Road 96

Road 96 is an adventure title that scales in a very predictable manner across the tested resolutions and settings for the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination. The data shows a clear progression of performance degradation as resolution increases, with the most significant bottleneck appearing at the 4K Ultra preset. The measured frames per second (FPS) reveal that this pairing is capable of delivering high refresh rate experiences at 1080p, but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K with maximum settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial across all settings, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiting component at higher resolutions. At the Low preset, the average FPS falls from 155 at 1920x1080 to 52 at 3840x2160, representing a 66% reduction in performance. This steep decline is typical for a graphics card with a 192-bit memory bus and 6 GB of VRAM, as the pixel throughput demand at 4K overwhelms the available resources.

Moving from 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 at the High preset yields a drop from 58 to 31 average FPS, a 47% decrease. The Medium preset shows a similar pattern, with 72 FPS at 1440p falling to 38 FPS at 4K, a 47% reduction. Interestingly, the scaling from 1080p to 1440p is less aggressive; at High settings, the drop is from 91 to 58 FPS (36% reduction), while at Low settings it goes from 155 to 98 FPS (37% reduction). This suggests that the GPU has enough headroom at 1080p to handle the increased pixel count at 1440p, but the transition to 4K pushes the renderer past its comfortable operating range.

The Ultra preset exhibits the most dramatic scaling issue. At 1080p, the RTX 2060 manages 71 average FPS, which drops to 45 at 1440p and then plummets to 24 at 4K. The 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Ultra settings confirms that the combination of high-resolution pixel shading and demanding visual effects creates a workload that the Turing architecture cannot sustain. The data indicates that 4K gaming is only viable at the Low preset, where 52 FPS is achievable, while 1440p offers a balanced experience across Medium and High presets.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 features 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 render output units, operating at a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz. The GPU is built on the 12 nm process with 10,800 million transistors on a 445 mm² die. Its memory configuration includes 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These specifications place the card in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15290.

The benchmark results show that the RTX 2060 is closely matched with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (0% delta) and the AMD Radeon 680M (0.1% delta), while slightly outperforming the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (0.6% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 (0.8% delta). In Road 96, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution rises. At 1080p Low, the 155 FPS average suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU adequately, but at 4K Ultra, the 24 FPS result clearly points to the graphics card being the limiting factor.

The 6 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gameplay, but the 4K results may be hampered by memory pressure, particularly at Ultra settings. The measured data shows that the RTX 2060's pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s and texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s are adequate for mid-range resolutions but fall short of the demands imposed by 3840x2160 output. The GPU's FP32 performance of 6.451 TFLOPS provides a baseline for compute-heavy effects, but the game's visual complexity at 4K Ultra exceeds what this card can deliver in real-time.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience for this combination is at 1920x1080 with the High preset, delivering 91 average FPS. This provides a smooth, responsive experience that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold commonly considered necessary for fluid gameplay. For users seeking higher visual fidelity, the Ultra preset at 1080p still maintains 71 average FPS, which is playable, though the 20 FPS drop from High is noticeable.

At 2560x1440, the High preset yields 58 average FPS, which is acceptable for an adventure game where precise timing is less critical. The Medium preset at 1440p offers 72 average FPS with minimum and maximum readings of 61 and 83, respectively, indicating a stable frame time distribution. This makes Medium at 1440p a strong recommendation for users with 1440p monitors who prioritize smoothness over maximum graphical detail.

The 4K resolution is only viable at the Low preset, where 52 average FPS is achieved. The Medium preset at 4K produces 38 average FPS with a minimum of 32, which may introduce noticeable stutter during fast camera movements. The High and Ultra presets at 4K, at 31 and 24 FPS respectively, fall below the threshold for comfortable gameplay and should be avoided. The data suggests that users targeting 4K should either accept the Low preset or consider a more powerful GPU.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 2292 out of 2903 tested combos in Road 96, placing it in the lower 21% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the GPU's mid-range positioning, as the CPU is considerably more capable. The Core Ultra 5 235 sits in the 89th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 46062, while the RTX 2060 only reaches the 58th percentile.

