Road 96

Road 96 is an adventure title, and the benchmark results for the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 show a system that is overwhelmingly capable of delivering high frame rates across all tested settings and resolutions. The data indicates that this combination is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while at 1080p the CPU’s strong single-thread performance allows the GPU to stretch its legs fully. The measured frames per second (FPS) across the board suggest that players can expect a smooth experience, with the primary trade-offs occurring between visual fidelity and raw frame rate at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a desktop processor from the Core Ultra Series 2, built on the Arrow Lake-S architecture using a 3 nm process node. It features 14 cores and 14 threads, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. Its thermal design power (TDP) is 65 watts. In the context of Road 96, an adventure game that does not typically demand extreme multi-threaded workloads, the CPU’s role is to maintain a consistent frame pipeline, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the bottleneck.

Benchmark results for the processor show a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648. The single-core performance is particularly relevant for gaming, as it directly influences how quickly the CPU can process game logic and feed frames to the GPU. The PassMark single-thread score of 4394 further corroborates this strength. In the measured FPS data, the gap between the CPU’s theoretical limits and the actual frame rates is most visible at 1080p with Low settings, where the system achieves 277 FPS average. This high number suggests that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this scenario, as the RTX 4070 is capable of rendering frames at a rate that far exceeds typical display refresh rates.

The processor’s cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. While this configuration is not specific to gaming performance, the ample L3 cache helps reduce memory latency, which can be beneficial in maintaining steady frame times. The CPU supports DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s. For a game like Road 96, which is not memory-bandwidth sensitive in the same way as a simulation or strategy title, this bandwidth is more than sufficient.

When compared to its nearest rivals, the Core Ultra 5 245 shows a relatively tight grouping. Its average benchmark score is 48995, which is 0.4% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49196) and 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49228). Conversely, it is 0.6% ahead of the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48698) and 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600K (48618). The percentile ranking of 90 indicates that this CPU outperforms 90% of all tested CPUs, placing it in the upper echelon of processors. For Road 96, this means the CPU will rarely be the cause of a frame rate dip; the bottleneck will shift to the GPU as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how different quality presets affect performance. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 277 on Low to 128 on Ultra, with High at 164 and Medium at 203. The gap between Low and High is substantial, but even Ultra delivers a frame rate that is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. For players with a 144 Hz or 165 Hz monitor, the Medium preset at 1080p, with an average of 203 FPS, offers a strong balance between visual quality and frame rate headroom, ensuring that the display is fully utilized.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 176 FPS on Low, 129 on Medium, 104 on High, and 82 on Ultra. Here, the High preset provides a significant improvement in visual fidelity over Medium while still maintaining an average above 100 FPS. The Ultra preset, with 82 FPS average, remains playable but begins to approach the point where frame rate fluctuations could be more noticeable on high-refresh-rate displays. For a 1440p monitor, the High preset appears to be the optimal choice, as it delivers a high frame rate without sacrificing the graphical enhancements that come with the higher tier.

At 3840x2160, the performance drop is more pronounced. The averages are 93 FPS on Low, 68 on Medium, 55 on High, and 43 on Ultra. The Ultra preset at 4K falls below the 60 FPS mark, which may result in a less fluid experience for some players. The Medium preset, with 68 FPS average, is the lowest setting that stays above 60 FPS, but it comes with a noticeable reduction in image quality compared to High. For 4K gaming, the High preset’s 55 FPS average is a reasonable compromise, as it provides a richer visual experience while still being close to the 60 FPS target. Players who prioritize frame rate over absolute visual fidelity could opt for Medium, which offers a 13 FPS average increase over High.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data illustrates a clear scaling trend as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. When comparing the High preset across all three resolutions, the average FPS drops from 164 at 1080p to 104 at 1440p, and further to 55 at 4K. This represents a 36.6% decrease from 1080p to 1440p, and a 47.1% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The magnitude of these drops indicates that the system becomes increasingly GPU-limited at higher resolutions, as the RTX 4070’s rendering workload grows with the pixel count.

At 1080p, the CPU’s single-thread performance is sufficient to keep the GPU fed, resulting in very high frame rates. The jump from 164 FPS at 1080p High to 104 FPS at 1440p High suggests that the GPU’s fill rate and shading capacity are being taxed more heavily. The further drop to 55 FPS at 4K High confirms that the RTX 4070 is the primary limiting component at this resolution, as the CPU is unlikely to be a bottleneck given its strong benchmark scores. The data for the Medium preset shows a similar pattern: 203 FPS at 1080p, 129 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K.

The scaling behavior also reveals that the game is not particularly demanding on the CPU at higher resolutions. The consistent frame rate drops across all presets suggest that the GPU’s workload scales linearly with resolution, while the CPU’s workload remains relatively constant. For players using a 4K display, the system will deliver playable frame rates on Medium and High presets, but Ultra settings will push the average below 60 FPS. This indicates that for 4K, the RTX 4070’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for the game, but the raw compute power is not enough to maintain high frame rates at the most demanding settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings is 104 frames per second. This provides a smooth experience for most players, and the frame rate is well above the 60 FPS threshold for comfortable gameplay.

