Gameplay Performance – 4K
On this page, we will be testing 4K resolution game performance on the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE video card. We will test both 4K native resolution, as well as DLSS Upscaling performance using the “Quality” DLSS preset on NVIDIA GPUs. For comparison, we will be comparing the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 FE, and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX, which will utilize FSR Upscaling. In the graphs, focus on the performance uplift of the RTX 5090 over the RTX 4090, as well as the performance uplift that Upscaling provides over Native resolution at 4K. Games are organized alphabetically, and all games are run with the highest quality settings, Ray Tracing and Frame Generation will be tested on separate pages.
Alan Wake 2
In Alan Wake 2 we are running the game at 4K native resolution at the “High” game preset, which is almost the highest possible game settings, but Ray Tracing is disabled. We are performing a manual run-through in the game. We can see that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE provides a playable experience at 94FPS without the need for upscaling. This improves upon the GeForce RTX 4090 with a 28% performance increase and a 79% performance improvement over the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. When we add Upscaling into the mix, the RTX 5090 can reach up to 145FPS, an improvement of 54% over native resolution.
Black Myth: Wukong
In Black Myth: Wukong, we are running the game at 4K with the highest “Cinematic” quality setting, but Ray Tracing is disabled. We are running the built-in benchmark, which is very representative of actual gameplay performance on GPUs. In this game, it is very demanding at 4K and Cinematic quality, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is not able to achieve 60FPS average at 4K even, it comes a lot closer than the RTX 4090, but it will still require Upscaling to be enabled to actually be playable. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE ends up performing 33% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090, and 90% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE with Upscaling improves performance over native resolution by 51%, and this allows it to be very playable with an average in the 80’s of FPS.
Because performance at 4K was so demanding, we also decided to drop the game down to 1440p native resolution also on “Cinematic” to see if it would be playable. At 1440p we find both the GeForce RTX 4090 FE and GeForce RTX 5090 FE provide a playable experience at 1440p, though the RTX 5090 is much smoother and faster, and playable without Upscaling. At 1440p the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is a lesser 25% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090, however, it looses potential at 1440p compared to 4K. It’s also a lesser 73% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX at 1440p, again less than it was at 4K. With Upscaling enabled performance increases 28%, again less than 4K, but it does allow up to 100FPS of gameplay performance.
Cyberpunk 2077
In Cyberpunk 2077 we are running the game at 4K with “Ultra” settings, and we are using the built-in benchmark. In this game, both the GeForce RTX 4090 and GeForce RTX 5090 are very playable well above 60FPS at 4K, even the RTX 7900 XTX is playable as well. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE takes the cake though, offering well over 100FPS at 4K with “Ultra” settings. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is a whopping 48% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090, this is the highest result in all of our benchmarks, and this is raster at native resolution. It is 76% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. With Upscaling enabled, performance increases by a smaller 18%, but that takes us over 120FPS.
Dying Light 2
In Dying Light 2 we are running at 4K with the highest in-game settings, without Ray Tracing, and we are running in the DX12 path with ASYNC enabled. This game performs very well on all the video cards, each one is playable at 4K with the highest settings. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE offers the fastest performance and is 36% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090 in performance, and 80% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. With Upscaling enabled performance increases by 38% and we are over 200FPS in this game, wow.
F1 24
In F1 24, we are running the game at 4K with the highest settings, but Ray Tracing is disabled. We are using the built-in benchmark. This game performs exceptionally well on all the video cards here at the highest settings, and each is playable without the need for Upscaling. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is the fastest and ends up being just 19% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090 and 51% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. Upscaling provides a small 11% performance increase. Take note that it is very likely that we are encountering a CPU bottleneck in this game, even with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, the CPU is ultimately holding back the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE’s maximum potential of performance, it is not completely utilized here in raster performance even at 4K, hence the advantages not being as great.
Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Forbidden West is another example where even the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is potentially holding back the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE’s maximum performance. In Horizon Forbidden West, we are running at 4K with the highest settings and using a long manual run-through. All of the video cards are playable without Upscaling, but the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is the fastest. In this game, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is 22% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090 and 56% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. With Upscaling enabled performance increases by 25%. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is potentially being held back by the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and thus could be faster, with a faster CPU in the future.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
In Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, we are running the game at 4K with the highest image quality preset of “Supreme” on all video cards. We are using a manual run-through in an open area with plenty of lighting. This game is playable on each video card at 4K and “Supreme” settings, even the Radeon RX 7900 XTX has performance well over 60FPS, but the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is the fastest. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is though only 19% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090, and 61% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. With Upscaling enabled performance increases by 20%. This is again another example of potential CPU bottlenecking on the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. The CPU just isn’t fast enough to realize the full potential of performance with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE in raster performance, faster CPUs in the future could widen this result.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
In Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, we are running this game at 4K and using the “Epic” quality setting, which is the highest quality setting in the game. We are using a long manual through in an area that is more GPU-dependent, and not CPU-dependent, i.e., not in a village or town where NPCs cause a huge CPU drain, our run-through focuses on a GPU-dependent area outside of those villages. In this game, it is quite demanding, the Radeon RX 7900 XTX is not playable without Upscaling. The GeForce RTX 4090 is right on the line of being playable without Upscaling, though Upscaling certainly smooths it out much better. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is very playable without Upscaling, however, at 81FPS average, you don’t really need to enable Upsclaing, it is beautiful and fast.
We find that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE is 20% faster than the GeForce RTX 4090 and 66% faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX. Enabling Upscaling improves performance by 31% and brings it over 100FPS at 4K. Even though we’ve selected a more GPU-driven run-through, ultimately we still think the CPU is holding the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE back in this game even at 4K and Epic settings. This game is very reliant on CPU performance regardless, and we think that future, faster CPUs, will widen the performance advantage of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 FE in this game.