Evolve

The Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination delivers an exceptionally strong performance profile for Evolve, a 2015 FPS title that remains highly playable at modern resolutions. The benchmark data, measured across three resolutions and four quality presets, shows this pairing has substantial headroom for high-refresh-rate displays, though the most demanding settings at 4K require a compromise. The i7-12700KF, with its 12 cores and 20 threads, ranks in the 85th percentile among all CPUs, while the RTX 4080, based on the Ada Lovelace architecture with 9,728 shading units and 16 GB of GDDR6X memory, sits in the 86th percentile for GPUs. This combination places the system at rank 222 out of 3,700 tested combos for this specific game, indicating it outperforms roughly 94% of configurations tested.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system shows extreme fluidity across all settings. The Low preset delivers an average of 335 FPS, which is nearly six times the 60 FPS playability threshold. Medium raises the visual quality while still achieving 260 FPS average, with a minimum of 221 and maximum of 299 FPS, showing excellent frame pacing consistency. High settings produce 204 FPS average, still far above the threshold. Even the Ultra preset, which typically imposes the heaviest load, maintains a 141 FPS average, ensuring that even a 120 Hz or 144 Hz display can be fully utilized without compromise. The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU and GPU are both operating well within their limits, with neither component becoming a bottleneck at any preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains remarkably strong, though the scaling from 1080p shows expected diminishing returns. Low settings yield 225 FPS average, a 33% reduction from the 1080p Low result, which is consistent with the increased pixel count. Medium settings produce 174 FPS average, with a minimum of 148 and maximum of 200 FPS, showing that the frame rate range narrows slightly as resolution increases. High settings deliver 137 FPS average, still comfortably above 60 FPS. Ultra settings at 1440p produce 95 FPS average, which is 33% below the 1080p Ultra figure of 141 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is beginning to show resolution scaling effects, but the system retains substantial headroom for high-refresh gaming at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the performance picture changes more dramatically. Low settings produce 128 FPS average, which is still more than double the playability threshold. Medium settings deliver 99 FPS average, with a minimum of 84 and maximum of 114 FPS, showing that the frame time variance increases slightly at 4K. High settings maintain a solid 78 FPS average, which remains above 60 FPS but with less margin than at lower resolutions. Ultra settings, however, drop to 54 FPS average, falling below the 60 FPS threshold and indicating that the RTX 4080 is finally being pushed to its limits. The data shows a clear trend: at 4K, the transition from High to Ultra costs 24 FPS, a 31% reduction, which is the largest single-setting performance hit observed across all resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K with maximum settings?

A: No. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 54, which falls below the 60 FPS playability threshold. The most demanding preset that stays above 60 FPS at 4K is High, which averages 78 FPS.

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

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 95 FPS, which is the highest preset that remains playable. This is 35 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the system can handle maximum visual quality at this resolution.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35,365, which is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-13700T at 35,403 (a 0.1% difference) and the Intel Core 5 213PE at 35,428 (a 0.2% difference). It performs 0.2% better than both the Intel Core i5-13600T at 35,305 and the Intel Core i7-12700K at 35,287.

Q: What GPU alternatives would provide similar performance?

A: The RTX 4080's average benchmark score of 54,247 is nearly identical to the RTX 4080 SUPER at 54,209, which is 0.1% faster. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54,828, which is 1.1% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB at 55,698 is 2.6% higher and the AMD Radeon 8060S at 55,757 is 2.7% higher.

Q: Is the frame rate at 1080p High suitable for competitive play?

A: Yes. The 1920x1080 High preset delivers 204 FPS average, which is more than triple the 60 FPS threshold. This level of performance is sufficient for high-refresh-rate competitive monitors and provides substantial headroom.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded across all tested configurations?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 84 FPS at 3840x2160 with Medium settings. This is still 24 FPS above the playability threshold, showing that even the most demanding playable configuration maintains a comfortable margin.

CPU and GPU Roles

The performance scaling between resolutions reveals how the CPU and GPU responsibilities shift for Evolve. At 1920x1080, the GPU is less stressed, and the frame rates are extremely high, suggesting that the CPU's single-thread performance and the game's engine are the primary drivers. The transition from 1080p Low at 335 FPS to 1440p Low at 225 FPS represents a 33% drop, while the transition from 1440p Low to 4K Low at 128 FPS is a 43% drop. This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU becomes more dominant as resolution increases, which is typical for a game like Evolve that has relatively modest CPU demands.

The CPU's 3DMark scores provide context for its role. The single-thread score of 1,043 and the 2-thread score of 2,065 show strong per-core performance, which is critical for game logic and frame pacing. The 16-thread score of 9,282 and max-thread score of 9,983 indicate that the CPU handles multi-threaded workloads well, but the game likely does not fully utilize all 20 threads. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 28,838 and single-core score of 4,071 further confirm that the CPU has ample capability for this title.

At 4K Ultra, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. The 54 FPS average at this setting is the only configuration where the system falls below the 60 FPS threshold, and it suggests that the RTX 4080's raw rasterization throughput is the constraint. The GPU's 48.74 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 716.8 GB/s memory bandwidth are substantial, but Evolve's Ultra preset at 4K pushes the rendering pipeline to its limit. The fact that the system achieves 128 FPS at 4K Low versus 54 FPS at 4K Ultra shows a 74 FPS spread, which is the largest gap between presets across any resolution, highlighting the GPU's sensitivity to the Ultra preset's added effects.

The data shows that at 1080p and 1440p, the CPU and GPU work in balance, with neither component consistently bottlenecking. At 4K, the GPU dominates the performance equation, and the CPU's role diminishes. This is evidenced by the fact that the 4K High preset at 78 FPS still clears the threshold, while 4K Ultra does not, indicating that the GPU's load scaling is the deciding factor at this resolution.

The Verdict

This system can absolutely run Evolve, and it does so with significant performance to spare. The verdict by resolution is clear: at 1920x1080, all four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—are playable, with the Ultra preset averaging 141 FPS. At 2560x1440, the same is true, with Ultra averaging 95 FPS. At 3840x2160, three of the four presets are playable: Low at 128 FPS, Medium at 99 FPS, and High at 78 FPS. Only the Ultra preset at 4K fails to meet the 60 FPS threshold, averaging 54 FPS.

The practical implication is that this system is ideal for 1440p gaming with maximum settings, and it can handle 4K gaming with High settings, which still deliver a smooth 78 FPS average. For users with high-refresh-rate monitors, the 1080p and 1440p results are exceptional, with 204 FPS at 1080p High and 137 FPS at 1440p High. The only scenario that requires a settings reduction is 4K Ultra, where the frame rate dips below the threshold. Given that the system ranks 222nd out of 3,700 tested combos, it is clearly a well-above-average configuration for this game.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the best settings that maintain at or above 60 FPS are High, which produce an average of 78 FPS. This represents the optimal balance between visual quality and performance at 4K, as the Ultra preset falls short at 54 FPS. The Medium preset at 99 FPS is also viable, but High offers superior visuals while still providing a 30% margin above the threshold.

At 2560x1440, the best settings are Ultra, which produce an average of 95 FPS. This is the most demanding preset available, and the system handles it with a 58% margin above the 60 FPS threshold. No settings compromise is necessary at this resolution, as even the highest quality option remains comfortably playable.

At 1920x1080, the best settings are also Ultra, with an average of 141 FPS. This gives a 135% margin above the playability threshold, meaning the system is not stressed at all at this resolution. The Ultra preset at 1080p is more than sufficient for any display, including 240 Hz monitors, as the average frame rate exceeds that refresh rate.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination ranks 222nd out of 3,700 tested combos for Evolve. This places the system in the top 6% of all configurations tested, indicating that it is a high-performance pairing for this specific game. The rank reflects both the CPU's strong multi-threaded and single-threaded performance and the GPU's high rasterization throughput. The i7-12700KF's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs and the RTX 4080's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs corroborate this position, as both components are well above average individually.

The rank is particularly notable given that Evolve was released in 2015, before either component was launched. The game's engine does not fully utilize the modern hardware's capabilities, but the sheer compute headroom of this configuration ensures that it still delivers exceptional performance. The 222nd rank suggests that only a small fraction of tested combos, likely featuring even more powerful GPUs like the RTX 4090 or newer generation hardware, outperform this setup.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals are all extremely close in average benchmark score. The Intel Core i7-13700T scores 35,403, which is 0.1% higher than the i7-12700KF's 35,365, making it effectively identical in performance. The Intel Core 5 213PE scores 35,428, also 0.2% higher. The Intel Core i5-13600T scores 35,305, which is 0.2% lower, and the Intel Core i7-12700K scores 35,287, also 0.2% lower. Any of these CPUs would deliver nearly indistinguishable in-game performance for Evolve, as the differences are within the margin of measurement error. The i7-12700K is particularly relevant as it is the same chip without the unlocked multiplier advantage, but the benchmark scores confirm they perform identically in practice.

For the GPU, the closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, which scores 54,209, just 0.1% higher than the RTX 4080's 54,247. This makes the SUPER variant a direct drop-in alternative with essentially the same performance. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54,828, which is 1.1% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55,698, 2.6% higher, and the AMD Radeon 8060S scores 55,757, 2.7% higher. The latter two AMD cards would provide a modest performance uplift, though the differences are small enough that real-world FPS differences in Evolve would be minimal. For users seeking similar performance, the RTX 4080 SUPER is the most logical alternative, as it offers virtually identical frame rates without any configuration changes.