Dave The Diver

The Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 delivers a remarkably consistent high-refresh-rate experience in Dave The Diver, with the data indicating that the GPU becomes the primary scaling factor as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo reaches 303.8 FPS, but this drops to 228.9 FPS at High and 200.1 FPS at Ultra, showing a clear sensitivity to graphical load even at the lowest resolution. Moving to 2560x1440, the same pattern holds: Low produces 227.8 FPS, High yields 171.4 FPS, and Ultra sits at 150.7 FPS. The most telling figures appear at 3840x2160, where the gap between settings narrows significantly—Low achieves 152 FPS, Medium 128.2 FPS, High 116.7 FPS, and Ultra 103 FPS—indicating that the RTX 3080’s 10 GB GDDR6X memory and 320-bit bus are being taxed heavily at 4K, while the CPU’s headroom remains largely unused. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings is approximately 49% (from 228.9 to 116.7 FPS), which is substantial but still playable, confirming that this is a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions rather than a CPU limitation.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression across resolutions reveals a classic GPU-bound curve. At 1080p, the RTX 3080 is not the bottleneck; the i7-12700KF’s 12 cores and 20 threads with a 5.00 GHz boost clock are sufficient to feed the GPU, as evidenced by the 303.8 FPS Low result. This suggests the CPU can push well beyond 300 FPS in this title, so any frame rate below that is dictated by the graphics card. At 1440p, the GPU begins to assert itself: the difference between Low (227.8 FPS) and Ultra (150.7 FPS) is 77.1 FPS, a 34% penalty for maxing out settings. This is a moderate cost, indicating the RTX 3080 still has plenty of compute headroom. At 4K, the situation changes drastically. The spread between Low (152 FPS) and Ultra (103 FPS) is only 49 FPS, and the Ultra result drops below the 116.7 FPS High figure at the same resolution. This compression means the GPU’s shading units and memory bandwidth are saturated; the 27.9% reduction from High to Ultra at 4K (116.7 to 103 FPS) is smaller than the 14.6% reduction at 1440p (171.4 to 150.7 FPS), which is counterintuitive—it implies that at 4K, the pixel fill rate and texture fetch are the limiting factors, not the settings complexity. The data shows that 4K Ultra is the only configuration where the combo dips below the 120 FPS threshold, making it the boundary for smooth high-refresh gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of 1626 tested combinations for Dave The Diver, this CPU+GPU pairing holds rank 494, placing it in the top 30% of all configs. This rank is respectable but not elite, which aligns with the RTX 3080’s position as a previous-generation high-end card. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 35787 puts it in the 80th percentile among all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE (avgScore 36101, deltaPct -0.9%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile (avgScore 35435, deltaPct 1%). The i7-12700KF’s average score of 35355 places it in the 89th percentile among CPUs, with the Intel Core i5-14400 (avgScore 35336, deltaPct 0.1%) being essentially a statistical tie. The fact that the CPU ranks higher percentile-wise (89 vs. 80) than the GPU suggests that in this game, the graphics card is the weaker link, which is consistent with the resolution scaling data. The combo rank of 494 out of 1626 also implies that many configurations with newer or higher-tier GPUs (like the RTX 40-series) will outperform it, but for a 2020-era GPU, this is a solid showing. The deltaPct values for the GPU’s rivals (ranging from -0.9% to 1%) are all within a narrow band, meaning the RTX 3080’s performance is tightly clustered with its direct competitors, and the combo’s rank is more influenced by the CPU’s strong multi-threaded capabilities than by GPU dominance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF features a hybrid architecture with 12 cores (8 performance and 4 efficiency) and 20 threads, a base clock of 3.60 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB L1 per core, 1.25 MB L2 per core, and 25 MB shared L3. In Dave The Diver, an adventure title that is not typically CPU-intensive, this processor provides more than enough throughput. The benchmark data supports this: in Cinebench R23, it scores 28979 multi-core and 4091 single-core, while in 3DMark’s 16-thread test, it hits 9282. The game’s FPS at 1080p Low (303.8 FPS) is likely near the engine’s frame rate cap or the GPU’s raw output limit, not the CPU’s. The single-thread performance, evidenced by a PassMark single-thread score of 3984, is strong enough to handle the game’s main thread logic without bottlenecking. The CPU’s 125 W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 compatibility are standard for this generation, and its 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms it is not the limiting component in this pairing. The fact that the FPS at 1080p High (228.9 FPS) is lower than Low (303.8 FPS) by 24.7% shows that the GPU is doing more work, but the CPU still has headroom—if the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain flat regardless of settings. The i7-12700KF’s role here is to provide a stable platform that never constrains the RTX 3080, which is exactly what the data reflects.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest measured average is 303.8 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. At Ultra settings, this drops to 200.1 FPS.

