Downfall

# Downfall with Intel Core i5-12400F + NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti: A Severely GPU-Bound Horror Experience

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti delivers playable performance in Downfall only at 1080p with Low or Medium settings, with the GPU acting as the definitive bottleneck across all tested resolutions. The measured frame rates reveal a system that falls to the 1735th position out of 1741 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 0.3% of all configurations—a result that points to the aging GTX 1050 Ti as the critical limiting factor rather than the capable six-core processor.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for smooth gameplay in Downfall?

A: The only configuration that exceeds 60 FPS is 1920x1080 with Low settings, producing an average of 73.2 FPS. The Medium preset at the same resolution yields 59.7 FPS, which is borderline acceptable, while High drops to 47.8 FPS and Ultra falls to 32.2 FPS.

Q: How does the Core i5-12400F compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Core i5-12400F scores 19,221 in its average benchmark, placing it 0.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-8700K (19,210) and 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i5-1335U (19,167). It trails the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS by 0.7% (19,364) and leads the AMD EPYC 7773X by 1.3% (18,979).

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

A: The GTX 1050 Ti sits at the 30th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 5,316. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce 930A, scores 5,317 (0% delta), while the NVIDIA GeForce 940M scores 5,297 (0.4% behind) and the AMD Radeon R7 M445 scores 5,361 (0.8% ahead).

Q: How much VRAM does the GTX 1050 Ti have, and what is its memory bandwidth?

A: The GPU features 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 112.1 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 1752 MHz (7 Gbps effective), with base and boost clocks of 1291 MHz and 1392 MHz respectively.

Q: What is the CPU's multi-threaded performance in Cinebench R23?

A: The Core i5-12400F scores 16,518 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2,332 in single-core. Its 6 cores and 12 threads operate at a 2.50 GHz base clock and 4.40 GHz boost clock, with an 18 MB shared L3 cache.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested system configurations?

A: This specific pairing of the Core i5-12400F with the GTX 1050 Ti ranks 1735th out of 1741 combinations in Downfall, indicating that nearly all tested alternatives deliver higher frame rates in this title.

GPU Role

The GTX 1050 Ti is the decisive performance limiter in this configuration. Its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 112.1 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the demands of Downfall at higher settings, particularly at 4K resolution where even the Low preset only achieves 33.7 FPS. The GPU's 768 shading units and 32 ROPs, operating at boost clocks up to 1392 MHz, provide a raw compute capacity of 2.138 TFLOPS FP32, which translates into the measured frame rates that stay below 50 FPS in most scenarios.

The benchmark data confirms the GPU's role as primary bottleneck: at 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 41 FPS (73.2 versus 32.2), a span that reflects the GPU's inability to handle the increased shading and texture work. The GPU's DirectX 12 score of 26 in Passmark, compared to its DirectX 11 score of 45, suggests particular weakness in modern API workloads, which is relevant for a horror title like Downfall that may leverage newer rendering paths. The GPU's 30th percentile ranking and its near-identical average score to the GeForce 930A (5,316 versus 5,317) underscore that this is entry-level silicon, unsuited to high-fidelity gaming.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K demonstrates classic GPU-bound behavior, with performance dropping dramatically as pixel count increases. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 73.2 at 1920x1080 to 50.4 at 2560x1440 (a 31.1% reduction) and then to 33.7 at 3840x2160 (a 54% reduction from 1080p). This scaling pattern indicates that the GTX 1050 Ti's fill rate and memory bandwidth are saturated early, with the 112.1 GB/s bandwidth proving inadequate for 4K workloads.

The Ultra preset shows even steeper degradation: 32.2 FPS at 1080p, 21.8 FPS at 1440p, and 15.3 FPS at 4K. The gap between Low and Ultra widens at higher resolutions—at 1080p the difference is 41 FPS, but at 4K it narrows to 18.4 FPS—because the GPU is already so constrained by pixel throughput that settings changes have less relative impact. The data suggests that the CPU is not a factor in this scaling; the Core i5-12400F's strong single-thread score of 2,332 in Cinebench R23 would not limit frame rates at any resolution, leaving the GTX 1050 Ti as the sole determinant of these scaling curves.

