Red Dead Redemption 2

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 delivers a wide spread of frame rates in Red Dead Redemption 2, depending entirely on where you set the quality dials. At 1080p Low, the combo pushes 219.4 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 50.3 FPS. This range tells you the game scales heavily with both resolution and settings, and the limiting factor shifts between the CPU and GPU as you change them.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows a clear pattern: as resolution climbs, the average FPS drops substantially across every settings preset. At Low settings, the frame rate falls from 219.4 FPS at 1920x1080, to 164.4 FPS at 2560x1440, and then to 110.4 FPS at 3840x2160. That is roughly a 50% reduction from 1080p to 4K at the lowest preset, which indicates the RTX 5090 is still the primary driver even when the load is lightened. The GPU has enough headroom at 1080p to push well past 200 FPS, but the pixel count at 4K catches up quickly.

At High settings, the drop is steeper in relative terms: 139.7 FPS at 1080p, 102 FPS at 1440p, and 68.6 FPS at 4K. The percentage loss from 1080p to 4K here is larger than at Low, which suggests that the combination of higher resolution and more demanding effects is starting to saturate the GPU’s capabilities. At Ultra, the numbers are lower overall—101.2 FPS at 1080p, 72.8 FPS at 1440p, and 50.3 FPS at 4K—but the relative drop from 1080p to 1440p is smaller than from 1440p to 4K. This implies that at the highest preset, the GPU is already heavily loaded even at 1080p, and adding resolution pushes it further into diminishing returns.

The scaling pattern points to a system that is GPU-limited in almost all scenarios. The CPU, with its 10 cores and 16 threads, has enough throughput to feed the RTX 5090 at lower resolutions, but at 4K the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The gap between 1080p and 4K at Medium settings—166.9 FPS down to 82.3 FPS—is a 50% reduction, reinforcing that the RTX 5090’s raw compute is what determines the ceiling. If you are targeting high refresh rates, staying at 1080p or 1440p is essential; at 4K, you will need to compromise on settings to stay above 60 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo if I want to stay above 144 FPS?

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 219.4 FPS, and at Medium it hits 166.9 FPS. At High settings, it drops to 139.7 FPS, so you need Low or Medium at 1080p to maintain a 144 FPS average.

Q: Can this setup run Red Dead Redemption 2 at 4K smoothly?

A: Yes, but only at lower presets. At 4K Low, the average FPS is 110.4, and at Medium it is 82.3. At High it falls to 68.6, and at Ultra it drops to 50.3, which may be too low for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the i5-13400F compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The i5-13400F scores 25236 in the average benchmark, placing it 0.1% above the Intel Core i7-13620H and 0.5% above the AMD EPYC 9474F. It is 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: Not entirely. At 1080p Ultra, the combo scores 101.2 FPS, which is lower than the 219.4 FPS at Low. This indicates the GPU is still the primary limiter at high settings, but the CPU is capable of driving very high frame rates at lower presets.

Q: What settings preset provides the best balance of visual quality and performance at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium delivers 125.3 FPS, while High drops to 102 FPS. If you want a smoother experience, Medium is the safer choice; if you prefer visuals, High still clears 100 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 14th out of 1687 tested combos, placing it in the top 1% of all configurations.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. It has 20 MB of shared L3 cache and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory. In synthetic tests, it scores 21279 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3004 in single-core, which places it in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs. These numbers show a processor that is strong in both multi-threaded and single-threaded workloads, which matters for a game like Red Dead Redemption 2 that relies on a mix of physics, AI, and rendering tasks.

In this specific game, the CPU’s role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 219.4 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s practical limit for this title. The single-core performance, reflected in the 3dmark single-thread score of 960, is sufficient to keep the RTX 5090 fed at high frame rates. However, the data suggests that the GPU is the dominant factor in most scenarios. The 3dmark 16-thread score of 7314 and the max-thread score of 7307 are nearly identical, indicating that the CPU does not scale much beyond 16 threads, but that is not a limitation for this game.

The 65W TDP and 10 nm process node mean the CPU runs efficiently, but the real takeaway is that this processor is not holding back the RTX 5090 in a meaningful way. The 0.1% deltaPct versus the Intel Core i7-13620H and the 0.5% deltaPct versus the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D show that this chip is in the same performance tier as its closest competitors. For Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU provides a solid foundation, but the frame rate outcomes are dictated more by the GPU and the chosen settings preset.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 219.4 FPS, which is the maximum measured across all resolutions and presets. Medium settings drop to 166.9 FPS, High to 139.7 FPS, and Ultra to 101.2 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is a 52.5 FPS loss, while the step from High to Ultra is 38.5 FPS, showing that the performance penalty is not linear across presets.

At 2560x1440, the numbers scale down predictably. Low settings average 164.4 FPS, Medium 125.3 FPS, High 102 FPS, and Ultra 72.8 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low is 55 FPS, which is a 25% reduction. At Ultra, the drop is 28.4 FPS, a 28% reduction. This shows that the RTX 5090’s memory bandwidth and compute are being taxed more heavily as resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are the lowest but still playable on lower presets. Low settings average 110.4 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold and suitable for most displays. Medium settings average 82.3 FPS, High 68.6 FPS, and Ultra 50.3 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 60.1 FPS, which is a significant spread. For a smooth 4K experience, Medium is the recommended preset, as it stays above 80 FPS, while High remains above 60 FPS but with less headroom.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-13400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 14th out of 1687 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places it in the top 0.8% of all configurations, which is an excellent result. The high ranking is driven primarily by the RTX 5090’s performance, as the GPU sits in the 94th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 84306. The CPU, in the 82nd percentile, is not the top performer but is more than adequate for this pairing.

The ranking indicates that this combo is near the top of the performance hierarchy for this game. The nearest GPU rivals, such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D with a deltaPct of 0.1% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile with a deltaPct of 0.2%, show that the RTX 5090 is not significantly ahead of its closest competitors in synthetic benchmarks. However, in actual game performance, the combo’s 14th place ranking suggests that the combination of CPU and GPU works well together. The data does not show any obvious bottleneck that would drag the ranking down, and the measured frame rates confirm that this is a top-tier setup for this title.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best settings preset depends on your resolution and refresh rate target. At 1080p, the combo can easily handle High settings at 139.7 FPS, which is ideal for 144 Hz displays. If you have a 240 Hz monitor, Low settings at 219.4 FPS is the only preset that gets you there, but Medium at 166.9 FPS is a better balance of visual quality and speed.

At 1440p, High settings at 102 FPS is the sweet spot for 100 Hz or 120 Hz displays. Medium settings at 125.3 FPS provides more headroom if you prefer a smoother experience, but the visual difference between Medium and High in this game is noticeable. Ultra at 72.8 FPS is playable but may feel less responsive on high refresh rate monitors.

At 4K, the recommendation is to use Medium settings, which average 82.3 FPS. This keeps the experience above 60 FPS and allows for a stable frame rate on most 4K displays. High settings at 68.6 FPS is also viable, but it leaves less margin for demanding scenes. Low settings at 110.4 FPS is the only preset that clears 100 FPS at 4K, but the visual quality loss is substantial. Ultra at 50.3 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

For the best overall experience, prioritize High settings at 1080p or 1440p, and Medium settings at 4K. This combination of CPU and GPU is powerful enough to run the game at high visual fidelity without sacrificing frame rate, as long as you adjust the preset to match your resolution.