Thief

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a compelling performance profile in Thief, a 2014 stealth title that remains demanding at higher resolutions. The data shows a system capable of high refresh rates at 1080p and 1440p, while 4K Ultra settings push it to the edge of smooth playability. This analysis breaks down the measured results, contextualizes them against rival hardware, and provides actionable settings guidance based solely on the provided metrics.

FAQ

*Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU and GPU combination in Thief?*

A: The combo ranks 607th out of 3720 tested combinations, placing it in the top 16.3% of all systems evaluated for this game.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX has an average benchmark score of 63173. This puts it 0.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-13790F, 0.5% ahead of the AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P185, and 0.7% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX. It trails the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450G by 0.2%.

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

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 holds an 87th percentile ranking among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score is 56083, which is 0.6% higher than the AMD Radeon 8060S and 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, while being 2.2% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE.

Q: What is the maximum average FPS recorded in the measured data?

A: The highest average FPS is 224, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. The next highest is 190 FPS at the same resolution with Medium settings.

Q: At which resolution and settings does the system fail to maintain 60 FPS on average?

A: At 3840x2160 (4K) resolution, the system falls below 60 FPS average on both High (58 FPS) and Ultra (56 FPS) settings. The Medium preset at 4K manages to stay above at 77 FPS.

Q: What is the boost clock speed of the processor in this test system?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX has a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, with a base clock of 2.60 GHz. It features 20 cores and 20 threads.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the primary driver of frame rates in Thief, especially at higher resolutions. Based on the measured data, the GPU's 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for the game's demands, as evidenced by the consistent performance scaling across settings.

The GPU's clock speeds are substantial, with a base of 2295 MHz and a boost of 2617 MHz. These clocks, combined with 10752 shading units, allow for significant rasterization throughput. The data shows that at 1080p, the GPU is capable of pushing frame rates from 138 FPS on Ultra to 224 FPS on Low, indicating that the graphics card is not the limiting factor at this resolution. It is the change in resolution that reveals the GPU's workload.

At 4K, the performance drop is pronounced. The average FPS at Ultra is 56, and at High it is 58. This narrow gap between High and Ultra at 4K, compared to the larger gap at lower resolutions, suggests that the GPU is becoming saturated. The 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is being fully utilized, and the data indicates that the RTX 5080 is the bottleneck for achieving higher frame rates at 4K Ultra. The transition from Medium (77 FPS) to High (58 FPS) at 4K demonstrates a steep performance cost for the incremental visual upgrade.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combo rank of 607 out of 3720 tested systems, this configuration sits firmly in the upper echelon of performers in Thief. This ranking is a holistic measure that incorporates both the CPU and GPU strengths. The processor's 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs and the graphics card's 87th percentile ranking contribute to a system that excels in this title.

The data suggests that the CPU is a particularly strong partner. Its average benchmark score of 63173 is nearly identical to its closest rival, the Intel Core i7-13790F, which scores 63080. This 0.1% delta means the two are effectively tied in synthetic tests. However, the combo rank in Thief is what matters for in-game performance, and this system's position in the 607th spot out of 3720 indicates it outpaces the vast majority of other hardware pairings.

The GPU's standing among its peers also supports this high rank. The RTX 5080's average score of 56083 is slightly ahead of the AMD Radeon 8060S (55757) but behind the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE (57367). Despite not being the absolute top scorer in its class, the combination with the 265HX yields a top-16% result in Thief. This implies that the pairing is well-balanced for this specific game, with neither component severely bottlenecking the other in a way that would drag the overall rank down.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally fast. The Low preset delivers an average of 224 FPS, while Medium drops to 190 FPS with a minimum of 161 and maximum of 218. High settings yield 145 FPS, and Ultra produces 138 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 1080p is only 7 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset is not significantly more demanding in this scenario.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains high but scales down proportionally. Low settings average 172 FPS, Medium averages 130 FPS (min 111, max 150), High averages 99 FPS, and Ultra averages 95 FPS. Again, the gap between High and Ultra is minimal (4 FPS), indicating that the extra visual fidelity from Ultra comes at a small cost relative to the jump from Medium to High, which costs 31 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the system begins to show its limits. The Low preset averages 101 FPS, which is still very playable. Medium averages 77 FPS with a minimum of 65 and maximum of 88. High settings drop to 58 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 56 FPS. This is the only resolution where the average FPS for High and Ultra presets dips below the 60 FPS threshold, making those settings marginal for a smooth experience. The data shows a clear trend: the performance cost of each settings tier increases with resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates where the system's bottleneck lies. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 224. At 1440p Low, it drops to 172 FPS, a 23.2% decrease. At 4K Low, it falls to 101 FPS, a 54.9% decrease from 1080p. This pattern is consistent across all settings.

