Archeage

# Archeage — Intel Core i5-12400F + AMD Radeon RX 6600

The pairing of the Intel Core i5-12400F with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 produces a playable but uneven Archeage experience that hinges heavily on both resolution and quality preset. The measured data reveals a combo that can push past 118 FPS at 1080p Low, yet collapses to just 16.5 FPS at 4K Ultra — a 86% performance drop between those extremes. This suggests the system is balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but severely outclassed by 4K demands, particularly when the Ultra preset engages effects that overwhelm the GPU's 8 GB VRAM buffer. The combo ranks 1385th out of 1727 tested combinations, placing it in the lower 20th percentile of all pairings, which contextualizes its performance as entry-level for this MMORPG rather than competitive.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep and consistent penalty as resolution increases, but the rate of decline varies dramatically by settings preset. At Low settings, the drop from 1080p (118.4 FPS) to 1440p (78.3 FPS) represents a 34% reduction, while moving from 1440p to 4K (47.5 FPS) costs another 39%. This linear degradation pattern is typical of a system where the GPU becomes progressively more saturated as pixel count rises — the RX 6600's 224.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus are clearly the limiting factor here, not the CPU.

At Medium settings, the scaling is shallower in percentage terms: 1080p (108.2 FPS) to 1440p (69.9 FPS) is a 35% loss, and 1440p to 4K (39.2 FPS) drops 44%. The High preset tells a similar story with 72.9 FPS at 1080p, 49.3 FPS at 1440p (32% drop), and 29.3 FPS at 4K (41% drop). However, the Ultra preset shows the most extreme scaling: 49.2 FPS at 1080p plummets to 31.1 FPS at 1440p (37% loss) and then collapses to 16.5 FPS at 4K — a 47% additional reduction that makes this resolution unplayable.

This pattern indicates that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p, the i5-12400F's 6 cores and 12 threads at up to 4.40 GHz boost clock can feed the GPU adequately, allowing the RX 6600 to stretch its legs. By 4K, the GPU's 1792 shading units and 64 ROPs are simply overwhelmed, particularly at Ultra where the memory subsystem — 8 GB GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus — likely hits capacity. The data implies that 4K is only viable at Low settings, and even then barely, suggesting the combo was never designed for that resolution class.

How This Combo Ranks

Archeage places this i5-12400F + RX 6600 combination at rank 1385 out of 1727 tested combos, which puts it in the bottom 20% of all pairings. This is a surprisingly low rank given that the individual components sit near the middle of their respective benchmark distributions — the CPU's average benchmark score of 19221 places it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU's 25235 average score puts it in the 69th percentile of all GPUs.

The discrepancy between component-level percentiles and the in-game combo rank suggests that Archeage's engine is particularly demanding on either the CPU or GPU in ways that these benchmarks don't fully capture. The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-8700K (deltaPct 0.1% ahead) and AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS (0.7% behind), while the GPU's closest competitors are the AMD Radeon 890M (0% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (0.5% ahead). These tight margins indicate that swapping to any of these near-equivalent parts would yield minimal FPS changes, meaning the rank is more about the game's specific demands than raw component strength.

The 1385th rank out of 1727 implies that most tested combos outperform this one in Archeage, which aligns with the measured FPS showing 4K Ultra at 16.5 FPS — a figure that would drag any combo ranking down significantly. The data suggests that this pairing is at the boundary of what can handle Archeage's more demanding presets, and that users should temper expectations accordingly.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS breakdown offers clear guidance on which preset provides the best experience per the data. At 1080p, Low settings deliver 118.4 FPS, Medium hits 108.2 FPS, and High reaches 72.9 FPS — all fluid and responsive. The Ultra preset at 49.2 FPS is playable but noticeably less smooth. Given that the jump from Low to Medium costs only 10 FPS while improving visual fidelity, Medium at 1080p appears to be the sweet spot, offering 108.2 FPS which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold most players seek.

At 1440p, the situation tightens. Low (78.3 FPS) and Medium (69.9 FPS) both remain fluid, while High (49.3 FPS) falls below the 60 FPS ideal. Ultra at 31.1 FPS is stutter-prone. The data suggests Medium at 1440p is the best balance, delivering 69.9 FPS while retaining acceptable visuals. Dropping to Low would secure a 12% FPS boost if needed for more demanding scenes.

