The first half of 2025 turned out to be generous with high-profile game releases. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, a rollicking game about the Czech Middle Ages, Assassins Creed Shadows, a samurai stealth action game, InZOI (a South Korean Sims competitor). And there’s also Clair Obscure Expedition 33 (a French JRPG) and techno-fantasy shooter Doom Dark Ages ahead. In order to play all this at ultra-high and on a 4K monitor, you will need a processor and graphics card of the latest generations: Intel Core Ultra 200 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5000.
Intel Core Ultra 5 245k-overclocking Arrow Lake architecture processor with unlocked multiplier, 6+8 cores configuration, Turbo Boost frequency up to 5.2 GHz and 14 TOPS neuromodule for Microsoft Copilot AI-assistant. Intel not only changed the naming from Core i5 to Ultra 5, but also dropped Hyper-Threading virtual threads. The last time this happened was as long as 19 years ago with the Core 2 Duo. This improves game performance provided that developers have added Intel APO (Application Optimisation) technology to a particular game.
Then the game will prioritise the use of powerful P-Core cores, and additional power-saving E-Core cores will be responsible for undemanding background tasks: music player, messengers, antivirus. Integrated video card Iris Xe 64 EU is useful in video editing, because Quick Sync encoder can work simultaneously with CUDA. The Intel Core Ultra 200 series marked the transition to the new LGA 1851 processor socket.At its native frequency, the Ultra 5 245k emits a moderate 160W of heat, but after manual overclocking it can go over 200W, so you need an air supercooler or SRO.
The Zalman Alpha2 DS A24 is a dual-section liquid cooler with an LCD screen that magnetises to the pump cover or anywhere on the PC case. Diagonal 2.7 inches, resolution 320×320 pixels, ability to change the tilt angle. ZM-OZ proprietary application shows on the screen fan speed, temperature, frequency and percentage of CPU load. All this is displayed on the background of a static picture or looped video. The ARGB backlighting of the six fans connected to the waterpump controller is also customisable in the app.
An innovative pump separates the inlet and outlet refrigerant streams to reduce stress on the ceramic bearing. The base is made of pure copper and supports current AMD AM5 and Intel LGA 1851 platforms. The hoses are protected from kinking by nylon weave and rubber anti-vibration Separator Clamps. A duo of fans with aerodynamic teeth on Shark Fin blades are connected to each other with Daisy Chain. There is a choice of black and white models, as well as a three-piece Alpha2 DS A36.
Patriot Viper Xtreme 5 RGB MPower (model code PVXR548G80C38KM) is a paired cat of 2x24GB non-binary DDR5 RAM with an ultra-high frequency of 8000MHz. Unlike the regular Xtreme 5 with black heatsinks, the silver MPower version is designed in conjunction with Micro Star International. The RGB lighting is synchronised with other PC components via the MSI Mystic Light app. At the factory, the memory is manually checked to ensure that it matches the stated frequency, but 8000 MHz can only run the most successful instances of Intel Core processors.
That’s why the SPD chip has two alternative XMP profiles: 7800 and 7600 MHz. The PMIC chip is responsible for even distribution of power between two virtual channels (ranks) on one physical module: voltage 1.45 V, timings CL38. The memory is also equipped with On-Die ECC controller for read-write error correction and thermal sensor. If the modules are installed in neighbouring DIMM slots instead of through one, they can get significantly heated, which is not surprising at such a high frequency. However, Patriot Memory provides a lifetime warranty.
Inno3D GeForce RTX 5080 X3 OC is a pre-flagship video card of the Blackwell family (in honour of American mathematician David Blackwell) with almost 11 thousand CUDA microkernels and progressive GDDR7 memory. Software innovations were DLSS 4 upscaling with quadruple frame generation and neural shaders for texture compression. This explains the unchanged amount of video memory compared to RTX 4080, similar to 16 GB, which is enough even for 4K-gaming. But power consumption has increased: NVIDIA recommends a 750W PSU, while Inno3D recommends 850W for the OC version.
In case your power supply doesn’t have a modern 16-pin cable, an adapter of three 6+2-pin connectors was thoughtfully put in the box with the video card. The two and a half thick aluminium heatsink is permeated with seven heat pipes and an evaporation chamber, which is twice as efficient as a solid copper contact plate. Two of the three 9cm diameter fans rotate anti-clockwise to eliminate air swirls