The Medium

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 lands at rank 1525 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it just past the midpoint of the database. This positioning suggests a pairing that is competent but not exceptional for this horror title, where the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM and the CPU’s 10-core architecture interact in ways that become clearer when examining the resolution scaling data.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1525 out of 2911 tested combinations puts it in the 52nd percentile of all systems benchmarked in this game. This is a middle-of-the-pack result, which is somewhat surprising given the individual components’ standings. The RTX 4060 holds the 61st percentile among all GPUs, while the Core Ultra 5 225 sits at the 85th percentile among all CPUs. The gap between the GPU’s percentile and the combo’s overall rank suggests that in The Medium, the graphics card is the limiting factor, dragging the combined result below what the processor alone might suggest.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F with a delta of 0%, the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D at -0.2%, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 at -0.4%, and the Intel Core i9-12900T at -0.5%. These deltas are remarkably tight, indicating that the Core Ultra 5 225 performs essentially identically to a range of competing processors in synthetic benchmarks. The data shows a spread of only half a percent across four different CPUs, which tells us that raw processing power is not the differentiator here. For The Medium specifically, the combo rank implies that swapping the CPU for any of these near-identical performers would likely produce nearly the same frame rates.

The GPU’s nearest rivals paint a more interesting picture. The AMD Radeon HD 7790 sits at -0.2% delta, the AMD Radeon 780M at +0.3%, the AMD Radeon Pro 560 at +0.5%, and the AMD Radeon Pro 460 at +0.7%. The RTX 4060’s average benchmark score of 17639 is nearly indistinguishable from these older or integrated solutions, which is a striking finding. This suggests that in terms of raw compute benchmarks, the RTX 4060 is not far ahead of much older hardware, though its modern feature set and driver optimizations may still provide advantages in actual gameplay that synthetic tests do not capture.

GPU Role

The RTX 4060 brings 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 2125 MHz, which translates to 17 Gbps effective, and the GPU boosts to 2460 MHz from a base of 1830 MHz. For a horror game like The Medium, which relies heavily on atmospheric rendering and fixed camera angles, the 8 GB VRAM capacity is adequate but not generous. The measured data shows that at 4K Ultra settings, the combo drops to 25 FPS average, which points to the GPU hitting both memory capacity and compute limits simultaneously.

The GPU’s 3072 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 48 ROPs work together to produce a pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s. The FP32 throughput of 15.11 TFLOPS matches the FP16 rate, indicating a 1:1 ratio that is typical for this architecture. The 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores provide hardware acceleration for ray tracing and DLSS, though the measured FPS data in this pack does not include ray tracing results. The GPU’s TDP of 115 W with a suggested 300 W PSU is modest, and the card measures 240 mm in length, fitting into most mid-tower cases without issue.

The relationship between GPU clocks and game performance becomes evident when comparing the 1080p Low result of 108 FPS to the 4K Ultra result of 25 FPS. This 4.3x drop in performance across a 4x increase in pixel count shows that the GPU is scaling nearly linearly with resolution, which is expected when the processor is not the bottleneck. The VRAM usage likely becomes a factor at higher resolutions, as 8 GB is sufficient for 1080p but may be strained at 4K with high-quality textures.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a clear pattern of resolution scaling across all settings. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 108 at 1080p to 91 at 1440p to 72 at 4K. This represents a 16% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a further 21% drop from 1440p to 4K. The total drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 33%. This relatively modest decline suggests that at Low settings, the CPU is managing to keep the GPU fed, and the scaling is more gentle than at higher presets.

At Medium settings, the pattern shifts. The average FPS is 68 at 1080p, 57 at 1440p, and 45 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 16%, similar to Low, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is 21%, matching the Low setting pattern precisely. The Medium preset also provides min and max FPS data: at 4K the range is 38-52 FPS, at 1440p it is 49-66 FPS, and at 1080p it is 58-78 FPS. The consistency of these ranges suggests stable frame pacing, with the variance remaining proportional to the average.

The High settings show a steeper decline. Average FPS drops from 49 at 1080p to 41 at 1440p to 32 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 16%, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is 22%. This slightly larger drop at the highest resolution indicates that the GPU is becoming more stressed as settings increase. The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling: 39 FPS at 1080p, 32 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 18%, and from 1440p to 4K it is 22%.

The data reveals that the limiting component shifts depending on resolution. At 1080p Low, the 108 FPS result is likely CPU-bound, as the RTX 4060 should be capable of higher frame rates in this scenario. At 4K Ultra, the 25 FPS result is clearly GPU-bound, with the card’s 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus becoming the primary constraints. The crossover point appears to be around 1440p Medium, where the 57 FPS average suggests a balanced workload between CPU and GPU.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p displays, the Low preset delivers 108 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 68 FPS offers a better balance of visual quality and performance, with the min FPS of 58 ensuring that even demanding scenes stay above 60 FPS. The High preset drops to 49 FPS, which is playable but not consistently smooth, while Ultra falls to 39 FPS, which may cause noticeable stuttering in a horror game where tension relies on smooth camera movements.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the clear recommendation. The 57 FPS average with a min of 49 FPS means the game will dip below 60 FPS in some scenes, but the overall experience remains fluid. The Low preset at 91 FPS provides a more comfortable margin, but at the cost of visual fidelity that enhances the horror atmosphere. The High preset at 41 FPS is borderline, and Ultra at 32 FPS is not recommended for this resolution.

For 4K displays, the data suggests that Low settings at 72 FPS are the only viable option for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 45 FPS is playable but will have noticeable frame hitches, especially in scenes with heavy particle effects or dynamic lighting. The High preset at 32 FPS and Ultra at 25 FPS are both below the threshold for comfortable play in a game that requires precise timing for puzzle-solving and stealth sections.

