Control

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 produces a clear but uneven result in Control. At 1920x1080, the combination clears the 60 FPS playable threshold on every preset, with Ultra averaging 68 FPS. At 2560x1440, only Low and Medium remain playable, with Medium averaging 67 FPS. At 3840x2160, only Low reaches an average of 63 FPS; every higher preset falls below 60 FPS. Measured data places this combo at rank 2296 out of 3720 tested combinations, indicating that while it can run the game, it does so with notable settings compromises at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates for this combination cover three resolutions and four settings presets. Min and max values were recorded only for Medium settings; other presets report average FPS only.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|---|---|---|---|---|

| 3840x2160 | High | 40 | — | — |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 63 | — | — |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 45 | 38 | 52 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 35 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | High | 59 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 94 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 67 | 57 | 77 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 52 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | High | 78 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 124 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 88 | 75 | 101 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 68 | — | — |

At 4K, the spread between Low and Ultra is substantial: Low averages 63 FPS, while Ultra averages 35 FPS. Medium sits at 45 FPS, and High at 40 FPS. The only 4K preset with recorded min/max is Medium, with a min of 38 FPS and a max of 52 FPS. This means even the playable Low preset at 4K has no recorded min/max data, but its average is just above the 60 FPS threshold.

At 1440p, Low reaches 94 FPS, Medium 67 FPS, High 59 FPS, and Ultra 52 FPS. Medium shows a min of 57 FPS and a max of 77 FPS, so while the average is playable, the low frame dips below 60 FPS. High is just one FPS short of the threshold on average, making it a borderline non-playable preset.

At 1080p, all presets are comfortably above 60 FPS on average. Low hits 124 FPS, Medium 88 FPS, High 78 FPS, and Ultra 68 FPS. Medium at 1080p has a min of 75 FPS and a max of 101 FPS, so even the worst recorded frame stays above the playable threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

Using the 60 FPS average playable threshold, the most demanding preset that remains playable at each resolution is as follows.

At 3840x2160, the only playable preset is Low, which averages 63 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra all fail to reach 60 FPS, with averages of 45, 40, and 35 FPS respectively. Therefore, the best setting for 4K is Low.

At 2560x1440, Low and Medium are playable. Medium is the highest playable preset, averaging 67 FPS. Although its min is 57 FPS, the average clears the threshold. High averages 59 FPS, just below playable, and Ultra averages 52 FPS. Thus, the best setting for 1440p is Medium.

At 1920x1080, every preset is playable. Ultra is the highest quality option and averages 68 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Low, Medium, and High average 124, 88, and 78 FPS respectively. The best setting for 1080p is Ultra.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest CPU rivals, based on aggregate benchmark scores, are very close to the Intel Core i7-12700K. The Intel Core i5-13600T has an average score of 35305 with a delta of -0.1%. The Intel Core i7-12700KF scores 35365 with a delta of -0.2%. The Intel Core i7-13700T scores 35403 with a delta of -0.3%. The Intel Core 5 213PE scores 35428 with a delta of -0.4%. These deltas are all within a fraction of a percent, meaning these CPUs would behave nearly identically in aggregate workloads. In Control specifically, the i7-12700K’s 12 cores and 20 threads, combined with a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, should keep CPU performance in the same class as these alternatives.

The nearest GPU rivals show a slightly wider spread. The AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT has an average score of 20713 with a delta of +1.6%, making it the only rival with a positive delta in this group. The AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL scores 21153 with a delta of -0.6%. The AMD Radeon HD 8970M scores 21237 with a delta of -1%. The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile scores 21379 with a delta of -1.6%. These deltas are still small, so the RTX 5050 and these GPUs would likely produce similar frame rates in Control, though the measured game-specific data in this pack applies only to the RTX 5050.

The CPU sits at the 84th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU sits at the 66th percentile among all GPUs. That gap suggests the processor is relatively stronger in the broader benchmark pool, but the game’s frame rates are still constrained by the GPU at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 4K with High settings?

A: No. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 40, well below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Only Low at 4K reaches an average of 63 FPS.

Q: What is the highest playable preset at 1440p?

A: Medium, with an average of 67 FPS. Low averages 94 FPS, but High and Ultra average 59 and 52 FPS respectively, so they are not playable by the 60 FPS average threshold.

Q: Is the RTX 5050 the limiting factor at 4K?

