The Game Rundown: Finding CPU/GPU Bottlenecks, Part 2

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We're back with Part 2 of our bottleneck exploration in a mainstream gaming PC equipped with a Core i5 and GeForce GTX 460, ready to dive into test results from ten additional games. All of the results are summarized and analyzed in our conclusion.

StarCraft II

If you play StarCraft II with a single-core CPU, you won't get the most out of a GeForce GTX 460. The game is rather content with a dual-core CPU, and while it leverages a quad-core CPU, only two of the cores are fully utilized, with graphics card utilization climbing from 93 to 96 percent. Overclocking yields a slight decrease in frame rates. This brings CPU utilization down somewhat, while graphics card utilization goes up to 97 percent.

We're a bit low on graphics card memory reserves with the 768 MB GeForce GTX 460, as StarCraft II guzzles 611 MB, despite the lack of AA. To get more out of this game, you should upgrade to a dual-core CPU and then focus on the graphics card. Fortunately, an upgrade doesn't make much sense for StarCraft II. Frame rates are smooth with a dual-core CPU and an Nvidia GTX 460, even in single-player or replay mode.