The Medium

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

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread desktop processor built on the Arrow Lake architecture and manufactured on a 3 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock runs at 2.40 GHz with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, and it carries 30 MB of shared L3 cache alongside 3 MB of L2 cache per core and 192 KB of L1 cache per core. The processor supports DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus, yielding 102.4 GB/s of memory bandwidth, and it connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 CPU lanes.

In the context of The Medium, the CPU's role is primarily to maintain frame pacing and handle the game's fixed-camera perspective loads. The benchmark data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 83 FPS average, which is the highest measured result across all resolutions and settings. This suggests that even at the lowest GPU load, the CPU is not the limiting factor — the processor can feed frames well above the 60 FPS threshold when the GPU is given lighter work.

The Core Ultra 7 265's single-thread performance is strong, as indicated by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5960, which places it well within the top tier of desktop CPUs. Its multi-core score of 42216 in the same benchmark reflects the 20 physical cores working in tandem, though The Medium is not a heavily multithreaded title. The PassMark multithread score of 49682 and the PassMark single-thread score of 4689 further corroborate that this CPU has ample headroom for the game's logic and rendering calls.

Comparing to nearest rivals, the Core Ultra 7 265 sits within 0.7% of the AMD EPYC 7343 and within 0.3% of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F. Its average benchmark score of 64640 places it at the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, meaning it outperforms the vast majority of processors on the market. This percentile ranking is consistent with the observed FPS behavior: the CPU never appears to bottleneck the RTX 2060, even at 1080p Low where the GPU has the least work to do.

# GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is a Turing-architecture GPU built on a 12 nm process, featuring 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units. It includes 30 RT cores and 240 tensor cores, which support the game's optional ray-traced effects, though the measured data does not specify whether those features were enabled. The GPU's base clock is 1365 MHz with a boost clock of 1680 MHz, and it carries 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

The 6 GB VRAM capacity is a critical constraint in The Medium, a game known for its dual-reality rendering that can stress memory usage. At 4K Ultra settings, the combo averages only 20 FPS, and at 4K High it reaches 25 FPS. The drop between Low and Medium at 4K is particularly telling: 55 FPS at Low falls to 34 FPS at Medium, a 21 FPS reduction. This is consistent with the GPU exceeding its memory bandwidth or filling its VRAM buffer as texture detail increases.

The RTX 2060's PassMark G3D score of 14111 places it at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, which is a mid-range standing. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (0% delta), the AMD Radeon 680M (0.1% delta), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (0.6% delta). The RTX 2060's average benchmark score of 15290 puts it slightly above the AMD Radeon RX 7600, which shows a 0.8% delta. These close margins indicate that the RTX 2060 is a competent but not exceptional GPU for modern titles, and The Medium's measured FPS reflects this mid-pack positioning.

The GPU's FP32 throughput of 6.451 TFLOPS and texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s provide a baseline for its raw computational ability. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 83 FPS, which is the only setting where the frame rate approaches the 60 FPS target comfortably. At 1080p Medium, the average drops to 52 FPS, and at 1080p High it falls to 37 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 30 FPS, which is barely playable for a horror title that benefits from smooth motion.

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

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. At Low settings, the combo delivers 83 FPS at 1080p, 70 FPS at 1440p, and 55 FPS at 4K. This represents a 16% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 34% drop from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is relatively gentle, suggesting that at Low settings the GPU still has headroom and the CPU remains capable of keeping up.

At Medium settings, the pattern shifts: 52 FPS at 1080p, 44 FPS at 1440p, and 34 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 15%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 23%. The min FPS values at Medium are 44 at 1080p, 37 at 1440p, and 29 at 4K, showing that frame pacing degrades more steeply at higher resolutions. The max FPS values tell a similar story: 60 at 1080p, 50 at 1440p, and 40 at 4K.

At High settings, the FPS drops to 37 at 1080p, 31 at 1440p, and 25 at 4K. The percentage drops are 16% from 1080p to 1440p and 19% from 1440p to 4K. At Ultra settings, the numbers are 30 at 1080p, 25 at 1440p, and 20 at 4K, representing a 17% drop and then a 20% drop respectively.

The scaling behavior indicates that the RTX 2060 is the primary limiting component across all resolutions and settings. The CPU's strong benchmark scores — particularly the 93rd percentile ranking and the high single-thread performance — mean that it is not constraining frame rates. The GPU's mid-range standing, evidenced by its 58th percentile rank and the tight competition from rivals like the RTX 3050 OEM and RX 7600, aligns with the observed FPS figures. The fact that even at 1080p Low the combo only reaches 83 FPS, rather than exceeding 100 FPS, points to the GPU's compute and memory limits rather than any CPU bottleneck.

# FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium with this combo?*

A: Based on the measured data, 1080p provides the highest frame rates across all settings. At Low settings, the combo achieves 83 FPS, and at Medium it reaches 52 FPS. Both 1440p and 4K result in lower averages, with 4K Low being the only 4K preset that exceeds 50 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in this game?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 15290, which is within 0.8% of the AMD Radeon RX 7600 and within 0.6% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM. Its PassMark G3D score of 14111 places it at the 58th percentile, indicating mid-range performance that is competitive with but not superior to these alternatives.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 sufficient for this game?

