The Medium

This CPU and GPU pairing is one of the most lopsided combinations in the database. The Intel Core i5-12400F is a solid mainstream desktop processor with strong multi-threaded and single-threaded scores, while the Intel Arc B390 is an integrated-class part with benchmark results that place it near the very bottom of the GPU charts. The recorded data for The Medium reflects that imbalance: the game is unplayable at every tested setting and resolution using the 60 FPS threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

The database records no playable settings for this combination. At all three resolutions, the highest average frame rate recorded is 51 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings. That is below the 60 FPS playable threshold, so the verdict list for every resolution is empty.

At 1920x1080, the available presets and their recorded average frame rates are: Low at 51 FPS, Medium at 32 FPS, High at 23 FPS, and Ultra at 18 FPS. The Medium preset also records minimum and maximum values of 27 and 37 FPS respectively, giving a narrow band that stays well under the target. Even the most demanding preset, Ultra, only reaches 18 FPS average, which is less than one third of the 60 FPS target.

Moving up to 2560x1440, the numbers drop further. Low settings produce an average of 43 FPS, Medium produces 27 FPS with a minimum of 23 and a maximum of 31, High produces 19 FPS, and Ultra produces 15 FPS. None of these approaches the playable threshold, and the gap between the best and worst presets is 28 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the situation is worse. Low settings average 34 FPS, Medium averages 21 FPS with a range of 18 to 24, High averages 15 FPS, and Ultra averages 12 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the lowest recorded result in the entire dataset for this game, at 12 FPS average.

Since no preset at any resolution reaches 60 FPS, there is no "best settings" recommendation that satisfies the playable threshold. The closest configuration is 1080p Low at 51 FPS, but that is still 9 FPS short of the target. If forced to choose a playable-looking configuration, the data suggests that the only path would be to drop resolution or settings below what the database records, but no such measurements exist in this dataset.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows a clear GPU bottleneck at every resolution. The Intel Arc B390 has a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, the GeForce 800M, the GT 625 OEM, and the GT 710, all of which are low-end parts from previous generations. The GPU is simply not capable of sustaining high frame rates in a game like The Medium, which is a horror title with heavy rendering demands.

The CPU, by contrast, is far more capable. The Intel Core i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19039, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs. Its multi-threaded Cinebench R23 score is 12380, and its single-thread score is 1680. In 3DMark, it scores 5912 at max threads and 909 in single-thread. This is not a CPU that would typically hold back a game at these resolutions, especially at Low settings where the frame rate is still low.

The scaling between resolutions confirms the GPU limit. At 1080p Low, the average is 51 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 43 FPS, a fall of 8 FPS. At 4K Low, it drops to 34 FPS, another 9 FPS decrease. This steady decline with resolution is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rate would remain roughly flat across resolutions, since the CPU work per frame does not change much with pixel count. Instead, every increase in resolution reduces the average FPS by a meaningful amount.

Preset scaling tells the same story. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium drops the average from 51 to 32 FPS, a 19 FPS loss. From Medium to High, it drops to 23 FPS, another 9 FPS. From High to Ultra, it drops to 18 FPS, a 5 FPS loss. The large jump between Low and Medium suggests that the GPU struggles with even moderate increases in shading and texture work. The CPU has enough headroom to handle these preset changes, but the GPU does not.

At 1440p and 4K, the same pattern holds. The gap between Low and Medium is 16 FPS at 1440p and 13 FPS at 4K. The gap between Medium and High is 8 FPS at 1440p and 6 FPS at 4K. The consistent drop across presets and resolutions points entirely to the Arc B390 as the limiting component. The i5-12400F is likely idle for much of the frame time, waiting on the GPU to finish rendering.

Similar Performance Alternatives

If you are looking at the CPU side, the Intel Core i5-12400F sits among several comparable processors in the database. The AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS has an average score of 19047, which is essentially identical to the i5-12400F's 19039, with a delta of 0 percent. The Intel Core 3 201E scores 19056, only 0.1 percent higher. The Intel Core i5-1335U scores 18982, 0.3 percent lower, and the AMD EPYC 7773X scores 18979, also 0.3 percent lower. Any of these CPUs would behave similarly in this game, since the bottleneck is the GPU, not the processor. Swapping the i5-12400F for any of these rivals would likely produce the same frame rates within a rounding error.

