Red Dead Redemption 2

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 combination lands at rank 1760 out of 2902 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places it in the lower-middle tier of the database, meaning it clears the bar for playable performance but sits well behind the top-end configurations. The pairing is balanced in a way that neither component becomes a complete bottleneck at most settings, though the data shows the GPU is the primary constraint as resolution climbs. For a 1080p gamer targeting High settings, this combo delivers a smooth experience; for 4K enthusiasts, it is a compromise machine that requires significant settings reductions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1760 out of 2902 tested configurations puts it in the 39th percentile of all tested pairs for this game. That is not a top-tier position, but it is far from the bottom — the average combo in this database likely struggles more at higher resolutions. The CPU itself is a strong performer relative to the broader market, sitting at the 89th percentile against all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 46062. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (deltaPct 0.1), Intel Core i9-13900HX (deltaPct -0.1), and AMD EPYC 4364P (deltaPct 0.2), all of which are within a fraction of a percent in raw compute. This means the Ultra 5 235 is not holding the system back in any meaningful way; its compute power is effectively on par with those alternatives.

The GPU, however, is a different story. The RTX 5050 sits at the 66th percentile against all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 21035. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL (deltaPct -0.6), AMD Radeon HD 8970M (deltaPct -1), AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT (deltaPct 1.6), and NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile (deltaPct -1.6). These deltas are small, but the RX 5600 XT being 1.6% ahead suggests the 5050 is not a dominant 1080p card by modern standards. The rank reflects this: the combo is held back by the GPU in scenes where the CPU has headroom, and the measured FPS data confirms that the GPU becomes the limiting factor as resolution increases.

GPU Role

The RTX 5050 comes with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming in Red Dead Redemption 2, but it is a potential constraint at 4K where texture data can exceed 8 GB. The GPU’s base clock is 2317 MHz with a boost clock of 2572 MHz, and its 2560 shading units handle the game’s workload. The 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores are present, but this game does not rely heavily on ray tracing, so their impact is minimal in the measured results.

The GPU’s FP32 performance is 13.17 TFLOPS, which is modest for a modern card but sufficient for this title at lower presets. The pixel rate of 82.30 GPixel/s and texture rate of 205.8 GTexel/s indicate that the card can push a decent number of pixels, but the 32 ROPs are a limiting factor at high resolutions. In the measured data, the GPU’s role becomes clear: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 98 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 22 FPS. That 4K Ultra result is not a CPU limitation — the CPU has headroom — it is the GPU struggling with the fill rate and memory bandwidth. The 8 GB VRAM is also a concern; at 4K High, the average FPS is 30, which aligns with the GPU running out of memory or bandwidth headroom.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and reveals the GPU as the bottleneck. At High settings, the combo goes from 61 FPS at 1080p to 46 FPS at 1440p to 30 FPS at 4K. That is a 51% drop from 1080p to 4K, which is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario. At Low settings, the drop is from 98 FPS at 1080p to 73 FPS at 1440p to 48 FPS at 4K — a 51% drop as well. The consistency of this percentage across settings indicates that the CPU is not the limiter; if it were, the percentage drop would flatten out at lower resolutions where the CPU saturates.

The Medium settings row provides min and max FPS data, which further clarifies the scaling. At 1080p Medium, the average is 73 FPS with a min of 62 and max of 84. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 55 FPS with a min of 46 and max of 63. At 4K Medium, the average is 36 FPS with a min of 31 and max of 41. The min FPS values show that the frame pacing remains stable even at higher resolutions — there is no sudden stutter or drop-off that would indicate a CPU spike. The GPU is the sole constraint, and the data suggests that 1440p is the realistic ceiling for a smooth experience, while 4K requires Low settings to stay above 48 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1080p, the combo delivers a range of results depending on the preset. Low settings produce an average of 98 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target for most monitors. Medium settings drop to 73 FPS (min 62, max 84), still comfortably playable. High settings yield 61 FPS, which is right at the threshold for smooth gameplay. Ultra settings, however, bring the average down to 44 FPS, which is not ideal for fast-paced action. The 1080p data shows that the combo is best used at Medium or High, with Low as a headroom option for high-refresh-rate displays.

