Dave The Diver

Dave The Diver is remarkably forgiving on this hardware, with the Intel Core i3-12100F and AMD Radeon RX 7600 combination delivering playable frame rates even at 4K Ultra. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but the CPU proves sufficient to feed the graphics card at 1080p, where the frame rates exceed what most displays can show. The most striking result is the 4K Ultra score of 69 FPS, which is not only playable but actually close to the 4K High result, indicating that the game's ultra preset does not impose a prohibitive penalty on this RDNA 3 card.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial but not catastrophic, revealing a classic resolution-bound curve. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 196.8 FPS at 1920x1080 to 147.9 FPS at 2560x1440, a decline of 48.9 FPS, and then to 97.3 FPS at 3840x2160, which is a further drop of 50.6 FPS. This pattern indicates that the GPU's pixel throughput is the primary constraint at higher resolutions, as the scaling is consistent and predictable. The 4K Low result of 97.3 FPS is still comfortably above 60 FPS, suggesting that even the most demanding resolution is not a barrier for this card in this particular title.

The gap between 1080p and 1440p is smaller than the gap between 1440p and 4K, which is typical for a GPU with 8 GB of VRAM and a 128-bit memory bus. At High settings, the 1080p score is 147.1 FPS, dropping to 111.2 FPS at 1440p, and then to 76.6 FPS at 4K. The 4K High result is only 7.6 FPS below the 4K Medium result of 82.7 FPS, which suggests that the game's High preset is not significantly more demanding than Medium at this resolution. The Ultra preset, however, does create a larger gap, with 4K Ultra at 69 FPS being 13.6 FPS lower than 4K High.

This scaling behavior points to the graphics card as the limiting component once the resolution increases. The CPU's role diminishes as the pixel count rises, and the data shows that the frame rate is directly tied to the GPU's ability to process the higher resolution. The 1080p results, especially the Low preset at 196.8 FPS, are high enough that the CPU's 4 cores and 8 threads are not holding the system back, but the GPU is clearly the bottleneck at 4K.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600's specifications are central to understanding its performance in Dave The Diver. The GPU features a boost clock of 2655 MHz and a game clock of 2250 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus delivering 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These figures indicate a card that is designed for high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, and the measured data confirms this. The 4K results, while playable, show the limitations of the 8 GB memory capacity and the relatively narrow memory bus when pushing 3840x2160.

The GPU's compute capabilities, rated at 21.75 TFLOPS FP32, are more than adequate for this adventure title, which does not appear to be visually demanding. The 4K Ultra result of 69 FPS is a strong indicator that the card's 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs are being utilized effectively. The memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s is sufficient for the game's textures at 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K results show a more pronounced difference between settings, which is likely due to memory pressure.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 20258 places it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT, is only 0.6% faster on average. This close margin explains why the RX 7600 can handle 4K in this game, as the game's engine is not heavily reliant on ray tracing or other features that would stress the RDNA 3 architecture. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2310 is a modest result, but Dave The Diver's performance is far better than that synthetic test would suggest, indicating that the game is well-optimized for this class of hardware.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Dave The Diver at 4K 60 FPS?

A: Yes, the data shows the lowest 4K result is 69 FPS on the Ultra preset, which is above 60 FPS. All other 4K settings (Medium at 82.7 FPS, High at 76.6 FPS, and Low at 97.3 FPS) also exceed 60 FPS.

Q: What is the best setting for a 144Hz 1080p monitor?

A: The High preset at 1080p delivers 147.1 FPS, which is just above 144 FPS. The Medium preset at 166.6 FPS and Low preset at 196.8 FPS also exceed 144 FPS, while the Ultra preset at 131.4 FPS falls short of that target.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 1440p?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at 2560x1440. The frame rates range from 100.8 FPS on Ultra to 147.9 FPS on Low, with the CPU's 4 cores and 8 threads providing enough headroom for the GPU to operate at these levels.

Q: How does the RX 7600 compare to its closest rival in this game?

A: The RX 7600's average benchmark score is 20258, which is 0.6% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT's score of 20146. This indicates the two cards are nearly identical in performance, so the measured FPS in Dave The Diver would be very similar.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: The difference is 65.4 FPS, with Low at 196.8 FPS and Ultra at 131.4 FPS. This is a significant gap that shows the Ultra preset's visual enhancements come at a measurable performance cost.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM cause issues at 4K?

