Dave The Diver

# Dave The Diver — Intel Core i5-12600KF + Intel Arc B370

This combination of an Intel Core i5-12600KF processor paired with an Intel Arc B370 integrated GPU produces a playable but constrained experience in Dave The Diver, a 2023 Adventure title. The measured frame rates across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a system that is firmly GPU-limited at higher settings, yet can achieve smooth performance when settings are reduced. The combo ranks 2642 out of 2867 tested combinations, placing it in the lower percentile of all tested systems for this game.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 1440p and then to 4K is substantial and consistent across all four quality settings. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 98 at 1920x1080 to 74 at 2560x1440 — a drop of 24 frames — and then further to 49 at 3840x2160. That represents a 50% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings. At High settings, the scaling is similar: 73 FPS at 1080p, 55 at 1440p, and 37 at 4K. The 1080p-to-4K reduction at High settings is 36 FPS, or roughly 49%.

This pattern indicates that the limiting component is the GPU. The Intel Arc B370, with its 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units, simply cannot maintain frame throughput as pixel count rises. The GPU's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s become the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The fact that FPS drops nearly proportionally with pixel count — 4K has four times the pixels of 1080p, yet frame rates at 4K are roughly half of 1080p values — suggests some degree of CPU headroom remains, but the GPU saturates quickly.

The Medium preset provides the only rows with min and max FPS data, offering insight into frame consistency. At 1080p Medium, the average is 82 FPS with a minimum of 70 and maximum of 94. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 62 with min 52 and max 71. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 41 with min 35 and max 47. The delta between min and max FPS grows slightly at higher resolutions — 24 frames at 1080p, 19 at 1440p, and 12 at 4K — but the relative spread tightens, indicating that at 4K the system is consistently near its ceiling.

Ultra settings show the steepest resolution penalty. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 65 FPS. This falls to 49 at 1440p and 33 at 4K. The 1080p-to-4K drop of 32 FPS is slightly less severe in absolute terms than at Low settings, but the percentage drop is similar. This suggests that Dave The Diver's Ultra preset adds GPU workload that scales with resolution, rather than being a fixed CPU-side cost.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, fabricated on Intel's 3 nm process. Its base clock is 300 MHz with a boost clock of 2400 MHz. The GPU features 1280 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 20 ROPs, along with 10 ray tracing cores. It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The memory configuration is System Shared, meaning it draws from the host system's memory pool rather than dedicated VRAM; the bus width and bandwidth are likewise system-dependent.

The GPU's benchmark performance is modest. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1184, placing it at the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in that benchmark are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (score 1186, delta -0.2%), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (score 1190, delta -0.5%), the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (score 1192, delta -0.7%), and the AMD FirePro M2000 (score 1168, delta 1.4%). All four rivals are within 1.4% of the Arc B370's score, indicating this GPU sits at the very bottom of the performance spectrum — comparable to integrated and low-end mobile GPUs from over a decade ago.

In Dave The Diver, the GPU's limits are visible in every measured row. Even at 1080p Low, the system produces only 98 FPS — a playable number, but far from the triple-digit values that more capable GPUs would deliver. At 4K Ultra, the average falls to 33 FPS, which is below the typical 60 FPS target and even below the 30 FPS minimum that many players consider acceptable. The system-shared memory architecture means there is no dedicated VRAM pool; the bandwidth is "System Dependent," which likely contributes to the steep performance drops at higher resolutions where memory bandwidth demands increase.

The GPU's clock behavior also matters. With a boost clock of 2400 MHz, the Arc B370 runs at a relatively high frequency for an integrated part, but the underlying hardware — 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 12.29 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1) — is simply insufficient for demanding scenarios. The 25 W TDP and IGP slot width further confirm this is a low-power integrated solution, not a discrete card.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is a 12th-generation Alder Lake desktop processor with 10 cores and 16 threads. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration and connects via PCIe Gen 4 with 20 CPU lanes. The processor was released on 2021-11-03 with a launch MSRP of $264.

This CPU is substantially more powerful than the GPU it is paired with. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 23391, and its single-core score is 3302. In Geekbench, it scores 12137 multicore and 2157 single-core. The PassMark multithread score is 27575, with a single-thread score of 3925. The processor's average benchmark score is 27799, placing it at the 79th percentile of all CPUs.

Its nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the Intel Core i9-10900K (average score 27872, delta -0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (average score 27712, delta 0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 7 6800U (average score 27887, delta -0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D (average score 27896, delta -0.3%). All of these rivals are within 0.3% of the i5-12600KF's average score, confirming that this CPU is a solid mid-range performer that can keep pace with much more expensive processors in synthetic workloads.

In Dave The Diver, the CPU is unlikely to be the primary bottleneck at any resolution. The game's measured FPS scales strongly with resolution and settings, which is characteristic of GPU-limited scenarios. At 1080p Low, where the GPU has the least work to do, the system reaches 98 FPS — a figure that, while not exceptional, is high enough to suggest the CPU is not holding the system back. The 10-core, 16-thread configuration provides ample parallelism for a game of this type, and the 3DMark multi-threaded scores (7956 at 16 threads, 7952 at max threads) indicate strong multi-core throughput.