At 1440p, the performance scales as expected. Low settings produce 73 FPS, which is excellent for this resolution. Medium settings drop to 55 FPS (min 46, max 63), which is playable but with occasional dips below 60. High settings yield 46 FPS, which is borderline for a smooth experience. Ultra settings drop to 33 FPS, which is not recommended for this game. The 1440p data indicates that Low or Medium are the viable presets, with High being a stretch for those who can tolerate sub-60 FPS.

At 4K, the combo struggles. Low settings produce 48 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. Medium settings drop to 36 FPS (min 31, max 41), which is below the playable threshold for most. High settings yield 30 FPS, which is a slideshow for action sequences. Ultra settings drop to 22 FPS, which is unplayable. The 4K data suggests that only Low settings are viable, and even then, the experience is marginal. The 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus are the likely culprits, as the game’s texture loads at 4K exceed what this card can comfortably handle.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. Its base clock is 3.40 GHz with a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, and it has 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU’s memory support is DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth. In Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU is not the bottleneck at any resolution tested, as evidenced by the consistent FPS scaling pattern. The game is GPU-bound in most scenes, and the CPU’s compute power is more than sufficient.

The CPU’s benchmark scores support this. In Cinebench R23, it scores 14769 multicore and 2085 single-core. In PassMark, it scores 37816 multithread and 4516 single-thread. These are strong numbers, placing it in the 89th percentile against all CPUs. The nearest rivals include the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (0.1% faster), Core i9-13900HX (0.1% slower), and EPYC 4364P (0.2% faster), none of which would meaningfully change the game’s FPS. The CPU’s 14 threads are fully utilized in this game, but the workload is not heavy enough to saturate them at 1080p or 1440p. At 4K, the CPU is even less of a factor, as the GPU takes over the bottleneck role entirely.

The CPU’s integrated graphics, Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 24EU, are present but not used in this test since the discrete GPU is active. The CPU’s TDP of 65 W and PCIe Gen 5 support are irrelevant to the game’s performance, but they do indicate that the platform is modern and capable. The data shows that the CPU has headroom in this game — the FPS is limited by the GPU, not the processor. This is a good sign for future upgrades, as swapping in a more powerful GPU would yield significant gains without needing a CPU change.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to 1080p Medium or High as the best experience for this combo. At 1080p Medium, the average FPS is 73 with a min of 62, which means the frame rate stays above 60 for the vast majority of gameplay. This is the sweet spot — it offers a visual quality boost over Low while maintaining a smooth frame rate. High settings at 1080p drop to 61 FPS average, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for demanding scenes. If the goal is to maximize visual fidelity without sacrificing playability, High is acceptable, but Medium is the safer choice for consistent performance.

At 1440p, the recommendation shifts to Low or Medium. Low settings produce 73 FPS, which is ideal for a high-refresh-rate monitor. Medium settings drop to 55 FPS (min 46), which is playable but with noticeable dips in crowded areas. For a 1440p monitor, Low is the best choice if you want to stay above 60 FPS, while Medium is acceptable if you prioritize visuals over frame rate. High settings at 1440p (46 FPS) are not recommended, as the frame rate drops below the playable threshold for this game’s action sequences.

At 4K, the only viable option is Low settings, which produce 48 FPS. This is playable but not ideal, and the experience will feel less smooth than at lower resolutions. Medium settings at 4K (36 FPS) are borderline, and High or Ultra are not recommended. For most users, the best experience will be at 1080p with Medium settings, which offers a balance of visual quality and frame rate that the hardware can sustain. If you have a 1440p monitor, Low settings are the practical choice, as they provide the smoothest experience without requiring a significant visual downgrade from Medium.