The Medium

The Medium presents a unique challenge for hardware, relying on fixed camera angles and heavy post-processing to build its oppressive atmosphere. This combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 produces a specific performance profile that is heavily dictated by resolution and settings, rather than raw CPU muscle. The data shows a system that can handle the game at 1080p with moderate fluidity, but which struggles to maintain playable framerates at higher resolutions or with the game's most demanding visual presets.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database, this pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 lands at rank 2260 out of 2911 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the lower third of all configurations tested, indicating that while the system is functional, it is far from optimal for this specific title. The ranking suggests that the combination of a high-end CPU with a mid-range GPU creates a bottleneck that holds the system back in this game, which is heavily dependent on GPU fill rate and memory bandwidth for its visual effects.

The percentile data reinforces this position. The CPU alone sits in the 96th percentile compared to all other CPUs, showcasing its immense processing power. However, the GPU sits in only the 63rd percentile compared to all other GPUs. This stark contrast in relative performance levels is the defining characteristic of this combo. The processor is capable of far more than the graphics card can deliver, making the RX 6600 the limiting factor in nearly every scenario. Benchmark results indicate that for The Medium, the overall experience is capped by the GPU's ability to render frames, not the CPU's ability to calculate game logic or physics. The system is effectively a high-performance engine in a chassis with a more moderate power output, leading to its lower overall rank.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is the primary driver of the performance seen in The Medium. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. This is a critical specification for this game, which often loads large texture sets for its detailed environments. The data shows that at 4K and High settings, the average framerate drops to 25 FPS, suggesting that the 8 GB frame buffer and memory bandwidth are being saturated, causing significant performance degradation.

The GPU's clock speeds are more than adequate on paper, with a boost clock of 2491 MHz and a game clock of 2044 MHz. The RDNA 2.0 architecture, with its 1792 shading units, is capable of producing a peak FP32 performance of 8.928 TFLOPS. However, in practice, the measured FPS figures show that this raw compute power is not enough to handle the demands of The Medium at higher resolutions. The transition from 1080p to 1440p at High settings results in a drop from 37 FPS to 32 FPS, and moving to 4K at the same settings further reduces performance to 25 FPS. This scaling indicates that the GPU is working at its limits, and the additional pixel throughput required at higher resolutions quickly overwhelms the available resources.

The RX 6600's nearest rivals in the database, such as the NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation and the Quadro K6000, have nearly identical average benchmark scores, with deltas of 0.4% and 0%, respectively. This confirms that the GPU is performing as expected for its class, but that class is simply not high enough to provide a smooth experience in this demanding title at higher settings. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1492 and the Passmark G3D score of 15096 are consistent with a mid-range graphics card, and the in-game results reflect this positioning. The GPU is the bottleneck, and its performance characteristics are the single most important factor in determining the system's playability.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a powerhouse that plays a surprisingly minimal role in this game's performance. With 24 cores and 24 threads, its processing capacity is immense, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 51731 and its 96th percentile ranking. However, The Medium does not appear to be a CPU-intensive title in this configuration. The measured FPS does not fluctuate significantly based on the CPU's potential; instead, it is consistently limited by the GPU.

The high boost clock of 5.80 GHz on a single core, paired with a strong single-threaded Passmark score of 4823, ensures that the CPU is not a source of stuttering or frametime inconsistency. The data shows that even at low settings, where the GPU load is reduced, the framerate increases significantly (e.g., from 37 FPS to 84 FPS at 1080p). This suggests that the CPU is more than capable of feeding the GPU with data, and the performance gains at lower settings are purely due to reduced GPU workload.

Compared to its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, this chip is only 0.2% faster in average benchmark score. This negligible difference means that in a game like The Medium, the choice between these two CPUs would have virtually no impact on the final framerate. The CPU's role is essentially to stay out of the way, and it does so effectively. Its high L3 cache of 36 MB and support for DDR5 memory ensure that asset streaming and game logic are handled without creating a bottleneck, but the overall experience is overwhelmingly defined by the graphics card. In this context, the CPU is a silent partner, providing a stable foundation but not contributing to the visual output.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities across different resolutions and quality presets. The pattern is consistent: performance scales down as resolution and settings increase, with the GPU being the limiting factor at every step.

