The Technomancer

The Technomancer is a 2016 Action RPG that stresses both processor and graphics hardware, and the combination of the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile produces a specific, measurable performance profile. The data here is measured, not estimated, and it shows a system that can handle the game at 1080p with high refresh rates, but which begins to struggle as resolution climbs toward 4K. This analysis breaks down exactly what each component contributes, how the pair ranks against other tested combinations, and which settings deliver the best playable experience.

FAQ

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

A: 1920x1080 is clearly the sweet spot. At Low settings the average FPS is 124, at Medium it is 95, and at High it is 81. Even Ultra maintains a 64 FPS average. At 2560x1440, only Low (81 FPS) and Medium (62 FPS) stay above 60 FPS average, while 3840x2160 never reaches 60 FPS on any preset.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in raw compute performance?

A: The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H has an average benchmark score of 44466. Its closest competitor, the AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D, scores 44573, putting the Intel part just 0.2% behind. Conversely, it is 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i9-13950HX (44342) and 0.5% ahead of the Intel Core i5-13600 (44240). This places the CPU in the 88th percentile of all processors tested.

Q: Is the RTX 5050 Mobile more powerful than a desktop RTX 4070 SUPER?

A: No, according to average benchmark scores it is effectively tied. The RTX 5050 Mobile scores 43268, while the RTX 4070 SUPER scores 43223, a difference of just 0.1%. The mobile GPU also sits 0.9% behind the RTX 4090 Mobile (43667) and is essentially level with the Quadro M6000 24 GB (43262). It ranks in the 83rd percentile of all GPUs.

Q: What is the CPU's core and thread configuration?

A: The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H has 16 cores and 16 threads. It operates with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. The processor is built on Intel's 3 nm process and features 18 MB of shared L3 cache, with 192 KB of L1 and 3 MB of L2 per core.

Q: How much VRAM does the GPU have, and does it matter for The Technomancer?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile comes with 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth. For this game, the data shows that even at 4K Ultra the system runs, but average FPS drops to 23, suggesting the memory capacity is not the primary bottleneck at lower settings where the GPU's compute limits dominate.

Q: Which settings preset provides the highest average FPS at 1440p?

A: Low settings at 2560x1440 yields an average of 81 FPS. Medium settings average 62 FPS, High averages 53 FPS, and Ultra drops to 42 FPS. If targeting 60 FPS, Medium is the highest preset that achieves it at this resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra X9 388H is a 16-core, 16-thread mobile processor from the Core Ultra Series 3, based on the Panther Lake architecture. Its base clock of 2.10 GHz and boost clock of 5.10 GHz provide a wide operating range for both single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads. In The Technomancer, which is an Action RPG from 2016, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls, manage game logic, and handle AI routines. The measured data suggests the processor is more than sufficient for this task, as the FPS scaling across resolutions follows a GPU-bound pattern.

Benchmark results reinforce this. The CPU scores 18911 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2200.5 in single-core. In PassMark tests, it achieves 36811 in multithread performance and 4280 in single-thread performance. These numbers place the processor in the 88th percentile of all CPUs. Compared to its nearest rivals, the Core Ultra X9 388H is effectively tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D, showing a delta of -0.2% (the AMD part scores 44573 vs 44466). It edges out the Intel Core i9-13950HX by 0.3% and the Intel Core i5-13600 by 0.5%. The practical interpretation is that the CPU will not be the limiting factor in most gaming scenarios with this GPU.

The processor's 18 MB of shared L3 cache is substantial for a mobile chip, and the dual-channel LPDDR5X memory support with 153.6 GB/s bandwidth ensures that data can flow quickly to the cores. With 16 threads, the CPU can handle background tasks and game threads without contention. For The Technomancer, the FPS data shows no signs of CPU stutter or frame pacing issues, as the minimum FPS values recorded at Medium settings (29 at 4K, 53 at 1440p, 81 at 1080p) align closely with what would be expected from GPU limitations. The CPU's high single-core score of 2200.5 in R23 is particularly relevant for older game engines that rely heavily on fewer threads.

