The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload that scales significantly with resolution and graphical presets. For the combination of an Intel Core i5-12400 and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, the measured data shows a system that is overwhelmingly capable at standard and high refresh rates, with its only limitation appearing at maximum settings in 4K. This analysis walks through the measured FPS data, answers common questions, and contextualizes the performance against the hardware's broader ranking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The FPS data for this combination is measured across three resolutions and four quality presets, providing a clear picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptional headroom. The Low preset averages 252.1 FPS, which is the highest recorded figure in the dataset. Moving to Medium yields 228.4 FPS, while High drops to 194.2 FPS. Even the most demanding Ultra preset at 1080p maintains an average of 151.4 FPS, indicating that the GPU is never a bottleneck at this resolution and the CPU is providing ample throughput.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains very strong but shows the expected scaling pressure. The Low preset averages 193.7 FPS, which is a 23% reduction from the 1080p Low result. Medium follows at 151.5 FPS, and High at 127.9 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p still clears triple-digit framerates with an average of 102.2 FPS. This resolution demonstrates that the RTX 4080 SUPER has enough compute headroom to handle the increased pixel count while still exceeding the 60 FPS threshold by a wide margin across all settings.

The most demanding scenario is 3840x2160. Here, the Low preset averages 106.4 FPS, which is a 45% decrease from the 1080p Low figure. Medium averages 79 FPS, and High averages 71.2 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration in the entire dataset that falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold, averaging just 53.7 FPS. This drop from 71.2 FPS at High to 53.7 FPS at Ultra represents a 24.6% performance penalty, suggesting that the Ultra preset introduces effects that heavily tax the GPU at 4K pixel counts.

It is important to note that the dataset does not include min or max FPS values for any configuration. The analysis relies solely on average FPS, which smooths out transient spikes and drops. The data indicates a consistent scaling pattern: moving from Low to Medium costs roughly 10-15% of performance depending on resolution, and moving from High to Ultra costs roughly 15-25%. The gap between 1440p and 4K is particularly pronounced, with the 4K Ultra setting being the only point where the hardware struggles to maintain fluid motion.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run The Technomancer at 4K with the High preset?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS for 3840x2160 at High settings is 71.2 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The system can handle 4K High without issues, though it does not reach the higher refresh rates seen at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the best preset for 2560x1440 to stay above 60 FPS?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 averages 102.2 FPS, which is well above 60 FPS. This is the most demanding preset available at that resolution, and it remains fully playable, making it the recommended choice for maximum visual quality.

Q: Is the RTX 4080 SUPER overkill for 1920x1080?

A: Based on the data, yes. Even the Ultra preset at 1080p averages 151.4 FPS. The High preset averages 194.2 FPS, and Low reaches 252.1 FPS. The GPU is heavily underutilized at this resolution, as the framerate is likely capped by the CPU or game engine limits rather than GPU compute.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra preset perform compared to the 4K High preset?

A: The Ultra preset at 3840x2160 averages 53.7 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset averages 71.2 FPS, a 32.6% improvement. This suggests that the Ultra preset's added visual effects have a disproportionate performance cost at 4K.

Q: What is the most demanding setting that still maintains 60 FPS at 4K?

A: The High preset is the most demanding playable setting at 3840x2160, with an average of 71.2 FPS. The Medium preset also clears 60 FPS at 79 FPS, but High offers higher fidelity while remaining above the threshold.

Q: Does the CPU limit performance at any resolution?

A: At 1080p and 1440p, the framerates are high enough (over 150 FPS at Ultra) that the Intel Core i5-12400 likely becomes a limiting factor compared to faster CPUs. However, at 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as evidenced by the large framerate drops when increasing settings.

Best Settings per Resolution

Based on the measured data, the goal is to identify the most demanding preset that maintains an average of at least 60 FPS.

3840x2160: The High preset is the best choice. It averages 71.2 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset averages 53.7 FPS and is therefore not playable. Medium averages 79 FPS and Low averages 106.4 FPS, but High offers the best visual quality among the playable options.

2560x1440: The Ultra preset is fully playable, averaging 102.2 FPS. This is the highest quality setting available, and it clears the 60 FPS threshold by a significant margin. All four presets at 1440p are playable, with Low at 193.7 FPS, Medium at 151.5 FPS, and High at 127.9 FPS.

