Doom

This combo, the Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, ranks at 1087 out of 3712 tested combinations for Doom, placing it in the upper third of all systems evaluated. That percentile position suggests a capable pairing, but the data reveals a more nuanced story about where the bottleneck lies and how the system scales across resolutions and settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The 1087 rank out of 3712 combos puts this system firmly in the top ~29% of all tested configurations for Doom. This is a strong showing, but not an elite one — the ranking indicates that while the RTX 3080 is a heavyweight GPU, the i3-12100F’s four cores and eight threads can hold the system back in certain scenarios. The CPU’s percentileVsAllCpus of 68 and the GPU’s percentileVsAllGpus of 68 are identical, suggesting both components sit at the same relative performance tier within their respective categories. Yet the combo’s overall rank in this specific game suggests Doom’s engine rewards the GPU more heavily at higher resolutions, where the CPU’s limitations become less relevant. The data shows a system that is consistently playable at every resolution and preset tested, with the weakest result being 66.1 FPS at 4K Ultra — still above the 60 FPS playable threshold. What’s striking is how the rank doesn’t tell the full story: at 1080p, this combo delivers nearly 300 FPS on Low settings, which would suggest a much higher rank than 1087 if the benchmark weighted raw frame rates equally across all configurations. The rank likely reflects a blend of resolutions and presets, and the 4K results — while playable — drag the overall standing down relative to systems that can push higher frame rates at that resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The division of labor between the i3-12100F and the RTX 3080 shifts dramatically depending on resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU is clearly the limiting factor: the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 299.6 FPS versus 183.6 FPS, a gap of 116 FPS that shows the GPU has headroom to spare but the CPU’s four cores cap the frame rate ceiling. The scaling from 1080p Low to 1440p Low (299.6 to 194.7 FPS) is a 104.9 FPS drop, while the same setting step from 1440p to 4K (194.7 to 102.4 FPS) is a 92.3 FPS drop — the GPU’s workload is increasing, but the CPU is still keeping pace with the render demands. At 2560x1440, the balance shifts: the CPU can feed the GPU enough data to hit 194.7 FPS on Low, but at Ultra the frame rate falls to 115.3 FPS, indicating the GPU is now the primary constraint. The 4K results confirm this trend — at 3840x2160, the gap between Low (102.4 FPS) and Ultra (66.1 FPS) is 36.3 FPS, a much smaller relative difference than at 1080p, because the GPU is saturated at every preset. The data suggests that for this game, the i3-12100F is sufficient to drive the RTX 3080 at 1080p and 1440p without creating a significant bottleneck, but at 4K the GPU’s raw pixel-pushing capability becomes the sole determinant of performance. The CPU’s single-thread score of 893 in 3dmark_single_thread and 1674 in cinebench_r23_singlecore indicate strong per-core performance, which Doom’s engine appears to leverage effectively.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 66.1 FPS. This is a narrow margin — only 6.1 FPS of headroom above the playable threshold — but it clears the bar. At 2560x1440, Ultra is again the best choice, delivering 115.3 FPS, which is nearly double the playable threshold and provides substantial room for frame-time spikes. At 1920x1080, Ultra runs at 183.6 FPS, making it the obvious pick for maximum visual quality without any concern about dropping below 60 FPS. In all three resolutions, every single preset — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — clears the 60 FPS threshold, which means the limiting factor is purely visual fidelity preference rather than playability. The 4K Ultra result of 66.1 FPS is the only setting that comes close to the threshold, and even that has a comfortable margin. For players with high-refresh-rate displays, the 1440p results are particularly compelling: 169.2 FPS on Medium and 143 FPS on High both exceed the refresh rate of most 1440p monitors, making this combo ideal for competitive play at that resolution.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Doom at 4K with maximum settings?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average frame rate is 66.1 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The margin is slim, but the data confirms it is playable.

Q: What is the best resolution for high refresh-rate gaming?

A: At 2560x1440, Ultra settings deliver 115.3 FPS, and Medium settings reach 169.2 FPS, both well above the refresh rate of typical 1440p displays. At 1920x1080, Ultra runs at 183.6 FPS, which is sufficient for most high-refresh monitors.

Q: How much performance is lost when going from 1080p to 4K?