Q: Is this combo capable of 4K gaming in Dave The Diver?

A: Yes, at 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 116.7, and at Ultra it is 103. Both are above 100 FPS, making 4K playable, though not at very high refresh rates.

Q: How does the i7-12700KF compare to its nearest CPU rival in benchmarks?

A: The i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35355, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i5-14400 (avgScore 35336) and 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i9-12900HX (avgScore 35289).

Q: What is the GPU’s memory configuration and how does it affect 4K performance?

A: The RTX 3080 has 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus with 760.3 GB/s bandwidth. The 4K results show a significant drop from Low (152 FPS) to Ultra (103 FPS), indicating that the memory capacity and bandwidth are adequate but not excessive for this title.

Q: Does the CPU’s overclocking capability impact the game’s performance?

A: The i7-12700KF has an unlocked multiplier, allowing overclocking, but the FPS data shows the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions. At 1080p Low (303.8 FPS), the CPU is already delivering near-maximum output, so overclocking would yield minimal gains in this game.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: It ranks 494 out of 1626 total combos for Dave The Diver, placing it in the upper third of tested systems.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is built on the Ampere architecture with a GA102 chip, featuring 8704 shading units, 272 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs. Its 10 GB GDDR6X memory runs at 19 Gbps effective, delivering 760.3 GB/s bandwidth across a 320-bit interface. The boost clock is 1710 MHz, and the card is rated for 320 W TDP. In Dave The Diver, the GPU’s role is decisive. The 1080p Low result of 303.8 FPS shows raw fill rate and shader throughput are excellent, but the 4K Ultra result of 103 FPS reveals the limits of its 10 GB frame buffer and 320-bit bus. The pixel rate of 164.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 465.1 GTexel/s are high, yet at 4K, the memory bandwidth becomes the constraint—the game’s textures and post-processing effects at Ultra settings likely exceed what 10 GB can comfortably handle, leading to the compressed FPS spread between settings seen at 3840x2160. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 35787 places it in the 80th percentile, with its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE, scoring 36101 (deltaPct -0.9%), meaning the RTX 3080 is slightly behind that card but ahead of the AMD Radeon 880M (avgScore 35646, deltaPct 0.4%). For a card with a launch MSRP of 699 USD and an end-of-life production status, the RTX 3080 still holds its own, but the 4K data suggests that for future titles, the 10 GB VRAM will be the first bottleneck. The 152 FPS at 4K Low indicates that the GPU’s compute cores are not the issue; it is the memory subsystem that limits high-detail 4K performance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal balance of visual quality and performance depends on your target resolution and refresh rate. For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset at 200.1 FPS is the best choice—it provides the highest fidelity while still maintaining a frame rate well above 144 Hz, making it ideal for high-refresh monitors. The Medium preset at 258.2 FPS offers diminishing returns in visual improvement over Low (303.8 FPS) but sacrifices 45.6 FPS, so Ultra is the clear winner unless you have a 240 Hz display and prefer lower settings for competitive edge. At 2560x1440, the High preset at 171.4 FPS is the sweet spot—it sits above the 165 Hz threshold for many 1440p monitors and delivers a 20.7 FPS improvement over Ultra (150.7 FPS) with minimal visual degradation. The Medium preset (191.2 FPS) is only 19.8 FPS faster than High, so the quality bump from Medium to High is worth the small FPS cost. For 3840x2160, the High preset at 116.7 FPS is the recommended setting—it maintains a playable frame rate above 100 FPS and avoids the 13.7 FPS penalty of Ultra (103 FPS) while providing better visuals than Medium (128.2 FPS). The gap between High and Ultra at 4K (13.7 FPS) is less than the gap at 1440p (20.7 FPS), but the absolute frame rates at 4K are already lower, so staying on High ensures smoother gameplay. In all cases, the Low preset is only advisable for 1080p (303.8 FPS) if you have a 300 Hz display, as the visual trade-off is severe for the FPS gain. The data suggests that High is the most efficient preset across all three resolutions, offering a consistent balance of fidelity and performance, with Ultra being a viable option only for 1080p and 1440p users who prioritize graphics over maximum frame rates.