Downfall

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is a study in extremes for Downfall. This combo places 133rd out of 3,716 tested configurations, which puts it in the top 3.6% of all systems measured for this horror title. That ranking is remarkable given the processor’s modest specifications, and the data shows that the RTX 5090 is doing nearly all of the heavy lifting. The i3-12100F brings 4 cores and 8 threads, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, built on Intel’s Alder Lake architecture with a 10 nm process. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache is small by modern standards, yet the benchmark results suggest that Downfall does not demand much from the CPU at the resolutions tested. The GPU, meanwhile, is a 32 GB GDDR7 monster with a 512-bit memory bus and 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which explains why this combination can produce frame rates that many would consider excessive for a horror game from 2016.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The RTX 5090’s role in Downfall is best understood through its raw specifications and how those translate into measured frames. The GPU runs at a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz, with memory clocked at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective). It has 32 GB of GDDR7 VRAM, which is far beyond anything Downfall could possibly require, given its 2016 release date. The memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s is equally excessive for this title, but it means the GPU never has to wait on data transfer, even at 4K with Ultra settings. The shading units number 21,760, paired with 680 texture mapping units and 176 render output units, giving a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s. These figures are all in the top tier of the database, and the GPU’s 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms that this is near the absolute peak of current hardware.

In practical terms for Downfall, the GPU’s massive FP32 throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS allows it to brute-force through the game’s rendering pipeline without breaking a sweat. The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 384 FPS average, which is likely limited by the CPU rather than the GPU. At 4K Ultra, the average drops to 84 FPS, which is still very playable but shows that the GPU is finally being pushed. The RTX 5090’s 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores are irrelevant for Downfall, as the game predates widespread RT adoption, but they do not hurt performance either. The GPU’s 5 nm process node from TSMC, with 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, contributes to its efficiency, though the 575 W TDP means it draws substantial power. The launch MSRP of 1,999 USD is worth noting once, but the performance data speaks louder than any price tag.

The VRAM capacity is the most striking aspect here. 32 GB of GDDR7 is overkill for Downfall, but it does mean that texture quality and draw distances can be maxed out without any risk of hitting a memory ceiling. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (84 FPS average) versus 4K High (135 FPS average) suggests that the Ultra preset introduces settings that are not purely memory-related, but the GPU has enough headroom to handle them. The benchmark results indicate that the RTX 5090 is never the bottleneck in this pairing, except perhaps at 4K Ultra where the frame rate drops to a level that still exceeds most displays’ refresh rates.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured data paints a clear picture of how this combo scales across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 384. Moving to 1440p Low, it drops to 323 FPS, and at 4K Low it falls to 201 FPS. That is a 47.7% drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, which is a smaller relative decline than what you would expect if the GPU were the sole bottleneck. The fact that 1080p Low does not go higher than 384 FPS suggests that the CPU is capping performance at lower resolutions. The i3-12100F’s single-thread score of 893 in 3dmark and 1,674 in Cinebench R23 single-core are decent for a budget chip, but they are not enough to feed the RTX 5090’s enormous frame-producing capability at 1080p.

At Medium settings, the scaling is similar. 1080p Medium averages 358 FPS, 1440p Medium averages 264 FPS, and 4K Medium averages 164 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Medium is 54.2%, which is larger than at Low. This indicates that as settings increase, the GPU becomes more of a limiting factor. By the time you reach High settings, the gap narrows further: 1080p High is 303 FPS, 1440p High is 217 FPS, and 4K High is 135 FPS. The 4K High figure is 44.6% of the 1080p High figure, showing that the GPU is now doing most of the work.