The GPU side is where the alternatives matter more. The Intel Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. Its nearest rivals are all NVIDIA parts from older generations. The GeForce GT 520MX scores 1463, which is 1.3 percent lower. The GeForce 800M scores 1460, 1.5 percent lower. The GeForce GT 625 OEM scores 1446, 2.5 percent lower. The GeForce GT 710 scores 1443, 2.7 percent lower. These deltas are tiny, so any of these GPUs would produce a similar experience in The Medium: all of them would fall well short of 60 FPS at every preset and resolution tested. The recorded data for the Arc B390 shows an average FPS range of 12 to 51 depending on settings, and the rivals are close enough that their results would sit in the same range.

For a builder who currently owns an i5-12400F and wants to play The Medium, the data suggests that the CPU is not the problem. The nearest CPU rivals all have nearly identical average scores, so upgrading within that class would not help. The GPU, however, is in a performance class that is fundamentally unsuited for this game at the 60 FPS threshold. The nearest GPU rivals are all more than a decade old in terms of performance tier, and the delta between them and the Arc B390 is only a few percentage points.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: this PC cannot run The Medium at a playable frame rate. The verdictByResolution field lists no playable settings for 3840x2160, 2560x1440, or 1920x1080. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the highest recorded average across all twelve tested configurations is 51 FPS at 1080p Low. That is 9 FPS short of the target.

At 4K, the best result is 34 FPS at Low settings, which is barely more than half of the target. At 1440p, the best result is 43 FPS at Low, which is 17 FPS short. At 1080p, the best result is 51 FPS at Low, which is the closest this combination gets to playable, but it still does not clear the bar. Every other preset at every resolution is lower, with the worst result being 12 FPS at 4K Ultra.

The Intel Core i5-12400F is not the issue. Its benchmark scores are healthy, and it ranks in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs. The Intel Arc B390, however, ranks in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, and its performance in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 is 1482, which places it alongside integrated and entry-level parts from previous generations. The Medium is a demanding horror title, and the GPU does not have the raw throughput to maintain 60 FPS at even the lowest settings and resolution.

For anyone considering this pairing for The Medium, the recorded data says to expect sub-60 FPS gameplay in all scenarios. The only configurations that come close are 1080p Low at 51 FPS and 1440p Low at 43 FPS. Neither meets the threshold, and both would likely feel sluggish in a game that relies on atmosphere and timing.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run The Medium at 1080p?

A: No. The highest average frame rate at 1920x1080 is 51 FPS on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium averages 32 FPS, High averages 23 FPS, and Ultra averages 18 FPS.

Q: What is the best settings preset for this combination?

A: There is no preset that reaches 60 FPS. The closest is 1920x1080 Low at 51 FPS average, but the verdictByResolution data lists no playable settings for any resolution.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck. The Intel Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and sits in the 9th percentile of GPUs. The Intel Core i5-12400F scores in the 73rd percentile of CPUs, and frame rates drop consistently as resolution and preset quality increase, which points to GPU limits.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482, which is 1.3 percent higher than the GeForce GT 520MX, 1.5 percent higher than the GeForce 800M, 2.5 percent higher than the GeForce GT 625 OEM, and 2.7 percent higher than the GeForce GT 710. All of these are in the same low-performance tier.

Q: Would a different CPU help improve frame rates?

A: No. The nearest CPU rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS with an average score of 19047 and the Intel Core 3 201E with 19056, are within 0.3 percent of the i5-12400F's 19039. The frame rate is limited by the GPU, not the CPU.

Q: What is the lowest recorded frame rate for this combination?

A: The lowest average is 12 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. The Medium preset at 4K averages 21 FPS with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 24 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination ranks 3314 out of 3724 tested combos in the database for The Medium. That places it in the bottom portion of all tested systems, roughly in the 11th percentile of the 3724 combos. The ranking reflects the severe GPU limitation: the Arc B390's 1482 score in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 9th percentile standing among all GPUs drags the overall result down, despite the i5-12400F's respectable 73rd percentile CPU standing.

The rank is consistent with the frame rate data. A combo that cannot reach 60 FPS at any resolution or preset is naturally going to sit low in a ranking that uses 60 FPS as the playable threshold. The 3314 rank means that 410 tested combos performed worse, but the vast majority of systems in the database outperformed this pairing.

The gap between the CPU and GPU performance classes explains the low rank. The i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19039, and its nearest CPU rivals are all within 0.3 percent, so the processor is delivering expected performance. The Arc B390, on the other hand, is in the bottom 9 percent of GPUs, and its nearest rivals are all older low-end parts. In a game like The Medium, which scales heavily with GPU throughput, the weak GPU dominates the outcome. The result is a combo that ranks near the bottom of the database despite having a competent CPU.