The CPU's single-thread performance is also relevant. With a Cinebench R20 single-core score of 1386 and a 3DMark single-thread score of 1016, the i5-12600KF offers good per-core speed, which matters for games that rely on a primary game thread. The boost clock of 4.90 GHz is high, and the Alder Lake architecture's hybrid design (though the fact pack does not specify P-core/E-core counts) provides a balance of performance and efficiency. For Dave The Diver, an adventure game that is not typically CPU-intensive, the i5-12600KF provides more than enough headroom.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of which settings deliver the best experience on this hardware. At 1080p, the Medium preset yields an average FPS of 82 with a minimum of 70 and maximum of 94. This is the only preset at 1080p that provides min/max data, and the 70 FPS minimum ensures the frame rate never dips below a playable threshold. The High preset at 1080p averages 73 FPS, while Low averages 98 and Ultra averages 65. Given that Medium offers a comfortable margin above 60 FPS with a solid minimum, it represents the best balance for smooth gameplay at 1080p.

At 1440p, the situation changes. The Medium preset averages 62 FPS with a minimum of 52 and maximum of 71. The 52 FPS minimum is below the 60 FPS target, which could result in noticeable frame pacing issues during busy scenes. The Low preset averages 74 FPS, which is higher than Medium's average and likely maintains a more consistent frame rate, though no min/max data is provided for Low. For players who prioritize smoothness over visual fidelity, Low at 1440p is the safer choice. Those who accept occasional dips below 60 FPS may prefer Medium for its improved visuals.

At 4K, no preset achieves a consistent 60 FPS. The Low preset averages 49 FPS, Medium averages 41 FPS with a minimum of 35, High averages 37, and Ultra averages 33. Even at Low settings, 4K produces sub-50 FPS performance, which is marginal for a game like Dave The Diver that has a relaxed pace but still benefits from smooth motion. The Medium preset's minimum of 35 FPS is low enough to be noticeable. For 4K play, Low settings are the only reasonable option, and even then, players should expect frame rates in the 40s.

The best overall experience, based on the measured rows, is 1080p Medium. This preset delivers an 82 FPS average with a 70 FPS minimum, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and provides headroom for scene complexity. At 1440p, Low is recommended for consistent performance, while at 4K, Low is the only viable preset, albeit with reduced visual quality.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of Intel Core i5-12600KF and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2642 out of 2867 tested combos in Dave The Diver. That places it in the bottom 8% of all tested systems, which is consistent with the GPU's low benchmark standing. The Arc B370's 5th percentile GPU ranking drags down what would otherwise be a competent system, given the CPU's 79th percentile standing.

The disparity between CPU and GPU performance is stark. The i5-12600KF outperforms the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D in average benchmark score by only 0.3% (27799 vs. 27896), yet the CPU is paired with a GPU that matches the performance of the ATI Radeon HD 5770 from 2009. This pairing is fundamentally unbalanced — the CPU has far more performance headroom than the GPU can utilize, but in Dave The Diver, the GPU is the limiting factor at every resolution and setting.

The rank of 2642 out of 2867 suggests that most other tested combinations deliver better frame rates in this game. The data indicates that the Arc B370's integrated nature and system-shared memory architecture are severe constraints for this title. Even at 1080p Low, the system achieves only 98 FPS, while a system with a discrete GPU in the same CPU class would likely exceed 144 FPS. For players considering this combination, the expectation should be modest: playable frame rates at low-to-medium settings at 1080p, with significant compromises required at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Dave The Diver?

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the system consistently exceeds 60 FPS across most presets. At 1440p, only Low settings exceed 60 FPS (74 FPS average), while Medium drops to 62 FPS. At 4K, no preset achieves 60 FPS; the highest average is 49 FPS at Low settings.

Q: Does this CPU bottleneck the GPU in Dave The Diver?

A: No. The Intel Core i5-12600KF has a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23391 and a single-core score of 3302, placing it at the 79th percentile of all CPUs. The frame rates in Dave The Diver scale strongly with resolution and settings, which is characteristic of GPU-limited performance. The CPU has ample headroom.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, placing it at the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, 0.2% faster), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, 0.5% faster), AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, 0.7% faster), and AMD FirePro M2000 (1168, 1.4% slower). All are within 1.4% of the Arc B370's score.

Q: Is 4K playable with this hardware?

A: Marginally. At 4K Low, the average FPS is 49; at Medium it drops to 41 with a minimum of 35. Ultra settings produce 33 FPS. These figures are below the 60 FPS target and may be acceptable only for players who prioritize resolution over smoothness.

Q: What does the combo rank tell us about this system?

A: The combination ranks 2642 out of 2867 tested combos in Dave The Diver, putting it in the bottom 8% of tested systems. This reflects the GPU's low standing (5th percentile) rather than the CPU's performance (79th percentile).

Q: Which preset provides the most consistent frame rate?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with published min/max data across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 70 FPS and maximum is 94 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the range is 52-71 FPS. At 4K Medium, it is 35-47 FPS. The 1080p Medium preset offers the smallest absolute range relative to its average.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080:

• Low: 98 FPS average
• Medium: 82 FPS average, 70 FPS minimum, 94 FPS maximum
• High: 73 FPS average
• Ultra: 65 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 74 FPS average
• Medium: 62 FPS average, 52 FPS minimum, 71 FPS maximum
• High: 55 FPS average
• Ultra: 49 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 49 FPS average
• Medium: 41 FPS average, 35 FPS minimum, 47 FPS maximum
• High: 37 FPS average
• Ultra: 33 FPS average

The data shows a consistent pattern: each step from Low to Medium to High to Ultra costs approximately 8-12 FPS at 1080p, 8-13 FPS at 1440p, and 4-8 FPS at 4K. The smaller gaps at 4K suggest that the GPU is already so saturated that additional quality settings have diminishing impact on frame rate. The Medium preset's min/max data across all three resolutions provides the only consistency measurement, and it shows that frame pacing is relatively stable, with the spread between minimum and maximum remaining below 24 FPS in all cases.