Control

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is a potent combination for running Control, a 2019 Action Adventure title. Benchmark data shows this setup delivers playable frame rates across all tested resolutions, with the most demanding 4K Ultra preset being the only configuration that dips below the 60 FPS threshold. The data indicates a strong balance between CPU and GPU capabilities, though the GPU becomes the primary scaling factor as resolution increases.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, but not at the highest settings. The data shows playable performance at 4K with Low (84 FPS) and Medium (63 FPS) presets, while High (53.8 FPS) and Ultra (44.7 FPS) fall below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the best 1440p setting for this combo?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 delivers an average of 71.2 FPS, making it the most demanding setting that still clears the 60 FPS mark. All four settings at this resolution — Low (124.2 FPS), Medium (87.7 FPS), High (81.6 FPS), and Ultra (71.2 FPS) — are playable.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in raw performance?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti's average benchmark score of 29945 is nearly identical to the RTX 5070 Mobile (29928, delta 0.1%) and RTX 2080 Ti (29783, delta 0.5%). It trails the RX 6800 (30095) by 0.5% and the RX 6700 (30433) by 1.6%, indicating these cards would deliver very similar frame rates.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for Control at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the CPU's role is more pronounced. The i5-12600KF scores 23391 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3302 in single-core, placing it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs. This headroom allows the RTX 3070 Ti to push frame rates from 89.9 FPS at Ultra to 167.8 FPS at Low, showing the GPU is still the main driver even at this resolution.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1080p with High settings?

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 107.9 FPS. This is comfortably above the 60 FPS playable threshold and represents a strong balance between visual quality and performance.

Q: Does the 12600KF bottleneck the RTX 3070 Ti in this game?

A: No, the data suggests no significant bottleneck. The CPU's nearest rival, the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, has a nearly identical average score (27896 vs 27799, delta -0.3%), and the 12600KF's 10-core, 16-thread configuration with a 4.90 GHz boost clock provides ample processing power for Control's demands.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the most demanding option that stays at or above 60 FPS, delivering an average of 89.9 FPS. This leaves substantial headroom above the playable threshold, making Ultra the clear recommendation for full visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, Ultra remains the best choice with an average of 71.2 FPS. This is the highest preset available, and it still clears the 60 FPS line by a comfortable 11.2 FPS margin. Users seeking even higher frame rates could drop to High (81.6 FPS) or Medium (87.7 FPS), but Ultra is viable.

At 3840x2160, the best playable setting is Medium, which averages 63 FPS. The High preset falls to 53.8 FPS, below the playable threshold, while Low achieves 84 FPS. For 4K users, Medium offers the best balance of visual quality and performance, barely clearing 60 FPS.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear pattern in how the CPU and GPU contribute to Control's performance across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the frame rates range from 167.8 FPS at Low to 89.9 FPS at Ultra, a spread of 77.9 FPS. This wide gap indicates that the RTX 3070 Ti is the limiting factor, as lowering settings directly translates to higher frame rates. The i5-12600KF, with its 79th percentile ranking and Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 23391, provides sufficient throughput to avoid bottlenecking the GPU even at the lowest settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rate spread narrows to 53 FPS (124.2 FPS at Low versus 71.2 FPS at Ultra). The percentage drop from Low to Ultra is 42.7%, which is less severe than at 1080p. This suggests the GPU is still the dominant factor, but the increased pixel count begins to tax the RTX 3070 Ti's 8 GB of GDDR6X memory and 608.3 GB/s bandwidth more heavily.

At 3840x2160, the performance gap between Low (84 FPS) and Ultra (44.7 FPS) is 39.3 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at Ultra settings shows a 37.2% performance drop (71.2 to 44.7 FPS), while at Low settings the drop is 32.4% (124.2 to 84 FPS). This indicates that the GPU is overwhelmingly the performance limiter at 4K, as the CPU's workload does not increase proportionally with resolution. The i5-12600KF's single-thread performance (3302 in Cinebench R23) remains sufficient, but the RTX 3070 Ti's compute resources — 21.75 TFLOPS FP32 and 6144 shading units — are stretched thin at higher pixel counts.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU's nearest rivals, the Intel Core i9-10900K (avg score 27872, delta -0.3%) would deliver nearly identical performance in Control. The AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (27712, +0.3%) and AMD Ryzen 7 6800U (27887, -0.3%) are also close matches, though the 6800U is a mobile part. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D (27896, -0.3%) is the strongest competitor, offering essentially the same average score with its 3D V-Cache design.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile (29928, +0.1%) is the closest match, with a negligible performance difference. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 (30095, -0.5%) and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti (29783, +0.5%) are also within 0.5% of the RTX 3070 Ti's average score. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 (30433, -1.6%) trails slightly but would still produce very similar frame rates in Control.

In practical terms, swapping to any of these alternatives would change average FPS by no more than 1.6%, which translates to roughly 1-2 FPS in the measured presets. For example, at 1440p Ultra (71.2 FPS), the RX 6700 would likely deliver around 70 FPS, while the RTX 2080 Ti would match the 3070 Ti almost exactly.

The Verdict

Yes, this PC can run Control effectively. The verdict data confirms playable performance at all three tested resolutions, with the caveat that 4K requires lowering settings. At 1920x1080, every preset — Low (167.8 FPS), Medium (119.6 FPS), High (107.9 FPS), and Ultra (89.9 FPS) — clears the 60 FPS threshold with significant margin. At 2560x1440, all four presets are also playable, with Ultra at 71.2 FPS being the highest quality option.

At 3840x2160, the situation is more nuanced. The playable settings are Low (84 FPS) and Medium (63 FPS), while High (53.8 FPS) and Ultra (44.7 FPS) fall short. The best playable option at 4K is Medium, which averages 63 FPS — just 3 FPS above the playable threshold. Users prioritizing 4K should stick to Medium for a stable experience, while those who prefer High or Ultra settings should target 1440p instead.

The RTX 3070 Ti's 8 GB memory capacity and 256-bit bus are sufficient for Control, but the game's demanding ray-traced effects and high-resolution textures push the GPU to its limits at 4K. The i5-12600KF, meanwhile, never appears to be a limiting factor; its 10 cores and 16 threads provide ample headroom for the game's physics and AI computations.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of Intel Core i5-12600KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti ranks 1332 out of 3720 tested combos for Control, placing it in the 64th percentile overall. This ranking reflects a solid mid-to-upper tier position, meaning the combo outperforms roughly two-thirds of all tested configurations while falling short of top-tier pairings.

The ranking is consistent with the individual component percentiles: the CPU sits in the 79th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 75th percentile of all GPUs. The combined rank of 1332 is slightly lower than either individual percentile would suggest, likely due to the game's heavy GPU load at higher resolutions. In a game where 4K Ultra is unplayable, the combo's overall standing is dragged down by configurations with more powerful GPUs like the RTX 3090 or RX 6900 XT.

That said, the 1332 rank out of 3720 is a strong showing for a mid-range pairing. It places the combo ahead of many systems with older or weaker components, and the measured FPS data confirms that it delivers excellent 1080p and 1440p experiences. For a 2019 title like Control, this hardware is more than adequate, and the ranking reflects that the combo hits a sweet spot between cost and capability in the broader benchmark database.