The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, shows a clear performance hierarchy when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT. This combination ranks 845th out of 2,825 tested combos for this game, placing it in the top third of all possible system configurations. The data indicates a system that is strongly GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s 14 cores and 5.00 GHz boost clock provide ample headroom for the game’s engine at lower settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 845 out of 2,825 total tested configurations places it comfortably in the upper percentile of system pairings for The Technomancer. This is not a top-tier elite setup, but it is a high-performing combination that will deliver smooth gameplay for the vast majority of users. The position suggests that the pairing of this particular CPU and GPU is well-balanced for the game’s demands, avoiding severe bottlenecks from either component.

Benchmark results indicate that the GPU is the primary driver of performance in this title, especially when settings are increased. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 46,062 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, which is a strong result. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 with an average score of 46,030 (0.1% faster), and the Intel Core i9-13900HX at 46,098 (0.1% slower). The performance deltas are minuscule, meaning the Core Ultra 5 235 trades blows with these high-end mobile and desktop parts. This indicates that for The Technomancer, the CPU will rarely be the limiting factor, as its compute capabilities are far beyond what this game requires.

The GPU, meanwhile, holds an 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48,477. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (1.5% faster), Intel Arc A550M (2.5% slower), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti (3% slower), and AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 (3% slower). The fact that the RX 6800 XT is competitive with a modern RTX 5070 Ti in average score, despite being from an older generation, speaks to its raw rasterization power. In The Technomancer, this translates to high frame rates even at demanding resolutions, as the GPU’s 16 GB of VRAM and 512.0 GB/s bandwidth handle the game’s assets without issue. The rank of 845 overall is a function of the game’s age and the wide variety of modern hardware tested, but for practical purposes, this combo is in the upper echelon of performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake-S architecture, built on a 3 nm process by TSMC. Its base clock is 3.40 GHz, with a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. The CPU has 24 MB of shared L3 cache, with 192 KB of L1 and 3 MB of L2 per core. This configuration delivers strong single-threaded performance, evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,085 and a Passmark single-thread score of 4,516. For a game like The Technomancer, which was released in 2016 and does not scale perfectly across many threads, this single-core strength is crucial.

The CPU’s multi-core performance is also substantial. It scores 14,769 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 37,816 in Passmark multithread. However, given the game’s release date, it is unlikely to fully utilize all 14 cores. The data suggests that the CPU’s role in this combo is to ensure that frame times remain consistent, preventing any CPU-bound stutters that could occur with weaker processors. The 89th percentile ranking versus all CPUs reinforces that this is a high-end part that will not bottleneck the RX 6800 XT in this title.

In terms of raw compute, the CPU’s Passmark integer math score is 87,948, and floating-point math is 117,951. These numbers indicate that even if the game were to offload some physics or AI calculations to the CPU, there is ample processing power available. The data encryption score of 29,293 and compression score of 390,711 are less relevant to gaming but show the processor’s versatility. The CPU’s memory support for DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and 102.4 GB/s bandwidth ensures that data can be fed to the GPU quickly, although The Technomancer’s requirements are modest by modern standards.

The Core Ultra 5 235’s nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, scores nearly identically (46,030 vs. 46,062), showing that the two are interchangeable for this game. The Intel Core i9-13900HX is also essentially tied, with a 0.1% delta. This means that for The Technomancer, any of these CPUs would deliver the same frame rates, confirming that the GPU is the primary determinant of performance. The CPU’s 14 threads are more than sufficient, and the 5.00 GHz boost clock ensures that the game’s main thread, which is often the bottleneck in older titles, runs at maximum speed.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the dominant component in this pairing for The Technomancer. It is based on the Navi 21 chip with RDNA 2.0 architecture, built on a 7 nm process. The GPU has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This large memory pool is overkill for a 2016 game, but it ensures that textures and assets are loaded without any swapping or stuttering. The GPU’s base clock is 1,825 MHz, with a boost clock of 2,250 MHz and a game clock of 2,015 MHz. The 4,608 shading units, 288 TMUs, and 128 ROPs provide a fill rate of 288.0 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 648.0 GTexel/s.

The GPU’s FP32 performance of 20.74 TFLOPS is substantial, and its Passmark G3D score of 24,980 reflects its strong rasterization capabilities. In The Technomancer, this translates directly to high average frame rates across all resolutions. The GPU’s 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs is indicative of its performance class. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile, is only 1.5% faster on average, but that is a mobile part with different power characteristics. The RX 6800 XT’s 16 GB of VRAM is a significant advantage over cards with 8 GB, especially if the user intends to apply texture mods or run at 4K with High settings.

The GPU’s memory clock is 2,000 MHz, which equates to 16 Gbps effective. This high-speed memory is essential for maintaining bandwidth at 4K resolutions. The card also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which is more than enough for The Technomancer’s DirectX 11-era engine. The GPU’s power draw is 300 W, but the data shows it delivers strong performance per frame. The benchmark scores for DirectX 11 (264) and DirectX 12 (100) are specific to Passmark’s synthetic tests, but the measured FPS in the game tells the real story.

