The Medium

The Medium, a fixed-camera horror title from Bloober Team, proves to be a demanding showcase when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. The measured frame rates reveal a combination that is heavily influenced by resolution and settings, with the data indicating a system capable of high refresh rate gameplay at 1080p but one that struggles to maintain smooth motion at 4K with maximum quality. This analysis breaks down the benchmark results to show exactly where this combo excels and where its limitations lie.

Resolution Scaling

The performance delta between 1080p and 4K is stark, illustrating how the rendering load shifts onto the GPU as pixel count increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 146 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 127 FPS, a 13% reduction, and then to 99 FPS at 4K, which is a 22% further decline. This scaling pattern is typical of a system where the GPU is not yet the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions; the CPU has enough headroom to feed frames, but the GPU's workload grows significantly with each resolution step.

The trend becomes more pronounced at higher graphical presets. With High settings, the average frame rate falls from 67 FPS at 1080p to 57 FPS at 1440p (a 15% drop) and then to 45 FPS at 4K (a 21% drop). This shows that as the settings increase, the GPU's fill-rate and shading demands become the limiting factor, making the transition to 4K particularly punishing. The jump from 1440p to 4K on High settings costs 12 FPS, which is a more significant absolute loss than the 10 FPS lost when going from 1080p to 1440p.

At the Ultra preset, the scaling is even more brutal. The average FPS at 1080p is 53, which is already below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. Dropping to 1440p brings it down to 45 FPS, and at 4K the average collapses to 35 FPS. This indicates that the Ultra preset's effects, such as advanced shadows and reflections, place an immense load on the RTX 4090, making 4K Ultra a largely unplayable option for this title on this hardware. The data clearly shows that while the GPU is powerful, the game's engine at maximum settings can bring even this flagship card to its knees at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is a 14-core, 18-thread mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture. With a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, its performance in synthetic benchmarks places it in the 81st percentile of all CPUs. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11875.5 and single-core score of 1700 suggest a capable processor for gaming, but the measured FPS in The Medium indicates that its role is secondary to the GPU at higher resolutions.

The benchmark results show that at 1080p, the CPU is likely keeping up with the GPU's output, as evidenced by the high frame rates at Low settings (146 FPS). However, the game's fixed-camera angles and complex scenes can be CPU-intensive. The data shows that the CPU's performance is comparable to the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, with a delta of -0.1%, and the Intel Core i5-13500HX, with a delta of -0.6%. This suggests that the 135H is a strong performer, but it is not the primary driver of the frame rate in this specific title.

As resolution increases, the CPU's influence on the average FPS diminishes. The drop from 146 FPS at 1080p Low to 99 FPS at 4K Low is almost entirely attributable to the GPU's inability to process pixels as quickly. The CPU is likely still providing frames, but the GPU becomes the bottleneck. The fact that the Ultra preset at 1080p (53 FPS) is lower than the Low preset at 4K (99 FPS) reinforces that the GPU's workload from graphical effects is the dominant factor, not the CPU's processing power. The CPU provides a solid foundation, but it is the RTX 4090 that dictates the final performance ceiling in this game.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain a 60 FPS average?

A: The only resolution and settings combination that achieves an average of 60 FPS or higher is 1080p with Medium settings (94 FPS) and 1080p with High settings (67 FPS). At 1440p, only the Low preset (127 FPS) and Medium preset (79 FPS) break the 60 FPS barrier.

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

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H's average benchmark score of 29093 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (29123), with a negligible delta of -0.1%. It also performs on par with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT, which scores 28940, putting the 135H 0.5% ahead.

Q: Is the RTX 4090's performance in this game consistent with its high benchmark percentile?

A: While the GPU holds an 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 60347, its performance in The Medium is heavily taxed by the game's engine. The data shows that even this top-tier card cannot maintain a 60 FPS average at 4K on High settings (45 FPS), indicating that the game's optimization is a significant factor.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 146 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops that figure to 53 FPS. This represents a substantial 93 FPS reduction, highlighting the massive performance cost of the Ultra preset's visual enhancements.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: This specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 614th out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the top 21% of all systems tested.

Q: Does the game's performance scale linearly with resolution?

A: No, the scaling is not linear. For example, on High settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 10 FPS (from 67 to 57), but the drop from 1440p to 4K is 12 FPS (from 57 to 45). The impact of each resolution increase becomes more pronounced as the GPU reaches its limits.

Settings Recommendations

For players using this hardware, the optimal balance between visual fidelity and performance is found in the Medium preset. At 1080p, this setting delivers a smooth 94 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for a responsive experience. At 1440p, the Medium preset still provides a playable 79 FPS, making it the recommended choice for those with higher-resolution monitors.

The High preset is viable for 1080p gaming, with a 67 FPS average, but it becomes less suitable for 1440p, where it drops to 57 FPS. For a 4K display, the Low preset is the only option that yields a high frame rate (99 FPS), but it does so at a significant cost to visual quality. The Low preset at 1440p (127 FPS) is an excellent choice for competitive play or for users who prioritize frame rate above all else.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for this title on this hardware. Even at 1080p, it only manages a 53 FPS average, and at 4K, it falls to an unplayable 35 FPS. The performance cost of the Ultra settings is too high relative to the visual improvements it provides, especially when compared to the High preset. The data suggests that for the best experience, players should stick to Medium at 1440p or High at 1080p to get a good mix of quality and performance.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware, this configuration holds a strong position. With a combo rank of 614 out of 2911 possible combinations, it sits comfortably in the upper echelon of systems tested for The Medium. This places it in the top 21% of all combos, indicating that this is a high-performance setup overall.

However, the ranking is contextual. The GPU is an end-of-life product with a launch MSRP of 1,599 USD, and it is the most powerful consumer card in the data. The CPU is a mobile part, and its performance is solid but not top-tier. The combination of a flagship GPU with a high-end mobile CPU results in a system that is more powerful than the vast majority of tested rigs, but it is not at the very top. The 614th rank suggests that while the GPU is doing most of the heavy lifting, the CPU's performance is adequate but not exceptional enough to push the combo higher up the list.

The fact that the GPU holds an 88th percentile ranking while the CPU holds an 81st percentile ranking highlights a slight imbalance. The system is clearly GPU-bound in this title, and the CPU's performance is sufficient to avoid becoming a major bottleneck. The data shows that this combo is a formidable pairing, but it is not a record-breaking one for this specific game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table presents the exact average frame rates measured for this hardware combination in The Medium, broken down by resolution and settings preset.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

| :--------- | :------- | :------ | :------ | :------ |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 99 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 62 | 53 | 71 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 45 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 35 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 127 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 79 | 67 | 91 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 57 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 45 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 146 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 94 | 80 | 108 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 67 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 53 | - | - |

The data shows a clear performance hierarchy. The only preset to provide a 4K experience above 60 FPS is Low, with a 99 FPS average. The Medium preset at 4K provides a 62 FPS average, with a minimum of 53 FPS and a maximum of 71 FPS, indicating some frame pacing instability but it is technically playable. For a locked 60 FPS experience, users must drop to 1440p with Medium settings (79 FPS) or 1080p with High settings (67 FPS). The Ultra preset is consistently the lowest performer across all resolutions, confirming that its visual enhancements come at a steep cost to frame rate.