The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload that stresses both processor and graphics subsystems. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H paired with the AMD Radeon 8060S, using only the provided benchmark data to interpret how this combination handles the game across various resolutions and settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combined performance of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and AMD Radeon 8060S places this configuration at rank 1632 out of 2825 tested combos for The Technomancer. This position, falling just shy of the 58th percentile, indicates a mid-tier standing among all possible system pairings. The data suggests that while this combo is far from the top of the leaderboard, it also sits comfortably above the bottom quarter of tested systems.

Benchmark results show a clear pattern of capability that is heavily dependent on resolution and graphical fidelity. The combo's ranking reflects a system that can deliver playable frame rates at lower resolutions but begins to struggle as the pixel count and rendering load increase. At 1920x1080, the system achieves average frame rates well above playable thresholds on all settings, which likely contributes significantly to its overall position. However, the performance drop at 3840x2160, where even the lowest preset only manages 56 average FPS, demonstrates a hardware pairing that is primarily suited for 1080p or 1440p gaming.

The rank of 1632 must be interpreted as an aggregate score, hiding the variance across the twelve measured data points. The system’s strength is its ability to maintain high frame rates at 1080p, with a peak of 157 average FPS on Low settings. Its weakness is the precipitous decline at 4K, where the Ultra preset yields a mere 29 average FPS. This split personality is key to understanding where this combo fits: it is a capable 1080p performer, an adequate 1440p option, and a sub-optimal choice for 4K gaming with this specific title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon 8060S is the primary driver of The Technomancer's visual output, and its architecture and memory configuration dictate the system's performance ceiling. This GPU, based on the RDNA 3.5 architecture and built on a 4 nm process, features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units. Its peak theoretical performance is rated at 14.85 TFLOPS for FP32 operations, with a boost clock of 2900 MHz and a base clock of 1295 MHz.

The most defining characteristic of this GPU is its memory subsystem, which is entirely "System Shared." This means the Radeon 8060S does not have its own dedicated video memory; instead, it utilizes a portion of the system's main memory. The memory bus width and bandwidth are consequently listed as "System Shared" and "System Dependent," respectively. This architectural choice has a direct impact on performance, as the GPU's access to data is contingent on the speed and bandwidth of the system's DDR5 memory, which operates on a dual-channel bus with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s for the CPU.

This shared memory configuration explains the significant performance drops at higher resolutions. At 4K, the demand for texture data and frame buffer memory increases substantially. The shared memory bus becomes a bottleneck, as it must service both the CPU and GPU's data requests. Benchmark results support this theory, showing a 46% decrease in average FPS from 1080p High (103 FPS) to 4K High (37 FPS). The GPU's raw compute power, as evidenced by its 87th percentile ranking among all GPUs, is sufficient, but its memory architecture limits its ability to feed that compute power at higher resolutions. The GPU's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, has a dedicated 12 GB memory buffer, which likely provides a performance advantage in memory-intensive scenarios, despite the 8060S having a 0.1% higher average benchmark score.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combo in The Technomancer?

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution. The system achieves an average of 157 FPS on Low, 120 FPS on Medium, 103 FPS on High, and 80 FPS on Ultra at this resolution. All settings provide a smooth experience, with even the most demanding Ultra preset comfortably exceeding 60 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in The Technomancer?

A: The data indicates that 4K gaming is not a viable option for this combo. At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 56 on Low to 29 on Ultra. While the Low preset might be playable for some, the Medium preset (43 FPS) and High preset (37 FPS) fall below the 60 FPS threshold for a consistently smooth experience.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its competitors?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H has an average benchmark score of 35670, placing it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. Its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, has an average score of 35719, which is 0.1% higher. Other rivals like the Intel Core 7 250H (35728) and AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (35802) also perform within a 0.4% margin, indicating that this CPU is competitive with its peers.

Q: What is the GPU's performance ranking relative to other graphics cards?

A: The AMD Radeon 8060S is a high-performing integrated GPU, ranking in the 87th percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 55757 is remarkably close to the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, which scores 55698 (0.1% slower). It also outperforms the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 by 2.8%, which has an average score of 54247.

Q: Is there a significant performance difference between the Medium and High settings?

A: Yes, the performance difference is substantial. At 1080p, the average FPS drops from 120 on Medium to 103 on High, a 14% decrease. At 1440p, the drop is from 79 FPS to 67 FPS, a 15% decrease. This suggests that the High preset introduces a significantly heavier rendering load than Medium.

Q: How does the CPU's single-threaded performance compare to its multi-threaded performance?