At 1080p Low, the average FPS of 124 suggests that the CPU is capable of pushing very high frame rates when the GPU is not stressed. Even at 1080p Ultra, the average of 64 FPS indicates that the CPU can maintain playable performance without dropping below a threshold that would cause noticeable hitches. The processor's 16 cores, while not hyper-threaded (16 threads equals 16 cores), provide ample parallel processing for modern operating systems and any background applications. For a game like The Technomancer, the CPU's performance is effectively a non-issue; the bottleneck at higher resolutions is clearly the GPU.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on TSMC's 5 nm process. It features 2560 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, along with 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores. The chip is GB207, with 16,900 million transistors on a 149 mm² die. Clock speeds are set at a base of 1020 MHz and a boost of 1500 MHz. The memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This configuration yields 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 compute.

In The Technomancer, the GPU's role is dominant. The FPS measurements show a clear scaling pattern: as resolution increases, average FPS drops proportionally, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1920x1080, the RTX 5050 Mobile delivers 81 FPS on High, 95 on Medium, and 124 on Low. Moving to 2560x1440, those numbers fall to 53, 62, and 81 respectively. At 3840x2160, the GPU manages only 29 FPS on High, 34 on Medium, and 45 on Low. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 64 FPS at 1080p, 42 at 1440p, and 23 at 4K.

The GPU's benchmark scores corroborate its mid-range positioning. It scores 2365 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 84171 in Geekbench OpenCL. Its average benchmark score is 43268, placing it in the 83rd percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals are telling: the RTX 5050 Mobile is 0.1% ahead of the desktop RTX 4070 SUPER (43223) and 0.9% behind the RTX 4090 Mobile (43667). This indicates that the mobile 5050 punches well above its weight class, likely due to the efficiency of the Blackwell architecture and the fast GDDR7 memory. However, the 8 GB VRAM capacity, while sufficient for The Technomancer's 2016-era textures, might be a limiting factor in more modern titles.

The 1500 MHz boost clock is modest compared to desktop counterparts, but the 384.0 GB/s bandwidth helps maintain throughput. The pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s are adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming. For The Technomancer, the GPU's performance at 1080p High (81 FPS) is ideal for a 75Hz or 144Hz display, while 1440p Medium (62 FPS) is acceptable for a 60Hz monitor. The 4K results, with 45 FPS on Low and 23 on Ultra, are not suitable for smooth gameplay, indicating that the GPU lacks the raw fill rate for 4K at high settings. The data suggests that the RTX 5050 Mobile is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p with medium-to-high presets.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested CPU and GPU combinations for The Technomancer, this pairing of Intel Core Ultra X9 388H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile ranks 2963 out of 3696 total combos. This places it in the bottom 20% of all tested configurations. That ranking might seem low given the individual component percentiles (CPU 88th, GPU 83rd), but it reflects the fact that The Technomancer is an older title that may favor certain architectures or drivers. The rank of 2963 out of 3696 means that 733 other combinations performed better in this specific game.

The combo's ranking is not a reflection of the hardware's overall capability, but rather its specific performance in this game. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p, the combo performs well, with 81 FPS on High and 64 on Ultra. At 1440p, it drops to 53 FPS on High and 42 on Ultra. These figures are playable but not exceptional. The rank of 2963 suggests that many other combos, likely those with higher-end desktop GPUs or CPUs with better single-thread performance, achieve higher frame rates in The Technomancer.

It is important to interpret this rank in context. The combo is in the 80th percentile of all CPUs and 83rd percentile of all GPUs, yet it ranks in the 20th percentile of game-specific combos. This discrepancy could be due to the game's engine being less optimized for mobile hardware or the specific driver version used during testing. The data shows that the combo is capable of 124 FPS at 1080p Low, which is a high refresh rate, but the Ultra preset at 4K yields only 23 FPS. The rank reflects the average performance across all settings and resolutions, and the 4K results likely drag down the overall standing.

