Downfall

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti delivers overwhelming performance in Downfall, a 2016 horror title. Across every resolution and preset combination measured, the average frame rate never dips below 70.9 FPS, meaning this combination is not just playable but consistently exceeds high-refresh-rate thresholds. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-bound at 4K but becomes increasingly CPU-bound at lower resolutions, where the i5-12400’s six-core design still holds up admirably.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this pairing covers three resolutions and four quality presets, with average frame rates that are uniformly high. At 1920x1080, the lowest average is 152 FPS on Ultra settings, while Low presets hit 367 FPS. Medium lands at 300.2 FPS, and High produces 248.9 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the RTX 4070 Ti is rarely the limiting factor; the CPU’s single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and a passmark_single_thread score of 3456, becomes the primary constraint once the GPU has headroom.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages remain exceptionally strong. Ultra settings produce 108.5 FPS, High reaches 178.2 FPS, Medium hits 213.9 FPS, and Low yields 263.2 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is noticeable but not drastic; for example, Ultra falls from 152 FPS to 108.5 FPS, a reduction of roughly 29%. This scaling suggests that the GPU is taking on more work, but the i5-12400 still supplies enough draw-call throughput to avoid stalling.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4070 Ti begins to show its limits, though the results are still far above the 60 FPS playable threshold. Ultra settings average 70.9 FPS, High averages 106.5 FPS, Medium averages 132.6 FPS, and Low averages 165.9 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 95 FPS, which is a much wider spread than at 1080p, where the gap is 215 FPS (from 367 FPS down to 152 FPS). This widening delta at lower resolutions is a classic sign of CPU limitation: when the GPU is fast enough to render frames quickly, the CPU’s frame-generation rate becomes the ceiling.

No minimum or maximum FPS values are provided in the data, so all analysis relies on averages. However, given the average scores, even the worst-case 4K Ultra scenario (70.9 FPS) leaves a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS playable threshold, meaning stutter and frame-pacing issues would need to be severe to break playability.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the Intel Core i5-12400, based on average benchmark scores, are a mixed group. The AMD EPYC 7643 scores an average of 18697, which is -0.1% relative to the i5-12400’s 18683 average — effectively identical performance. The Intel Core i7-1355U scores 18730 (-0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 scores 18811 (-0.7%). On the other side, the Intel Core i3-14100F scores 18519 (+0.9%), meaning the i5-12400 is slightly ahead. For a desktop gaming build, the i3-14100F is the most relevant comparison: it has fewer cores (likely 4 cores) but its per-core performance is close enough that in Downfall, which is not heavily threaded, the difference would be small. The EPYC 7643 is a server chip, and the i7-1355U and Ryzen AI 5 330 are mobile parts, so they are not direct purchase alternatives for this socket.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 44795. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile, scores 45152 (-0.8%), which is a laptop part but surprisingly close in raw compute. The AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT scores 45384 (-1.3%), and the Intel Arc A730M scores 45592 (-1.7%), both marginally ahead. The NVIDIA RTX A6000 scores 44075 (+1.6%), meaning the RTX 4070 Ti is slightly faster than this workstation card. In practical terms for Downfall, any of these GPUs would produce frame rates within a few percent of each other, but the RTX 4070 Ti’s advantage is that it is a desktop card with full driver support for gaming, unlike the workstation or mobile variants.

CPU and GPU Roles

The division of labor between the i5-12400 and RTX 4070 Ti shifts significantly with resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU is the primary bottleneck. The evidence is in the scaling: going from Low (367 FPS) to Ultra (152 FPS) reduces performance by 215 FPS, but the GPU is capable of far more than 152 FPS if the CPU could feed it faster. The i5-12400’s cinebench_r23_multicore score of 15989 and passmark_multithread score of 18747 indicate solid multi-threaded capability, but Downfall’s engine likely relies on fewer threads, where the cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 2257 matters more. At 1080p, the GPU’s utilization is likely lower than at higher resolutions because the CPU cannot issue draw calls quickly enough.

At 2560x1440, the balance shifts toward the GPU. The average FPS for Ultra (108.5) is roughly 71% of the 1080p Ultra score (152 FPS), which aligns with the increase in pixel count (1440p has about 1.78 times the pixels of 1080p). The RTX 4070 Ti’s 504.2 GB/s memory bandwidth and 40.09 TFLOPS FP32 performance become more relevant here. The CPU is still not maxed out, but the GPU is now the limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is almost certainly the sole bottleneck. The 4K Ultra average of 70.9 FPS is only 47% of the 1080p Ultra average, and the pixel count is 4.5 times higher. The CPU’s role diminishes because the GPU takes so long to render each frame that the CPU has ample time to prepare the next one. The i5-12400’s 12 threads and 18 MB shared L3 cache are more than sufficient for this workload, and the data shows that even at 4K Low (165.9 FPS), the system is not CPU-starved.

The Verdict

Yes, this PC can run Downfall without question. The verdict data is unambiguous: at every resolution, all four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are listed as playable. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the lowest average across the entire matrix is 70.9 FPS at 4K Ultra. At 1440p, the best settings are Ultra with 108.5 FPS average, and at 1080p, Ultra delivers 152 FPS average.

If you own a 4K monitor, you can run Ultra settings and still clear the threshold by roughly 18%. For 1440p or 1080p displays, the system has massive headroom; you could enable Ultra and likely use V-sync or a frame cap to prevent tearing without sacrificing smoothness. The only caveat is that the data provides no minimum FPS values, so transient drops could occur, but given the average margins, any such dips would need to be catastrophic to fall below 60 FPS. The RTX 4070 Ti’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory is ample for a 2016 title, and the i5-12400’s 65 W TDP means cooling is not a concern for this workload.

How This Combo Ranks

Among all 3,716 tested CPU-GPU combinations in the benchmark database, this pairing ranks 472nd in Downfall. That places it in the top 12.7% of all tested combos, which is strong but not elite. The ranking is influenced by the fact that many higher-ranked combos likely use newer or more expensive CPUs and GPUs, such as the RTX 5090 Mobile or RTX A6000 that appear as rivals. However, the i5-12400’s percentileVsAllCpus of 72 and RTX 4070 Ti’s percentileVsAllGpus of 84 indicate that both components are above average individually. The combo rank of 472 out of 3716 suggests that while this system is not at the very top, it outperforms the vast majority of machines tested, and for a horror game with modest requirements, the practical experience is excellent.

FAQ

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

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 70.9, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. All four settings at 4K are listed as playable.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p?

A: The best settings at 2560x1440 are Ultra, which produces an average of 108.5 FPS. Low, Medium, and High are also playable, but Ultra provides the highest visual quality while still clearing the threshold by a wide margin.

Q: How does this CPU compare to the Intel Core i3-14100F?

A: The i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683, while the i3-14100F scores 18519. This means the i5-12400 is 0.9% faster on average, a negligible difference for gaming. Both are viable, but the i5-12400 offers more cores and threads.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 Ti faster than the NVIDIA RTX A6000?

A: The RTX 4070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 44795, while the RTX A6000 scores 44075. The RTX 4070 Ti is 1.6% faster, making it the better performer in this comparison, despite the A6000 being a workstation card.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings average 367 FPS, while Ultra averages 152 FPS. The difference is 215 FPS, which indicates that the CPU is likely the limiting factor at the lower preset.

Q: Does this system ever drop below 60 FPS in Downfall?

A: Based on the average FPS data, no. The lowest recorded average is 70.9 FPS at 4K Ultra. No minimum FPS values are provided, but the averages suggest there is a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold at every resolution and preset.