Ultra settings show the most dramatic scaling. 1080p Ultra averages 190 FPS, 1440p Ultra averages 135 FPS, and 4K Ultra averages 84 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is 55.8%, which is the largest percentage decline across all settings. This is expected, as Ultra settings in Downfall likely include higher shadow quality, more dynamic lighting, and additional post-processing effects that tax the GPU’s shader units and memory bandwidth. The data suggests that the limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p Low to the GPU at 4K Ultra. At 1080p, the CPU’s 4 cores and 8 threads are insufficient to keep up with the GPU’s potential, capping the frame rate at 384 FPS. At 4K, the GPU’s raw power is still enough to produce 201 FPS at Low, but the Ultra preset pushes it down to 84 FPS, which is still respectable for a horror title.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo ranks 133rd out of 3,716 tested configurations in Downfall. That places it in the 96.4th percentile, meaning it outperforms 96.4% of all combos tested. This is an exceptional result for a CPU that costs $97 at launch, though the GPU’s 1,999 USD launch MSRP is anything but budget. The ranking reflects the GPU’s dominance in this game. The RTX 5090’s avg benchmark score of 79,842 puts it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (avg score 79,605, delta 0.3%), the Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (avg score 79,396, delta 0.6%), the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (avg score 78,940, delta 1.1%), and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X (avg score 80,959, delta -1.4%). The deltaPct values show that the RTX 5090 is within 1.4% of its closest competitors, which is a tight cluster at the very top of the GPU performance hierarchy.

The CPU’s ranking is less impressive but still respectable. The i3-12100F sits in the 68th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13,494. Its nearest rivals are the Intel Core 3 N355 (avg score 13,492, delta 0%), the Intel Core i5-9500 (avg score 13,452, delta 0.3%), the Intel Core 5 120UL (avg score 13,594, delta -0.7%), and the Intel Core i7-1250U (avg score 13,351, delta 1.1%). These deltaPct values are all within 1.1% of the i3-12100F, indicating that this chip performs nearly identically to a range of other CPUs, including some with more cores. The fact that this 4-core processor can hold its own against 6-core and 8-core rivals in average benchmarks suggests that its single-thread performance is strong enough to compensate for its low core count in many workloads.

In Downfall, the combo’s 133rd rank out of 3,716 confirms the GPU’s ability to carry the system. If you swapped in a faster CPU, the ranking might improve slightly, but the data suggests that the RTX 5090 is already delivering near-maximum performance for this game at most settings. The 133rd rank means there are 132 combos that perform better, but those are likely pairing the RTX 5090 with top-tier CPUs like the Core i9 or Ryzen 9 series. For a 4-core i3, this is an outstanding result.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Looking at the measured FPS rows, the Medium preset appears to offer the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 1080p Medium, the combo averages 358 FPS with a minimum of 304 FPS and a maximum of 411 FPS. That minimum of 304 FPS is well above any monitor’s refresh rate, so there is no risk of noticeable stuttering. At 1440p Medium, the average is 264 FPS with a minimum of 225 FPS and a maximum of 304 FPS. Again, the minimum is still extremely high. At 4K Medium, the average drops to 164 FPS with a minimum of 140 FPS and a maximum of 189 FPS. The 140 FPS minimum is still smooth on a 144 Hz display, though it is getting closer to the edge.

High settings are also viable. At 1080p High, the average is 303 FPS, which is still far above any refresh rate. At 1440p High, the average is 217 FPS, and at 4K High, it is 135 FPS. The 4K High figure is just above 120 FPS, which makes it suitable for high-refresh-rate 4K monitors. However, compared to Medium, High offers diminishing returns in visual fidelity for a 17-20% performance hit at 4K (135 FPS vs 164 FPS).

Ultra settings are playable but not ideal for high-refresh displays. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 190 FPS, which is still high, but at 1440p Ultra it drops to 135 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it falls to 84 FPS. The 84 FPS at 4K Ultra is smooth on a standard 60 Hz display, but it is below 100 FPS, which is often the threshold for competitive play. For a horror game like Downfall, where atmosphere matters more than reaction time, 84 FPS is acceptable, but Medium or High at 4K provides a better experience if you have a 120 Hz or 144 Hz monitor.

