Road 96

Road 96 is an adventure title from August 2021, and this benchmark combination pairs the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080. Across the tested presets and resolutions, this combo lands at rank 183 out of 2903 tested combinations in the database, placing it comfortably within the top 7% of all recorded configurations. The measured data shows a system that crushes 1080p, remains highly capable at 1440p, and only begins to show meaningful strain at 4K with the heaviest settings. This is a pairing where the GPU dictates the upper limits at high resolution, while the CPU’s substantial single-thread and multi-thread throughput keeps frame rates exceptionally high at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 183 out of 2903 tested combos places this configuration in the upper echelon of all recorded systems for Road 96. That rank reflects a hardware pairing that is far more powerful than the game’s typical requirements, given that the title is a narrative-driven adventure rather than a demanding AAA shooter. The RTX 5080 alone sits at the 87th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus reaches the 96th percentile among all CPUs. When combined, these parts produce a system that rarely encounters a bottleneck at lower resolutions, as evidenced by the measured frame rates.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K is nearly identical in average benchmark score, with a delta of just 0.2% in favor of the 290K Plus. The AMD EPYC 4584PX and EPYC 9135 trail by 1.1% and 1.2% respectively, while the AMD EPYC 7F72 is 1.3% ahead. These are marginal differences, meaning the 290K Plus is not a meaningful upgrade over its immediate predecessor in raw compute terms, but it does hold a slight edge. For a game like Road 96, which is not heavily threaded, the CPU’s single-core performance is more relevant, and the processor’s Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303 points suggests ample headroom.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5080’s nearest rival is the AMD Radeon 8060S, which is 0.6% behind, followed by the Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB at 0.7% behind. The Radeon Pro W5700X is 2.3% slower, while the Radeon RX 9070 GRE is 2.2% faster. These small deltas indicate that the RTX 5080 sits in a competitive tier, but its advantage in this specific game comes from its raw rasterization throughput and high memory bandwidth, which the measured FPS confirms. The combo’s overall rank of 183 suggests that while there are 182 other configurations that score higher in this game, the overwhelming majority of the 2903 tested combos fall short.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on which preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 170 FPS, which is far beyond the refresh rate of most monitors and provides a completely smooth experience. The High preset at 1080p reaches 217 FPS, while Medium hits 269 FPS and Low achieves 367 FPS. Given that Road 96 is a stylized adventure game where visual fidelity matters for atmosphere, the Ultra preset at 1080p is the recommended choice—there is no reason to drop settings when the frame rate remains above 170 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Ultra preset still holds at 108 FPS average, which is excellent for a high-refresh-rate QHD monitor. The High preset at 1440p reaches 138 FPS, providing a slightly higher margin for competitive or fast-paced sections, but the Ultra preset’s 108 FPS is already well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. For users with a 144Hz or 165Hz QHD display, High might be the better pick to stay closer to the refresh ceiling, but Ultra remains entirely playable.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes. The Ultra preset drops to 57 FPS average, which is borderline for a smooth experience, especially if there are any frame-time spikes. The High preset at 4K delivers 73 FPS, which is more comfortable, while Medium reaches 91 FPS with a minimum of 77 FPS. For 4K, the recommended preset is High, as it provides a 28% improvement over Ultra in average FPS while still offering the higher-quality textures and effects. The Low preset at 4K hits 124 FPS, but that comes with a significant visual downgrade that is unnecessary given the High preset’s solid 73 FPS. The data shows that Ultra at 4K is the only setting where the combo dips below 60 FPS on average, making High the sweet spot for 4K gaming.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals where the bottleneck lies in this combination. At 1920x1080 with the Low preset, the average FPS is 367. At 2560x1440 Low, it drops to 234 FPS, and at 3840x2160 Low, it falls to 124 FPS. That represents a 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings. For the Ultra preset, the scaling is similar: 170 FPS at 1080p, 108 FPS at 1440p, and 57 FPS at 4K—a 66% drop as well. This consistent scaling pattern across presets indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor as resolution increases.

The CPU’s role becomes clear when comparing the Low preset at 1080p (367 FPS) versus the Ultra preset at 1080p (170 FPS). At 1080p, the GPU is not fully saturated, allowing the CPU’s high single-thread performance—evidenced by the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303—to push frame rates to extreme levels. However, as resolution climbs, the GPU’s workload increases, and the RTX 5080’s 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth become the determining factors. The fact that the FPS reduction from 1440p to 4K at any given preset is roughly 45-50% (e.g., 138 to 73 FPS at High) underscores that the RTX 5080 is the component that scales with resolution, while the CPU has plenty of headroom left at all tested settings.

The minimum FPS data for the Medium preset further illustrates this. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 229 FPS, dropping to 146 at 1440p and 77 at 4K. These minimums are all well above the 60 FPS threshold, meaning that even at 4K Medium, the combo does not experience severe frame drops. The scaling behavior suggests that for this adventure game, which is not graphically intensive, the RTX 5080 is overkill at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K Ultra it finally encounters a workload that challenges its capabilities.

