Control

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti produces a clear, resolution-dependent performance story in Control. At 1920x1080, the combination delivers a smooth experience across all tested presets, with average frame rates ranging from 119.7 FPS on Low to 63.5 FPS on Ultra. Stepping up to 2560x1440 introduces a noticeable performance ceiling, as only Low and Medium presets maintain an average above the 60 FPS threshold, while High and Ultra dip to 59.2 FPS and 50.6 FPS respectively. At 3840x2160, the data shows a more demanding scenario: no preset achieves the 60 FPS playable threshold, with the average frame rate falling from 59.4 FPS on Low to 31.3 FPS on Ultra. These measured results, based on average FPS data, reveal a system that is well-suited for 1080p gaming at maximum settings, capable of 1440p with adjusted settings, but not viable for 4K playability in this title.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for Control with this hardware configuration provides a detailed look at how the game scales across resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are consistently above the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset yields an average of 119.7 FPS, which is the highest recorded for this resolution. Moving to Medium, the average drops to 84.6 FPS, still providing a substantial margin over the playability threshold. The High preset delivers an average of 77 FPS, and the most demanding Ultra preset maintains an average of 63.5 FPS. This progression shows a performance penalty of roughly 47% from Low to Ultra at 1080p, but every setting remains comfortably playable.

At 2560x1440, the performance envelope tightens considerably. The Low preset achieves an average of 91.7 FPS, which is a significant drop from the 1080p Low result but still well above the threshold. The Medium preset follows with an average of 66.3 FPS, maintaining playability with a modest margin. The High preset produces an average of 59.2 FPS, which falls just below the 60 FPS playable line, indicating that this setting is borderline at this resolution. The Ultra preset yields an average of 50.6 FPS, a clear step below the threshold and showing the increased load on the GPU at higher pixel counts.

The 3840x2160 results show the most dramatic decline. The Low preset is the only setting that approaches playability, with an average of 59.4 FPS, narrowly missing the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset drops to an average of 43.6 FPS, while High falls to 40.3 FPS. The Ultra preset bottoms out at an average of 31.3 FPS, which is approximately half the speed of the 1080p Ultra result. These figures indicate that 4K gaming is not a viable option for this combination in Control, as even the lowest settings struggle to maintain a consistent 60 FPS average.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Control at 1920x1080 with maximum settings?*

A: Yes. The measured average FPS for the Ultra preset at 1920x1080 is 63.5 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The data shows all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable at this resolution, with the Ultra preset providing the highest visual quality while still maintaining a playable frame rate.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 2560x1440?

A: The Medium preset is the best playable setting at 2560x1440, producing an average of 66.3 FPS. While the Low preset achieves a higher average of 91.7 FPS, the Medium preset offers a better balance of visual quality and performance, as it is the highest setting that still clears the 60 FPS threshold.

*Q: Is 4K gaming possible with this hardware in Control?*

A: No, the data shows that no preset at 3840x2160 achieves the 60 FPS playable threshold. The closest result is the Low preset with an average of 59.4 FPS, which falls just short. The Ultra preset at this resolution yields only 31.3 FPS, indicating a substantial performance gap for 4K playability.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13494, which places it in the 68th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core 3 N355, has an identical average score of 13492 with a deltaPct of 0. The Intel Core i5-9500 scores 13452 (0.3% slower), while the Intel Core 5 120UL scores 13594 (0.7% faster), showing very tight competition in this performance tier.

Q: What is the GPU's performance position relative to other graphics cards?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has an average benchmark score of 16129, placing it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 9060, scores 16014 (0.7% slower). The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT both score 16351 and 16361 respectively, which are 1.4% faster, while the AMD Radeon R9 370X scores 15862 (1.7% slower).

Q: How does this CPU-GPU combo rank among all tested combinations for this game?

A: This combination ranks 2496 out of 3720 tested combos for Control. This places it in the lower half of all tested configurations, indicating that while it can handle the game at lower resolutions, many other hardware pairings are capable of higher performance, particularly at higher resolutions.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS data reveals how the CPU and GPU each contribute to performance in Control across different resolutions. At 1920x1080, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as the frame rates scale significantly with graphics settings. The jump from Low (119.7 FPS) to Ultra (63.5 FPS) shows a 47% performance reduction, which is a typical pattern for GPU-bound scenarios where the graphics card is doing most of the heavy lifting. The CPU, being a quad-core with 8 threads, has enough headroom at this resolution to feed the GPU adequately, as evidenced by the high average frame rates even at the Low preset.