The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (0.1% delta), Intel Core i9-13900HX (-0.1% delta), AMD EPYC 4364P (0.2% delta), and AMD EPYC 7303 (0.2% delta). This indicates that the processor is competitive with high-end mobile and server parts, yet the overall combo ranking is dragged down by the GPU's performance ceiling. In Road 96 specifically, the combo's rank suggests that many other configurations with stronger graphics cards achieve higher frame rates, even if their CPUs are less capable.

The disparity between the CPU's 89th percentile ranking and the combo's 21st percentile ranking in-game highlights the importance of GPU selection for this title. The data indicates that Road 96 is not particularly CPU-bound at higher resolutions, so the Core Ultra 5 235's processing power is largely underutilized when paired with the RTX 2060. Users with this combo who wish to improve their in-game ranking would need to upgrade the GPU rather than the processor.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 features 14 cores and 14 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. It is built on the 3 nm process node by TSMC, containing 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die. The CPU has a 24 MB shared L3 cache, with 192 KB of L1 cache and 3 MB of L2 cache per core. It supports DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus with 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth, and its 65 W TDP classifies it as a mainstream desktop part.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Core Ultra 5 235 achieves a multi-core score of 14769 in Cinebench R23 and a single-core score of 2085. Its Passmark scores include 37816 for multithreaded performance and 4516 for single-thread performance. These results place it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with rivals such as the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and Intel Core i9-13900HX showing near-identical average scores.

For Road 96, the CPU's role appears minimal at higher resolutions, as evidenced by the FPS scaling. At 1080p Low, the 155 FPS average may be partially limited by the CPU, but the game is not heavily threaded, so the 14 cores are likely underutilized. The 5.00 GHz boost clock provides strong single-thread performance, which is more relevant for this adventure title. The CPU's memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s is sufficient to feed the RTX 2060 without creating a bottleneck, as the GPU's own 336.0 GB/s bandwidth is the limiting factor at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 155 FPS, making it the highest measured performance in the dataset. The Medium preset averages 113 FPS with minimum and maximum readings of 96 and 130, respectively. High settings produce 91 average FPS, while Ultra drops to 71 average FPS. This resolution offers the widest range of playable settings, from high refresh rate competitive play to visually rich exploration.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves 98 average FPS, which is still highly playable. Medium settings average 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 and maximum of 83, providing a stable experience. High settings drop to 58 average FPS, and Ultra falls to 45 average FPS. The 1440p results show a clear step-down from 1080p, with approximately 36-37% performance reduction across all presets.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset is the only option that maintains reasonable playability, averaging 52 FPS. Medium settings average 38 FPS with a minimum of 32 and maximum of 44, which may be acceptable for slower-paced sections. High settings average 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 24 FPS, both of which are below the 30 FPS threshold for console-like playability. The 4K data shows a 66% reduction from 1080p at Low settings, and a 66% reduction at Ultra settings, indicating consistent scaling behavior regardless of visual complexity.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Road 96?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 with the High preset delivers 91 average FPS, offering the best balance of visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 1080p also remains playable at 71 average FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Road 96?

A: The 4K resolution is only viable at the Low preset, which averages 52 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K averages 38 FPS, while High and Ultra produce 31 and 24 FPS respectively, which are below comfortable playability thresholds.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this combination?

A: The GPU is the primary bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions. The CPU ranks in the 89th percentile of all processors, while the GPU ranks in the 58th percentile. The 66% FPS drop from 1080p to 4K confirms the graphics card is the limiting component.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 15290, placing it 0% ahead of the GTX 580, 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon 680M, 0.6% ahead of the RTX 3050 OEM, and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600.

Q: What settings provide the most stable frame times at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 averages 72 FPS with a minimum of 61 and maximum of 83, indicating the tightest frame time distribution among 1440p presets. This provides the most consistent experience at this resolution.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Road 96?

A: This combination ranks 2292 out of 2903 total combos tested for this game, placing it in the lower 21% of all configurations. The ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU's mid-range positioning despite the CPU's high percentile ranking.