The Technomancer

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 brings 14 cores and 14 threads to this 2016 Action RPG, a configuration that pairs a 3.40 GHz base clock with a 5.00 GHz boost clock. This Arrow Lake-S part, built on a 3 nm process for the CPU, operates within a 65 W TDP envelope. For a game like The Technomancer, which relies heavily on single-thread performance for its game logic and AI, the boost clock is the more critical figure. The processor's single-core Cinebench R23 score of 2085 and R20 score of 875 indicate a strong capability for the primary thread that often dictates frame pacing in such titles. The multi-core results, with a Cinebench R23 score of 14769 and R20 score of 6202, are substantial, but the game's engine is less likely to utilize all 14 threads efficiently, given its release date.

The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 102.4 GB/s of memory bandwidth provide ample data throughput for the game's environments and entity management. The processor's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46062, places it in the upper echelon of processing power. Its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks, such as the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 with a score of 46030 and the Intel Core i9-13900HX with a score of 46098, show that the Ultra 5 235 is within a 0.1% performance delta of these parts in aggregate workloads. This suggests that while the CPU is not the bottleneck in most gaming scenarios, its headroom is not unlimited. The measured FPS data for this combo, which shows higher frame rates at lower resolutions, confirms that the CPU is capable of feeding frames very quickly, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data for this combo provides clear guidance on the optimal settings preset for this game. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves an average of 219 FPS, while the Medium preset still delivers a very high 169 FPS. The High preset at 144 FPS remains exceptionally smooth, and even the Ultra preset maintains a playable 112 FPS average. The data shows a consistent scaling where each step up in quality costs about 25-50 FPS at this resolution. For a game requiring fast reactions, the Medium preset at 1080p offers a strong balance between visual fidelity and performance, as it stays well above the 144 FPS threshold that many high-refresh-rate monitors target.

Moving to 1440p, the pattern holds but the margins tighten. The Low preset yields 143 FPS, which is essentially the same as the 1080p High preset, indicating that the GPU is beginning to shoulder more of the load. The Medium preset at 110 FPS is still excellent, and the High preset at 94 FPS remains very fluid. The Ultra preset drops to 73 FPS, which is still smooth but shows a significant cost for the highest quality settings. At this resolution, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot, providing a 110 FPS average that is robust for most displays without the visual compromises of the Low preset.

At 4K, the performance envelope narrows considerably. The Low preset delivers 79 FPS, which is playable, but the Medium preset drops to 60 FPS, and the High preset falls to 52 FPS. The Ultra preset at 40 FPS is below the threshold for comfortable play on most systems. The data suggests that for a consistent 60 FPS experience at 4K, the Medium preset is the highest quality option that can reliably hit that target, as the High preset's 52 FPS average is a 13% reduction that may be noticeable in fast-paced combat. For users prioritizing smoothness over visual detail, the Low preset at 79 FPS provides the most comfortable margin above the 60 FPS baseline.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the classic transition from a CPU-bound to a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with the Medium preset, the combo achieves 169 FPS. At 1440p, this drops to 110 FPS, a 35% reduction in frame rate. At 4K, the same preset yields 60 FPS, which is a 45% reduction from the 1440p figure and a 64% reduction from the 1080p figure. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU that is being increasingly saturated by the pixel count.

The data for the High preset shows a similar trend. The 144 FPS at 1080p falls to 94 FPS at 1440p, a 35% drop, and then to 52 FPS at 4K, a 45% drop from the 1440p result. The consistency of these percentage drops across presets indicates that the game's rendering pipeline scales predictably with resolution. The limiting component at 1080p is the CPU, as evidenced by the fact that the frame rate at 1080p Low (219 FPS) is more than double the 4K Low result (79 FPS). The CPU can push frames much faster than the GPU can render them at lower pixel counts.

At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The difference between the 1080p and 4K results for the Low preset is 140 FPS, which shows the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint. The measured data shows that the Radeon RX 9070, with its 16 GB of VRAM and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth, is handling the memory requirements, but the compute load at 4K is too high for it to maintain the frame rates seen at lower resolutions. The FPS drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 35% across all presets, and the drop from 1440p to 4K is roughly 45%, indicating that the GPU's performance scales consistently with the pixel count increase.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS at 1080p is 219, achieved with the Low settings preset. The Medium preset achieves 169 FPS, High achieves 144 FPS, and Ultra achieves 112 FPS.

Q: Can this combo maintain a 60 FPS average at 4K with the High preset?

A: No. At 4K with the High preset, the measured average FPS is 52, which is 8 FPS below the 60 FPS target. To achieve a 60 FPS average at 4K, the Medium preset must be used, which records exactly 60 FPS.

Q: How much faster is the 1080p Low preset compared to the 4K Ultra preset?

A: The 1080p Low preset achieves an average of 219 FPS, while the 4K Ultra preset achieves an average of 40 FPS. This represents a 179 FPS difference, meaning the 1080p Low result is approximately 5.5 times higher than the 4K Ultra result.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the 1440p Medium preset?