The data strongly suggests that Medium settings are the sweet spot for this combo. The minimum FPS figures for Medium are consistently higher than the average FPS for Ultra at the same resolution. For example, 4K Medium has a minimum of 140 FPS, while 4K Ultra averages 84 FPS. That is a 66.7% difference in favor of Medium. The visual difference between Medium and Ultra in Downfall is unlikely to be significant enough to justify such a large performance penalty, especially given the game’s 2016 release date and its focus on horror atmosphere rather than graphical spectacle.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured data provides exact figures for all twelve configurations. At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 384 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p averages 358 FPS, with a minimum of 304 FPS and a maximum of 411 FPS. High at 1080p averages 303 FPS. Ultra at 1080p averages 190 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a steady decline, with Ultra delivering 49.5% of the Low frame rate.

At 2560x1440, Low averages 323 FPS. Medium averages 264 FPS, with a minimum of 225 FPS and a maximum of 304 FPS. High averages 217 FPS. Ultra averages 135 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 58.2%, which is slightly steeper than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a factor as resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, Low averages 201 FPS. Medium averages 164 FPS, with a minimum of 140 FPS and a maximum of 189 FPS. High averages 135 FPS. Ultra averages 84 FPS. The Ultra figure at 4K is less than half of the Low figure, showing the significant cost of maxing out settings at this resolution.

Comparing across resolutions, the 1080p Low average of 384 FPS is the highest measured value. The lowest is 4K Ultra at 84 FPS. The ratio between these two extremes is 4.57x. Interestingly, the 1080p Ultra average of 190 FPS is higher than the 4K Low average of 201 FPS only by a small margin; in fact, 4K Low at 201 FPS is slightly faster than 1080p Ultra at 190 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is limiting performance even at Ultra settings, while at 4K, the GPU has enough headroom to make Low settings very fast.

The Medium preset’s minimum FPS values are worth noting. At 1080p, the minimum is 304 FPS, at 1440p it is 225 FPS, and at 4K it is 140 FPS. These minimums are all above 140 FPS, which means that even in the most demanding scenes, the combo maintains high frame rates. The maximum FPS values for Medium are 411 at 1080p, 304 at 1440p, and 189 at 4K. The spread between minimum and maximum is roughly 100 FPS at 1080p and 49 FPS at 4K, indicating that frame pacing is consistent.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

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. It has a 58 W TDP and uses the Intel Socket 1700. The architecture is Alder Lake, specifically Alder Lake-S, on a 10 nm process node. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel mode, though the memory bandwidth is not specified in the data.

In Downfall, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo hits 384 FPS, which is likely CPU-limited. The i3-12100F’s single-thread performance, as indicated by its 3dmark single-thread score of 893 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1,674, is strong for a budget chip but not exceptional. The 4-core design means that multi-threaded workloads are handled by 8 threads, which is adequate for a 2016 game like Downfall that was designed for older hardware.

The CPU’s benchmark scores provide context. In 3dmark, the 16-thread test scores 4,051, the 4-thread test scores 2,859, and the single-thread test scores 893. The Cinebench R20 multicore score is 4,981 and single-core is 703. Geekbench multicore is 7,252 and single-core is 1,932. These scores place the i3-12100F in the 68th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13,494. The nearest rivals, as listed earlier, are all within 1.1% of this score, meaning that switching to a different CPU in that performance class would not change the Downfall results significantly.

The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is the limiting factor. The fact that 1080p Low (384 FPS) is only 19% faster than 1080p Medium (358 FPS) and 27% faster than 1080p High (303 FPS) suggests that the GPU is not fully utilized at lower settings. At 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, as evidenced by the larger FPS drops between settings. The CPU’s 4 cores and 8 threads are sufficient for Downfall’s single-threaded game logic, but they cannot keep up with the RTX 5090’s ability to render frames at extreme speeds.

For this pairing, the CPU is a mismatch in terms of price and performance tier, but the data shows that it does not hold back the GPU in Downfall at resolutions above 1080p. At 4K, the GPU’s 84 FPS at Ultra is respectable, and the CPU is not the cause of that frame rate. If you were to pair the RTX 5090 with a higher-end CPU, you might see higher FPS at 1080p, but the gains would be marginal at 1440p and negligible at 4K. The i3-12100F’s 68th percentile ranking means it is an average CPU, but in Downfall, it delivers top-tier results when combined with the right GPU.