The Medium

The Medium presents a demanding fixed-camera horror experience, and the data for the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 shows a configuration that is consistently GPU-bound across all tested resolutions. The measured frames per second (FPS) reveal a clear hierarchy where the graphical preset and resolution dictate playability, with the CPU's substantial multi-core headroom remaining largely untapped. This analysis breaks down the measured results to explain the performance ceiling, the role of each component, and the optimal settings for this specific hardware combination.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K produces a dramatic and predictable drop in average FPS, confirming that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the primary limiting factor in this system. At the Medium preset, which is the only setting with a complete dataset including minimum and maximum FPS, the average frame rate falls from 52 FPS at 1920x1080 to 44 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 8 FPS. Moving further to 3840x2160, the average drops to 34 FPS, a substantial 18 FPS decrease from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU that is saturated by the increasing pixel count, as the workload on the graphics card grows exponentially with resolution.

The scaling behavior is even more pronounced when examining the High and Ultra presets. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 37 at 1080p to 31 at 1440p, and finally to 25 at 4K. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, shows the steepest relative decline: 30 FPS at 1080p, 25 FPS at 1440p, and a nearly unplayable 20 FPS at 4K. The pattern indicates that as resolution increases, the RTX 2060's rendering pipeline becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's ability to feed frames becomes irrelevant. The performance delta between 1080p and 4K at each preset is significant, highlighting that the game's visual fidelity at higher resolutions is heavily taxing the 6 GB frame buffer and the GPU's compute units.

Conversely, the Low preset demonstrates that when the GPU load is reduced, the system can achieve much higher frame rates. At Low settings, the average FPS is 83 at 1080p, 70 at 1440p, and 55 at 4K. The 4K Low result of 55 FPS is nearly double the 4K Medium result of 34 FPS, showing that the game is highly sensitive to shader complexity and texture quality. This data suggests that the limiting component is definitively the GPU; the CPU is not constraining performance at any resolution, as evidenced by the fact that even at 1080p Low, the system does not achieve a frame rate that would indicate a CPU ceiling. The scaling from 1080p to 4K is a textbook example of GPU-bound performance, where the frame rate is directly proportional to the number of pixels being processed.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate for this CPU and GPU combo at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS is 52, with a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 60.

Q: Is this configuration capable of running The Medium at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: At 4K with High settings, the average FPS is 25, which is below the typically accepted threshold for smooth gameplay. Dropping to Low settings at 4K yields a more playable average of 55 FPS.

Q: How does the Ultra preset performance compare to the High preset at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 25 FPS, while the High preset averages 31 FPS. The data shows a 6 FPS difference, indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a significant additional load on the GPU.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: The Low preset averages 83 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 30 FPS. This represents a 53 FPS difference, demonstrating that the Ultra preset more than doubles the rendering workload compared to Low.

Q: Does the dataset include minimum and maximum FPS for all settings at 1080p?

A: No, the minimum and maximum FPS values are only provided for the Medium preset at each resolution. For High, Low, and Ultra presets, only the average FPS is listed.

Q: Based on the measured data, what is the best resolution for a smooth 60 FPS experience?

A: The only configuration that achieves an average FPS of 60 or higher is 1080p with Low settings, which averages 83 FPS. The next closest is 1440p Low at 70 FPS, but 1080p Medium falls short at 52 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is clearly the dominant component in this pairing for The Medium, as indicated by the benchmark results and the resolution scaling data. The GPU's specifications, including 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus with 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are directly relevant to the game's performance at higher resolutions and settings. The 4K results, which drop to 20 FPS on Ultra, suggest that the 6 GB frame buffer is likely being exhausted, leading to significant performance penalties. The memory clock of 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) provides the bandwidth needed for the game's textures, but the capacity appears to be a limiting factor at 4K.

The GPU's compute capabilities, detailed by its 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units, define its raw processing power. The measured data shows a clear correlation between the workload and the frame rate. The fact that the RTX 2060 performs within a 0.8% delta of the AMD Radeon RX 7600 in average benchmark scores, according to the nearestRivals data, suggests that its performance class is well-understood, yet The Medium's specific demands push it to its limits. The GPU's 30 RT cores and 240 tensor cores are present, but the game's fixed-camera angles may not heavily utilize ray tracing, making the raw rasterization performance more critical.

The performance drop from High to Ultra settings is a key indicator of the GPU's role. At 1080p, the average FPS falls from 37 on High to 30 on Ultra, a 7 FPS penalty for the increased visual fidelity. This shows that the Ultra preset likely introduces effects that heavily tax the GPU's shading units and memory subsystem. The RTX 2060's 12 nm process node and 160 W TDP are part of its design, but the data does not suggest thermal throttling is a factor; the performance scaling is consistent with a pure workload increase. The GPU's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it firmly in the mid-range, which aligns with the observed performance that requires settings adjustments to achieve smooth frame rates at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

According to the measured FPS data, the optimal balance between visual quality and performance for this configuration is the Medium preset at 1920x1080. This setting yields an average of 52 FPS, which is within a reasonable range for a slower-paced horror game, and provides a minimum of 44 FPS, ensuring that the experience does not become stuttery during intense moments. While the Low preset at 1080p offers a much higher average of 83 FPS, the Medium preset provides a significant improvement in visual fidelity without dropping below playable thresholds. The High preset at 1080p, averaging 37 FPS, is a viable alternative for those prioritizing graphics, but the 15 FPS drop from Medium makes it a less stable choice.

