Downfall

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER delivers a commanding performance profile in Downfall, a horror title that clearly favors high frame rates. Across all three tested resolutions, the combination exceeds the 60 FPS playability threshold by a substantial margin, even at the most demanding Ultra preset. The data indicates a system that is not merely capable of running the game, but is vastly overqualified for it, providing headroom for high refresh rate displays or future content updates.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Examining the nearestRivals data for both components reveals a tight cluster of alternatives that would produce nearly identical in-game results. For the CPU, the Intel Core i7-12700K sits at an average benchmark score of 35,287, with its closest competitor being the Intel Core i5-13600T at 35,305, a mere 0.1% difference. The Intel Core i7-12700KF follows at 35,365 (a -0.2% delta), and the Intel Core i7-13700T at 35,403 (-0.3%). The Intel Core 5 213PE rounds out the group at 35,428, showing a -0.4% variance. In practical terms, any of these processors would deliver indistinguishable frame pacing in Downfall, as the performance gap between them is well within the margin of error for most benchmark runs.

On the GPU side, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER posts an average benchmark score of 54,209. Its nearest rival, the standard NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, scores 54,247, a negligible -0.1% difference. This suggests that users with the non-SUPER variant would see essentially identical frame rates. More interestingly, the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X at 54,828 (-1.1%) and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB at 55,698 (-2.7%) are surprisingly close, indicating that the performance hierarchy at this tier is tighter than one might expect. The AMD Radeon 8060S at 55,757 (-2.8%) is also within striking distance. Given that Downfall is a DirectX 12 Ultimate title, the architectural differences between these GPUs could manifest in specific scenarios, but the aggregate scores suggest that any of these cards would maintain the same broad performance envelope.

How This Combo Ranks

The combined system ranks 280th out of 3,716 tested configurations in Downfall, placing it in the top 7.5% of all combinations. This percentile placement is remarkably high, especially considering the game's 2016 release date, which predates both the CPU (2021) and GPU (2024). The rank suggests that while newer flagship hardware exists, the i7-12700K and RTX 4080 SUPER combination still holds its own against much more recent builds. The data implies that Downfall is not particularly demanding on modern hardware, but the sheer headroom available means this system is future-proofed for more intensive horror titles. The gap between this combo and the top-ranked systems likely stems from CPU-bound scenarios at lower resolutions, where newer processors with higher single-thread performance would pull ahead. However, at 4K resolution, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, and the RTX 4080 SUPER's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs ensures it remains competitive.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a consistent scaling pattern across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 397 FPS on Low settings, dropping to 325 FPS on Medium (with a minimum of 276 and maximum of 374), 267 FPS on High, and 167 FPS on Ultra. The transition from Medium to High represents a 17.8% performance drop, while High to Ultra causes a 37.5% reduction. This suggests that Ultra settings introduce significantly more expensive visual effects.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high: 284 FPS on Low, 232 FPS on Medium (minimum 197, maximum 267), 190 FPS on High, and 119 FPS on Ultra. The scaling factor from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 0.71 across all settings, indicating a consistent GPU-bound workload. The 1440p Ultra figure of 119 FPS still leaves ample room for high refresh rate gaming.

At 3840x2160, the system delivers 177 FPS on Low, 144 FPS on Medium (minimum 123, maximum 166), 118 FPS on High, and 74 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Ultra result is the only data point that approaches the 60 FPS threshold, but it still clears it by 23.3%. Notably, the minimum FPS figures are only available for Medium settings, and the 4K Medium minimum of 123 FPS indicates stable frame delivery without significant drops.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Downfall at 4K Ultra settings?*

A: Yes. The measured data shows an average of 74 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, comfortably above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

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

A: At Ultra settings, the frame rate drops from 167 FPS at 1920x1080 to 74 FPS at 3840x2160, representing a 55.7% reduction. At Low settings, the drop is from 397 FPS to 177 FPS, a 55.4% decrease.

Q: What is the most demanding setting that still maintains 60 FPS at 4K?

A: All four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at 3840x2160 maintain average frame rates above 60 FPS. The lowest recorded average is 74 FPS at Ultra.

Q: Is the RTX 4080 SUPER significantly faster than the regular RTX 4080 in this game?

A: Based on the nearestRivals data, the RTX 4080 SUPER scores 54,209 on average benchmark tests while the RTX 4080 scores 54,247, a difference of only -0.1%. In Downfall, this translates to a negligible performance difference.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 1080p?

A: The data shows frame rates exceeding 397 FPS at 1080p Low settings, which suggests the GPU is still the limiting factor. The i7-12700K's 84th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it has ample processing power for this title.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1440p High settings?

A: The measured average is 190 FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings, providing a very smooth experience on any standard high refresh rate monitor.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are so high that both components are likely underutilized, but the CPU's role becomes more prominent. The i7-12700K's 12 cores and 20 threads provide substantial headroom for the game's physics and AI calculations. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a consistent 28-29% performance drop across all settings, which is typical for GPU-bound workloads. This pattern continues from 1440p to 4K, with another 28-30% reduction.

However, the preset scaling tells a different story. At 4K, moving from Low to Medium costs 18.6% performance, Medium to High costs 18.1%, and High to Ultra costs 37.3%. This non-linear scaling suggests that Ultra settings introduce features that disproportionately tax the GPU, such as enhanced shadows or post-processing effects. The CPU's influence is most evident at 1080p Low, where the 397 FPS result approaches the limits of what even a high-end processor can feed to the GPU. At 4K Ultra, the 74 FPS figure shows the GPU working at its maximum capacity, with the CPU having significant idle headroom.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which delivers an average of 167 FPS. This leaves substantial margin, so users could even consider external frame rate caps or enhancements without concern. At 2560x1440, Ultra settings again provide the best visual quality at 119 FPS average, still more than double the playability threshold. For 3840x2160, Ultra settings yield 74 FPS average, which clears the 60 FPS requirement but with less headroom. The data shows that every resolution can run at maximum visual fidelity while maintaining playable frame rates, making the choice purely one of visual preference versus display refresh rate.

The Verdict

The verdict by resolution is unambiguous: this system runs Downfall exceptionally well at all tested configurations. At 3840x2160, all four settings are playable, with Ultra achieving 74 FPS average. At 2560x1440, Ultra reaches 119 FPS, and at 1920x1080, Ultra peaks at 167 FPS. The lowest recorded figure across the entire test matrix is the 4K Ultra minimum of 74 FPS, which still exceeds the playable threshold by 23.3%. The data confirms that the Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER combination is not just capable of running Downfall, but dominates it, providing an experience that maximizes visual fidelity while maintaining fluid frame rates. For a horror game that relies on atmosphere and tension, the ability to maintain high frame rates at Ultra settings ensures smooth camera movement and responsive gameplay, which are critical for immersion.