Minimum

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a commanding performance in Minimum, a third-person shooter released in 2014. Measured data across three resolutions and four quality presets shows this combination is not merely capable of running the game; it consistently produces frame rates far above the 60 FPS playable threshold. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates range from a staggering 375.5 FPS on Low settings down to 188 FPS on Ultra, indicating an overwhelming level of headroom. Moving to 2560x1440, the averages remain exceptionally high, from 245.6 FPS at Low to 121.2 FPS at Ultra. Even at the demanding 3840x2160 resolution, the combo maintains an average of 128.1 FPS on Low and 85.1 FPS on High, with the most demanding Ultra preset still clearing the playable threshold at 62.7 FPS. The data suggests that this hardware combination provides a high-refresh-rate experience at any resolution, making the question of playability a matter of which visual ceiling the user prefers, not whether the game will run smoothly.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The benchmark data for this combination reveals a clear pattern of performance scaling across resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are extraordinarily high. The Low preset yields an average of 375.5 FPS, which is the highest recorded number in the entire dataset. The Medium preset follows at 290.2 FPS, and the High preset drops to 244.3 FPS. The Ultra preset, while the most demanding, still produces an average of 188 FPS. This is a spread of 187.5 FPS between the lowest and highest settings at this resolution, demonstrating that even the heaviest visual load is easily handled.

At 2560x1440, there is a predictable performance offset. The Low preset averages 245.6 FPS, which is 129.9 FPS lower than the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset achieves 189.1 FPS, and the High preset reaches 158.7 FPS. The Ultra preset here averages 121.2 FPS. This data shows a consistent reduction in performance as the pixel count increases, but the absolute numbers remain far above what would be considered a bottleneck for competitive or high-refresh-rate play.

The most demanding tests are at 3840x2160. Here, the Low preset still manages an average of 128.1 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 101.2 FPS, while the High preset delivers 85.1 FPS. The Ultra preset is the only configuration that approaches the 60 FPS threshold, with an average of 62.7 FPS. This represents a 65.4 FPS difference between the 4K Low and 4K Ultra results, which is the largest relative performance penalty in the dataset. This indicates that the GPU is being pushed significantly harder at this resolution, but it still manages to provide a playable experience on all presets.

CPU and GPU Roles

The performance scaling between resolutions and presets indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the primary performance driver in this configuration. The most telling evidence is the frame rate progression across different resolutions. When moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 on the Ultra preset, the average frame rate drops from 188 FPS to 121.2 FPS, a reduction of 66.8 FPS. Moving from 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 on the same preset yields a further drop to 62.7 FPS, a reduction of 58.5 FPS. This consistent and significant scaling with resolution points directly to the GPU's rendering workload being the limiting factor.

The CPU's role is more apparent in the scaling between presets at a fixed resolution. At 1920x1080, the difference between Low and Ultra is 187.5 FPS. This gap narrows to 124.4 FPS at 2560x1440 and further to 65.4 FPS at 3840x2160. The fact that the gap between presets shrinks as resolution increases indicates that at lower resolutions, the CPU is more capable of feeding frames to the GPU, allowing the GPU to work at its maximum potential. At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, and the CPU's ability to keep up becomes less critical to the final frame rate. The data shows that the Intel Core i7-12700K has sufficient processing power to avoid becoming a limiting factor in this game, as even at 1080p Low, the system is producing an average of 375.5 FPS, which is a demanding scenario for a CPU to handle.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 holds a rank of 172 out of 3712 tested combinations for Minimum. This places the combo in the top 4.6% of all tested configurations, which is an exceptional result. The high ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's immense power. The RTX 5080 has an average benchmark score of 56083 and sits in the 87th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in terms of benchmark score include the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE, which has a score of 57367 and is 2.2% faster, and the AMD Radeon 8060S, which scores 55757 and is 0.6% slower. The CPU also contributes to this high ranking, with an average benchmark score of 35287 and a percentile rank of 84 against all CPUs.

The data indicates that the performance of this combo is not an outlier but a result of pairing two very high-performing components. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637 and Passmark G3D score of 36565 are indicative of its raw graphical power. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19784 and single-core score of 1850.5 ensure that it can handle the game's logic and draw calls without stuttering. This combination of high-end CPU and GPU components is what pushes the combo to such a high rank, making it a top-tier choice for playing Minimum at any settings.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Minimum at 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset?*

A: Yes. The measured average frame rate at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 62.7 FPS. This clears the 60 FPS playable threshold, although it does not leave a large margin for error.

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo can achieve?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate in the data is 375.5 FPS, which is achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: How much of a performance drop is there between 2560x1440 and 3840x2160 on the High preset?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 158.7 FPS. At 3840x2160, the High preset averages 85.1 FPS. This represents a performance drop of 73.6 FPS when moving to the higher resolution.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor for this game?

A: The data suggests the GPU is the limiting factor. The frame rate scales significantly with resolution changes, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU provides enough performance to allow for very high frame rates at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the percentile ranking of the RTX 5080 compared to all other GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, based on its average benchmark score.

Q: Are there any settings at 3840x2160 that do not meet the 60 FPS playable threshold?

A: No. According to the data, all four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, and Ultra) at 3840x2160 produce an average frame rate at or above 62.7 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

For players prioritizing the highest visual quality while maintaining a playable frame rate, the data identifies the optimal preset for each resolution. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the best choice, delivering an average of 188 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a massive amount of headroom for high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset also provides the best visual experience, with an average frame rate of 121.2 FPS. This is a significant performance level, comfortably clearing the playable threshold and offering a smooth experience on most high-refresh-rate displays. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset is again the most demanding option, and it averages 62.7 FPS. While this is above the 60 FPS threshold, it is the only configuration in the dataset that comes close to the limit. Players who want more performance at 4K could consider the High preset, which offers an average of 85.1 FPS, but the Ultra preset remains playable.

The Verdict

The data clearly indicates that this PC configuration is more than capable of running Minimum to its full potential. The verdict by resolution confirms that all presets at all three resolutions are playable. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 188 FPS, which is a phenomenal result. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 121.2 FPS, also a fantastic outcome. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 62.7 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

This system can run the game at its highest settings at 1080p and 1440p with a high degree of smoothness, and it can also handle 4K Ultra, albeit with less headroom. The performance is sufficient for high-refresh-rate gaming at lower resolutions, and it provides a stable, playable experience even at the most demanding settings tested. The data shows that this is a top-tier combination for Minimum, with no practical limitations for the vast majority of gaming scenarios.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Examining the nearest rivals for both components provides context for what other hardware would behave similarly. For the CPU, the Intel Core i7-12700KF has an average score of 35365, which is 0.2% higher than the i7-12700K's score of 35287. This indicates that the KF variant would perform nearly identically. Other close competitors include the Intel Core i5-13600T with an average score of 35305 (-0.1% delta) and the Intel Core i7-13700T with a score of 35403 (-0.3% delta). These CPUs are all within a 0.4% performance delta of the i7-12700K, meaning they would offer a very similar level of performance in this game.

On the GPU side, the closest rival is the AMD Radeon 8060S, which has an average score of 55757, a 0.6% delta from the RTX 5080's score of 56083. This means it would perform almost exactly the same. The AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB is also close, with a score of 55698 and a 0.7% delta. The AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE is slightly faster, with a score of 57367, representing a 2.2% performance advantage over the RTX 5080. A system using any of these CPUs with the RTX 5080, or the i7-12700K with any of these GPUs, would produce benchmark results that are statistically indistinguishable from the configuration tested, ensuring a similar high-performance experience in Minimum.