When the resolution increases to 2560x1440, the GPU's role becomes even more dominant. The frame rate drops from 91.7 FPS on Low to 50.6 FPS on Ultra, a 45% reduction that closely mirrors the 1080p scaling. This consistency suggests that the GPU is still the limiting factor, and the CPU is not constraining performance at this resolution. The fact that the High preset yields 59.2 FPS, just below the playable threshold, further highlights that the GPU is struggling with the increased pixel workload rather than being held back by the processor.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is overwhelmingly the performance limiter. The Low preset achieves 59.4 FPS, which is only slightly below the 1080p High result of 77 FPS, indicating that the GPU is working at its maximum capacity. The drop to 31.3 FPS on Ultra at 4K demonstrates the extreme pressure on the graphics card. The CPU's influence is negligible here, as the frame rates are dictated entirely by the GPU's ability to render at this high pixel count. The data suggests that for this game, the RTX 3060 Ti is the decisive component at all resolutions, with the i3-12100F providing sufficient processing power to avoid becoming a bottleneck in the tested scenarios.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13494, with its closest competitor being the Intel Core 3 N355 at 13492 (0% delta). This means that in terms of overall processing capability, these two chips would perform nearly identically in CPU-intensive tasks. The Intel Core i5-9500 is only 0.3% slower with a score of 13452, while the Intel Core 5 120UL is 0.7% faster at 13594. The Intel Core i7-1250U sits 1.1% faster with a score of 13351. For Control, these CPU alternatives would likely produce very similar frame rates, as the game is not particularly CPU-demanding at the tested settings and resolutions.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has an average benchmark score of 16129. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 9060, scores 16014, which is 0.7% slower and would deliver virtually identical frame rates in Control. The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT are both 1.4% faster with scores of 16351 and 16361 respectively, suggesting they might provide a marginal improvement of a few frames per second in the game's most demanding scenarios. The AMD Radeon R9 370X, at 15862 (1.7% slower), would be slightly slower and might push the 1440p High preset further below the 60 FPS threshold. These rivals indicate that the RTX 3060 Ti sits in a tightly contested performance band, where any of these alternatives would yield similar playability outcomes at 1080p and 1440p.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the best settings are the Ultra preset, which delivers an average of 63.5 FPS. This is the most demanding preset tested, and it still maintains a frame rate above the 60 FPS playable threshold, making it the optimal choice for maximum visual quality at this resolution. The data shows that the GPU has sufficient headroom at 1080p to handle the game's highest settings without sacrificing playability.

At 2560x1440, the best settings are the Medium preset, which produces an average of 66.3 FPS. This is the highest preset that stays at or above the 60 FPS threshold at this resolution. While the Low preset achieves a higher average of 91.7 FPS, the Medium preset offers a better visual experience while still providing a comfortable margin above the playability line. The High preset at 59.2 FPS and Ultra at 50.6 FPS are not recommended, as they fall below the threshold.

At 3840x2160, there are no playable settings, as all presets fail to reach the 60 FPS threshold. The closest is the Low preset at 59.4 FPS, which narrowly misses the target. The data indicates that this resolution is not viable for this hardware combination in Control, and users would need to either lower the resolution or accept frame rates below the playable threshold.

The Verdict

The data clearly indicates that this PC can run Control effectively at 1920x1080 and 2560x1440, but not at 3840x2160. At 1080p, all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable, with the Ultra preset delivering 63.5 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold. This makes 1080p the most straightforward resolution for this hardware, allowing players to enjoy the game at its highest visual settings. At 1440p, the situation is more nuanced: the Low and Medium presets are playable, with Medium being the best playable setting at 66.3 FPS. The High preset at 59.2 FPS and Ultra at 50.6 FPS fall short of the threshold, so users must compromise on visual quality to maintain smooth gameplay at this resolution. For 4K, the verdict is unequivocal: no preset achieves playable frame rates, with the best result being 59.4 FPS on Low, which is still below the target. The GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution, and the combination is not suitable for 4K gaming in Control.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti ranks 2496 out of 3720 tested combos for Control, placing it in the 67th percentile of all tested configurations. This ranking reflects the hardware's balanced but mid-tier performance. The CPU's 68th percentile ranking among all CPUs and the GPU's 59th percentile ranking among all GPUs suggest that this pairing is not at the high end of the spectrum, which is consistent with its performance in the game. In Control, the combo's ability to handle 1080p at Ultra and 1440p at Medium puts it ahead of lower-tier configurations but well behind high-end systems that can manage 4K playability. The ranking indicates that while this is a capable setup for 1080p and moderate 1440p gaming, it is not a top-tier performer for this title, and users seeking 4K playability would need to look at significantly more powerful hardware.