The RX 6800 XT is clearly the component that determines whether the game runs at 40 FPS or 216 FPS, depending on settings and resolution. Its performance in the measured FPS data shows a clear scaling pattern: at 1080p Low, it hits 216 FPS, while at 4K Ultra, it drops to 40 FPS. This is a classic GPU-bound scenario, where the CPU’s job is simply to feed the GPU with draw calls. Given the CPU’s high single-thread score, it does this without issue, allowing the GPU to reach its full potential.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of how this combo performs across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally fast. Low settings yield an average of 216 FPS, which is well beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. Medium settings average 166 FPS, with a minimum of 141 FPS and maximum of 191 FPS, showing that frame times are consistent. High settings average 142 FPS, still extremely smooth. Ultra settings drop to an average of 111 FPS, which remains highly playable on a 120 Hz or 144 Hz display. This resolution is clearly not a challenge for this hardware, and the CPU’s 5.00 GHz boost clock ensures that even the 216 FPS Low setting is not CPU-limited.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down as expected. Low settings average 141 FPS, which is still very high. Medium averages 109 FPS, with a minimum of 92 FPS and maximum of 125 FPS, indicating that the game remains fluid even in busy scenes. High settings average 93 FPS, which is smooth for most gamers. Ultra settings average 72 FPS, which is playable but starts to show the GPU’s limits at this resolution with maximum effects. The data shows a 32% drop from Low to Ultra (141 to 72 FPS), which is a typical curve for a GPU-bound title.

At 3840x2160, the RX 6800 XT’s 16 GB of VRAM and 512.0 GB/s bandwidth are put to the test. Low settings average 78 FPS, which is good for 4K. Medium averages 60 FPS, with a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 69 FPS, providing a playable experience but with some dips. High settings average 51 FPS, which is borderline for a smooth experience. Ultra settings average 40 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target that many players prefer. The progression from Low to Ultra at 4K (78 to 40 FPS) shows a 49% reduction in performance, highlighting the GPU’s workload at this resolution.

Across all resolutions, the Medium preset consistently provides a minimum FPS that is about 85% of the average (e.g., 51 min vs. 60 avg at 4K, 92 min vs. 109 avg at 1440p, 141 min vs. 166 avg at 1080p). This suggests that Medium is a stable preset with no major frame time spikes. The Ultra preset, while offering the best visual quality, has no minimum FPS data recorded, which could indicate that the frame pacing is less consistent, but the average scores are still usable for analysis.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of 4K gaming in The Technomancer?

A: Yes, but with compromises. The data shows an average of 51 FPS at 4K High and 40 FPS at 4K Ultra. To achieve a more stable 60 FPS, the Medium preset averages exactly 60 FPS, with a minimum of 51 FPS. Low settings reach 78 FPS at 4K. Therefore, 4K is playable, but players should expect to use Medium or Low settings for a consistently smooth experience.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 compare to its closest CPU rivals for this game?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score is 46,062, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46,030, 0.1% faster) and the Intel Core i9-13900HX (46,098, 0.1% slower). The AMD EPYC 4364P and EPYC 7303 are also within 0.2% of the score. For The Technomancer, these differences are negligible, meaning all four CPUs will deliver the same frame rates when paired with the RX 6800 XT.

Q: What is the best resolution to use with this hardware?

A: The 2560x1440 resolution offers the best balance. At High settings, the average FPS is 93, and at Ultra, it is 72. This provides high visual quality with smooth performance. At 1920x1080, the system often exceeds 140 FPS, which is wasted unless the monitor has a very high refresh rate. At 3840x2160, the average FPS drops below 60 for High and Ultra presets, making it less ideal.

Q: How much performance is lost when going from Low to Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p, the drop is from 216 FPS on Low to 111 FPS on Ultra, a 49% reduction. At 1440p, it drops from 141 FPS to 72 FPS, a 49% reduction as well. At 4K, the drop is from 78 FPS to 40 FPS, a 49% reduction. The consistent 49% loss across resolutions indicates that the GPU’s workload scales linearly with the increased graphical load.

Q: Does the GPU’s 16 GB of VRAM make a difference in this game?

A: The 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for The Technomancer, which was released in 2016 and has modest texture requirements. The data shows no signs of texture streaming issues or stuttering, even at 4K Ultra. The GPU’s 512.0 GB/s bandwidth ensures that any asset loading is handled quickly. While the game likely does not use more than 8 GB, the ample VRAM provides headroom for future mods or higher-resolution texture packs.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this pairing?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the clear bottleneck at higher settings and resolutions. For example, at 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 40, while at 1080p Low, it is 216. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would be similar across resolutions. The CPU’s 89th percentile ranking and high single-thread score (2,085 in Cinebench R23) mean it can easily keep up with the GPU’s demands, especially in a game from 2016.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the most consistent experience across all resolutions. At 1080p, it averages 166 FPS with a minimum of 141 FPS, which is flawless for any display. At 1440p, it averages 109 FPS with a minimum of 92 FPS, ensuring no noticeable dips below 90 FPS. At 4K, it averages exactly 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 FPS, which is the only preset that hits the 60 FPS mark at this resolution. The Medium preset also shows the most stable frame pacing, with minimum FPS values that are consistently high relative to the average.

For users with 1080p monitors, the Ultra preset at 111 FPS is the best choice, as it provides maximum visual fidelity while still maintaining a frame rate above 100 FPS. The High preset at 142 FPS is also excellent, but Ultra offers a meaningful visual upgrade with only a 22% performance penalty (from 142 to 111 FPS). At 1440p, the Ultra preset at 72 FPS is playable, but the High preset at 93 FPS is the sweet spot, offering a 29% performance increase over Ultra with a minor reduction in visual effects. The High preset’s minimum FPS is not listed, but the average suggests it will be smooth.

At 4K, the recommendation is clear: use the Medium preset. The 60 FPS average matches the standard refresh rate, and the 51 FPS minimum ensures that the game never feels choppy. High settings at 51 FPS average are borderline, and Ultra at 40 FPS is not recommended for a smooth experience. Low settings at 4K (78 FPS) are a viable alternative if the user prefers frame rate over visual quality, but Medium provides the best balance of image quality and performance. The data shows that this combo is best utilized at 1440p or 1080p with High or Ultra settings, where it delivers exceptional performance that will satisfy even the most demanding players. For 4K, Medium is the only preset that hits the 60 FPS target consistently.