The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents an interesting test for the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination. The data indicates a strong pairing that scales predictably with resolution and settings, though the performance ceiling and limiting factors shift significantly depending on the configuration chosen. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS to determine optimal settings and the respective roles of the CPU and GPU.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data across three resolutions and four settings presets provides a clear picture of the performance envelope. At 1080p, the system is exceptionally capable, with even the Ultra preset achieving an average of 127 FPS. This is already well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. However, the Low preset at 1080p reaches an average of 249 FPS, suggesting the CPU is the primary limiter at this resolution, as the frame rate is not scaling proportionally with the reduced graphical load when compared to the GPU-bound scenarios at higher resolutions.

For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, the Medium preset appears to be the optimal choice at 1080p. It delivers an average of 191 FPS with a minimum of 162 FPS, which ensures a consistently fluid experience without the steep performance cost of the Ultra settings. The jump from Medium to Ultra at 1080p costs 64 FPS on average (from 191 to 127), a significant drop for what is often a marginal visual improvement in a game from this era. The High preset, at 163 FPS, is also viable, but Medium offers a higher frame rate headroom, making it the more robust recommendation for maintaining high refresh rate stability.

Moving to 1440p, the data shows the GPU beginning to assert its influence. The Ultra preset still manages an average of 83 FPS, which is playable, but the Medium preset again provides the most compelling experience. With an average of 125 FPS and a minimum of 106 FPS, it offers a substantial performance buffer while still providing a significant visual upgrade over the Low preset, which averages 162 FPS. The High preset at 107 FPS is also a strong contender, but the minimum frame rate data for Medium (106) versus the unknown minimum for High suggests Medium may have more consistent frame pacing.

At 4K, the system is heavily GPU-bound. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 46 FPS, which is below the ideal for smooth gameplay. The High preset achieves a nearly playable 59 FPS average, but the Medium preset is the clear winner here. It delivers an average of 69 FPS with a minimum of 58 and a maximum of 79, providing a playable and stable experience at 4K. The data suggests that for 4K, users should prioritize the Medium preset to maintain a frame rate above the 60 FPS target, as the cost of moving to High is a 10 FPS average drop (from 69 to 59), which pushes the experience into less desirable territory.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070, with its 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, provides a bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s. This memory configuration appears sufficient for the demands of The Technomancer, as the system is capable of producing high frame rates even at 4K. The GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution increases. The performance drop from 1080p to 1440p and then to 4K is a clear indicator of this. At 1080p, the GPU is not the primary bottleneck, but by 4K, its processing power is the defining factor for performance.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 2325 MHz and a boost of 2512 MHz, are relevant in the context of the frame rates achieved. The scaling from 1440p Medium (125 FPS) to 4K Medium (69 FPS) shows a 44.8% reduction in average FPS, which is a substantial hit but not a linear one, indicating the GPU is handling the increased pixel count with reasonable efficiency. The RTX 5070's performance in this game is strong, but the step from High to Ultra at 4K is particularly punishing, resulting in a 13 FPS average drop (from 59 to 46). This suggests that the Ultra preset may introduce effects or rendering features that place a disproportionately high load on the GPU's compute units.

The GPU's benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 29137, place it in the 82nd percentile of all GPUs. While this is a general metric, the measured FPS data provides more direct insight. The RTX 5070 is clearly capable of delivering high refresh rate experiences at 1080p and 1440p, and a solid 60 FPS experience at 4K with the right settings. The data shows that the 12 GB VRAM is not a limiting factor in this specific title, as performance scales consistently with resolution, which is typical of a game that is more reliant on raw shader and rasterization throughput.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245, with its 14 cores and 14 threads, presents an interesting profile for a game like The Technomancer. The lack of hyper-threading means the thread count equals the core count, which can sometimes be a disadvantage in heavily threaded modern titles. However, the data suggests that for this game, the CPU is more than adequate for the task. At 1080p with the Low preset, the system achieves an average of 249 FPS. This high frame rate, which is likely near the engine's or the CPU's practical limit, indicates that the CPU is the primary limiting factor at this resolution and setting.

