Minimum

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the Intel Arc B570 delivers a mixed picture for Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. Benchmark measurements show that this combination clears the 60 FPS playability threshold at 1080p across all four presets, and at 1440p for Low, Medium, and High settings, but fails to reach 60 FPS at 4K under any preset. The data indicates a GPU-bound workload, with the Arc B570's performance ceiling limiting higher resolutions, while the i7-12700K's strong multi-threaded results remain largely untapped.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings average 145 FPS, Medium averages 111 FPS with a minimum of 95 and maximum of 128, High averages 93 FPS, and Ultra averages 71 FPS. All four presets exceed the 60 FPS threshold, with Ultra still maintaining a comfortable 18% margin above the playable line. The Medium preset shows tight frame pacing, with the minimum only 16 FPS below the average, suggesting stable performance under load.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops are consistent across settings. Low averages 94 FPS, Medium averages 72 FPS (min 61, max 82), High averages exactly 60 FPS, and Ultra falls to 46 FPS. The High preset sits precisely at the playable threshold, meaning any scene complexity increase could push it below 60 FPS. Medium offers a safer buffer, with its minimum of 61 FPS still clearing the threshold. Ultra is not playable, as its average is 14 FPS below the target.

At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS. Low averages 50 FPS, Medium averages 39 FPS (min 33, max 44), High averages 32 FPS, and Ultra averages 25 FPS. The best-case scenario at 4K is Low at 50 FPS, which is 10 FPS short of playable. The Medium preset's minimum of 33 FPS indicates significant frame drops, and the overall scaling suggests the GPU is overwhelmed at this resolution.

The pattern across resolutions shows a consistent ~35% reduction in average FPS when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further ~46% reduction from 1440p to 4K. This steep resolution scaling points to a GPU-bound scenario, as CPU load does not typically scale with pixel count.

FAQ

*Q: Can this combo run Minimum at 4K?*

A: No. The highest average FPS at 3840x2160 is 50 FPS on Low settings, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium, High, and Ultra average 39, 32, and 25 FPS respectively.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 2560x1440?

A: High settings average exactly 60 FPS, making it the most demanding preset that clears the threshold. Medium and Low also playable, with averages of 72 and 94 FPS, while Ultra at 46 FPS is not playable.

Q: Which preset at 1920x1080 delivers the highest quality while staying above 60 FPS?

A: Ultra settings average 71 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold, so it is the best preset at 1080p. Low, Medium, and High also exceed 60 FPS, with averages of 145, 111, and 93 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the bottleneck. The Arc B570 sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, while the i7-12700K is in the 84th percentile of all CPUs. The steep FPS drops as resolution increases—from 145 FPS at 1080p Low to 50 FPS at 4K Low—indicate that the GPU's rendering throughput is the primary constraint.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations?

A: It ranks 2984th out of 3712 tested combos, placing it in the lower 20% of systems for this game. This reflects the GPU's moderate performance relative to other cards.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The minimum FPS for Medium at 2560x1440 is 61, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold. This indicates that even during demanding scenes, the frame rate stays playable.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on aggregate benchmark scores, the Intel Core i7-12700K's closest CPU rivals are the Intel Core i5-13600T, Core i7-12700KF, Core i7-13700T, and Core 5 213PE, with average score deltas of -0.1%, -0.2%, -0.3%, and -0.4% respectively. Swapping to any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates in Minimum, as their compute performance is within a fraction of a percent.

On the GPU side, the Intel Arc B570's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% higher score), Intel Arc A750 (-0.1% lower), NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (0.4% higher), and AMD Radeon R9 M390X (-0.5% lower). These cards would deliver essentially the same FPS in this game, meaning users with any of these GPUs paired with a comparable CPU would see similar performance tiers—playable at 1080p and 1440p (excluding 1440p Ultra), but not at 4K.

The data shows that the i7-12700K's performance is not a differentiator in this title; its multi-threaded Cinebench R23 score of 19784 and single-thread score of 1850.5 are far above what Minimum requires. The Arc B570's Passmark G3D score of 14195 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2649 align with its percentile ranking, and it is the component that dictates the playable settings.

The Verdict

The Intel Core i7-12700K + Intel Arc B570 combination can run Minimum at 1920x1080 with all presets clearing 60 FPS, including Ultra at 71 FPS average. At 2560x1440, the system is playable on Low (94 FPS), Medium (72 FPS), and High (60 FPS), but not on Ultra (46 FPS). At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS; the best is Low at 50 FPS, which is below the playable threshold.

For users targeting 1080p, this combo delivers a smooth experience even at maximum settings. At 1440p, it is playable but with a narrower margin—High sits exactly at 60 FPS, so Medium is the safer choice for consistent frame rates. At 4K, the system is not viable for this game, as even the lowest settings fall short of the 60 FPS target.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals that the GPU is the dominant factor in Minimum's performance. The CPU's relative strength—84th percentile versus the GPU's 65th percentile—combined with the steep FPS drops as resolution increases, points to the Arc B570 as the bottleneck. For instance, at 1080p Low the combo produces 145 FPS, but at 4K Low it drops to 50 FPS, a 65% reduction. Similarly, at 1080p Ultra the average is 71 FPS, while at 1440p Ultra it falls to 46 FPS, a 35% drop. These scaling patterns are characteristic of GPU-bound workloads, where pixel throughput limits performance.

The i7-12700K's 12 cores and 20 threads, with a max turbo clock of 5.00 GHz, are more than sufficient for a 2014 title. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19784 and Passmark multi-thread score of 34404 place it well above the demands of Minimum. Even at 4K, where CPU overhead might become more relevant, the frame rates are still dictated by the GPU's rendering capability. The data shows no evidence of CPU limiting—the FPS differences between presets at a given resolution are consistent, and the resolution scaling is uniform across settings, further confirming that the GPU is the primary constraint.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains an average of at least 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 71 FPS. This provides the highest visual quality while still clearing the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the highest preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of exactly 60 FPS. Medium (72 FPS) and Low (94 FPS) also qualify, but High offers the best balance of quality and performance. Ultra at 46 FPS is not recommended.

At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 50 FPS, which is still below the playable threshold. Therefore, no settings are recommended for 4K play.

How This Combo Ranks

Among the 3,712 tested hardware combinations for Minimum, the Intel Core i7-12700K + Intel Arc B570 ranks 2984th. This places it in the lower 20% of all tested systems, indicating that while the combo is capable of running the game at 1080p and 1440p, it is not a high-performing configuration for this title. The ranking reflects the Arc B570's moderate performance—its 65th percentile standing among all GPUs—and the fact that many other GPU options deliver higher frame rates at higher resolutions. The CPU's strong benchmark scores do little to boost the ranking, as the game is GPU-bound. For users seeking higher 4K performance or more headroom at 1440p, alternative GPU choices from the nearestRivals list (e.g., the RTX 3070 Mobile or Arc A750) would offer nearly identical results, but any substantial improvement would require a more powerful GPU tier.