How This Combo Ranks

This configuration ranks 1735th out of 1741 tested combos in Downfall, positioning it in the bottom 0.3% of all systems measured. This ranking is consistent with the GPU's lowly 30th percentile standing; in a horror game that likely demands consistent frame pacing for atmosphere, the 22.2 FPS average at 4K High and 15.3 FPS at 4K Ultra would be unacceptable for most players. The CPU's 77th percentile ranking (average score 19,221) contrasts sharply with the GPU's 30th percentile, confirming that the processor is far more capable than the graphics card.

The nearest rival comparisons for the CPU show the i5-12400F essentially tied with the i7-8700K (0.1% faster), yet that processing power is wasted when paired with the GTX 1050 Ti. The GPU's rivals—the GeForce 930A, GeForce 940M, and Radeon R7 M445—are all mobile or entry-level desktop parts, and the GTX 1050 Ti's performance delta of 0% to 0.8% against them indicates no meaningful differentiation. The 1735th rank should be interpreted as a warning: this combo is among the weakest tested for Downfall, and the measured frame rates bear this out across every resolution and settings combination.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F provides ample processing headroom that goes largely unused in Downfall due to the GPU bottleneck. With 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Alder Lake architecture, the CPU runs at a 2.50 GHz base clock and boosts to 4.40 GHz, supported by 18 MB of shared L3 cache. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16,518 places it at the 77th percentile of all CPUs, and its single-core score of 2,332 indicates strong per-thread performance that would handle game logic and AI in a horror title.

The CPU's 3DMark scores show scaling from 909 (single-thread) to 5,912 (max-threads), with the 16-thread score of 5,895 nearly identical to the max-threads result, indicating that the 12-thread configuration is fully utilized in synthetic workloads. However, in Downfall, the measured frame rates never exceed 73.2 FPS even at 1080p Low, which is well within the i5-12400F's capability to feed the GPU. The CPU's Passmark multi-thread score of 19,433 and single-thread score of 3,481 further confirm that processing power is not the constraint; the GPU's 2.138 TFLOPS FP32 throughput is simply insufficient for higher settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the GTX 1050 Ti delivers an average of 73.2 FPS on Low settings, which is the only playable configuration in this dataset. Medium settings produce 59.7 FPS, High drops to 47.8 FPS, and Ultra falls to 32.2 FPS. The 1080p results show a clear gradient where each settings tier costs roughly 12-15 FPS, with the Low-to-Medium transition costing 13.5 FPS and the High-to-Ultra transition costing 15.6 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the performance envelope tightens considerably. Low settings average 50.4 FPS, Medium 45.1 FPS, High 33 FPS, and Ultra 21.8 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p remains marginally playable, but High and Ultra are below the 30 FPS threshold that most players would consider acceptable for a horror game. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 22.8 FPS, illustrating the GPU's bandwidth limitations.

At 3840x2160, all settings yield sub-30 FPS averages: Low at 33.7 FPS, Medium at 24.5 FPS, High at 22.2 FPS, and Ultra at 15.3 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly poor, with even the Low preset struggling to maintain 30 FPS. The data shows that 4K is not a viable resolution for this combination, and players would need to drop to 1080p to achieve acceptable performance in Downfall.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal configuration for this hardware is 1920x1080 with Low settings, yielding 73.2 FPS average. This is the only settings combination that clears the 60 FPS threshold, providing smooth gameplay for the horror experience. The Medium preset at 1080p (59.7 FPS) is a viable alternative if visual fidelity is prioritized, as it remains above 55 FPS and offers a modest visual upgrade without a severe performance penalty.

For players who prefer a balance between visual quality and performance, 2560x1440 with Low settings (50.4 FPS) is the best option at higher resolutions, though it sacrifices the fluidity of 1080p. The High preset at 1080p (47.8 FPS) and Medium at 1440p (45.1 FPS) are borderline playable but may suffer from frame pacing issues in a horror title where atmosphere depends on consistent motion. Ultra settings should be avoided entirely; the best Ultra result is 32.2 FPS at 1080p, which is below the 30 FPS average that most players consider the minimum for acceptable gameplay. The data indicates that this combo's ceiling is 1080p Medium, with any higher settings or resolutions resulting in a compromised experience.