For users with a 1440p monitor, the Medium preset is again the recommended starting point, with an average of 44 FPS. The Low preset at 1440p achieves 70 FPS, but the Medium preset's higher quality settings are worth the 26 FPS trade-off for a more immersive visual experience. The High and Ultra presets at 1440p, averaging 31 and 25 FPS respectively, are not recommended for consistent gameplay, as they fall below the 30 FPS baseline. The data suggests that 4K gaming is only feasible with the Low preset, which averages 55 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K, averaging 34 FPS, might be acceptable for some, but the minimum of 29 FPS indicates potential dips into unplayable territory.

The recommendation is to prioritize the Medium preset. It offers a consistent frame rate that is smooth enough for the game's deliberate pacing, and it avoids the severe performance penalties of the High and Ultra presets. The measured minimum FPS values for the Medium preset (44 at 1080p, 37 at 1440p, and 29 at 4K) show that the frame pacing is stable, which is crucial for a horror game where sudden stutters can break immersion. The Low preset, while faster, sacrifices too much visual detail, and the Ultra preset is simply too demanding for this GPU, regardless of resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this configuration provides a clear picture of its performance envelope. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 83 on Low to 30 on Ultra. The Medium preset averages 52 FPS, with a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 60. The High preset averages 37 FPS. At 2560x1440, the same pattern holds: Low averages 70 FPS, Medium averages 44 FPS (min 37, max 50), High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 25 FPS. Finally, at 3840x2160, the averages drop significantly: Low is 55 FPS, Medium is 34 FPS (min 29, max 40), High is 25 FPS, and Ultra is 20 FPS.

The data reveals that the gap between Low and Medium is substantial at every resolution. At 1080p, the difference is 31 FPS (83 vs 52). At 1440p, the gap is 26 FPS (70 vs 44). At 4K, the gap is 21 FPS (55 vs 34). This suggests that the Medium preset introduces a significant amount of additional visual effects that the GPU must process, but the resulting frame rates remain playable. In contrast, the gap between Medium and High is smaller: 15 FPS at 1080p (52 vs 37), 13 FPS at 1440p (44 vs 31), and 9 FPS at 4K (34 vs 25). The gap between High and Ultra is the smallest: 7 FPS at 1080p (37 vs 30), 6 FPS at 1440p (31 vs 25), and 5 FPS at 4K (25 vs 20).

These diminishing returns indicate that the Ultra preset offers marginal visual improvements over High but at a significant cost to performance. The data also shows that the frame rate scaling is not linear with resolution. For example, at Medium settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 8 FPS, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is 10 FPS. This suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth and fill rate become more strained as the pixel count increases. The minimum FPS values for the Medium preset provide additional insight: the 4K minimum of 29 FPS is dangerously close to the average of 34, indicating that the GPU is consistently working at its limit, whereas the 1080p minimum of 44 FPS shows more headroom.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a powerful 14-core, 14-thread processor with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, based on the Arrow Lake architecture. Its benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648, indicate that it has ample processing power for modern games. In The Medium, however, the data strongly suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck. The frame rates are consistently tied to the GPU's workload, as evidenced by the resolution scaling. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see similar frame rates across different resolutions, but the data shows a clear drop as resolution increases.

The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth provide a solid foundation for feeding the GPU, but the game's requirements do not appear to stress this component. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (83 FPS) is likely approaching the point where a less capable CPU could start to limit performance, but the Core Ultra 5 245's high single-thread performance, reflected in its Passmark single-thread score of 4394, ensures that it can handle the game's logic and draw calls. The CPU's 90th percentile ranking among all CPUs further confirms that it is a high-end part that is unlikely to be a limiting factor in this title.

The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 and the Intel Core i5-14600K, show that it is in the same performance class, with deltaPct values of -0.5 and 0.8 respectively. This parity means that the choice of CPU is unlikely to change the outcome in this game; the RTX 2060 will still be the determining factor. The data indicates that the CPU's 14 cores are not fully utilized by The Medium, as the game likely relies more on single-thread performance for its fixed-camera rendering. The high boost clock of 5.10 GHz is more relevant than the core count for this workload, and it is sufficient to keep up with the GPU's output.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 2287 out of 2911 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the lower-middle portion of the performance spectrum, which is consistent with the measured FPS data showing that it cannot consistently achieve 60 FPS at 1080p on higher settings. The rank of 2287 indicates that a majority of other tested configurations are capable of delivering higher frame rates in this specific game. This ranking is a direct consequence of the RTX 2060's mid-range GPU performance, which is the primary bottleneck.

The GPU's performance percentile of 58th among all GPUs, combined with a CPU that sits in the 90th percentile, highlights the imbalance in this pairing. The CPU is clearly capable of supporting a more powerful GPU, but the RTX 2060 holds the system back. The data from the measured FPS shows that this combo's strengths lie in its ability to handle 1080p and 1440p gaming at Medium settings, where it provides playable frame rates. However, its weaknesses are exposed at 4K and at higher presets, where it falls below 30 FPS.

The ranking of 2287 out of 2911 is a useful metric for prospective users, as it contextualizes the performance against a large database of other hardware combinations. It suggests that while this setup is functional, it is not a high-performance pairing for this game. The CPU's potential is largely wasted in this scenario, as the GPU's 6 GB of VRAM and compute power are insufficient to take advantage of the CPU's fast processing capabilities. The nearestRivals data for the GPU, which shows it trading blows with the AMD Radeon RX 7600, further confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor, as that card is also a mid-range option. Ultimately, this combo ranks low due to the GPU's inability to deliver high frame rates, and the data suggests that users would need to upgrade the GPU to see a significant improvement in The Medium.