Undisputed

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 combination delivers a high-refresh-rate experience in Undisputed, though the data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases. Measured results show this pairing is exceptionally strong at 1080p, but the GPU begins to dominate performance at 4K, making settings choices critical for maintaining smooth gameplay.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, confirming that the RTX 3080 is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 359 FPS at 1920x1080 to 164 FPS at 3840x2160 — a 54% reduction. This dramatic scaling indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is feeding frames faster than the GPU can render them, while at 4K the workload shifts almost entirely to the graphics card.

The pattern holds across all presets. With High settings, average FPS drops from 214 at 1080p to 154 at 1440p, then plunges to 98 at 4K. The Medium preset shows a similar trajectory: 258 FPS at 1080p, 187 at 1440p, and 118 at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, scaling from 137 FPS at 1080p down to 99 at 1440p and finally 63 at 4K.

The delta between 1080p and 1440p is smaller than the delta between 1440p and 4K, which is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. For example, at High settings, moving from 1080p to 1440p costs 60 FPS (214 to 154), while moving from 1440p to 4K costs another 56 FPS (154 to 98). This suggests that the 1440p resolution is the sweet spot where the CPU and GPU are more balanced, while 4K pushes the RTX 3080 to its limits.

At 1080p Low, the 359 FPS result is so high that it exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors, indicating the CPU is capable of pushing far more frames than necessary. The 24-core, 24-thread Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus with its 5.80 GHz boost clock clearly has headroom at lower resolutions. The data shows that the CPU's performance ceiling is not the bottleneck until the GPU is fully saturated at 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 brings 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus, delivering 760.3 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for Undisputed at the tested settings, though the 4K Ultra result of 63 FPS suggests the card is working near its capacity. The GPU's boost clock of 1710 MHz and 8704 shading units provide the raw compute power, but the scaling data indicates that memory bandwidth is not the limiting factor — raw rasterization performance is.

The RTX 3080's 68 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are present, but Undisputed is a sports title that likely does not heavily utilize ray tracing or DLSS. The benchmark results show a clear linear relationship between preset quality and FPS, which points to traditional shading and fill-rate limits rather than specialized hardware features. The GPU's 164.2 GPixel/s pixel rate and 465.1 GTexel/s texture rate are the specs that matter most for this game's rendering workload.

At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. The jump from Low (164 FPS) to Medium (118 FPS) costs 46 FPS, while the jump from Medium to High (98 FPS) costs another 20 FPS. The Ultra preset at 63 FPS is nearly half the Low preset's performance, demonstrating how sensitive the RTX 3080 is to the increased shading and texture work at 4K. This is a classic Ampere-generation behavior — the card has plenty of bandwidth but finite compute resources.

The GPU's 68th percentile ranking among all GPUs places it in the upper-midrange tier. Its nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the NVIDIA P106-100 (0.3% lower average score) and AMD Radeon RX 6600M (0.4% lower), which are not direct competitors in real-world gaming. This suggests the RTX 3080's synthetic benchmark score is somewhat misleading for gaming — its actual performance in Undisputed is strong, but the card is now several generations old and its 10 GB VRAM may become a concern in future titles.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 764th out of 2813 tested combinations in Undisputed, placing it in the top 27% of all systems. This is a respectable position, but it is not elite. The ranking reflects the balance between the high-end CPU and the mid-to-high-end GPU. The CPU alone sits in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 68th percentile, so the overall combo rank is dragged down by the graphics card.

The CPU's nearest rivals provide context for its performance. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285K scores 0.2% higher in average benchmarks, making the 290K Plus essentially a sidegrade. The AMD EPYC 4584PX is 1.1% faster, and the AMD EPYC 9135 is 1.2% faster, though these are server-class chips that are not relevant for gaming. The AMD EPYC 7F72 is 1.3% slower. These deltas show that the 290K Plus is at the top of the desktop heap, but it does not have a decisive lead over its immediate predecessor.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals are all lower-tier cards. The NVIDIA P106-100, AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16, and AMD Radeon RX 6600M all score within 0.4% of the RTX 3080 in synthetic benchmarks. This is surprising, as these cards are not gaming equivalents in practice. The RTX 3080's 25086 Passmark G3D score is strong, but the fact that it is closely matched by much weaker cards in the database suggests that the synthetic benchmark does not fully capture gaming performance.

