2 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 6 FPS. The 1440p results show a similar pattern to 1080p, but with all presets shifted down by roughly 7-8 FPS. The minimum FPS at Medium (31) is close to the average FPS at Ultra (28), indicating that even Medium settings can occasionally dip into unplayable territory.

At 3840x2160, Low settings average 49 FPS, Medium averages 31 FPS (minimum 26, maximum 35), High averages 28 FPS, and Ultra averages 24 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 18 FPS, from Medium to High is 3 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 4 FPS. At 4K, even Low settings fall below 60 FPS, and Medium is only marginally playable with a minimum of 26 FPS. Ultra at 4K produces 24 FPS, which is below the standard 30 FPS threshold for action games. The data shows that the system can barely handle 4K at Low settings, and any quality increase at 4K results in sub-30 FPS averages.

The overall trend across all resolutions is that Low is the only playable preset, Medium is borderline, and High/Ultra are only suitable for screenshots or non-competitive play. The measured minimum FPS values, available only for Medium settings, show that 1080p Medium has a minimum of 34 FPS, 1440p Medium has 31 FPS, and 4K Medium has 26 FPS. These minimums are close to the averages, indicating relatively stable frame pacing, but they are still too low for smooth gameplay.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the dominant bottleneck in this system. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (score 1,186, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Radeon HD 5770 (score 1,190, delta -0.5%). These are legacy or entry-level parts, underscoring the B370’s very low performance tier. The GPU’s clock speeds are listed as a base of 300 MHz and a boost of 2400 MHz, but the memory is "System Shared," meaning it uses the CPU’s DDR5 memory rather than dedicated VRAM. The memory bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," which likely limits performance further.

The GPU has 1,280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster operation pipelines, with 10 ray tracing cores. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS. These specs are modest for a gaming GPU, and the measured FPS reflects that. At 1080p Low, the GPU manages 65 FPS, but this is with minimal graphical load. As settings increase, the shading units and TMUs become overwhelmed, causing the steep FPS drops observed.

The "System Shared" memory is a critical weakness. With no dedicated VRAM, the GPU competes with the CPU for memory bandwidth, which explains why the FPS scaling is relatively consistent across resolutions rather than collapsing at 4K. The shared memory also explains why the GPU’s performance percentile is so low. The data suggests that the Arc B370 is designed for basic display output, not gaming, and its performance in Overpower confirms this. The GPU’s 25 W TDP and IGP slot width (integrated graphics package) further indicate that it is not intended for high-end gaming workloads.

CPU Role

In contrast to the GPU, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a strong performer. Its average benchmark score of 46,062 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with a benchmark breakdown that shows strong multi-threaded capabilities (Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14,769) and solid single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,085). The CPU has 14 cores and 14 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR5 memory with dual-channel configuration and a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

In Overpower, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with frames, and it does so admirably. The FPS drops as settings increase are not caused by CPU limitations, as the CPU’s performance percentile (89th) is vastly higher than the GPU’s (5th). If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS across different resolutions at the same settings. Instead, the data shows that FPS scales with resolution, which is the signature of a GPU bottleneck. The CPU’s 14 cores and 5.00 GHz boost clock are more than sufficient for this action game, which likely does not require extreme single-thread performance.

The CPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (delta 0.1%), Intel Core i9-13900HX (delta -0.1%), and AMD EPYC processors (deltas of 0.2%). These rivals are all within 0.2% of the Core Ultra 5 235’s average score, indicating that the CPU is well-matched to other high-end parts. However, this CPU strength is wasted in this combo because the GPU cannot keep up. The data implies that swapping the GPU for a more powerful model would yield significant FPS gains, while CPU upgrades would provide negligible improvements.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 2,742nd out of 2,980 tested combinations in Overpower, placing it in the bottom 8% of all configurations. This ranking is consistent with the GPU’s 5th percentile performance and the measured FPS results. The rank is not surprising given that the Intel Arc B370 is an integrated-class GPU with a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1,184, which is lower than the scores of its nearest rivals (ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 at 1,186, ATI Radeon HD 5770 at 1,190, AMD Radeon HD 7650M at 1,192).

The combo’s low rank contrasts sharply with the CPU’s high percentile. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 sits in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals are all within 0.2% of its average benchmark score. This means that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this combo’s ranking. Instead, the GPU drags the overall ranking down. The data suggests that if this CPU were paired with a mid-range or high-end GPU, the combo would rank significantly higher, possibly in the top 50% or better.

The rank of 2,742 out of 2,980 means that only 238 combos perform worse than this one in Overpower. This places the system in the lowest tier of gaming performance, suitable only for low-resolution, low-settings play. The FPS data confirms this: the system only achieves 65 FPS at 1080p Low, and every other preset falls below 60 FPS. For a modern action game released in 2023, this is a poor result. The combo’s ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU’s extremely low performance, and the data indicates that any upgrade path must focus on the graphics card rather than the processor.