The Medium

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the AMD Radeon RX 570 ranks 2793rd out of 2911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the bottom 4% of all configurations. This is a severely GPU-bound pairing at every resolution, where the RX 570’s age and 4 GB memory capacity become the dominant factors, regardless of the CPU’s top-tier compute capabilities. The data shows that this combo is only viable for low-settings play at 1080p, with any attempt at higher resolutions or quality presets resulting in single-digit or near-unplayable frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 2793 out of 2911 tested combinations places it in the 96th percentile from the bottom, indicating that the vast majority of tested hardware pairings deliver better performance in this game. The primary cause is the GPU: the AMD Radeon RX 570 holds a percentileVsAllGpus of 74, but its average benchmark score of 28766 sits only 0.4% below the AMD Radeon RX 6800M and 0.8% below the AMD Radeon RX 470, with a 1.2% advantage over the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000. These nearest rivals are all closely clustered, confirming that the RX 570 is a mid-tier legacy graphics card, not a high-end solution. Its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, paired with a 256-bit bus, are simply insufficient for The Medium’s demands at higher settings.

In contrast, the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is an exceptionally powerful processor. Its percentileVsAllCpus of 96 indicates it outperforms 96% of all CPUs tested. Its average benchmark score of 84003 is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, 1.1% higher than the AMD EPYC 4584PX, and 1.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 9135, while trailing the AMD EPYC 7F72 by 1.3%. This CPU is clearly not the bottleneck. The combo rank reflects the GPU’s limitation, not the CPU’s capability. In fact, the CPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 51731 and a Passmark multithread score of 60860, suggest it could easily drive a much faster graphics card. The data indicates that this pairing is fundamentally mismatched for a game like The Medium, where the GPU cannot keep pace with the CPU’s potential.

FAQ

Q: What is the best performance this combo can achieve in The Medium?

A: The highest average frame rate measured is 44 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is the only configuration that approaches playable territory, and even then, it is just above the 30 FPS threshold typically considered acceptable for a horror title.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in this game?

A: The RX 570’s average benchmark score of 28766 is 0.4% below the AMD Radeon RX 6800M and 0.8% below the AMD Radeon RX 470, while being 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon R9 M295X and 1.2% higher than the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000. These small deltas show that the RX 570 performs essentially on par with its closest competitors, meaning none of them would provide a meaningful improvement in The Medium.

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus the reason for the low frame rates?

A: No. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus is 96, and its average benchmark score of 84003 is within 1.3% of its nearest rivals, all of which are high-end server or desktop chips. The measured FPS drops sharply with resolution and settings, a pattern that points directly to the GPU as the limiting component, not the CPU.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at Medium settings?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the combo averages 28 FPS with a minimum of 23 and maximum of 32. At 3840x2160 Medium, the average drops to 18 FPS with a minimum of 15 and maximum of 21. This represents a 36% reduction in average FPS when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Can this combo handle Ultra settings at any resolution?

A: No. The highest Ultra average FPS is 16 at 1920x1080, which drops to 13 at 2560x1440 and 10 at 3840x2160. All Ultra results are below 20 FPS, making them effectively unplayable.

Q: How does the data for this combo compare to other tested combos overall?

A: With a rank of 2793 out of 2911, this combo performs worse than approximately 96% of all tested combinations in The Medium. This places it firmly in the bottom tier, suitable only for the lowest graphical demands.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of degradation as resolution increases, confirming that the AMD Radeon RX 570 is the sole bottleneck. At Low settings, the combo achieves 44 FPS at 1920x1080, 37 FPS at 2560x1440, and 29 FPS at 3840x2160. This is a 15% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 22% drop from 1440p to 4K, totaling a 34% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is relatively mild because the GPU is already struggling at the lowest settings, leaving little headroom for resolution to have a dramatic impact.

At Medium settings, the scaling is more pronounced. The average FPS goes from 28 at 1080p to 23 at 1440p (an 18% drop) and then to 18 at 4K (a 22% drop from 1440p). The minimum FPS also declines from 23 to 20 to 15 across the same resolutions, showing that even the worst-case frame times worsen with higher pixel counts. At High settings, the pattern continues: 20 FPS at 1080p, 17 FPS at 1440p, and 13 FPS at 4K, representing a 35% total reduction from 1080p to 4K. Ultra settings show the steepest relative decline, with 16 FPS at 1080p falling to 13 FPS at 1440p and 10 FPS at 4K, a 37% drop overall.

