Downfall

Downfall, a horror title from 2016, places distinct demands on the Intel Core i5-12600KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB pairing. The measured frame rates reveal a configuration that is heavily constrained by the graphics card at higher resolutions, while the processor demonstrates sufficient headroom to drive high refresh rates at 1080p on lower settings. The data positions this combo at rank 1583 out of 1741 tested combinations, indicating a mid-to-low tier standing for this specific game's performance envelope.

FAQ

Q: What is the best performance this combo achieves in Downfall?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 133.5 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Core i5-12600KF's average benchmark score is 27827, which is effectively tied with the Intel Core i9-10900K at 27829 (0% delta), and it is 0.1% behind the Intel Core i5-12600K. It leads the Intel Core i7-13700H by 0.4%.

Q: What is the impact of Ultra settings on 4K performance?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average frame rate drops to 24 FPS, which is the lowest score recorded for this configuration.

Q: How much faster is the system at 1080p Low compared to 4K Ultra?

A: The frame rate at 1920x1080 Low (133.5 FPS) is substantially higher than at 3840x2160 Ultra (24 FPS), representing a massive performance gap driven by both resolution and settings.

Q: Is the GPU's memory bandwidth a potential limiting factor?

A: The RTX 3050 4 GB features a 128-bit memory bus and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth, which are modest figures that likely contribute to the significant frame rate drops when moving to higher resolutions.

Q: What is the CPU's single-thread capability in synthetic tests?

A: The Core i5-12600KF scores 3309 points in Cinebench R23 single-core and 3925 points in PassMark single-thread tests, indicating strong per-core performance for game logic.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF provides the computational foundation for this system. It is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4/DDR5 memory give it a flexible platform for various workloads.

In synthetic benchmarks, the processor demonstrates balanced performance across thread counts. Its 3DMark scores scale from 1016 for single-thread to 7956 for 16 threads, showing effective multi-core scaling. The Cinebench R23 results are particularly telling: a multi-core score of 23444 versus a single-core score of 3309. This indicates that while the processor is capable of handling heavily threaded tasks, its per-core speed is also robust, which is critical for games like Downfall that often rely on a few primary threads.

The CPU's standing relative to its nearest rivals is one of near parity. Its average benchmark score of 27827 is essentially identical to the Intel Core i9-10900K (27829) and the Intel Core i5-12600K (27851). It is 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H and 0.4% behind the Intel Core i7-13700H. This suggests that for this game, the i5-12600KF's processing power is not a differentiator; it provides a consistent, high-level baseline that is unlikely to bottleneck the GPU at most settings. The data shows the processor is a capable partner, but the gaming results are dictated more by the graphics subsystem.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear trend: performance scales inversely with resolution, and the rate of decline is steep. At 1080p High, the system averages 91.3 FPS. Moving to 1440p High reduces the average to 62.5 FPS, a drop of 31.5%. At 4K High, the average falls further to 37.6 FPS, another 39.8% reduction from the 1440p figure.

This pattern intensifies with higher settings. At Ultra, the progression is 55.2 FPS (1080p), 40 FPS (1440p), and 24 FPS (4K). The incremental penalty for each resolution step grows as the settings increase, indicating that the GPU is the primary limiting component. The CPU's performance, which is consistent across resolutions, cannot compensate for the increasing pixel workload.

The data strongly suggests a GPU-bound scenario. The RTX 3050 4 GB's memory bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s and 4 GB frame buffer are likely saturated at higher resolutions, causing the significant frame rate drops. For instance, the gap between 1080p and 1440p at Low settings is 36.8 FPS (from 133.5 to 96.7), while the gap at Ultra is only 15.2 FPS (from 55.2 to 40). This compression of absolute differences at lower frame rates further confirms that the graphics card is hitting its ceiling, and the CPU is not the limiting factor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured average frame rates provides a detailed picture of the system's behavior. At 1920x1080, the configuration is capable of high refresh rates on lower settings: Low yields 133.5 FPS, Medium 107.6 FPS, and High 91.3 FPS. Ultra settings at this resolution still produce a playable 55.2 FPS, but the drop from High is significant at 39.5%.

At 2560x1440, performance remains respectable for most settings. Low averages 96.7 FPS, Medium 79.7 FPS, and High 62.5 FPS. Ultra drops below the 60 FPS threshold to 40 FPS, a 36% reduction from High. This resolution represents a balance point where the GPU starts to show strain but is still usable for less demanding settings.

The 3840x2160 results are the most challenging. Low settings average 63.1 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS target, but this is the only setting that achieves this. Medium drops to 48.4 FPS, High to 37.6 FPS, and Ultra plummets to 24 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a 62% performance reduction, demonstrating that the RTX 3050 4 GB is not suited for high-fidelity gaming at this resolution. The jump from Medium to High at 4K (48.4 to 37.6 FPS) is a 22.3% penalty, while High to Ultra (37.6 to 24 FPS) is a 36.2% penalty, indicating diminishing returns and escalating costs at the highest quality presets.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB is the decisive component in these results. It is built on the Ampere architecture with the GA107 chip, featuring 2048 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. Its boost clock is rated at 1740 MHz, and it operates with a 128-bit memory interface paired with 4 GB of GDDR6 memory at 12 Gbps effective, yielding a bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s.

The GPU's modest specifications directly correlate with the measured frame rates. The 4 GB frame buffer is a likely bottleneck at 4K, where the need for larger texture and geometry data exceeds what the memory can efficiently hold, causing the severe performance drops seen at that resolution. The data shows that even at Low settings, 4K performance (63.1 FPS) is lower than 1080p Ultra (55.2 FPS is lower, but 4K Low is only slightly above 1080p High's 91.3 FPS).

The GPU's percentile ranking is 50, placing it in the middle of all graphics cards. Its performance in Downfall is consistent with this positioning. The RTX 3050 4 GB supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which is beneficial for modern titles, but Downfall's 2016 release does not heavily utilize such features. The theoretical pixel rate of 55.68 GPixel/s and texture rate of 111.4 GTexel/s are adequate for 1080p and 1440p gaming but are insufficient for maintaining high frame rates at 4K. The data confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor across all resolutions, and its 4 GB memory configuration is a particular weakness for this game's higher settings.