Measured FPS Breakdown

Starting with 1920x1080, the data shows a clear hierarchy across presets. The Low preset averages 367 FPS, which is the highest recorded figure for this combo. Medium averages 269 FPS with a minimum of 229 and maximum of 309. High averages 217 FPS, and Ultra averages 170 FPS. These numbers indicate that even at the most demanding 1080p preset, the system delivers frame rates far exceeding any standard display’s refresh rate. The jump from Ultra to Low represents a 116% increase in average FPS, which is substantial but not necessary given that Ultra is already smooth.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 234 FPS, Medium averages 171 FPS (minimum 146, maximum 197), High averages 138 FPS, and Ultra averages 108 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each preset is roughly 36-38% lower FPS, which aligns with the increased pixel count. The Medium preset’s minimum of 146 FPS shows that even during the most demanding scenes, the frame rate stays well above 144 FPS, making this the best choice for high-refresh-rate QHD gaming if visual fidelity is secondary.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 124 FPS, Medium averages 91 FPS (minimum 77, maximum 104), High averages 73 FPS, and Ultra averages 57 FPS. The Ultra preset is the only one that falls below 60 FPS, which could introduce visible stutter on a 60Hz display, though it remains close to that threshold. The Medium preset’s minimum of 77 FPS indicates that even at 4K, the combo maintains a playable frame rate without dipping into the 50s. The High preset’s 73 FPS is a solid target for 4K, offering a 28% improvement over Ultra while still looking nearly identical in most scenes.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the dominant component in this pairing for Road 96, especially at higher resolutions. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is more than sufficient for an adventure game, and the measured FPS at 4K High (73 FPS) and 4K Medium (91 FPS) demonstrates that the VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor. The GPU’s base clock of 2295 MHz and boost clock of 2617 MHz, combined with its 10752 shading units, provide the raw compute power needed to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and above.

The RTX 5080’s benchmark scores reinforce its position. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637 and the Passmark G3D score of 36565 place it at the 87th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database—the AMD Radeon 8060S and Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB—are within 0.7% of its average score, but in Road 96, the RTX 5080’s advantage in bandwidth likely contributes to the consistently high FPS at 4K. The GPU’s FP32 performance of 56.28 TFLOPS and texture rate of 879.3 GTexel/s indicate that it has ample throughput for this game’s visual effects.

The measured FPS at 1080p Low (367 FPS) shows that the GPU is not the bottleneck at lower resolutions; the CPU is capable of feeding it frames that fast. However, as resolution increases, the GPU’s workload grows, and the RTX 5080’s performance ceiling becomes the limiting factor. The 4K Ultra result of 57 FPS is the only instance where the GPU falls short of a 60 FPS average, suggesting that the card’s 16 GB of VRAM and 960 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for most scenarios but not for the most demanding preset at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus plays a supporting role in this combo, but its capabilities ensure that the GPU is never starved for data. This processor features 24 cores and 24 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz. The high boost clock is particularly relevant for Road 96, which likely relies on a few threads for game logic and rendering commands. The CPU’s L3 cache of 36 MB shared and L2 cache of 3 MB per core help reduce memory latency, while the dual-channel DDR5 memory support provides a bandwidth of 115.2 GB/s.

In terms of benchmark performance, the CPU’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 51731 and single-core score of 7303 demonstrate its strength. The single-core score is what matters most for this game, and it is reflected in the 1080p Low FPS of 367, which is a CPU-limited result. The Passmark single-thread score of 4823 further confirms that the 290K Plus has excellent per-core performance. Its percentile rank of 96 among all CPUs means that only 4% of processors score higher, making it one of the fastest available.

The CPU’s nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, is essentially identical in average benchmark score (0.2% delta), meaning that in Road 96, the 290K Plus offers no practical advantage over its predecessor. The AMD EPYC 4584PX and EPYC 9135 are also within 1.2%, but these are workstation processors that would not typically be paired with an RTX 5080 for gaming. The CPU’s 125W TDP and Socket 1851 platform are modern, but for this adventure game, the processor’s role is to maintain high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, which it does effortlessly. At 4K, the CPU’s influence diminishes, as the GPU becomes the primary constraint.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 with the High preset offers the best balance, averaging 138 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and close to the refresh rate of most QHD monitors. At 4K, the High preset is recommended, averaging 73 FPS, as the Ultra preset drops to 57 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems for Road 96?

A: The combination ranks 183 out of 2903 tested combos, placing it in the top 7% of all configurations. The GPU is at the 87th percentile, and the CPU is at the 96th percentile among their respective categories.

Q: Is the RTX 5080 the bottleneck at 4K?

A: Yes, the measured FPS shows that at 4K Ultra, the average drops to 57 FPS, which is below 60. The GPU’s 16 GB of VRAM and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient, but the rendering workload at 4K Ultra exceeds the card’s capabilities for this title.

Q: Does the CPU limit performance at any resolution?

A: At 1080p with the Low preset, the average FPS is 367, which indicates that the CPU can push frame rates far beyond typical display refresh rates. The CPU does not limit performance at any tested resolution; the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K.

Q: How does the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus compare to its nearest rival?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 285K has an average benchmark score 0.2% lower than the 290K Plus, making the two effectively identical in performance. The AMD EPYC 4584PX and EPYC 9135 are 1.1% and 1.2% behind, respectively.

Q: What is the lowest FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average FPS is 57, recorded at 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset. The lowest minimum FPS is 77, also at 4K but with the Medium preset, indicating that the combo never drops below 60 FPS for extended periods.