The 764th rank out of 2813 combos means there are 2049 combinations that perform better in Undisputed. This is expected, given that the RTX 3080 is an end-of-life product from 2020. The CPU has headroom to support a faster GPU, so users looking to improve this combo should focus on the graphics card rather than the processor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers excellent performance across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 359 FPS, which is far beyond any display's refresh rate. Medium settings average 258 FPS with a minimum of 219 and maximum of 297, providing a comfortable margin for high-refresh monitors. High settings average 214 FPS, still well above 144 Hz. Ultra settings average 137 FPS, which is playable on 144 Hz displays but does not fully saturate them.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but starts to show the GPU's limits. Low settings average 259 FPS, a 28% drop from 1080p. Medium settings average 187 FPS with a minimum of 159 and maximum of 215, which is solid for 144 Hz gaming. High settings average 154 FPS, still comfortable for high-refresh displays. Ultra settings average 99 FPS, which is just below the 100 FPS threshold that many gamers consider the minimum for smooth play.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the limiting factor. Low settings average 164 FPS, which is surprisingly strong for 4K. Medium settings average 118 FPS with a minimum of 100 and maximum of 136, providing a playable experience on 120 Hz displays. High settings average 98 FPS, which is borderline for 100 Hz monitors. Ultra settings average 63 FPS, which is playable but may feel less smooth for competitive play. The minimum FPS data is only available for Medium settings at each resolution, and the 100 FPS minimum at 4K Medium shows that the frame pacing is consistent.

Settings Recommendations

The data clearly indicates that Medium settings at 4K provide the best balance of visual quality and performance. The 118 FPS average with a 100 FPS minimum ensures smooth gameplay even in intense boxing exchanges. Moving to High settings drops the average to 98 FPS, which is still playable but leaves less headroom for drops. Ultra settings at 63 FPS are not recommended for competitive play.

At 1440p, High settings are the sweet spot. The 154 FPS average provides excellent smoothness on 144 Hz displays, and the visual upgrade from Medium is noticeable. Ultra settings at 99 FPS are also viable if visual fidelity is the priority, but the 154 FPS High setting offers a better experience for most players.

At 1080p, the choice depends on the display. For 144 Hz monitors, High settings at 214 FPS are ideal, leaving plenty of headroom. For 240 Hz monitors, Medium settings at 258 FPS are better, as they push closer to the display's refresh rate. Ultra settings at 137 FPS are playable but do not take full advantage of the CPU's capabilities.

The Low preset is only recommended for maximum frame rate, but the data shows that even Low at 4K (164 FPS) exceeds what most 4K displays can show. For most players, Medium at 4K or High at 1440p offers the best experience per the measured rows.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: Yes, the measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 63 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold. However, the margin is thin, and there is no minimum FPS data for that preset to confirm it never dips below 60.

Q: What is the best resolution for a 144 Hz monitor?

A: At 1440p, High settings deliver 154 FPS average, which is above 144 Hz. At 1080p, High settings deliver 214 FPS, also above 144 Hz. The choice depends on whether you prefer higher resolution or higher frame rate.

Q: How does the CPU compare to the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K?

A: The 290K Plus has an average benchmark score of 84003, while the 285K scores 83807. The 290K Plus is 0.2% faster, which is a negligible difference in real-world gaming.

Q: Is the 10 GB VRAM enough for this game at 4K?

A: The measured results show playable frame rates at 4K across all settings, with the lowest being 63 FPS at Ultra. The 760.3 GB/s memory bandwidth appears sufficient for Undisputed's requirements at these settings.

Q: What is the GPU's ranking among all GPUs?

A: The RTX 3080 is in the 68th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database are the NVIDIA P106-100 and AMD Radeon RX 6600M, which score within 0.4% in synthetic benchmarks.

Q: Can this combo handle 1080p Medium at 240 Hz?

A: The measured 258 FPS average at 1080p Medium is above 240 Hz, with a minimum of 219 FPS. This means the combo can maintain frame rates above 240 Hz most of the time, though occasional drops below that threshold may occur.