A: On Low settings, the drop from 1920x1080 at 299.6 FPS to 3840x2160 at 102.4 FPS is a 197.2 FPS reduction. On Ultra settings, the drop is from 183.6 FPS to 66.1 FPS, a 117.5 FPS reduction.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU is the primary limiter at 1920x1080. The frame rate difference between Low and Ultra is 116 FPS, indicating the GPU has significant headroom that the CPU’s four cores cannot fully utilize.

Q: Does the system maintain 60 FPS at all presets and resolutions?

A: Yes. Every measured combination — all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) across all three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) — exceeds 60 FPS on average. The lowest result is 66.1 FPS at 4K Ultra.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems for Doom?

A: It ranks 1087 out of 3712 total combinations, placing it in the top ~29% of all tested configurations. This is a strong result, though not in the elite tier reserved for the highest-end systems.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates: 299.6 FPS on Low, 261.6 FPS on Medium, 219.4 FPS on High, and 183.6 FPS on Ultra. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 116 FPS drop, showing a consistent performance curve as settings increase. At 2560x1440, the results are 194.7 FPS on Low, 169.2 FPS on Medium, 143 FPS on High, and 115.3 FPS on Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra here is 79.4 FPS, a smaller absolute gap than at 1080p, indicating the GPU is becoming more of a factor. At 3840x2160, the frame rates fall to 102.4 FPS on Low, 90 FPS on Medium, 78.3 FPS on High, and 66.1 FPS on Ultra. The Low-to-Ultra gap at 4K is 36.3 FPS, the smallest of the three resolutions, confirming that the GPU is fully saturated at this resolution regardless of settings. The data shows a consistent pattern: at 1080p, the CPU limits the maximum frame rate; at 1440p, the balance shifts toward the GPU; and at 4K, the GPU is the sole bottleneck. The min and max FPS values are not provided in the data, so the analysis relies solely on average frame rates, but the averages themselves paint a clear picture of a system that performs admirably across all tested configurations.

The Verdict

This PC can absolutely run Doom. The verdictByResolution data is unambiguous: at every resolution and every preset, the average frame rate clears the 60 FPS playable threshold. At 1920x1080, Ultra settings run at 183.6 FPS, providing a massive buffer above the threshold. At 2560x1440, Ultra runs at 115.3 FPS, still nearly double the requirement. At 3840x2160, Ultra runs at 66.1 FPS, which is playable but with only 6.1 FPS of headroom — the closest call of any tested configuration. The best settings at each resolution are Ultra, meaning players can enjoy maximum visual quality without sacrificing playability. The 4K Ultra result is worth noting: 66.1 FPS is above the threshold, but in demanding scenes with heavy effects, the average could dip closer to the 60 FPS line. For players who prioritize a rock-solid frame rate over visual fidelity at 4K, dropping to High (78.3 FPS) or Medium (90 FPS) provides a more comfortable margin. At 1080p and 1440p, there is no such concern — the system has ample headroom at every preset.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU provide interesting context. The Intel Core 3 N355 matches the i3-12100F almost exactly, with an avgScore of 13492 versus 13494 and a deltaPct of 0. The Intel Core i5-9500 is 0.3% faster with a score of 13452, while the Intel Core 5 120UL is -0.7% slower at 13594, and the Intel Core i7-1250U is 1.1% faster with a score of 13351. These deltas are all within 1.1% of the i3-12100F, meaning any of these CPUs would deliver effectively identical performance in Doom when paired with the same GPU. For the GPU, the rivals are similarly close: the NVIDIA P106-100 has an avgScore of 23249 versus the RTX 3080’s 23172, a deltaPct of -0.3%; the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 scores 23250 (-0.3%); the AMD Radeon RX 6600M scores 23273 (-0.4%); and the AMD Radeon R9 M290X scores 23276 (-0.4%). All four GPUs are within 0.4% of the RTX 3080’s average benchmark score, suggesting that swapping in any of these would produce nearly identical frame rates in Doom. The practical implication is that if a builder cannot source an RTX 3080, the RX 6600M or P106-100 would behave almost indistinguishably in this game. Similarly, the CPU alternatives listed would not meaningfully change the performance profile — the i3-12100F’s four cores are sufficient for Doom, and the rivals’ slightly higher or lower scores would translate to frame rate differences of less than a few percent. This data underscores that the combo’s performance is well-balanced, with neither component being drastically better or worse than its closest alternatives.