At 1920x1080, the system is at its most capable. The Low preset delivers an average of 84 FPS, which is very playable. The Medium preset sees a significant drop to 52 FPS, with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 60 FPS. This is still a playable experience, though the frametime variance is noticeable. High settings bring the average down to 37 FPS, which is borderline for a smooth experience. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, yielding only 30 FPS on average, which would feel choppy in a game that relies on atmosphere and timing.

Moving to 2560x1440, the strain on the GPU becomes more apparent. The Low preset still manages a respectable 71 FPS average. However, Medium settings drop to 44 FPS (min 37, max 51), and High settings fall to 32 FPS. The Ultra preset at this resolution is practically unplayable, with an average of only 25 FPS. The increase in pixel count from 1080p has a direct and harsh impact on performance, highlighting the GPU's memory bandwidth limitations.

At 3840x2160, the system is clearly out of its depth. Low settings produce an average of 55 FPS, which is the only playable option at this resolution. Medium settings drop to 35 FPS (min 29, max 40), High settings fall to 25 FPS, and Ultra settings yield a slideshow-like 20 FPS average. The data shows that this combo is not suited for 4K gaming in The Medium unless the player is willing to accept significant compromises in visual quality and framerate stability.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, but only with significant compromises. The measured data shows that at 4K with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 55 FPS. However, at Medium settings, the average drops to 35 FPS, and at High and Ultra, it falls to 25 FPS and 20 FPS, respectively, which is not a smooth experience.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve a consistent 60 FPS?

A: Based on the data, the system comes closest to 60 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings, where it achieves an average of 84 FPS. At 2560x1440 with Low settings, it averages 71 FPS, which is also above the 60 FPS threshold. No other configuration in the measured data reaches an average of 60 FPS.

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

A: No. The CPU's benchmark scores are in the 96th percentile, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, is only 0.2% slower. The performance bottleneck is the AMD Radeon RX 6600, as evidenced by the significant framerate changes when adjusting resolution and graphics settings, which are GPU-bound tasks.

Q: How does the RX 6600 compare to its direct competitors in this database?

A: The RX 6600 has an average benchmark score of 19036. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro K6000 with a score of 19030 and a delta of 0%, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile with a score of 19049 and a delta of -0.1%. This indicates that its performance is directly in line with its peer group.

Q: What is the most stable settings preset at 1080p?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 shows an average of 52 FPS, with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 60 FPS. This data suggests that while it doesn't hit a locked 60 FPS average, the frametime range is more controlled than other presets, providing a more consistent feel than High or Ultra.

Q: Is the CPU holding back the GPU in this game?

A: The data suggests the opposite. The framerate scales directly with GPU load. For example, at 1080p, performance jumps from 37 FPS on High to 84 FPS on Low. If the CPU were the bottleneck, this change in GPU settings would not yield such a large performance increase.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual fidelity and smooth gameplay, the data points to 1920x1080 with the Medium preset as the optimal configuration for this combo. This setting provides an average of 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS, which is generally playable for a horror title where precise timing is less critical than in a competitive shooter. The framerate is more stable than the High preset, which dips to 37 FPS average and may introduce more noticeable stutter during camera transitions.

Players who prioritize a smoother framerate over visual detail should consider the Low preset at 1920x1080, which delivers an average of 84 FPS. This ensures a very fluid experience, though it will compromise the game's atmospheric lighting and shadow quality. At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only viable option for a consistently playable experience, with an average of 71 FPS. However, the visual sacrifices may be too significant for some.

The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution. The data shows it only achieves a maximum average of 30 FPS at 1080p, which falls below the threshold for a comfortable gaming experience. Similarly, 4K resolution is only viable with the Low preset. The performance gap between Low and Medium at 4K is substantial (55 FPS to 35 FPS), indicating that the GPU's resources are quickly exhausted. Ultimately, to get the most out of this hardware, the player must accept the Medium preset at 1080p as the practical ceiling for a quality experience.