A: The data shows no catastrophic issues, as the lowest 4K result is 69 FPS. However, the gap between 4K High (76.6 FPS) and 4K Ultra (69 FPS) is larger than the gap between 1080p High (147.1 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (131.4 FPS), suggesting some memory pressure at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest result is the Ultra preset at 131.4 FPS, while the highest is Low at 196.8 FPS. The Medium preset achieves 166.6 FPS, and High is at 147.1 FPS. These numbers show that even the most demanding settings at 1080p are playable on high-refresh displays, with all presets exceeding 130 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a clear step down. Low leads at 147.9 FPS, followed by Medium at 122.7 FPS, High at 111.2 FPS, and Ultra at 100.8 FPS. The 1440p results are all above 100 FPS, which is an excellent outcome for a mid-range GPU in an adventure game.

At 3840x2160, the results are still playable but begin to show the GPU's limits. Low is at 97.3 FPS, Medium at 82.7 FPS, High at 76.6 FPS, and Ultra at 69 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only one below 70 FPS, but it remains above the 60 FPS threshold. The spread between Low and Ultra at 4K is 28.3 FPS, which is smaller than the 65.4 FPS spread at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is hitting a performance ceiling at the higher resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F and AMD Radeon RX 7600 combination ranks 1087 out of 1626 tested combos for Dave The Diver. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested configurations, which is surprising given the high frame rates measured. This ranking suggests that many other combos, likely with more powerful CPUs and GPUs, achieve even higher frame rates, but the data indicates that this specific pairing is more than adequate for the game.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 72nd out of all CPUs is higher than the combo's overall rank, which suggests the graphics card is the limiting factor in this pairing. The GPU's percentile ranking of 63rd out of all GPUs is lower than the CPU's, confirming that the RX 7600 is the weaker component. The combo's rank of 1087 out of 1626 means it is in the 66.9th percentile of tested combos, which is a respectable position for a 1080p-focused system.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, which is 0.1% faster on average, and the Intel Core i7-7700K, which is 1.8% faster. These small deltas indicate that the i3-12100F is competitive with much more expensive processors in terms of average benchmark scores. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the RX 7600 XT at 0.6% faster, show that the RX 7600 is well-positioned within its performance class.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory make it a flexible choice for budget builds. The CPU's benchmark results show a single-thread score of 893 in 3DMark and a multi-thread score of 4051 in the 16-thread test, which indicates strong single-thread performance relative to its core count.

In Dave The Diver, the CPU's role is to provide enough processing power to avoid bottlenecking the GPU. The 1080p results show that the CPU is not a limiting factor, as the frame rates are high enough that the GPU is the clear bottleneck. The 3DMark 4-thread score of 2859 and the 8-thread score of 4026 suggest that the CPU can handle multiple threads effectively, which is sufficient for this game's workload.

The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11912 and single-core score of 1681 are solid results for a quad-core part. The data shows that the CPU's performance is adequate for this game, as the frame rates at 1080p are limited by the GPU, not the CPU. The CPU's TDP of 58 W is modest, but the data does not show any thermal throttling issues that would affect gameplay.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset at 131.4 FPS is the best choice for visual quality, but the High preset at 147.1 FPS offers a better balance if you have a 144Hz monitor. The Medium preset at 166.6 FPS is recommended for players who prioritize frame rate over graphics, as it provides a significant performance boost over High.

At 1440p, the High preset at 111.2 FPS is the recommended starting point, as it offers good visual fidelity while maintaining a triple-digit frame rate. The Medium preset at 122.7 FPS is a better option for those who want more headroom, while the Ultra preset at 100.8 FPS is still playable but provides diminishing returns.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset at 82.7 FPS is the best overall experience, as it delivers smooth performance while preserving most visual details. The High preset at 76.6 FPS is also a strong choice, but the Ultra preset at 69 FPS is the only one that dips below 70 FPS, making it less ideal for consistent frame pacing. The Low preset at 97.3 FPS is recommended for those who prioritize performance above all else, but it sacrifices significant visual quality.