These results indicate that the RX 570’s 4 GB memory buffer and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are quickly overwhelmed as resolution increases. The CPU’s role is negligible here; a top-tier processor like the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus would not show such significant FPS drops if the GPU could keep up. The data demonstrates that the limiting component is unambiguously the graphics card, and any attempt to play at 1440p or 4K, even on Low, will result in sub-30 FPS performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 44 FPS, which is the only measured configuration above 30 FPS. Medium settings reduce the average to 28 FPS, with a minimum of 23 and a maximum of 32. High settings drop further to 20 FPS, while Ultra settings average just 16 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 28 FPS, a 64% reduction, showing that the GPU cannot handle the increased shading and texture loads of higher presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance declines across the board. Low settings average 37 FPS, still playable but 16% lower than at 1080p. Medium settings average 23 FPS, with a minimum of 20 and maximum of 27. High settings fall to 17 FPS, and Ultra settings average 13 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 24 FPS, a 65% reduction. Notably, the minimum FPS at Medium settings (20) is only slightly above the High average (17), indicating that frame pacing becomes erratic as the GPU struggles.

At 3840x2160, the combo is largely unusable. Low settings average 29 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS threshold and only 66% of the 1080p Low result. Medium settings average 18 FPS, with a minimum of 15 and maximum of 21. High settings average 13 FPS, and Ultra settings average 10 FPS. The total range from Low to Ultra at 4K is 19 FPS, a 66% reduction. Every resolution and setting combination at 4K fails to reach 30 FPS, and the Ultra preset’s 10 FPS average approaches a slideshow.

The data also shows that the minimum FPS values, where available, are consistently 20-25% below the average. For example, at 1080p Medium, the minimum is 23 versus an average of 28; at 1440p Medium, it is 20 versus 23; and at 4K Medium, it is 15 versus 18. This suggests that the RX 570 experiences frequent frame drops, likely due to memory pressure from the 4 GB VRAM limit, which can cause stuttering in a horror game like The Medium.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS, the only viable configuration for this combo is 1920x1080 with Low settings, which yields an average of 44 FPS. This is the sole preset that provides a smooth enough experience for a game that relies on atmosphere and timing, as anything below 30 FPS would compromise the intended tension. Low settings at 1080p are therefore the recommended choice for any player using this hardware.

If a player insists on Medium settings, the best option is also at 1080p, where the average is 28 FPS with a minimum of 23. This is borderline playable but may result in noticeable stutters during scenes with heavy particle effects or dynamic lighting. The minimum FPS of 23 is close to the 24 FPS film standard, but for interactive horror, it is risky. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 23 FPS with a minimum of 20, which is too low for a consistent experience. At 4K Medium, the average of 18 FPS is not recommended under any circumstances.

High settings should be avoided entirely. Even at 1080p, the average is 20 FPS, which is below the playable threshold. Ultra settings are worse, with a 1080p average of 16 FPS and a 4K average of 10 FPS. The data clearly shows that the RX 570 cannot handle the increased shading, texture filtering, and draw distances of higher presets. The performance drop from Low to Medium at 1080p is 16 FPS (36%), and from Medium to High is another 8 FPS (29%), demonstrating that each step up in quality comes at a severe cost.

For a game like The Medium, where visual fidelity is important but gameplay requires responsiveness, the recommendation is to prioritize frame rate over graphics. Low settings at 1080p provide the only acceptable balance. Players with a 1440p monitor should consider lowering the resolution to 1080p rather than using a higher preset, as the 37 FPS at 1440p Low is still below the 44 FPS at 1080p Low. The difference in image quality from resolution scaling is often less noticeable than the difference from settings, but the frame rate gain from dropping to 1080p is significant.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, built on a 3 nm process node by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. Its cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. These specifications place it at the absolute top of the desktop CPU market, as evidenced by its percentileVsAllCpus of 96 and an average benchmark score of 84003.

In The Medium, the CPU’s role is minimal because the game’s performance is overwhelmingly limited by the GPU. The measured FPS data shows that at any given resolution, the frame rate varies significantly with settings, but the CPU’s performance remains constant. For example, at 1080p, the CPU can easily handle the game’s logic and physics, as indicated by its Passmark physics score of 3315 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303. The game’s horror genre typically relies on scripted events and moderate AI, which a 24-core processor processes with ease.

The nearest CPU rivals, including the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (deltaPct 0.2%), AMD EPYC 4584PX (1.1%), AMD EPYC 9135 (1.2%), and AMD EPYC 7F72 (-1.3%), all have similar average scores, confirming that the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is not a niche performer. Its 24 threads and high boost clock ensure that no CPU-bound scenario is likely, even in the most demanding sections of the game. The bottleneck is entirely the GPU’s 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 4 GB memory capacity.

The data shows that the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus would be better paired with a GPU that has a much higher percentileVsAllGpus, as the current RX 570 holds it back. The CPU’s Cinebench R20 multicore score of 21727 and Passmark data encryption score of 52563 indicate that it can handle any modern workload, but in this specific game, it is effectively idle while the GPU works at full capacity. The conclusion is clear: the CPU is not a factor in this combo’s low rank; the GPU is the sole reason for its poor performance in The Medium.