Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core i5-12600KF (launch MSRP $264) paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 (launch MSRP 1,599 USD) is a high-end combination for Lockdown Protocol, a 2024 FPS title. Measured FPS data shows this combo clears the 60 FPS playable threshold at every tested resolution and preset, with the RTX 4090’s raw compute and the i5-12600KF’s strong multi-threaded performance working together to deliver frame rates well above 60 even at 4K Ultra. The following analysis breaks down the measured performance, identifies the best settings per resolution, and explains how the CPU and GPU share the workload.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The table below lists all measured average, minimum, and maximum FPS values from the FACT PACK. Only the Medium preset includes recorded minimum and maximum frame times; other presets report only the average.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|---------|---------|

| 3840x2160 | High | 108 | — | — |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 174 | — | — |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 124 | 105 | 142 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 81 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | High | 167 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 270 | — | — |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 192 | 163 | 220 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 125 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | High | 228 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 308 | — | — |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 261 | 222 | 301 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 171 | — | — |

At 4K, the average FPS ranges from 81 (Ultra) to 174 (Low). The Medium preset shows a minimum of 105 and a maximum of 142, indicating that even during demanding scenes the frame rate stays comfortably above 60. At 1440p, the spread is wider: Low hits 270 average, while Ultra still manages 125. The Medium preset at 1440p has a minimum of 163 and a maximum of 220. At 1080p, the lowest average is 171 (Ultra) and the highest is 308 (Low). The Medium preset at 1080p records a minimum of 222 and a maximum of 301, meaning the frame rate never dips below 222 even in the most intense moments.

The data shows a clear scaling pattern: as resolution increases, average FPS drops across all presets. For example, at Ultra, the average goes from 171 at 1080p to 125 at 1440p to 81 at 4K. At Low, the drop is from 308 to 270 to 174. This is typical of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, where the RTX 4090’s rendering load increases with pixel count.

Best Settings per Resolution

The verdict data indicates that every preset at every resolution stays at or above 60 FPS. The most demanding preset that still clears the 60 FPS threshold is Ultra at all three resolutions. The measured average FPS at Ultra is:

• 3840x2160: 81 FPS
• 2560x1440: 125 FPS
• 1920x1080: 171 FPS

These numbers confirm that the combo can run Lockdown Protocol at maximum quality without dropping below the playable threshold. At 4K Ultra, the average of 81 FPS leaves a 21 FPS margin above the 60 FPS floor, which is comfortable for a fast-paced FPS. At 1440p and 1080p, the margins are even larger, making Ultra the obvious choice for players who prioritize visual fidelity.

If a player prefers higher frame rates over maximum quality, the Low preset offers substantially higher averages: 174 FPS at 4K, 270 FPS at 1440p, and 308 FPS at 1080p. However, the Ultra preset already delivers smooth gameplay, so there is no practical need to drop below it unless targeting very high refresh rates.

CPU and GPU Roles

The i5-12600KF is a 10-core, 16-thread processor with a boost clock of 4.90 GHz and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. Its average benchmark score is 27799, placing it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs. According to the nearestRivals data, it sits within 0.3% of the Intel Core i9-10900K and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, and 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE. This indicates that the CPU is a strong performer for gaming, with enough multi-threaded headroom to feed a flagship GPU.

The RTX 4090 is a 24 GB GDDR6X card with a 384-bit memory bus and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth. It has 16,384 shading units, 512 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, along with 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores. Its FP32 compute is 82.58 TFLOPS. The GPU’s average benchmark score is 60347, placing it in the 88th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Arc Pro A60 (0% delta) and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (0.3% ahead), though those are professional cards, not direct gaming competitors.

The measured FPS scaling reveals how the workload shifts between CPU and GPU. At 1080p, the average FPS is extremely high—308 on Low and 171 on Ultra. This suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, where the GPU is not fully saturated. At 4K, the average FPS drops significantly, even on Low (174) compared to 1080p Low (308). The gap between Low and Ultra also widens with resolution: at 1080p, the difference is 137 FPS (308 vs 171); at 1440p, it is 145 FPS (270 vs 125); at 4K, it is 93 FPS (174 vs 81). This pattern indicates that the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution increases, while the CPU’s role diminishes. The i5-12600KF’s strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3302) and multi-thread score (23391) ensure that it does not hold back the RTX 4090 at any tested setting.

In practical terms, the data shows that this combo is GPU-bound at 4K and CPU-bound at 1080p only in the sense that the CPU is not the limiting factor—the GPU still has headroom. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high that the CPU’s ability to issue draw calls and manage game logic becomes more relevant, but the i5-12600KF handles it without issue, as evidenced by the 308 FPS average on Low.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Lockdown Protocol at 4K Ultra?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 81, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

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

A: Ultra is the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS, with an average of 125 FPS at 2560x1440.

Q: How does the i5-12600KF compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The CPU’s average benchmark score of 27799 is within 0.3% of the Intel Core i9-10900K and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, and 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 111th out of 3714 tested combinations in Lockdown Protocol.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS at 1080p Medium?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the minimum FPS is 222 and the maximum is 301, with an average of 261.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU more important for this game?

A: The data shows that FPS scales strongly with resolution, indicating the GPU is the primary factor at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the CPU’s performance is sufficient to allow very high frame rates, but the GPU still dominates the workload.

The Verdict

The Intel Core i5-12600KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination can run Lockdown Protocol at every tested resolution and preset, all of which clear the 60 FPS playable threshold. The verdict data lists all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) as playable at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, and 1920x1080. The best settings—meaning the most demanding preset that still stays at or above 60 FPS—is Ultra at each resolution, with average FPS of 81 at 4K, 125 at 1440p, and 171 at 1080p.

For players with a 4K display, Ultra delivers a smooth 81 FPS average, which is more than enough for a competitive FPS. At 1440p and 1080p, the frame rates are even higher, making this combo overkill for standard 60 Hz monitors but ideal for high-refresh-rate panels. The RTX 4090’s 24 GB VRAM and 1.01 TB/s bandwidth provide ample headroom for future content, while the i5-12600KF’s 10 cores and 16 threads ensure the CPU never becomes a bottleneck in this title.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Lockdown Protocol, this specific CPU-GPU pairing ranks 111th out of 3714 entries. That places it in the top tier of systems, though not at the absolute top—likely due to the CPU being a mid-range Alder Lake part rather than a flagship. The GPU, however, is in the 88th percentile of all GPUs, and the CPU is in the 79th percentile. The combination of a very strong GPU with a capable but not top-tier CPU results in a system that excels at high resolutions and high settings, as the measured FPS confirms. The rank of 111 out of 3714 indicates that only a small fraction of tested combos outperform it, and those are likely built around even more powerful CPUs or multiple GPU configurations. For the vast majority of users, this combo will deliver excellent performance in Lockdown Protocol.