A: The minimum FPS recorded for the 1440p Medium preset is 94 FPS, with a maximum of 127 FPS and an average of 110 FPS. This data point shows the frame time variance at that setting.

Q: How does the combo's rank in this game compare to its overall component performance?

A: The combo ranks 815th out of 2825 tested combinations for this game. The CPU has an 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, and the GPU has a 69th percentile ranking among all GPUs, indicating that the combination's in-game rank is influenced more by the GPU's relative standing than the CPU's.

Q: What is the average FPS difference between the 1080p Ultra and 1440p Ultra presets?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset achieves an average of 112 FPS, while the 1440p Ultra preset achieves an average of 73 FPS. This is a 39 FPS difference, representing a 35% reduction in performance when moving from 1080p to 1440p at the highest quality settings.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the primary driver of the visual experience in The Technomancer, and its specifications heavily influence the measured results. This GPU, built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 48 chip, operates with a base clock of 1330 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. The game clock is rated at 2070 MHz, which is the typical sustained frequency under load. The GPU's memory configuration of 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for the textures and assets in this game, even at 4K resolution. The pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s are the raw throughput numbers that determine how quickly the GPU can fill the screen with rendered geometry.

The GPU's 3584 shading units and 128 ROPs are the execution units that handle the game's shading and rasterization workloads. The FP32 performance of 36.13 TFLOPS is a measure of the GPU's raw compute capability. The benchmark results for the RX 9070 show a Passmark G3D score of 25381 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6290. Its 69th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23877, places it in the upper-mid range of graphics hardware. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z with a score of 23736 (0.6% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 6800S with a score of 24063 (-0.8% delta), showing that its synthetic performance is closely matched with these older or mobile parts.

In this specific game, the GPU's performance is the deciding factor at higher resolutions. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU's rendering power is the limiting factor at 4K, where even the Low preset only achieves 79 FPS. The data demonstrates that while the CPU can deliver high frame rates at 1080p, the GPU's workload scales with resolution, and its performance at 4K is the bottleneck. The GPU's 220 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate its power requirements, but the game's performance is more directly tied to the shading units and ROPs that determine its fill rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 219 FPS, which is the highest score recorded for this combo. The Medium preset at 1080p achieves 169 FPS average, with a minimum of 143 FPS and a maximum of 194 FPS. The High preset at 1080p records a 144 FPS average, and the Ultra preset drops to 112 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the combo has substantial headroom, with even the most demanding preset maintaining a frame rate well above 100 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down as expected. The Low preset achieves a 143 FPS average, which is a 35% reduction from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset at 1440p achieves a 110 FPS average, with a minimum of 94 FPS and a maximum of 127 FPS. The High preset records a 94 FPS average, and the Ultra preset achieves a 73 FPS average. The 1440p results show that the combo can still deliver a high-refresh-rate experience, with the Medium and High presets both staying above the 90 FPS mark.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly, reflecting the GPU's workload. The Low preset achieves a 79 FPS average, which is the only 4K setting that breaks the 60 FPS barrier comfortably. The Medium preset at 4K achieves exactly 60 FPS average, with a minimum of 51 FPS and a maximum of 70 FPS. The High preset drops to a 52 FPS average, and the Ultra preset falls to a 40 FPS average. The 4K data shows a clear hierarchy, where the Low preset is the only option that provides a smooth experience without compromise, while the Ultra preset is not viable for consistent play.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and the AMD Radeon RX 9070 ranks 815th out of 2825 tested combinations for The Technomancer. This rank of 815 places it in the top 29% of all tested combos, which is a solid position given the game's age and the specifications of the hardware. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs and the GPU's 69th percentile ranking among all GPUs provide context for this result. The CPU is clearly a high-end part, but the GPU is more mid-range in its relative performance, and this combination of strengths and weaknesses determines the in-game rank.

The rank of 815 indicates that there are 814 other combinations that perform better in this specific game. This is likely due to the GPU's relative position, as the RX 9070's 69th percentile is lower than the CPU's 89th percentile. The game's reliance on GPU rendering at higher resolutions means that the GPU's performance is the more significant factor in the overall ranking. The data shows that the combo performs admirably at 1080p, where it can achieve frame rates in excess of 200 FPS on low settings, but its ranking is pulled down by its performance at 4K, where it struggles to maintain 60 FPS on high settings.

The measured data is marked as "dataIsMeasured: true", indicating that these are actual test results rather than estimates. The rank of 815 out of 2825 combos means that this specific pairing is in the upper 30% of all possible configurations, which is a respectable result for a desktop CPU and GPU combination. The nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU individually show that the components are competitive with other hardware in their respective categories, but the in-game rank reflects the specific demands of The Technomancer, which appears to favor GPUs with higher raw fill rates that can handle the game's rendering workload at higher resolutions.