Red Dead Redemption 2

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Red Dead Redemption 2 across three resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the system produces an average of 92.7 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset, the average drops to 66.6 FPS, a reduction of approximately 28%. At 3840x2160, the average falls further to 44.2 FPS, which is about 52% lower than the 1080p result. This scaling behavior indicates that the rendering workload grows substantially as pixel count increases, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080's rendering throughput becomes the primary constraint at higher resolutions.

The pattern holds across all settings presets. At Low settings, the 1080p average is 146 FPS, dropping to 107.2 FPS at 1440p and 71.1 FPS at 4K. At Ultra settings, the progression goes from 64.6 FPS at 1080p to 46.9 FPS at 1440p and 33.5 FPS at 4K. The fact that even at Low settings the 4K result is only 71.1 FPS suggests that the GPU's raw fill rate and memory bandwidth are fundamental limits here. The RTX 3080's 760.3 GB/s memory bandwidth and 164.2 GPixel/s pixel rate are the resources being consumed by the higher resolutions.

The data shows that the drop from 1080p to 1440p is proportionally smaller than the drop from 1440p to 4K at every settings level. For example, at High settings, the 1440p result is 72% of the 1080p result, while the 4K result is 66% of the 1440p result. This indicates that the scaling becomes more punishing as resolution increases, consistent with a GPU that has a finite pixel throughput capacity. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is not the limiting factor in these measurements; the consistent degradation across resolutions points squarely at the graphics subsystem.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge. It operates on the AMD Socket AM5 platform with a base clock of 4.30 GHz and a boost clock of 5.70 GHz. The processor includes 128 MB of shared L3 cache, which is substantial for a desktop part. In the context of Red Dead Redemption 2, a game that is heavily GPU-bound at most settings, the CPU's role is to maintain a stable frame delivery floor rather than to push peak frame rates.

Benchmark data for the CPU shows strong multithreaded and single-threaded performance. The Cinebench R23 multicore score is 59712, while the single-core score is 8430. The 3DMark single-thread test yields a score of 1292, and the 2-thread test yields 2549. The 16-thread 3DMark test scores 16374, while the max-threads test scores 17184. These figures indicate that the CPU has ample headroom for game logic, physics, and draw call processing in Red Dead Redemption 2.

When compared to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D holds a marginal advantage. The average benchmark score is 71660, which places it 0.9% ahead of the Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 and 1.8% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X. It trails the Intel Xeon 6517P by 1.9% and the Intel Core i7-14700KF by 2.2%. These small deltas mean that in game scenarios, the CPU is unlikely to be the bottleneck. The measured FPS at 1080p Low settings (146 FPS) is the only scenario where the CPU's single-thread performance might come into play, but even there the 8430 single-core Cinebench R23 score is sufficient to keep the GPU fed.

The 4 nm process node from TSMC and the 16,630 million transistor count contribute to the CPU's efficiency, but the key takeaway from the data is that the processor's specifications are more than adequate for this title. The L3 cache of 128 MB is particularly relevant for open-world games like Red Dead Redemption 2, which often have large working sets that benefit from cached data. The measured FPS does not show any CPU-induced stutter or frame pacing issues, reinforcing that the processor is not a constraint.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is built on the Ampere architecture using the GA102 chip, fabricated on Samsung's 8 nm process. It has 8704 shading units, 272 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units. The GPU includes 68 ray tracing cores and 272 tensor cores. The memory subsystem consists of 10 GB of GDDR6X on a 320-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 760.3 GB/s. The base clock is 1440 MHz with a boost clock of 1710 MHz, and the memory operates at 1188 MHz, which translates to 19 Gbps effective.

The GPU's benchmark results place it in the 80th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35787. Among its nearest rivals, the RTX 3080 is essentially tied with the AMD Radeon Pro Duo (0.2% ahead) and the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE (0.9% behind). The AMD Radeon 880M is 0.4% behind, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile is 1% behind. These close margins indicate that the RTX 3080 is competitively positioned for this generation, but the measured FPS data shows that it struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K in Red Dead Redemption 2.