For the Ultra preset, the scaling is even more pronounced. From 138 FPS at 1080p, performance drops to 95 FPS at 1440p (a 31.2% decrease) and then to 56 FPS at 4K (a 59.4% decrease from 1080p). This performance degradation is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. As the resolution increases, the number of pixels the RTX 5080 must render grows exponentially, putting more strain on its 10752 shading units and 112 ROPs.

The data indicates that the Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX is not the limiting factor in this scaling. The consistent and predictable drop in FPS with resolution suggests that the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see less of a performance difference between 1080p and 1440p, as the CPU would cap the frame rate regardless of resolution. Instead, the frame rates scale directly with pixel count, confirming that the RTX 5080 is the component determining performance at higher resolutions. The 960.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth is also a factor, as higher resolutions require more data to be fed to the GPU, but the compute units are clearly the main constraint given the magnitude of the FPS drops.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX plays a supporting role in Thief, providing ample computational headroom for the GPU to operate. With 20 cores and 20 threads, this processor is well-equipped for modern workloads. Its architecture, Arrow Lake-HX, is built on a 3 nm process node, which contributes to its efficiency and performance.

The CPU's benchmark scores are robust. In Cinebench R23, it scores 40642 in multi-core and 5737 in single-core. These results place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, indicating that it is a top-tier mobile processor. The high single-core performance is particularly relevant for gaming, as many game engines, including the one powering Thief, rely heavily on a few threads for physics, AI, and game logic.

In this system, the CPU's power is evident in the 1080p results. At 1920x1080 Low, the system achieves 224 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that demands significant CPU input to feed the GPU. The fact that the system can maintain these high averages without the CPU becoming a bottleneck suggests that the 5.30 GHz boost clock and the 30 MB of shared L3 cache are more than sufficient for the game's requirements. The data shows that the CPU is not holding back performance, as the FPS scaling is consistently tied to GPU load via resolution. The CPU's 102.4 GB/s memory bandwidth also ensures that data can be fed to the GPU without stalling, allowing the RTX 5080 to work at its full potential.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user's resolution and performance priorities. For users with a 1920x1080 display, the Ultra preset is highly recommended. The data shows an average of 138 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. The difference between Ultra and High at this resolution is only 7 FPS, so opting for the highest visual quality is a sensible choice with minimal performance cost.

At 2560x1440, the High preset offers the best balance for a 60+ FPS experience, averaging 99 FPS. The Ultra preset is also viable, averaging 95 FPS, but the 4 FPS gain from High to Ultra is negligible. Given that the Medium preset averages 130 FPS, users with high-refresh-rate 1440p monitors might prefer Medium to push frame rates above 120 FPS. However, for a strictly visual experience, High or Ultra will provide excellent fidelity without dropping below 90 FPS.

The 3840x2160 resolution presents the most significant challenge. The Medium preset is the recommended choice, as it averages 77 FPS with a minimum of 65 FPS, ensuring a consistently smooth experience. The High and Ultra presets average 58 and 56 FPS respectively, which dips below the 60 FPS target and may result in noticeable stutter or a less fluid experience. The Low preset at 4K achieves 101 FPS, but the visual degradation is likely too severe for a game like Thief which relies on atmosphere. Therefore, the data supports Medium as the sweet spot for 4K, providing a substantial improvement over Low while maintaining playable frame rates.