The Technomancer

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 produces a mid-pack result in The Technomancer, ranking 2212th out of 2825 tested combos. This places the configuration in the 22nd percentile of all tested combinations, indicating that a substantial majority of other hardware pairings deliver higher average frame rates in this Action RPG. The ranking reflects a system that is capable of playable performance at lower resolutions and settings, but it is not positioned among the top-tier configurations for this title. The data suggests a balance where neither component is a standout performer relative to the broader test pool, but the combination is far from the bottom of the field. The average benchmark scores for the individual components reinforce this: the CPU sits at the 85th percentile among all processors, while the GPU rests at the 58th percentile among all graphics cards. The disparity between these two percentiles indicates that the graphics card is the more limiting factor in this pairing, a trend that becomes evident when examining frame rates across different resolutions and quality presets.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU and GPU combination in The Technomancer?

A: The combo ranks 2212th out of 2825 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the performance spectrum for this game.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score of 36938 is nearly identical to its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, which scores 36945 (a 0% delta). It is also effectively tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (37018, -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (37093, -0.4%), while trailing the Intel Core i9-12900T (37112, -0.5%) by a negligible margin.

Q: What is the best average frame rate achieved by this combo at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 130 FPS. The Medium preset delivers 100 FPS, High settings produce 85 FPS, and Ultra settings yield 66 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 a significant bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, the data indicates a CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions that shifts to a severe GPU limitation at 4K. At 3840x2160, the average frame rates drop to 47 FPS on Low and 24 FPS on Ultra, showing that the GPU cannot maintain high frame rates at this resolution regardless of the workload placed on the CPU.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 1440p on High settings?

A: At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 85 FPS at 1920x1080 to 56 FPS at 2560x1440. This represents a 34% reduction in average FPS, illustrating the scaling cost of increased pixel count.

Q: Does the CPU's single-threaded performance suggest it can handle high frame rates in this game?