At 4K Ultra settings, the average FPS is 33.5, which is below the 60 FPS threshold commonly desired for smooth gameplay. The 4K High setting yields 44.2 FPS, and 4K Medium yields 51.6 FPS. Only at 4K Low does the GPU produce a playable average of 71.1 FPS. The 10 GB VRAM capacity is a factor at 4K, as modern open-world games can exceed this capacity at high texture qualities. The 760.3 GB/s memory bandwidth is substantial, but the 320-bit bus width limits the total bandwidth compared to wider implementations.

The GPU's FP32 performance of 29.77 TFLOPS and texture rate of 465.1 GTexel/s are the raw resources that determine how quickly the GPU can process the complex scenes in Red Dead Redemption 2. The pixel rate of 164.2 GPixel/s becomes the limiting factor at 4K, where the GPU must fill over 8.3 million pixels per frame. The data suggests that the RTX 3080 is best suited for 1440p gaming in this title, where it achieves 66.6 FPS at High settings and 82.8 FPS at Medium.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 92.7 FPS, which is a comfortable experience for most players. The Medium preset at 1080p yields 111.7 FPS, and the Low preset produces 146 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 64.6 FPS, which is still playable but represents a significant performance cost for the visual uplift.

At 2560x1440, the High preset produces 66.6 FPS, which is near the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset at 1440p yields 82.8 FPS, providing a smoother experience with a modest visual reduction. The Low preset at 1440p achieves 107.2 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 46.9 FPS, which is below the ideal threshold for action-heavy sequences.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The Medium preset yields 51.6 FPS, which is the highest playable average above 50 FPS. The Low preset at 4K produces 71.1 FPS, which is the only 4K setting that approaches a fully smooth experience. The High preset at 4K (44.2 FPS) and Ultra preset at 4K (33.5 FPS) are best avoided unless the user prioritizes visual fidelity over frame rate.

The data indicates that the High preset is the best balance for 1080p and 1440p, offering strong visual quality without sacrificing frame rate. For 4K, the Low preset is the recommended choice for gameplay smoothness, while Medium can be used if the user accepts a 51.6 FPS average. The Ultra preset is only viable at 1080p, where it still produces 64.6 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 92.7.

Q: Can the system achieve 60 FPS at 4K in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: At 3840x2160, the Low preset produces 71.1 FPS, and the Medium preset produces 51.6 FPS. The High and Ultra presets produce 44.2 FPS and 33.5 FPS, respectively. Only the Low preset exceeds 60 FPS at 4K.

Q: How does the RTX 3080 compare to its nearest rival GPU?

A: The RTX 3080 has an average benchmark score of 35787. It is 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro Duo and 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon 880M. It trails the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE by 0.9% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile by 1%.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread performance score?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D scores 8430 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 1292 in 3DMark single-thread. The Geekbench single-core score is 3401.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p gameplay?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset yields 82.8 FPS, and the High preset yields 66.6 FPS. The High preset is the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, while Medium offers a smoother experience.

Q: How much VRAM does the RTX 3080 have?

A: The RTX 3080 has 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus, providing 760.3 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for Red Dead Redemption 2 with the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is as follows.

At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 146 FPS. The Medium preset produces 111.7 FPS. The High preset yields 92.7 FPS. The Ultra preset delivers 64.6 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves an average of 107.2 FPS. The Medium preset produces 82.8 FPS. The High preset yields 66.6 FPS. The Ultra preset delivers 46.9 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset achieves an average of 71.1 FPS. The Medium preset produces 51.6 FPS. The High preset yields 44.2 FPS. The Ultra preset delivers 33.5 FPS.

The data shows a consistent ordering across all resolutions: Low produces the highest frame rates, followed by Medium, High, and Ultra in descending order. The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 81.4 FPS. At 1440p, the difference is 60.3 FPS. At 4K, the difference is 37.6 FPS. This narrowing gap at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU becomes increasingly saturated, reducing the relative impact of settings changes on overall performance.

The combo rank for this CPU-GPU pairing in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 525 out of 1687 measured combinations, placing it in the upper third of all tested systems. This ranking reflects the balance between the high-end CPU and the mid-to-high-end GPU, where the GPU is the limiting factor in most scenarios. The measured data confirms that the RTX 3080 is capable of excellent performance at 1080p and good performance at 1440p, but 4K gaming requires significant settings compromises to maintain playable frame rates.