The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, places measurable demands on the Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 combination. The data shows a clear performance curve from 1080p to 4K, with the system achieving playable frame rates at lower resolutions but falling short at the highest. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, compares nearby hardware, and provides a verdict on what settings deliver a smooth experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combination performs strongly across all presets. The Low preset delivers an average of 121 FPS, which is nearly double the 60 FPS playable threshold. The Medium preset averages 93 FPS, with a minimum of 79 FPS and a maximum of 107 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery without major dips. High settings produce an average of 80 FPS, still comfortably above the threshold. The most demanding Ultra preset averages 62 FPS, just 2 FPS above the playable line, meaning it is technically playable but leaves minimal headroom for demanding scenes.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance gap becomes more pronounced. Low settings average 79 FPS, which is still well above the threshold. Medium settings average 61 FPS, with a minimum of 52 FPS and a maximum of 70 FPS; the minimum dipping below 60 FPS suggests potential stutter in heavy combat. High settings average 52 FPS, which is below the playable threshold. Ultra settings drop to an average of 41 FPS, making them unsuitable for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles significantly. Low settings average 44 FPS, below the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings average 33 FPS, with a minimum of 28 FPS and a maximum of 39 FPS. High settings average 29 FPS, and Ultra settings average 22 FPS. None of the 4K presets reach the playable threshold, confirming that this resolution is not viable for this game with this hardware.

The scaling between presets is consistent. At 1080p, moving from Low to Ultra costs 59 FPS on average. At 1440p, the same preset swing costs 38 FPS. At 4K, it costs 22 FPS. This indicates that the performance penalty for higher settings shrinks as resolution increases, because the GPU becomes the limiting factor earlier at higher pixel counts.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i3-12100F sits at the 68th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13494. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core 3 N355, which scores 13492 with a 0% delta, meaning the two perform nearly identically. The Intel Core i5-9500 scores 13452, which is 0.3% lower, while the Intel Core 5 120UL scores 13594, which is 0.7% higher. The Intel Core i7-1250U scores 13351, 1.1% lower. For gaming, this means any of these CPUs would deliver similar frame pacing in The Technomancer, as the i3-12100F is not the bottleneck at most settings.

The Intel Arc B570 is at the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 20556. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, which scores 20534, a 0.1% difference. The Intel Arc A750 scores 20582, which is 0.1% higher. The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M scores 20480, 0.4% lower, and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X scores 20662, 0.5% higher. In practical terms, the Arc B570 trades blows with these cards; a system with an RTX 3070 Mobile or Arc A750 would produce nearly identical FPS numbers in The Technomancer at the same settings.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run The Technomancer at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 62 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

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

A: The Medium preset is the best option at 2560x1440, averaging 61 FPS. The Low preset also works at 79 FPS, but Medium offers higher visual quality while staying just above the threshold.

Q: Is 4K resolution playable with this hardware?

A: No. The highest average FPS at 3840x2160 is 44 FPS on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. All other presets are lower, with Ultra at 22 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13494, placing it at the 68th percentile. Its closest rival, the Intel Core 3 N355, scores 13492, a 0% difference, meaning they perform identically in synthetic tests.

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

A: The Intel Arc B570 scores 20556 on average, at the 65th percentile. The Intel Arc A750 scores 20582, a 0.1% difference, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile scores 20534, also a 0.1% difference, indicating very close performance levels.

Q: What is the minimum FPS at 1080p Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS is 79, with a maximum of 107 and an average of 93, showing stable frame delivery without significant drops.

How This Combo Ranks

In The Technomancer, this combination of Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B570 ranks 2972 out of 3696 tested combos. This places it in the lower portion of the benchmark database, around the 20th percentile of tested systems. The ranking reflects that while the system is capable at 1080p and playable at 1440p, it cannot handle 4K, which many higher-ranked combos can achieve. The rank is a holistic measure across all tested resolutions and presets, and the data shows that the system's strength is in lower-resolution gaming rather than high-end performance.

The Verdict

The verdict by resolution is clear. At 3840x2160, there are no playable settings; the best average FPS is 44 on Low, which fails the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, the playable settings are Low and Medium, with Medium being the best at 61 FPS. At 1920x1080, all four presets are playable, and Ultra is the best at 62 FPS. Therefore, this PC can run The Technomancer at 1080p on any preset, and at 1440p on Low or Medium, but it cannot run the game at 4K with any preset.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 62 FPS. This is the highest visual quality option that remains playable. At 2560x1440, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, with an average of 61 FPS. High settings at this resolution average 52 FPS, so Medium is the ceiling. At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS, so there is no recommended setting; the closest is Low at 44 FPS, but it does not meet the playable threshold.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows that the GPU becomes the dominant factor as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU well enough that the Arc B570 reaches 121 FPS on Low and 80 FPS on High. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is a 49% reduction in FPS, which is primarily a GPU workload increase. At 1440p, the same preset swing results in a 48% reduction, but the absolute numbers are lower, indicating the GPU is nearing its limit. At 4K, the preset swing from Low to Ultra causes a 50% reduction, but the starting point is only 44 FPS, so the GPU is clearly the bottleneck across all settings.

The CPU's role is more evident at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system hits 121 FPS, which is a high frame rate that still leaves GPU headroom. The i3-12100F, with a single-thread score of 893 in 3dmark and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1674, provides enough processing power to avoid limiting the GPU at these settings. At 1440p and above, the GPU is the limiting factor, as evidenced by the steep drop in FPS when moving from Low to Medium at 4K (44 to 33 FPS). The CPU's multi-thread performance, scoring 11860 in Cinebench R23, is sufficient for this 2016 title, which does not heavily utilize more than a few cores. The scaling between resolutions confirms this: at the same preset, moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces FPS by about 34% on Low, while moving from 1440p to 4K reduces it by another 44%, a pattern consistent with GPU-bound performance at higher pixel counts.