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

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 93 on Low settings to 43 on Ultra settings. The Medium preset delivers 68 FPS average, which is above 60 FPS, while the High preset averages 55 FPS. For the best balance, Medium or High is recommended, as Ultra falls below the 60 FPS mark.

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

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 has an average benchmark score of 48995. It is 0.4% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49196) and 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49228). It is 0.6% ahead of the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48698) and 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600K (48618).

Q: What is the maximum FPS recorded at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 277, which occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is a very high frame rate that exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors, indicating that the CPU is not a limiting factor at this resolution and settings combination.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 a bottleneck at 4K in this game?

A: The data suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting component at 3840x2160. The average FPS drops from 164 at 1080p High to 55 at 4K High, a significant reduction that aligns with the GPU’s rendering workload. The CPU’s strong single-thread performance is unlikely to be a limiting factor at this resolution.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested combinations?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combo is ranked 666 out of 2903 tested combinations. This places it in the top 23% of all tested combos, indicating a strong overall performance capability.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is a graphics card based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring the AD104 chip manufactured on a 5 nm process. It has 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 64 raster operation pipelines (ROPs). The GPU’s base clock is 1920 MHz with a boost clock of 2475 MHz, and it comes with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The card supports PCIe 4.0 x16 and has a TDP of 200 watts.

In the context of Road 96, the RTX 4070’s role is to handle the rendering workload, which becomes more demanding as resolution and settings increase. The GPU’s benchmark scores, such as a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3854 and a PassMark G3D score of 26927, indicate a high level of rasterization performance. The card’s percentile ranking of 81 means it outperforms 81% of all tested GPUs, placing it in a strong position for modern gaming.

The measured FPS data shows that the RTX 4070 is capable of delivering high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p across all settings. At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 128, which is still very smooth. At 1440p Ultra, the average drops to 82, which remains playable. The GPU’s limitations become apparent at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS is 43. This is below the 60 FPS target, but the card’s performance at 4K Medium and High (68 and 55 FPS respectively) shows that it can handle 4K with adjusted settings.

The GPU’s 12 GB of VRAM is sufficient for Road 96, as the game’s textures and geometry do not appear to exceed this capacity at any tested setting. The memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s is also adequate, as evidenced by the consistent frame rates across different resolutions. The RTX 4070’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (avg score 37628, deltaPct 0.1%), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (avg score 37507, deltaPct 0.4%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile (avg score 38135, deltaPct -1.3%). The RTX 4070’s average benchmark score is 37648, which places it in a competitive position, though the differences are small.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the averages are 277 FPS on Low, 203 FPS on Medium, 164 FPS on High, and 128 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset has a minimum FPS of 172 and a maximum of 233, indicating a stable frame rate range. The high averages at this resolution suggest that the system is capable of driving high-refresh-rate monitors with ease, even at Ultra settings.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 176 FPS on Low, 129 FPS on Medium, 104 FPS on High, and 82 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 110 FPS and a maximum of 149 FPS, which indicates consistent performance. The High preset’s 104 FPS average is a strong result for 1440p, providing a smooth experience for most players. The Ultra preset, while lower at 82 FPS, still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, making it a viable option for those who prioritize visual quality.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 93 FPS on Low, 68 FPS on Medium, 55 FPS on High, and 43 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset’s minimum FPS is 58, which is close to the 60 FPS target, while the maximum is 79. The High preset’s 55 FPS average is slightly below the 60 FPS mark, suggesting that players may notice occasional dips in frame rate during intensive scenes. The Ultra preset’s 43 FPS average is substantially lower and likely to be less smooth, making it less recommended for 4K gaming.

The data shows a clear trend: as resolution increases, the average FPS decreases for each settings preset. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 149 FPS, while at 4K it is 50 FPS. This indicates that the GPU’s workload scales more steeply with resolution than with settings, which is typical for a rasterization-bound game. The frame time data for Medium settings at all resolutions (172-233 FPS at 1080p, 110-149 FPS at 1440p, 58-79 FPS at 4K) provides a useful reference for players seeking a consistent experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 achieves a combo rank of 666 out of 2903 tested combinations in Road 96. This places the system in the 77th percentile of all tested combos, meaning it outperforms 77% of the systems tested. This is a strong result, indicating that the pairing is well-balanced for this game, with neither component being a significant bottleneck at most settings and resolutions.

The CPU’s percentile ranking of 90 and the GPU’s percentile ranking of 81 both contribute to this overall rank. The fact that the combo rank (77th percentile) is lower than both individual component percentiles suggests that the system’s performance in Road 96 is slightly below what the components’ theoretical capabilities would suggest. This could be due to the game’s specific engine characteristics, which may not fully utilize the CPU’s multi-threading capabilities or the GPU’s compute features.

In comparison to other combos, the system’s rank of 666 indicates that there are 666 tested combinations that perform better, and 2237 that perform worse. The top-performing combos likely include higher-tier GPUs such as the RTX 4080 or RTX 4090, or CPUs with higher single-thread performance. However, the data shows that for Road 96, this combo provides a robust gaming experience, with the ability to play at high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, and at playable frame rates at 4K with adjusted settings. The rank reflects the balance between the CPU’s strong single-core performance and the GPU’s substantial rasterization power, making it a solid choice for this adventure title.