A: The Core Ultra 9 185H shows strong multi-threaded capabilities, scoring 17984.5 in Cinebench R23 multi-core. Its single-core score in the same test is 1810.5. This indicates a balanced design, with the multi-core score being roughly 10 times higher, which is typical for a 16-core, 22-thread processor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for The Technomancer provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the system operates with high headroom. On the Low preset, it achieves an average of 157 FPS. Moving to Medium, the average drops to 120 FPS, with a minimum of 102 FPS and a maximum of 138 FPS. The High preset yields 103 FPS on average, while the Ultra preset, the most demanding, still manages an average of 80 FPS. All 1080p results are well above the 60 FPS target, indicating a fully playable experience at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down predictably. The Low preset delivers an average of 102 FPS, remaining very smooth. The Medium preset averages 79 FPS, with a recorded range between 67 and 90 FPS. The High preset drops to an average of 67 FPS, which is still playable but begins to show the system's limits. The Ultra preset falls to an average of 52 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for high-refresh-rate gaming but may still be acceptable for some players.

The 3840x2160 results demonstrate a significant performance bottleneck. The Low preset is the only option that approaches playability, with an average of 56 FPS. The Medium preset averages 43 FPS, with a minimum of 37 FPS and maximum of 50 FPS. The High preset averages 37 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 29 FPS. These figures show that the system is not suited for 4K gaming in this title, as even the lowest settings struggle to maintain a consistent 60 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

For the optimal balance of visual quality and performance, the High preset at 1920x1080 is the recommended configuration. This setting provides an average of 103 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. The jump from Medium to High is significant, and the 103 FPS average ensures that the game will run fluidly, even in demanding scenes. This combination offers a substantial visual upgrade over Medium without the performance cost seen at Ultra.

If a player prefers maximum visual fidelity, the Ultra preset at 1920x1080 is viable, with an average of 80 FPS. This provides a smooth experience and showcases the game's highest quality settings. However, the 23% performance drop from High to Ultra may not be worth the visual gains for all users.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the safest recommendation, delivering an average of 79 FPS. The High preset offers only 67 FPS on average, which is playable but leaves less margin for error in complex scenes. The Low preset, at 102 FPS, is suitable for competitive play but sacrifices visual detail. For 3840x2160, the data suggests that no preset provides a consistently good experience. The Low preset's 56 FPS average is the only option that approaches playability, but it does so with significant visual compromises, making 4K not recommended for this combo.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H serves as the central processor, and its capabilities are essential for feeding the GPU and handling game logic. This CPU, from the Core Ultra Series 1, features 16 cores and 22 threads, allowing for substantial parallel processing. It has a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. Its architecture, Meteor Lake, is built on a 7 nm process. The processor includes 24 MB of shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s.

The CPU's benchmark scores indicate a strong performer. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 17984.5, and its single-core score is 1810.5. In Geekbench, it scores 11657 in multi-core and 1794 in single-core. These results place the CPU in the 85th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35670. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, has a nearly identical score of 35719, showing a 0.1% difference. This level of performance is more than sufficient for The Technomancer, which is primarily a GPU-bound title.

The CPU's role becomes more critical at lower resolutions where the GPU can render frames faster. At 1080p Low, the 157 FPS average suggests the CPU is capable of handling the game's logic and draw calls without becoming a bottleneck. The 22 threads ensure that background tasks and the game's multi-threaded processes can run concurrently without significant contention. The CPU's high boost clock of 5.10 GHz also aids in single-threaded performance, which is often important for game logic. The data suggests that this CPU provides a solid foundation for the system, allowing the GPU to perform to its potential within the constraints of the shared memory architecture.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the system's primary bottleneck. At 1920x1080, the average FPS on High settings is 103. When moving to 2560x1440, the average drops to 67 FPS, a 35% decrease. Moving further to 3840x2160, the average plummets to 37 FPS, a 64% decrease from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline is far greater than what would be expected from the increase in pixel count alone, indicating that a component is being saturated.

The pattern is consistent across all settings. On Medium, the average FPS drops from 120 at 1080p to 79 at 1440p (34% decrease) and then to 43 at 4K (64% decrease from 1080p). This scaling behavior points directly to the GPU's memory architecture as the limiting factor. The AMD Radeon 8060S relies on system memory, which is shared with the CPU. As resolution increases, the demand for memory bandwidth grows exponentially. The "System Dependent" bandwidth of the GPU cannot keep pace with the increasing data requirements of higher resolutions.

The graph of performance shows a linear decline from 1080p to 1440p, followed by a steeper drop to 4K. This inflection point suggests that the memory subsystem becomes critically saturated at 4K resolutions. The GPU's compute capabilities, as evidenced by its high benchmark scores, are not the primary constraint. Instead, the inability to access data quickly enough from shared system memory limits its frame output. This analysis indicates that while the CPU and GPU are both powerful components, their combination in this configuration is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K performance hampered by the shared memory design.