Barony

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the Intel Arc B390 presents a stark contrast in a roguelike setting like Barony. The data shows this combo ranks in the 11th percentile, placing it at rank 2601 out of 2935 tested configurations. This pairing, while featuring a potent CPU, is dragged down by a GPU whose benchmark scores align with entry-level mobile parts from over a decade ago. The following analysis breaks down the measured results to understand the bottleneck, scaling, and playability of this combination.

FAQ

Q: Does this combo achieve 60 FPS at 1080p on High settings?

A: Yes, the measured average FPS at 1920x1080 on High settings is 102 FPS. This comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold, making the game very playable at this resolution and preset.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded in the measured data?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 159 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset. This is the only measured scenario that approaches the 160 FPS mark.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in general benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core i5-12600KF's average benchmark score is 27799, which is nearly identical to its direct rivals. It is 0.3% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D (27896) and 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (27712).

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile relative to all other GPUs?

A: The Intel Arc B390 sits in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, indicating it performs significantly below the vast majority of modern graphics cards. Its average benchmark score is 1482.

Q: Is there a playable frame rate at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the playability is highly dependent on settings. The Low preset yields an average of 53 FPS, which is borderline but below 60. The High preset drops to 34 FPS, and the Ultra preset falls to 24 FPS, making those presets less suitable for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the performance delta between the GPU and its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX?

A: The Intel Arc B390 is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX in average benchmark score. This places it in the same performance tier as this very old, low-end mobile GPU.

CPU Role

The data shows the Intel Core i5-12600KF is a formidable processor that is unlikely to be the limiting factor in Barony. Its architecture, Alder Lake, features 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. The CPU's benchmark results support this notion; it scores 23,391 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3,302 points in the single-core test. In 3DMark, it achieves a score of 7,956 with 16 threads and 1,016 in the single-thread test.

Furthermore, its average benchmark score of 27,799 places it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs. This indicates that while it is not a top-tier processor, it is a strong performer, especially for gaming. The nearest rival data shows it is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, a popular gaming CPU, with a performance delta of only -0.3%. This suggests that for CPU-bound tasks in Barony, the i5-12600KF has ample headroom. The game, being a roguelike, may have logic and world-generation tasks that can utilize multiple threads, and this CPU's 16 threads are well-suited for that. In this pairing, the CPU's role is to feed frames to the GPU, and its performance profile suggests it is more than capable of doing so without becoming a bottleneck, even at higher frame rates.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is the clear bottleneck in this configuration, and its performance data reveals a significant limitation. The GPU is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) based on the Xe3-LPG architecture on a 3 nm process node. It has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, with 1536 shading units. Critically, its memory is "System Shared," meaning its bandwidth is "System Dependent" and its performance is tied to the system's main memory.

The benchmark results are sobering. The GPU only has a single benchmark score of 1,482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad (DX12). This score places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, a stark indicator of its low performance. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, GT 625 OEM, and GT 710, with performance deltas of 1.3%, 2.5%, and 2.7% respectively. These are all very old, low-end desktop or mobile GPUs. This data shows that the Arc B390 is not a gaming part in the traditional sense, and its role in Barony is to render the game at low to medium quality settings. Its 24 ROPs and 48 TMUs, along with a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s, are simply not sufficient for high-fidelity graphics at higher resolutions. The performance will be heavily dictated by the system's memory speed and allocation.

How This Combo Ranks

The overall combination of the Intel Core i5-12600KF and the Intel Arc B390 is ranked 2601 out of 2935 tested combos in Barony. This places the combo in the bottom 12% of all configurations, a ranking that is almost entirely determined by the GPU's poor performance. This ranking is a direct consequence of the enormous disparity between the CPU's high percentile (79th) and the GPU's low percentile (9th).

The data suggests that while the CPU is capable of supporting high frame rates, the GPU cannot deliver them, especially at higher resolutions and settings. This is a classic case of a severe bottleneck, where the CPU is left waiting for the GPU to finish rendering each frame. The combo's rank of 2601 is a clear indicator that, despite the CPU's strength, the user experience is firmly in the low-to-mid range of performance. This pairing is not one that would be chosen for high-end gaming, as the measured performance is consistent with entry-level integrated graphics solutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for the best experience are found at 1080p with the Low preset. This configuration yields an average of 159 FPS, which is not only highly playable but also provides a significant frame rate cushion. However, for a more balanced experience with better visuals, the High preset at 1080p is also an excellent choice, delivering an average of 102 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p also works well, with an average of 118 FPS, but the High preset offers a more substantial visual upgrade for a smaller performance cost compared to Low.

At 1440p, the Low preset is the only one that safely guarantees a high refresh rate experience, with an average of 100 FPS. The High preset at 1440p drops to 64 FPS, which is still playable but begins to show the GPU's limitations. For 4K resolution, the data indicates that the Low preset is the only viable option, and even then, the average of 53 FPS is below the 60 FPS target. The Medium, High, and Ultra presets at 4K yield averages of 39, 34, and 24 FPS respectively, which are not smooth enough for a responsive roguelike experience. Therefore, the best experience per the measured rows is to prioritize the 1080p Low or High presets for a fast, smooth game, or to use 1440p Low if a higher resolution is desired.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data is detailed and shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution and settings increase. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves the highest average at 159 FPS. The Medium preset follows at 118 FPS, with a minimum of 101 and a maximum of 136 FPS. The High preset achieves an average of 102 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to an average of 73 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset still performs well, with an average of 100 FPS. The Medium preset averages 75 FPS, with a minimum of 64 and a maximum of 86 FPS. The High preset averages 64 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 46 FPS. At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 53 FPS. The Medium preset averages 39 FPS, with a minimum of 33 and a maximum of 45 FPS. The High preset drops to 34 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 24 FPS.

This data shows that the most significant performance hit occurs when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and then again from 1440p to 4K. For example, on High settings, the average FPS drops from 102 at 1080p to 64 at 1440p, and then to 34 at 4K. This indicates that the GPU's rendering capabilities are quickly overwhelmed by the increased pixel count. The frame time consistency, as indicated by the min and max FPS for Medium settings, also seems to scale down with resolution, suggesting a stable but limited performance envelope.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling analysis reveals the extent to which the Intel Arc B390 is the limiting component. On the High settings preset, the average FPS drops by 37.3% when moving from 1080p (102 FPS) to 1440p (64 FPS). The subsequent move from 1440p to 4K (34 FPS) results in a further 46.9% drop in average FPS. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU that is heavily pixel-bound, meaning its fillrate and memory bandwidth are insufficient for the increased workload.

Comparing the Low settings preset, the drop is less severe in percentage terms but still significant. The average FPS goes from 159 at 1080p to 100 at 1440p (a 37.1% drop) and then to 53 at 4K (a 47.0% drop). This pattern indicates that while the GPU is struggling, it is doing so consistently across all settings levels. The data implies that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this scaling, as the performance loss is almost entirely attributable to the GPU's inability to handle higher pixel counts. The "System Shared" memory configuration of the Intel Arc B390 likely contributes to this bottleneck, as the bandwidth is not dedicated and can be a major constraint at higher resolutions. The game becomes increasingly unplayable as resolution increases, confirming that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming.