Microsoft Flight Simulator

Intel Core i7-12700KF and Intel Arc B570 form a mid-range desktop pairing for Microsoft Flight Simulator, a flight simulation title released on 2020-08-17. The measured data, gathered from benchmarking this specific combination, shows that playability is heavily dependent on resolution and settings, with the combo achieving a rank of 2988 out of 3714 tested combos in this game. The Arc B570, based on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage), provides 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, while the 12-core, 20-thread Core i7-12700KF (Alder Lake) offers strong CPU throughput; the interaction of these components determines the frame rates detailed below.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the Intel Core i7-12700KF + Intel Arc B570 combination falls below the 60 FPS threshold across all tested presets. The highest average frame rate at this resolution is 51 FPS on Low settings, which is still 9 FPS short of playable. Medium settings yield an average of 40 FPS with a minimum of 34 FPS and a maximum of 46 FPS. High settings drop the average to 30 FPS, while Ultra is the most demanding, producing an average of only 28 FPS. Clearly, 4K resolution is not viable for smooth gameplay with this hardware, as even the lowest quality preset cannot reach the target.

Moving to 2560x1440 (1440p), the situation improves slightly. Low settings achieve an average of 69 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS bar and is the only playable preset at this resolution. Medium settings average 54 FPS, with a minimum of 46 FPS and a maximum of 62 FPS, indicating that while the average is below the threshold, there are moments of acceptable performance. High settings average 41 FPS, and Ultra drops further to 39 FPS. The data shows that 1440p is only viable on the lowest quality setting, where the 69 FPS average provides a comfortable margin above the playable threshold.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the combo demonstrates its best performance. Low settings deliver an average of 86 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target. Medium settings also remain playable, with an average of 67 FPS, a minimum of 57 FPS, and a maximum of 77 FPS; the minimum dips slightly below 60 FPS, but the average is solidly in playable territory. High settings average 50 FPS, and Ultra averages 48 FPS, both falling short of the threshold. For 1080p, users have two viable options: Low at 86 FPS or Medium at 67 FPS, with the latter offering better visual fidelity while maintaining an acceptable average frame rate.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 4K resolution?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS recorded is 51 on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Ultra settings produce only 28 FPS, making 4K unplayable across all presets.

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

A: At 2560x1440, only Low settings are playable, achieving an average of 69 FPS. Medium settings average 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, so Low is the sole option for smooth gameplay at this resolution.

Q: How does the combo perform at 1080p on Medium settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with Medium settings, the average FPS is 67, with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 77 FPS. The average exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, making it playable, though the minimum dips slightly below the target.

Q: Which resolution offers the highest average frame rate?

A: The highest average frame rate across all tested configurations is 86 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 on Low settings. This is significantly higher than the next best, which is 69 FPS at 2560x1440 on Low.

Q: Is the Ultra preset ever playable with this hardware?

A: No. At every resolution tested (3840x2160, 2560x1440, and 1920x1080), the Ultra preset yields average frame rates of 28, 39, and 48 FPS respectively, all of which are well below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: How does the minimum FPS compare to the average at Medium settings?

A: At Medium settings, the minimum FPS is consistently lower than the average. At 3840x2160, the minimum is 34 FPS versus an average of 40 FPS; at 2560x1440, the minimum is 46 FPS versus 54 FPS; and at 1920x1080, the minimum is 57 FPS versus 67 FPS. This indicates some frame-time variance, particularly at higher resolutions.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 3840x2160, the data shows no playable settings, as every preset averages below 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 51 FPS, but this does not meet the playable threshold, so no recommendation is provided for this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the best and only playable setting is Low, which delivers an average of 69 FPS. This preset comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS target, providing a smooth experience for users willing to accept lower visual quality.

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, with an average of 67 FPS. While Low offers a higher average of 86 FPS, Medium is the better choice for those seeking improved visuals, as its average still clears the threshold. The minimum FPS of 57 on Medium is slightly below 60, but the average remains playable.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on the nearestRivals data for the Intel Core i7-12700KF, the CPU’s average benchmark score of 35365 places it within 0.2% of the Intel Core i7-12700K (score 35287) and 0.2% above the Intel Core i5-13600T (score 35305). It is also within 0.1% of the Intel Core i7-13700T (score 35403) and 0.2% below the Intel Core 5 213PE (score 35428). In practice, these processors would deliver nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Microsoft Flight Simulator, meaning users could expect similar frame rates when the CPU is the limiting factor.

For the Intel Arc B570, the GPU’s average benchmark score of 20556 is nearly identical to several rivals. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (score 20534) is 0.1% slower, while the Intel Arc A750 (score 20582) is 0.1% faster. The AMD Radeon R9 M390X (score 20662) is 0.5% faster, and the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (score 20480) is 0.4% slower. These GPUs would behave similarly in terms of raw graphics throughput, so swapping the Arc B570 for any of these would likely yield comparable FPS results in this game, assuming no other bottlenecks.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-12700KF + Intel Arc B570 combination ranks 2988 out of 3714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the lower portion of the overall distribution, at roughly the 80th percentile from the bottom (or 20th percentile from the top). The ranking reflects that while this hardware can handle the game at lower resolutions and settings, it struggles with higher demands. Specifically, the combo achieves playable performance only at 1440p Low and 1080p Low/Medium, which is a limited range compared to higher-ranked systems. The 60 FPS threshold is a key differentiator, as many combos above this rank likely maintain playable frame rates at 1440p Medium or High, or even at 4K, whereas this pairing cannot.

The Verdict

This PC can run Microsoft Flight Simulator, but with significant limitations. At 3840x2160, the verdictByResolution data shows no playable settings; all presets average below 60 FPS, with the best being Low at 51 FPS. At 2560x1440, only Low settings clear the 60 FPS threshold, achieving an average of 69 FPS, which is playable but requires reduced visual fidelity. At 1920x1080, both Low and Medium settings are playable, with averages of 86 FPS and 67 FPS respectively; High and Ultra fall short at 50 FPS and 48 FPS. For a smooth experience, users should target 1080p with Medium settings as the highest-quality option, or 1440p with Low if they prefer a higher resolution. 4K is not viable for this combination.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data indicates that the Intel Core i7-12700KF is not the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. As resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, average FPS drops consistently across all presets—for example, Medium settings go from 67 FPS at 1080p to 54 FPS at 1440p and 40 FPS at 4K. This scaling pattern is typical of GPU-bound scenarios, where the Arc B570’s rendering capacity becomes the limiting factor. The GPU’s 10 GB memory and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are likely strained by the higher pixel counts, explaining the steep decline at 4K.

Conversely, the CPU’s role is more evident at lower resolutions and higher settings. At 1920x1080, the difference between Low (86 FPS) and Medium (67 FPS) is 19 FPS, while the jump from Medium to High (50 FPS) is 17 FPS, showing that as settings increase, the workload shifts more toward the GPU. However, the Core i7-12700KF’s strong multi-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 multicore score of 28838) ensures that it does not cap frame rates at 1080p Medium, where the 67 FPS average is still above the threshold. At 1440p, the CPU continues to handle the simulation’s physics and AI tasks, but the GPU’s inability to maintain 60 FPS on Medium (54 FPS) suggests the Arc B570 is the limiting component. In summary, the GPU dominates performance scaling across resolutions, while the CPU is sufficient to avoid bottlenecking at playable settings, making the Arc B570 the primary factor in determining playability.