The measured data indicates that the sweet spot for this combo is 1080p Medium or 1440p Low. Both configurations maintain frame rates above 57 FPS average, which keeps the horror experience immersive without the distraction of stuttering. The min FPS data for Medium settings shows that even at 4K, the frame rate never drops below 38 FPS, which is respectable for such a demanding resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces 108 FPS on Low, 68 FPS on Medium with a range of 58-78 FPS, 49 FPS on High, and 39 FPS on Ultra. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 64% drop in performance, which is consistent with the increasing graphical demands. The Medium setting’s min FPS of 58 is particularly notable because it means the game rarely drops below 60 FPS, providing a smooth experience for the majority of gameplay.

Moving to 2560x1440, the results are 91 FPS on Low, 57 FPS on Medium with a range of 49-66 FPS, 41 FPS on High, and 32 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at each setting is approximately 16-18%, which is slightly less than the 33% increase in pixel count would suggest. This indicates that the GPU is not purely pixel-bound at these settings, and other factors such as memory bandwidth are coming into play.

At 3840x2160, the 4K results are 72 FPS on Low, 45 FPS on Medium with a range of 38-52 FPS, 32 FPS on High, and 25 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced, ranging from 21-22% depending on the setting. The Ultra preset at 25 FPS is particularly telling, as it shows the GPU struggling to maintain even 30 FPS at the highest settings. The 4K Medium result of 45 FPS is the highest setting that remains playable at this resolution.

The data also reveals interesting patterns in the min and max FPS ranges for Medium settings. At 1080p, the range is 58-78 FPS, a spread of 20 FPS. At 1440p, the range narrows to 49-66 FPS, a spread of 17 FPS. At 4K, the range is 38-52 FPS, a spread of 14 FPS. This narrowing range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is becoming more consistently loaded, reducing the variance that can cause stuttering.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of 60 FPS in The Medium at 1080p?

A: Yes, at Low settings it achieves 108 FPS and at Medium settings it averages 68 FPS with a minimum of 58 FPS. The High preset at 49 FPS and Ultra at 39 FPS fall below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the highest resolution at which this combo maintains 60 FPS?

A: At 1440p, only the Low setting reaches 91 FPS, which is above 60 FPS. The Medium setting at 57 FPS falls just short of the 60 FPS mark, so 1440p Low is the highest resolution with a comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 17639, which is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon HD 7790 at 17666 (-0.2% delta), the AMD Radeon 780M at 17588 (+0.3%), the AMD Radeon Pro 560 at 17551 (+0.5%), and the AMD Radeon Pro 460 at 17509 (+0.7%).

Q: Does the CPU become a bottleneck at any resolution?

A: The data suggests that at 1080p Low, the 108 FPS result may be CPU-limited, as the GPU should be capable of higher frame rates in this low-demand scenario. At higher resolutions and settings, the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

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

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 38 FPS, which occurs at 4K Medium settings. The minimum FPS values for Medium settings are 58 FPS at 1080p and 49 FPS at 1440p.

Q: How does the Core Ultra 5 225 rank among all CPUs?

A: The CPU holds the 85th percentile among all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 36938. It performs nearly identically to the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450, and Intel Core i9-12900T, all within 0.5% delta.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 features 10 cores and 10 threads, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. The 65 W TDP is modest for a desktop processor, and the Arrow Lake architecture on a 3 nm process from TSMC provides efficient performance. The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. Memory support is DDR5 on a dual-channel bus with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth, and the CPU connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 lanes.

The CPU’s benchmark results show strong single-thread performance with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3655 and a multi-core score of 25891. The PassMark single-thread score of 4412 and multithread score of 30459 further confirm its capabilities. The data compression score of 302811 and floating-point math score of 92038 indicate strong computational throughput, which benefits game logic and physics calculations.

In The Medium, the CPU’s role is to manage the game’s fixed-camera scenes, scripted events, and audio processing. The 10 cores provide sufficient parallelism for modern game engines, though the lack of hyperthreading (10 threads for 10 cores) means there is no additional thread capacity beyond the physical cores. This is unlikely to be a limiting factor in this game, as The Medium is not known for heavy CPU usage compared to open-world titles.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in the database are all within 0.5% of its average score, which means that in terms of raw processing power, the Core Ultra 5 225 is effectively interchangeable with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450, and Intel Core i9-12900T. The data shows that the 85th percentile ranking places it above the majority of CPUs, but the tight clustering of rivals suggests that the processor is not the deciding factor in this combo’s performance.

The interaction between the CPU and GPU becomes apparent when examining the frame rates at different resolutions. At 1080p Low, the 108 FPS result is likely limited by the CPU or game engine, as the RTX 4060 should be able to push higher frame rates in this scenario. At 4K Ultra, the 25 FPS result is purely GPU-limited, as the CPU has ample headroom to handle the reduced frame rate. The CPU’s 4.90 GHz boost clock provides quick response times for game logic, while the 20 MB L3 cache helps with frequently accessed game data.

The 65 W TDP and 102.4 GB/s memory bandwidth are sufficient for this game, as The Medium does not require exceptional memory throughput. The CPU’s integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 16EU is not relevant for gaming with a discrete GPU, but it does provide a fallback for troubleshooting. The release date of 2025-01-06 means this is a recent processor, and its active production status indicates ongoing availability. The launch MSRP of $246 places it in the mid-range segment, though this price point is secondary to its performance characteristics in this analysis.