Rust

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination delivers a distinctly mid-range experience in Rust, placing in the 52nd percentile of tested combos. The pairing of a 14-core Arrow Lake CPU with an 8 GB Ada Lovelace GPU produces a system that excels at lower resolutions and settings but struggles to maintain smooth gameplay at 4K. This analysis breaks down the measured performance data to show exactly where this combo excels and where its limitations become apparent.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU features 24 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus providing 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth. This processor sits at the 90th percentile among all CPUs tested in the database, indicating strong overall compute capability.

In Rust, the CPU’s role is significant due to the game’s heavy reliance on single-threaded performance for physics and world simulation, alongside multi-threaded workloads for rendering large scenes. The Core Ultra 5 245’s single-core performance is demonstrated by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648, while its multi-core score reaches 32924 in the same test. These scores place it in close competition with several notable rivals: it trails the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G by just 0.4% in average benchmark score, sits 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, but leads the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H by 0.6% and the Intel Core i5-14600K by 0.8%.

The data from the measured FPS results shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 163 FPS average, suggesting the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU adequately at lower resolutions. However, the gap between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p (163 FPS vs 70 FPS) indicates that while the CPU provides a strong foundation, the GPU becomes the limiting factor as graphical load increases. The processor's 14 cores do not appear to bottleneck the system in Rust, as evidenced by the scaling patterns across resolutions, where the FPS drops align more closely with GPU workload than CPU limitations.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Rust?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 163, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This represents the best-case scenario for the combo, where the GPU is least stressed and the CPU can push maximum frame output.

Q: How does this combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the combo averages only 29 FPS, which is below playable thresholds for most gamers. This represents the worst measured performance, showing that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB memory and 128-bit bus are insufficient for maxed-out 4K gaming in Rust.

Q: What is the difference between Low and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings yield 112 FPS average, while High settings drop to 64 FPS average. This represents a 48 FPS difference, demonstrating that each settings tier introduces significant GPU load that directly impacts frame rates.

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

A: Benchmark results indicate the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. Evidence shows that at 1080p Low, the combo hits 163 FPS, but at 4K Low it drops to 66 FPS — a 60% reduction. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain more consistent across resolutions regardless of graphical settings.

Q: What is the combo's ranking among all tested combos?

A: The combo ranks 1533 out of 2953 tested combinations in Rust, placing it just below the median. This ranking reflects its position as a solid mid-range option rather than a high-end performer.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 1440p High settings?

A: Yes, the measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings is 64 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold. This makes 1440p High a viable configuration for this combo in Rust.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo’s rank of 1533 out of 2953 tested combinations places it in the 48.1st percentile of all combos tested for Rust. This means roughly 48% of tested combinations perform worse, while 52% perform better. This mid-pack positioning is consistent with the component choices: the CPU ranks in the 90th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU ranks in only the 61st percentile among all GPUs. The significant gap between CPU and GPU percentiles suggests the graphics card is the limiting factor in this pairing.

When interpreting this rank, it’s important to consider that Rust is a demanding title that stresses both CPU and GPU. The Core Ultra 5 245’s strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648) helps maintain decent frame rates at lower resolutions, but the RTX 4060’s modest GPU compute (PassMark G3D score of 19545) caps overall performance. The combo sits in a crowded field where small performance differences translate to large ranking shifts — the GPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 7790 (0.2% lower score) and AMD Radeon 780M (0.3% higher), showing how tightly packed this performance tier is.

The ranking data reveals that while this combo is not a top-tier performer, it is far from the bottom. In practical terms, users can expect playable frame rates at 1080p across all settings, and at 1440p with Medium or High settings, but should avoid 4K gaming for this title.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest performance. With Low settings, the average FPS is 163. Medium settings reduce this to 110 FPS, with a minimum of 93 and maximum of 126 FPS. High settings yield 92 FPS average, while Ultra settings drop to 70 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 57% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the GPU’s sensitivity to graphical load.

At 2560x1440, performance scales down predictably. Low settings produce 112 FPS average, which is still highly playable. Medium settings average 75 FPS with a range of 64 to 87 FPS. High settings drop to 64 FPS average, barely clearing the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra settings fall to 48 FPS, which begins to feel less smooth for fast-paced gameplay. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 64 FPS, showing similar scaling to 1080p but at lower absolute values.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles significantly. Low settings manage 66 FPS average, which is the only 4K configuration that stays above 60 FPS. Medium settings drop to 44 FPS with a minimum of 38 and maximum of 51 FPS. High settings fall to 38 FPS average, and Ultra settings bottom out at 29 FPS. The 4K results show that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB memory and 128-bit bus are simply insufficient for this resolution in Rust.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

Examining the FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear pattern of GPU limitation. At Low settings, the combo achieves 163 FPS at 1080p, 112 FPS at 1440p, and 66 FPS at 4K. This represents a 31% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 41% drop from 1440p to 4K. The cumulative drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 60%.

At Medium settings, the pattern is similar but more pronounced. Starting at 110 FPS at 1080p, it drops to 75 FPS at 1440p (32% reduction), then to 44 FPS at 4K (41% reduction). The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 60% at Medium settings as well.

High settings show slightly different scaling: 92 FPS at 1080p, 64 FPS at 1440p (30% reduction), and 38 FPS at 4K (41% reduction). Ultra settings follow the same trend: 70 FPS at 1080p, 48 FPS at 1440p (31% reduction), and 29 FPS at 4K (40% reduction).

The consistency of these percentage drops across all settings is telling. The uniform ~30% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and ~40% reduction from 1440p to 4K indicates that the GPU is the dominant limiting factor. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller FPS differences as resolution increases, since the CPU workload would remain constant while GPU workload grows. Instead, the linear scaling with resolution points directly to the RTX 4060 being the primary constraint.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

For 1080p gaming, the data supports using High settings for the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 92 FPS average, High settings provide a smooth experience while looking noticeably better than Medium (110 FPS) or Low (163 FPS). Ultra at 70 FPS is playable but the visual gains over High are marginal, and the 24% FPS cost is hard to justify.

For 1440p gaming, Medium settings at 75 FPS offer the best experience. This configuration provides a solid frame rate that clears the 60 FPS threshold with headroom for dips (minimum 64 FPS). High settings at 64 FPS are playable but leave little margin for demanding scenes. Low settings at 112 FPS are smooth but sacrifice visual fidelity. Ultra at 48 FPS is not recommended for competitive play.

For 4K gaming, the data suggests this combo is not suitable for this resolution in Rust. The only configuration that exceeds 60 FPS is Low at 66 FPS, but the visual quality at Low settings at 4K is generally not worth the resolution upgrade. Medium at 44 FPS and High at 38 FPS are below playable thresholds for most users. Users with 4K displays should consider running the game at 1440p resolution instead.

The best overall experience for this combo is 1080p High or 1440p Medium, depending on the user’s display. Both configurations exceed 60 FPS average with acceptable minimums, and both provide reasonable visual quality without the steep performance penalties of Ultra settings. For users prioritizing frame rate over visuals, 1080p Low at 163 FPS or 1440p Low at 112 FPS are excellent choices that maximize smoothness.