The CPU's high boost clock of 5.10 GHz and strong single-core performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648, are likely the key contributors to its ability to drive such high frame rates. The transition from 1080p Low (249 FPS) to 1440p Low (162 FPS) is a 35% drop, which is almost entirely attributable to the increased GPU load. This shift confirms that at 1080p Low, the GPU has spare capacity, and the CPU is setting the pace. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is not a bottleneck at more demanding settings, as the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

The CPU's performance relative to its rivals, such as being 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14600K in average benchmark score, suggests it is a competitive part. In the context of The Technomancer, the data implies that the CPU is not a source of concern for achieving high frame rates. Even at 1080p Ultra, the system maintains an average of 127 FPS, which is a very strong result. The CPU's 24 MB of L3 cache and 3 MB per core L2 cache likely help with game logic and draw calls, ensuring that the GPU is consistently fed with data.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks 532nd out of 2825 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the top 20% of all configurations in the database, which is a solid result for a mid-to-high-end pairing. This ranking is a holistic measure that incorporates performance across all tested settings and resolutions, and it indicates that this combo provides a consistently strong experience in this game.

The ranking also suggests that while this is a powerful setup, there are many other combinations that deliver higher performance, likely featuring more powerful CPUs or GPUs. The data shows that the combo is well-balanced, as it does not fall into a trap of being severely limited by one component in most scenarios. The rank of 532 out of 2825 is a strong indicator that users of this hardware can expect a high level of performance, but it is not at the very top of the charts, which would be reserved for flagship components. This positioning is consistent with the hardware's own percentiles, with the CPU in the 90th percentile and the GPU in the 82nd percentile.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data across the three resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. Moving from 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS drops by roughly 35-40% across all settings. For example, the Medium preset drops from 191 FPS at 1080p to 125 FPS at 1440p, a 34.5% reduction. This is a significant drop, but it is expected as the GPU is rendering over 1.7 times the number of pixels.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is even more pronounced. The Medium preset drops from 125 FPS to 69 FPS, a 44.8% reduction. This steeper decline indicates that the game is becoming increasingly dependent on the GPU's raw pixel throughput and memory bandwidth at 4K. The 4K resolution has roughly 2.25 times the pixels of 1440p, but the frame rate does not drop by that factor, suggesting that the RTX 5070's 672.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth is sufficient to feed the GPU cores, and the bottleneck is the shading and rasterization power itself.

The data strongly implies that the GPU is the limiting component at 1440p and 4K, while the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p with lower settings. This is a classic sign of a well-matched system. The sharp performance cliffs, particularly the drop from High to Ultra at 4K (59 to 46 FPS), highlight that the Ultra preset is exceptionally demanding. This analysis shows that users should expect to scale their settings based on their resolution preference, with Medium being the "sweet spot" for higher resolutions and Ultra being reserved for 1080p.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 4K display with this hardware?

A: Based on the measured data, the Medium preset is the most suitable for 4K. It achieves an average of 69 FPS with a minimum of 58 FPS, which is a more stable and playable experience than the High preset's 59 FPS average. The Ultra preset, at 46 FPS, is not recommended for a smooth experience.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data indicates the CPU is the primary limiter at 1080p, especially on the Low preset, where the average FPS reaches 249. The frame rate does not increase proportionally with reduced graphical load, suggesting the CPU is reaching its limit in game logic and draw call processing.

Q: How many frames per second can I expect on the High preset at 1440p?

A: The measured average FPS for the High preset at 2560x1440 is 107. This provides a strong, high-refresh-rate experience that is well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Does this combination of CPU and GPU rank well against other tested systems?

A: Yes, this combo ranks 532nd out of 2825 tested combinations for The Technomancer. This places it in the top 20% of all configurations, indicating a high level of overall performance.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: The difference is substantial. The Low preset achieves an average of 249 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves 127 FPS. This represents a 122 FPS difference, or a 49% performance reduction for the highest visual quality settings.

Q: Is the frame rate consistent on the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: Yes, the data shows an average of 125 FPS with a minimum of 106 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. The 19 FPS gap between average and minimum suggests good frame pacing with no severe stutters.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact average frame rates measured for each resolution and settings combination. The data shows a consistent performance hierarchy.

| Resolution | Settings | Average FPS | Minimum FPS | Maximum FPS |

| :--------- | :------- | :---------- | :---------- | :---------- |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 46 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | High | 59 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 69 | 58 | 79 |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 89 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 83 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | High | 107 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 125 | 106 | 143 |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 162 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 127 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | High | 163 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 191 | 162 | 220 |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 249 | - | - |

This data confirms that the RTX 5070 is a powerful GPU, but its performance is heavily influenced by the chosen settings. The jump from Medium to Ultra at 4K results in a 23 FPS average drop, which is the largest single-setting penalty observed. This suggests that the Ultra preset may include rendering features that are particularly taxing on the GPU's resources at high resolutions. The minimum FPS data, available only for the Medium preset, indicates that this setting provides the most stable frame pacing across all resolutions, making it a reliable choice for consistent gameplay.