For a builder considering this combo, the rank suggests that The Technomancer is not a title where this hardware excels relative to other tested combos. However, the absolute numbers are still playable at 1080p and 1440p. The rank of 2963 out of 3696 also implies that there are many combos that do worse, and the fact that it is in the 20th percentile means it outperforms 80% of tested systems in this game. The key takeaway is that this is a mid-pack performer for The Technomancer, with the GPU being the primary limiter at high resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo in The Technomancer depends heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. At 1920x1080, the High preset offers 81 FPS average, which is smooth on a standard 60Hz display and acceptable on a 144Hz monitor. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 64 FPS, which is still playable but offers diminishing returns for the visual upgrade. For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance at 1080p, High is the recommended preset, as it maintains a high frame rate while still providing enhanced textures and effects over Medium.

At 2560x1440, the situation changes. The High preset averages 53 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset averages 62 FPS, which is just above 60 and provides a stable experience. The Low preset at 1440p averages 81 FPS, but the visual quality drop is significant. For 1440p, Medium is the recommended setting, as it keeps the average FPS above 60 while avoiding the visual degradation of Low. The Ultra preset at 1440p (42 FPS) is not recommended for a smooth experience, as it will feel stuttery in fast-paced combat.

At 3840x2160, none of the presets achieve a playable frame rate. The Low preset averages 45 FPS, which is borderline but may dip below 30 in heavy scenes. The Medium preset averages 34 FPS, and High averages 29 FPS. Ultra averages 23 FPS, which is unplayable. For 4K, the recommendation is to avoid it entirely or use Low settings with a 30 FPS cap if absolutely necessary. The data shows that the RTX 5050 Mobile is not suited for 4K gaming in The Technomancer, and users should target 1080p or 1440p instead.

For the best overall experience, the data points to 1080p High (81 FPS) or 1440p Medium (62 FPS). The 1080p High setting provides the smoothest gameplay with good visual quality, while 1440p Medium offers a higher resolution with a slightly lower frame rate. If a user has a 120Hz or 144Hz monitor, 1080p Low (124 FPS) is the only preset that can fully utilize the refresh rate. The measured minimum FPS values at Medium settings (81 at 1080p, 53 at 1440p, 29 at 4K) indicate that the frame time consistency is good, with no severe dips beyond what the average suggests.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for The Technomancer with this combo spans three resolutions and four settings presets, providing a complete picture of performance scaling.

At 3840x2160, the results are as follows: Ultra averages 23 FPS, High averages 29 FPS, Medium averages 34 FPS with a minimum of 29 and maximum of 39, and Low averages 45 FPS. The gap between Ultra and Low is 22 FPS, representing a 95% increase in performance when dropping from the highest to lowest preset. The Medium preset's minimum of 29 FPS is close to its average of 34, indicating stable frame pacing but an overall low performance level. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed, and even Low settings cannot reach 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the averages improve significantly. Ultra averages 42 FPS, High averages 53 FPS, Medium averages 62 FPS with a minimum of 53 and maximum of 72, and Low averages 81 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 53 FPS is notably lower than its average, suggesting occasional dips during intense scenes, but the 62 FPS average is acceptable for 60Hz displays. The jump from Ultra to Medium is 20 FPS (48% improvement), while Low adds another 19 FPS over Medium (31% improvement). This resolution shows a more balanced scaling, with Low providing near-100 FPS performance and Medium hitting the 60 FPS target.

At 1920x1080, the performance is at its best. Ultra averages 64 FPS, High averages 81 FPS, Medium averages 95 FPS with a minimum of 81 and maximum of 110, and Low averages 124 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 81 FPS is higher than the High preset's average, indicating that Medium offers very consistent frame times. The scaling from Ultra to Low is a 60 FPS increase (94% improvement). At 1080p, the combo is capable of high refresh rate gaming, with Low exceeding 120 FPS and Medium approaching 100 FPS. High at 81 FPS is a solid choice for 75Hz or 144Hz displays, while Ultra at 64 FPS is still smooth for most players.

Comparing across resolutions, the 1080p Medium result (95 FPS) is 53% faster than the 1440p Medium result (62 FPS), which is 82% faster than the 4K Medium result (34 FPS). This scaling is consistent with GPU-bound behavior. The 1080p Low result (124 FPS) is the highest measured FPS, while the 4K Ultra result (23 FPS) is the lowest. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with acceptable 1440p performance on Medium settings, and unusable 4K performance on any preset. The lack of min/max data for most settings limits deeper frame time analysis, but the available Medium preset data suggests stable performance with occasional dips at higher resolutions.