A: The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3655 and Passmark single-thread score of 4412 are strong, and the 1080p Low result of 130 FPS suggests the processor can drive high frame rates. However, the GPU becomes the limiting factor as settings and resolution increase, capping performance well below the CPU's potential.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates across the three tested resolutions reveal a classic scaling pattern that identifies the limiting component at each stage. At 1920x1080, the system shows substantial headroom, with Low settings reaching 130 FPS and Medium hitting 100 FPS. This suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to maintain high frame rates, but the GPU is still the primary constraint since the frame rates do not scale linearly with the workload reductions from lower settings. When moving to 2560x1440, the average frame rates drop across all presets, but the system remains playable on most settings. The transition from 1080p to 1440p on High settings reduces the average from 85 FPS to 56 FPS, a 34% decrease that is larger than the 33% increase in pixel count, indicating the GPU is becoming more stressed. The most dramatic shift occurs at 3840x2160, where the frame rates collapse to 47 FPS on Low and 24 FPS on Ultra. This 4K data point strongly indicates that the RTX 2060 is the dominant bottleneck at this resolution, as even the lowest settings cannot push the average above 50 FPS. The pattern is clear: the CPU has enough headroom to handle the game's logic at 1080p and 1440p, but the GPU's 6 GB of VRAM and 336.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth are insufficient for the demands of 4K rendering in The Technomancer. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly punishing, with the High preset dropping from 56 FPS to 31 FPS, a 45% reduction that far exceeds the pixel count increase, confirming that the graphics card is overwhelmed.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest performance, with a clear progression across settings. Low settings achieve an average of 130 FPS, providing a very smooth experience for fast-paced action. Medium settings maintain 100 FPS on average, with minimum and maximum values of 85 and 115 FPS respectively, showing consistent frame pacing. High settings produce an average of 85 FPS, which is still well within the playable range for most users. Ultra settings drop to an average of 66 FPS, which remains acceptable but begins to show the GPU's limitations. The spread from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 64 FPS, demonstrating that the GPU has significant performance headroom at this resolution and is not the primary constraint at lower settings. Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down proportionally. Low settings average 85 FPS, Medium averages 65 FPS (with a range of 55 to 75 FPS), High averages 56 FPS, and Ultra drops to 43 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 42 FPS, which is narrower than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is beginning to saturate. The Medium preset's minimum of 55 FPS suggests that even mid-range settings can cause occasional dips, though the average remains smooth. At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates. Low settings average 47 FPS, Medium averages 36 FPS with a minimum of 30 FPS and maximum of 41 FPS, High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 24 FPS. The 4K results show a compressed range of only 23 FPS between Low and Ultra, which indicates that the GPU is the sole limiting factor and that settings adjustments have diminishing returns at this resolution. The data shows that the RTX 2060 is only suitable for 4K gaming in this title at the lowest settings, and even then, the average frame rate is below the 60 FPS threshold that many players target.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal experience for this combo depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 100 FPS and a minimum of 85 FPS. This ensures that frame rates stay well above the 60 FPS threshold even during demanding scenes, while still providing a significant visual upgrade over Low settings. High settings at 1080p are also viable, averaging 85 FPS, but the 15 FPS drop from Medium may not be worth the modest visual improvement for users who prioritize smoothness. Ultra settings at 1080p, averaging 66 FPS, are playable but leave little headroom for frame drops in combat-heavy moments. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset is again the recommended choice, averaging 65 FPS with a minimum of 55 FPS. This keeps the experience mostly smooth, though the minimum frame rate suggests occasional stutters. High settings at 1440p average 56 FPS, which is borderline for action games, and the 9 FPS difference from Medium may not justify the increased graphical load. Low settings at 1440p achieve 85 FPS and provide the smoothest experience, but the visual compromise is significant. For users who prioritize frame rate over fidelity, Low is the safer option. At 3840x2160, no preset delivers a consistently smooth experience. Low settings average 47 FPS, which is the only preset above 30 FPS, but it still falls short of the 60 FPS target. Medium averages 36 FPS and High averages 31 FPS, both of which are below the playable threshold for most gamers. Ultra at 24 FPS is not recommended. For 4K, the data suggests that users should either accept Low settings for a borderline playable experience or reduce the resolution to 1440p for a more satisfactory frame rate. Overall, the Medium preset at 1080p or 1440p provides the best measured experience, balancing visual quality with frame rates that remain comfortably above the minimum playability threshold.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread processor from the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It features a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU's cache configuration includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 25891 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 3655 in single-core, placing it at the 85th percentile among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 36938 is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, which scores 36945. This suggests that the Ultra 5 225 performs on par with established mid-range processors from previous generations. In The Technomancer, the CPU's role is most apparent at 1080p with lower settings, where the system achieves 130 FPS on Low. This high frame rate indicates that the CPU has sufficient single-threaded performance to drive the game's logic without becoming a bottleneck. The 4.90 GHz boost clock and strong single-core score of 3655 in Cinebench R23 support this observation. However, the CPU's 10 threads are fully utilized in modern games, and The Technomancer, being an Action RPG from 2016, likely benefits more from high single-core clock speeds than from multi-threaded scaling. The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor at any resolution or setting in this game. Even at 1080p Low, where the CPU is most stressed, the frame rate of 130 FPS is well above what the GPU can deliver at higher settings. The Passmark single-thread score of 4412 and the Cinebench R20 single-core score of 891 both indicate that the CPU has ample headroom for this title. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking among all processors further confirms that it is a capable performer, but in this specific game, its power is largely untapped due to the GPU's limitations.

GPU Role

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 has 30 ray tracing cores and 240 tensor cores, with a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz. The GPU is equipped with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. Its computed performance includes 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and a pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s. In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 2060 scores 14111 in Passmark G3D and 65014 in Geekbench OpenCL, placing it at the 58th percentile among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 15290 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (15283, 0% delta) and the AMD Radeon 680M (15270, 0.1% delta), indicating that it performs similarly to much older or integrated graphics solutions in synthetic tests. In The Technomancer, the GPU's role is clearly the dominant bottleneck at higher resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the GPU can deliver 130 FPS, showing that it has enough power for undemanding scenarios. However, as the resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the frame rates drop precipitously. At 1440p Ultra, the average falls to 43 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it drops to 24 FPS. The 6 GB of VRAM is likely a significant limitation at 4K, as the game may require more memory for high-resolution textures, leading to memory pressure and reduced performance. The 336.0 GB/s memory bandwidth also appears insufficient for the data throughput required at 4K. The data shows a clear pattern: the GPU's performance scales poorly with resolution, with the 4K results showing a compressed range of only 23 FPS between Low and Ultra settings. This indicates that the GPU is fully saturated at 4K and that settings adjustments have minimal impact on frame rates. The RTX 2060 is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates on most presets, and it can handle 1440p at medium settings, but it is not capable of providing a smooth 4K experience in The Technomancer.