Should we consider a CPU upgrade?
Should we consider a CPU upgrade?
Upgrade to what? The current setup works just fine. There isn't a significantly faster CPU available at 5GHz for gaming. AMD is still lagging in clock speeds, and Intel hasn't caught up in performance per instruction. In fact, most games won't notice more than a tiny FPS difference between 9 GHz and 10 GHz. It would be a poor investment.
I think the 8700k combined with an RTX 2080 remains a solid setup, and I wouldn't even think about upgrading unless there was a particular need you couldn't meet with what you have. Regarding core count and gaming, I'm confident that eventually core quantity will matter more than raw clock speed, though I expect games to adapt by scaling with more cores rather than needing a strict minimum.
NO, Ahem, in a sad and observant tone, read slow for effect: You have quite a powerful combo there, if you feel like your setup will be below the minimum and you must upgrade, then, a lot of us gamers are at the peasant level with our 4 core and 4 thread CPUs and are not worthy of games like Minecraft or Roller Coaster Tycoon and can only enjoy games like Solitaire and Minesweeper, GASP! Oh No, if 4 core gamers are at the peasant level, then the 2 core users are in big trouble and their potatoes are doomed.