1920x1080: The Ultra preset is the best choice, averaging 151.4 FPS. This is well above 60 FPS and provides the maximum visual fidelity. All presets at 1080p are playable, with Low at 252.1 FPS, Medium at 228.4 FPS, and High at 194.2 FPS.

The Verdict

The data is clear: this PC can run The Technomancer effectively at all tested resolutions, with one exception. At 1920x1080, every preset from Low to Ultra clears 60 FPS, with the lowest average being 151.4 FPS at Ultra. This is a high-refresh-rate experience. At 2560x1440, the same applies; even Ultra averages 102.2 FPS, ensuring a smooth experience on high refresh rate monitors. At 3840x2160, the High, Medium, and Low presets all clear 60 FPS, with High being the best playable option at 71.2 FPS. The only configuration that fails to meet the playable threshold is the Ultra preset at 4K, which averages 53.7 FPS.

The verdict by resolution confirms that the system is suitable for 1080p and 1440p gaming without compromises. For 4K, users must avoid the Ultra preset to maintain a fluid experience, but High settings provide a solid framerate. This is a strong result for a game from 2016, indicating that the RTX 4080 SUPER has ample headroom for this title.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS scaling reveals a clear division of labor between the two components. At 1920x1080, the framerates are extremely high across all presets, with the difference between Low (252.1 FPS) and Ultra (151.4 FPS) being 40%. This massive gap suggests that the GPU is still the primary driver of performance, as lowering settings directly increases FPS. However, the absolute numbers are so high that the CPU's single-thread performance, as measured by a 3DMark single-thread score of 910, is likely insufficient to push beyond these limits.

At 2560x1440, the scaling pattern remains similar, with Low at 193.7 FPS and Ultra at 102.2 FPS. The 47% reduction from Low to Ultra indicates that GPU load is increasing, but the CPU is still keeping up. The fact that Ultra stays above 100 FPS suggests that the CPU is not a major bottleneck at this resolution.

The picture changes at 3840x2160. The difference between Low (106.4 FPS) and Ultra (53.7 FPS) is 49.5%, which is more pronounced. This indicates that the GPU is heavily saturated at 4K, and the CPU's role becomes less significant. The GPU's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 736.3 GB/s bandwidth are likely crucial for handling 4K textures and effects. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient to feed the GPU at 4K, as the framerate drops are attributable to GPU compute limits rather than CPU stalls.

In summary, the GPU is the dominant factor at all resolutions, but its dominance grows with resolution. At 1080p, the CPU may limit peak FPS, but the GPU still dictates the scaling between presets. At 4K, the GPU is the unequivocal bottleneck, and the CPU has minimal impact on the final framerate.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER combination ranks 299th out of 3696 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the top 8.1% of all configurations. The percentile scores for the individual components support this: the CPU is in the 72nd percentile of all CPUs, and the GPU is in the 86th percentile of all GPUs.

The rank is impressive but not top-tier, which aligns with the 4K Ultra result. The top-performing combos likely include faster CPUs that can push higher framerates at 1080p and 1440p, and possibly more powerful GPUs that can handle 4K Ultra. The 299th rank suggests that this combo offers excellent performance for the vast majority of users, but it is not the absolute fastest for this specific title.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provides context for what other hardware would perform similarly. The Intel Core i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683. Its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 7643, scores 18697, which is only 0.1% faster. This means that a system with an EPYC 7643 would deliver virtually identical CPU-bound performance in The Technomancer. Two other rivals, the Intel Core i7-1355U (18730, 0.3% faster) and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 (18811, 0.7% faster), are also within a negligible margin. The Intel Core i3-14100F scores 18519, which is 0.9% slower, making it a close alternative as well.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, the average benchmark score is 54209. Its closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, which scores 54247, a mere 0.1% difference. A system with a non-SUPER RTX 4080 would perform almost identically. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X scores 54828 (1.1% faster), while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB scores 55698 (2.7% faster) and the AMD Radeon 8060S scores 55757 (2.8% faster). These alternatives fall within a 3% performance band, meaning that swapping the GPU for any of these would result in a very similar experience in The Technomancer.

For the purposes of this game, the RTX 4080 SUPER and its near-twin RTX 4080 are effectively interchangeable. The CPU alternatives are also closely matched, with the i3-14100F being the only one that is noticeably slower. In practical terms, users with any of these rival components can expect the same playability profile: excellent performance at 1080p and 1440p, and a need to avoid Ultra settings at 4K.