A: Yes. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and single-core score of 5960, combined with its 93rd percentile ranking, show that it has ample headroom. The FPS data confirms this, as the frame rates scale predictably with GPU load rather than hitting a CPU-imposed ceiling.

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

A: At 1080p Low, the combo averages 83 FPS. At 1080p Ultra, it averages 30 FPS. This represents a 53 FPS difference, or a reduction of approximately 64% when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Does the 6 GB VRAM of the RTX 2060 cause problems at 4K?

A: The data shows that 4K Ultra averages 20 FPS and 4K High averages 25 FPS, while 4K Medium averages 34 FPS. These low figures, combined with the steep drop from 4K Low (55 FPS) to 4K Medium (34 FPS), suggest that memory capacity and bandwidth are contributing to the performance limits at this resolution.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations in the database?

A: The combo ranks 2287 out of 2911 tested combinations, placing it in the lower half of the distribution. This ranking is consistent with the RTX 2060 being a mid-range GPU that struggles at higher resolutions and presets in this title.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080 resolution, the measured FPS varies significantly by settings preset. Low settings produce an average of 83 FPS, which is the highest result in the entire dataset. Medium settings yield 52 FPS average, with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 60 FPS. High settings drop to 37 FPS average, and Ultra settings fall to 30 FPS average. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 53 FPS, indicating that the preset choice has a substantial impact on performance.

Moving to 2560x1440, the FPS figures scale downward. Low settings average 70 FPS. Medium settings average 44 FPS, with a minimum of 37 FPS and a maximum of 50 FPS. High settings average 31 FPS, and Ultra settings average 25 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 45 FPS, slightly narrower than at 1080p.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops further. Low settings average 55 FPS. Medium settings average 34 FPS, with a minimum of 29 FPS and a maximum of 40 FPS. High settings average 25 FPS, and Ultra settings average 20 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra gap at 4K is 35 FPS, showing that the GPU's limitations compress the range of achievable frame rates at this resolution.

The Medium preset at each resolution includes min and max FPS values, providing insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the range is 44 to 60 FPS; at 1440p Medium, it is 37 to 50 FPS; and at 4K Medium, it is 29 to 40 FPS. The narrowing ranges at higher resolutions indicate that the GPU is working closer to its limits, reducing the variability in frame delivery.

# Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the most balanced experience comes from the Medium preset at 1080p. This configuration yields 52 FPS average, which is above the threshold for acceptable playability in a horror game that relies on atmosphere and pacing. The minimum of 44 FPS ensures that most scenes remain smooth, while the maximum of 60 FPS shows that the combo can occasionally hit the full refresh rate of a standard 60 Hz display.

For players who prioritize smoothness over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p is the recommended choice. At 83 FPS average, this setting provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, which is beneficial for a game with fixed-camera transitions that can cause momentary hitches. The Low preset at 1440p, averaging 70 FPS, is also a viable option for those with a 1440p monitor, as it maintains frame rates above the 60 FPS threshold.

The High and Ultra presets are not recommended at any resolution due to their sub-40 FPS averages. At 1080p High, the 37 FPS average is below the standard 60 FPS target, and at 1080p Ultra, the 30 FPS average is marginal for a game that benefits from responsive camera movement. At 1440p High and Ultra, the averages of 31 and 25 FPS respectively are too low for a comfortable experience. At 4K, even the Low preset at 55 FPS is borderline, and the Medium preset at 34 FPS is likely to feel stuttery during intense scenes.

The data indicates that the Medium preset at 1080p offers the best trade-off between visual quality and performance. The 52 FPS average is respectable, and the min/max range of 44 to 60 FPS demonstrates consistent frame delivery. For players willing to accept lower visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p provides the most headroom and the smoothest experience.

# How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 2287 out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium. This places the combo in the 21st percentile of all tested configurations, meaning that roughly 79% of tested combos perform better in this game. The rank reflects the GPU's mid-range standing, as the RTX 2060's percentile of 58 among all GPUs and its average benchmark score of 15290 are below what is needed for high-end gaming performance in this title.

The CPU's contribution to this rank is positive, given its 93rd percentile standing and strong benchmark scores. However, the combo's overall position is dragged down by the GPU's limitations. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 83 FPS, which is respectable but not exceptional. At 4K Ultra, the 20 FPS average is among the lowest performance tiers in the database.

The nearest GPU rivals — the GTX 580, Radeon 680M, RTX 3050 OEM, and RX 7600 — all have average scores within 0.8% of the RTX 2060, indicating that this combo's performance is representative of a cluster of mid-range GPUs. The combo's rank of 2287 suggests that while it can run The Medium at playable frame rates with reduced settings, it is not suited for high-resolution or high-preset gaming. The 6 GB VRAM and 336 GB/s bandwidth of the RTX 2060 are the primary constraints, and the data confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor.