Lockdown Protocol

Lockdown Protocol presents a demanding workload for the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination. The benchmark data indicates that this pairing can deliver a playable experience, but the ceiling for quality settings is highly dependent on the target resolution. At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, while at 1080p, the system shows enough headroom to run the game at its highest preset.

Best Settings per Resolution

The most demanding preset that maintains an average of 60 FPS or higher differs significantly across resolutions. The recorded data shows that the system has the most flexibility at 1920x1080, where it can handle the Ultra preset.

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset achieves an average of 76.6 FPS. This is the highest quality setting that stays above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset runs at 97 FPS, Medium at 114 FPS, and Low at 160.4 FPS, but Ultra is the best visual option that still clears the playable mark.

Moving to 2560x1440, the system cannot sustain 60 FPS on the Ultra preset, which averages 55.5 FPS. The best playable setting here is High, delivering an average of 74.5 FPS. Medium and Low also remain playable, with averages of 84.4 FPS and 114.7 FPS respectively, but High offers the best visual fidelity while staying above the threshold.

At 3840x2160, the options narrow considerably. High settings drop to 46.1 FPS, and Medium falls to 56.5 FPS, both below the 60 FPS target. Ultra is far behind at 33.8 FPS. The only playable preset at 4K is Low, which produces an average of 75.2 FPS. This is a substantial compromise in visual quality, but it is the only way to achieve a smooth frame rate at this resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling of frame rates across resolutions and presets reveals a clear division of labor between the CPU and GPU. At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates strong performance across all settings, which suggests that the RTX 2060 SUPER is not fully saturated and the i3-12100F is feeding frames efficiently. The jump from Low to Ultra at 1080p results in a drop from 160.4 FPS to 76.6 FPS, a difference of 83.8 FPS, which points to the GPU handling most of the rendering load as settings increase.

At 2560x1440, the frame rate at Low settings is 114.7 FPS, which is lower than the 160.4 FPS seen at 1080p Low. This reduction indicates that the GPU is beginning to become more influential, as the higher pixel count demands more from the graphics card. However, the CPU still has enough headroom to keep the frame rate well above playable levels.

The situation changes dramatically at 3840x2160. The Low preset only manages 75.2 FPS, compared to 160.4 FPS at 1080p. This 85.2 FPS drop is a direct result of the GPU being overwhelmed by the 4K pixel workload. The CPU, with its 4 cores and 8 threads, is no longer the limiting factor. The data shows that increasing resolution from 1080p to 4K at Low settings cuts performance by more than half, which is a classic sign of GPU saturation.

The CPU's role is more apparent at lower resolutions where frame rates are higher. The i3-12100F has a single-thread benchmark score of 893 in 3dmark and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1674, which are solid figures for a quad-core part. However, the game's scaling suggests that even at 1080p, the CPU is not holding the GPU back, as evidenced by the 160.4 FPS result at Low settings. The RTX 2060 SUPER, with its 2176 shading units and 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, becomes the primary driver of performance at higher resolutions and quality settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded measurements provide a complete picture of the system's performance across all tested configurations.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 160.4 FPS. Medium settings average 114 FPS. High settings average 97 FPS. Ultra settings average 76.6 FPS. All presets at this resolution comfortably exceed the 60 FPS threshold.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but shows the expected decline. Low settings average 114.7 FPS. Medium settings average 84.4 FPS. High settings average 74.5 FPS. Ultra settings drop to 55.5 FPS, which is the first configuration that falls below the playable threshold.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. Low settings average 75.2 FPS, which is the only playable option. Medium settings average 56.5 FPS. High settings average 46.1 FPS. Ultra settings average 33.8 FPS, a result that is far below the 60 FPS target and likely to feel sluggish in a fast-paced FPS.

The data shows a consistent pattern: each step up in resolution reduces performance across all settings, and each step up in quality settings reduces performance at all resolutions. The most significant drop occurs between 1440p and 4K, where the GPU's memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s and 256-bit bus are not enough to maintain high frame rates at maximum quality.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Lockdown Protocol at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: Yes. The benchmark data shows an average of 76.6 FPS at 1920x1080 with the Ultra preset, which stays above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 1440p?

A: High settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 74.5 FPS, making it the most demanding preset that remains playable. Ultra settings fall short with an average of 55.5 FPS.

Q: Is 4K gaming possible with this hardware?

A: Yes, but only with Low settings. The average FPS at 3840x2160 with Low settings is 75.2. Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below 60 FPS.

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

A: The average frame rate drops from 160.4 FPS at 1920x1080 to 75.2 FPS at 3840x2160, a reduction of 85.2 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance at 4K?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at 4K. The frame rate at Low settings drops by more than half compared to 1080p, indicating the RTX 2060 SUPER is saturated by the pixel workload.

Q: Which resolution offers the best balance of visual quality and performance?

A: 1920x1080 with Ultra settings provides an average of 76.6 FPS, which is the highest quality preset that maintains a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination ranks 2550 out of 3714 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places the system in the lower half of the database, but the percentile data for the individual components provides context. The CPU sits in the 68th percentile among all tested processors, while the GPU sits in the 62nd percentile among all tested graphics cards. The combination's rank of 2550 suggests that while each component is mid-pack on its own, the pairing does not push the game to higher performance tiers, likely due to the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions.

The rank indicates that there are 1164 other tested combinations that deliver better performance in this specific game. However, the system is not at the bottom of the list, and the measured frame rates show that it can handle the game at multiple settings. The rank is a relative measure, and the absolute performance data shows a system that is capable of a smooth experience at 1080p and 1440p with the right settings.

The Verdict

This PC can run Lockdown Protocol, and the verdict by resolution confirms its capabilities.

At 3840x2160, the system is playable with Low settings, which achieve an average of 75.2 FPS. This is the only playable preset at 4K, and it requires a significant reduction in visual quality.

At 2560x1440, the system is playable with High, Low, and Medium settings. The best setting is High, with an average of 74.5 FPS. Ultra is not playable at this resolution.

At 1920x1080, the system is playable with all four presets. The best setting is Ultra, with an average of 76.6 FPS. This is the recommended way to play the game, as it offers the highest visual fidelity while maintaining a solid frame rate.

The data shows that for a smooth 60 FPS experience, users should target 1080p with Ultra settings or 1440p with High settings. 4K is possible only with Low settings, and the visual compromise may not be worth the resolution gain for most players.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provide insight into what other hardware would behave similarly in this system.

For the Intel Core i3-12100F, the closest competitors are the Intel Core 3 N355, which has an average score of 13492 and a delta of 0%, and the Intel Core i5-9500, which scores 13452 with a delta of 0.3%. The Intel Core 5 120UL is slightly faster with a score of 13594 and a delta of -0.7%, while the Intel Core i7-1250U scores 13351 with a delta of 1.1%. These processors would provide essentially the same level of CPU performance in Lockdown Protocol, meaning the frame rates at higher resolutions would remain largely unchanged.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, the nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, which scores 18159 with a delta of -0.4%, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700, which scores 18189 with a delta of -0.5%. The AMD Radeon RX 460 scores 18373 with a delta of -1.5%, and the Intel Arc A770M scores 18383 with a delta of -1.6%. These GPUs would produce very similar frame rates in the game. The negative deltas indicate that the RTX 2060 SUPER actually has a slightly lower average benchmark score than these rivals, but the differences are minimal, so users should expect nearly identical performance in real-world gaming.

A system built with any of these alternative CPUs paired with any of these alternative GPUs would land in the same performance neighborhood. The i3-12100F and RTX 2060 SUPER combination is a balanced mid-range setup, and swapping in any of these near-equivalent parts would not meaningfully change the playable settings or frame rates outlined in the measurements above.