At 4K, only Low (47.5 FPS) approaches playability, with Medium (39.2 FPS) and High (29.3 FPS) becoming increasingly choppy. Ultra at 16.5 FPS is effectively a slideshow. The recommendation is clear: 4K users should stick to Low, and even then, expect frame rates well below the 60 FPS target. The data shows no preset at 4K achieves even 50 FPS, so this resolution is only for players who prioritize resolution over smoothness.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 118.4 FPS average, which is the highest measured figure across all resolutions and presets. Medium follows at 108.2 FPS, a 9% reduction that still leaves ample headroom. High drops to 72.9 FPS, a 32% decline from Medium, suggesting a significant jump in GPU workload. Ultra falls further to 49.2 FPS, a 33% drop from High — this preset appears to enable effects that disproportionately tax the RX 6600.

At 2560x1440, the performance tiers compress. Low achieves 78.3 FPS, which remains fluid. Medium hits 69.9 FPS, only 11% below Low, indicating that Medium's extra effects are relatively cheap at this resolution. High drops to 49.3 FPS, a 30% reduction from Medium that pushes it below the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra at 31.1 FPS is a 37% further drop, making it the most punishing preset transition in the entire dataset.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles across the board. Low manages 47.5 FPS, Medium hits 39.2 FPS, High falls to 29.3 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 16.5 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 65%, the largest relative spread of any resolution. This indicates that the GPU's resources are so strained at 4K that preset changes have outsized impacts on frame rate.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo achieve 60 FPS at 1080p with High settings?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 High is 72.9, which exceeds 60 FPS by about 21%. This leaves some margin for demanding in-game scenes, though not a huge one.

Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming?

A: Medium settings at 2560x1440 deliver 69.9 FPS, which is the only preset at this resolution that exceeds 60 FPS. Low comes close at 78.3 FPS, but Medium offers better visuals with only a 11% FPS penalty.

Q: Is 4K playable with this hardware?

A: Only at Low settings, where the average FPS is 47.5. Medium drops to 39.2, High to 29.3, and Ultra to 16.5. None of these reach 60 FPS, so 4K is best avoided unless the player accepts sub-50 FPS gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in raw benchmark terms?

A: The i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19221, which is 0.1% behind the Intel Core i7-8700K (19210) and 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i5-1335U (19167). The AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS is 0.7% ahead at 19364.

Q: What is the GPU's closest competitor based on benchmark scores?

A: The RX 6600's average score of 25235 is effectively tied with the AMD Radeon 890M (25246, 0% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (25287, -0.2% delta). The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is 0.5% ahead at 25120.

Q: How significant is the FPS gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: The difference is 69.2 FPS — 118.4 FPS at Low versus 49.2 FPS at Ultra. This 58% reduction suggests Ultra enables effects that heavily tax the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and 1792 shading units.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F brings 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark scores show strong single-thread performance — 3dmark_single_thread at 909 and Cinebench R23 single-core at 2332 — which matters for Archeage's often single-thread-heavy MMO logic. The 18 MB shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support provide adequate bandwidth for feeding the GPU at lower resolutions.

The CPU's percentile rank of 77th among all CPUs indicates it sits above the median, and its nearest rivals show it trades blows with the i7-8700K (0.1% behind) and Ryzen 5 7533HS (0.7% ahead). In Archeage, the data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at 1080p, where the GPU can be fully utilized — evidenced by the 118.4 FPS at Low. However, at 4K, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU becomes the limiting factor, meaning the i5-12400F's 6 cores are sufficient to avoid stalling the pipeline even when the RX 6600 is struggling.

The 3dmark_16_threads score of 5895 versus 3dmark_max_threads of 5912 indicates the CPU scales well with additional threads, which helps in crowded MMO scenarios with many player characters. The CPU's 65 W TDP and 10 nm process node keep thermals manageable, though the data does not include temperature measurements to confirm sustained boost behavior.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Navi 23 chip, featuring 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, which becomes a critical constraint at higher resolutions. The GPU's boost clock of 2491 MHz and game clock of 2044 MHz are relatively high, but the 132 W TDP and dual-slot design suggest a modest power envelope.

The GPU's benchmark scores show a 69th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with its average score of 25235 nearly identical to the Radeon 890M (25246) and RX 580 2048SP (25287). In Archeage, the RX 6600's role is clearly resolution-dependent. At 1080p, it can deliver 118.4 FPS at Low, indicating it is not fully saturated. At 4K Ultra, the 16.5 FPS result suggests the 8 GB VRAM is overwhelmed — the 128-bit memory bus cannot provide enough bandwidth to feed the 1792 shading units at that pixel count.

The GPU's 224.0 GB/s bandwidth is likely the key constraint at 4K, as the 64 ROPs and 159.4 GPixel/s pixel rate struggle to fill 3840x2160 pixels at acceptable rates. The 28 RT cores are present but likely unused in this MMORPG, meaning the GPU's rasterization performance is what matters. The data implies that the RX 6600 is best suited for 1080p and entry-level 1440p, with its performance ceiling defined by the memory subsystem rather than raw compute power.