A: The data shows a strong resolution scaling effect. At 1080p Low, the combo averages 124 FPS, while at 4K Low it averages 63 FPS. At Ultra, the drop is from 68 FPS at 1080p to 35 FPS at 4K. This pattern indicates that the GPU becomes the dominant constraint as resolution increases.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations in Control?

A: It ranks 2296 out of 3720 tested combinations. This places it in the lower portion of the field, meaning the majority of tested combos achieve higher performance in this game.

Q: Which GPU alternatives are closest in aggregate performance?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT is the closest with a delta of +1.6%. The AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL has a delta of -0.6%, the AMD Radeon HD 8970M has -1%, and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile has -1.6%.

Q: What is the best setting at 1080p?

A: Ultra, because it is the highest quality preset and still averages 68 FPS, above the 60 FPS threshold. Low, Medium, and High all average above 60 FPS as well.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured frame rates reveal how the balance between CPU and GPU shifts across resolutions. At 1080p, the combination is able to produce high frame rates even on Low, averaging 124 FPS. Moving to Ultra at the same resolution reduces the average to 68 FPS. This large preset sensitivity suggests the GPU is doing most of the heavy lifting when visual quality increases. The CPU’s strong single-thread performance, as indicated by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1850.5 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2308, helps sustain high frame rates at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed.

At 1440p, the picture changes. Low averages 94 FPS, but Medium drops to 67 FPS, High to 59 FPS, and Ultra to 52 FPS. The fact that High falls just below 60 FPS while Medium stays above indicates a narrow GPU performance ceiling. The CPU still has ample headroom with 12 cores and 20 threads, but the frame rate is increasingly tied to the GPU’s rendering load. The RTX 5050’s 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 320.0 GB/s bandwidth are enough for Low and Medium at this resolution, but not for the higher presets.

At 4K, the GPU is clearly the dominant factor. Low averages 63 FPS, which is just above the threshold, while Medium, High, and Ultra fall to 45, 40, and 35 FPS respectively. The resolution scaling from 1080p to 4K is steep: Low drops from 124 to 63 FPS, and Ultra drops from 68 to 35 FPS. This kind of scaling is typical of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU’s multi-thread performance, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19784, is unlikely to be the limiting factor at 4K, since the frame rates are so heavily affected by the GPU’s output.

In summary, at 1080p the CPU matters more because the GPU can deliver high frame rates, and the CPU must keep up. At 1440p and especially 4K, the GPU matters more, as the measured FPS drops consistently with increasing resolution and preset quality. The data does not include separate CPU or GPU utilization, but the pattern of frame rates strongly points to the RTX 5050 as the performance boundary at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the full database of tested combinations for Control, this Intel Core i7-12700K + RTX 5050 pairing ranks 2296 out of 3720. That is a below-median placement. The CPU itself is strong, sitting at the 84th percentile among all CPUs, and the GPU is at the 66th percentile among all GPUs. Yet the game-specific rank is lower than either component’s general percentile would suggest. This indicates that Control’s rendering demands, particularly at high resolutions and presets, penalize the combination more than the aggregate component scores would imply.

The rank also reflects the GPU’s limitations at 4K and high presets. While the CPU is capable of feeding high frame rates, the RTX 5050 cannot maintain 60 FPS at 4K beyond Low, and at 1440p it cannot handle High or Ultra. The measured FPS table shows that the combination’s best case is 1080p, where it ranks comfortably playable on all presets. For a game like Control, which has demanding visual effects, the combo’s overall standing is dragged down by the GPU’s performance at higher resolutions.

The Verdict

Yes, this PC can run Control, but the playable settings depend heavily on resolution. At 1920x1080, all four presets clear the 60 FPS average threshold, with Ultra averaging 68 FPS. At 2560x1440, Low and Medium are playable; Medium is the best playable preset at 67 FPS average. At 3840x2160, only Low is playable, averaging 63 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra at 4K average 45, 40, and 35 FPS respectively, all below the 60 FPS threshold.

For a smooth experience, users should target 1080p with any preset, or 1440p with Medium. At 4K, Low is the only option that maintains an average above 60 FPS, and even then the margin is only 3 FPS. The data shows that this combination is best suited to 1080p gaming in Control, with 1440p possible at medium quality, and 4K limited to the lowest preset.