Evolve

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is a potent combination for _Evolve_, but the data reveals a clear hierarchy where the GPU becomes the dominant constraint as resolution climbs. At 1080p, the combo delivers excellent frame rates, but the transition to 4K exposes the RTX 3060 Ti's limitations, with performance dropping by more than half from the lowest to highest settings. The benchmark results indicate that this pairing is best suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming or solid 1440p performance, rather than pushing 4K Ultra.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep performance penalty as resolution increases, which is a textbook indicator of GPU-bound workloads. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 99.5 FPS at 1920x1080 to 63.7 FPS at 2560x1440—a 36% reduction—and then to 35.4 FPS at 3840x2160, which is a 64% drop from the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is consistent across all settings, confirming that the RTX 3060 Ti's rendering throughput, not the CPU, is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The drop from 1440p to 4K is particularly severe. At Medium settings, moving from 2560x1440 (83.3 FPS) to 3840x2160 (49.1 FPS) costs 41% of the frame rate. At Ultra settings, the same resolution step cuts performance from 47.5 FPS to 23.9 FPS, a 50% loss. This nonlinear scaling highlights the pixel-pushing demands of 4K, where the GPU's 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 16.20 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are simply insufficient for smooth gameplay at maximum detail.

Conversely, the scaling from 1080p to 1440p is more moderate, suggesting that the combo still has headroom at the lower resolution. At Low settings, the difference between 1920x1080 (157.5 FPS) and 2560x1440 (109 FPS) is 31%, which is a smaller relative loss than the 1440p-to-4K transition. The data shows that the sweet spot for this combination lies between 1080p and 1440p, where the GPU can maintain playable frame rates even at High settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested combinations, this pairing ranks 1223 out of 1695 combos for _Evolve_, placing it in the 72nd percentile of all tested systems. This rank reflects a mid-to-upper-tier position, indicating that while the combo is capable, there are many faster configurations. The rank is consistent with the individual component rankings: the CPU sits at the 77th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU is at the 69th percentile among all GPUs.

The combo's rank in this specific game is notably lower than the CPU's overall percentile, which suggests that _Evolve_ is more demanding on the graphics subsystem than on the processor. The RTX 3060 Ti's nearest rivals in the GPU benchmark database—such as the AMD Radeon RX 6700M (deltaPct -0.2) and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 (deltaPct -0.5)—have nearly identical average scores, indicating that this tier of GPU performance is tightly clustered. This means the combo's 1223 rank is representative of a broad group of similarly performing graphics cards, and the specific CPU choice has less impact on the final ranking than the GPU tier.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is built on the Ampere architecture with a GA104 chip, featuring 4864 shading units, 152 texture mapping units, and 80 ROPs. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is a critical resource for _Evolve_'s texture-heavy environments. The GPU's base clock of 1410 MHz and boost clock of 1665 MHz, combined with its 16.20 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, define its raw compute capability.

The benchmark results show that the GPU's memory capacity and bandwidth are adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K Ultra result of 23.9 FPS indicates a hard wall. At 4K, the 8 GB frame buffer is likely saturated, and the 448.0 GB/s bandwidth struggles to feed the 3840x2160 pixel count. The fact that dropping from Ultra to Low at 4K nearly triples the frame rate (from 23.9 to 61 FPS) demonstrates that the GPU's fill rate and memory subsystem are the primary bottlenecks, not the CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers strong performance across all settings. Low settings achieve 157.5 FPS, Medium reaches 123.2 FPS, High hits 99.5 FPS, and Ultra still manages 68.1 FPS. These numbers indicate that the pairing is well-suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors, even at maximum quality.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain respectable but begin to show strain. Low settings produce 109 FPS, Medium drops to 83.3 FPS, High falls to 63.7 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 47.5 FPS. The 1440p Ultra result is still playable, but it is below the 60 FPS threshold that many gamers consider the minimum for smooth action in a fast-paced FPS like _Evolve_.

At 3840x2160, the performance collapses under the pixel load. Low settings yield 61 FPS, which is exactly at the 60 FPS mark, but Medium drops to 49.1 FPS, High to 35.4 FPS, and Ultra to 23.9 FPS. These results clearly show that 4K gaming is only viable at Low settings, and even then, the frame rate is marginal.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F features 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332, place it at the 77th percentile among all CPUs.

In _Evolve_, the CPU's role is secondary to the GPU, as evidenced by the resolution scaling. The fact that frame rates drop so dramatically at 4K while remaining high at 1080p suggests that the i5-12400F has ample headroom to feed the GPU at lower resolutions. The CPU's nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-8700K, has a deltaPct of only 0.1, meaning their average benchmark scores are nearly identical. This indicates that the i5-12400F is not a bottleneck in this configuration; instead, the GPU's limits define the experience.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in _Evolve_?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 delivers the most consistent performance, with High settings achieving 99.5 FPS and Ultra reaching 68.1 FPS. At 2560x1440, High settings still hit 63.7 FPS, making it a viable alternative, but 4K is only playable at Low settings (61 FPS).

Q: How does the RTX 3060 Ti compare to its closest rivals?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 25120, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon RX 6700M (deltaPct -0.2) and AMD Radeon RX 6600 (deltaPct -0.5). These deltaPct values indicate that the RTX 3060 Ti performs within 0.5% of these cards, making them functionally equivalent in most scenarios.

Q: Is the i5-12400F a bottleneck at 4K?

A: No. The severe frame rate drops at 3840x2160 (e.g., 23.9 FPS at Ultra) are attributable to the GPU's limits. The CPU's strong single-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2332) and its 77th percentile ranking suggest it is not the limiting factor.

Q: What settings provide the smoothest 1440p experience?

A: For 1440p, Medium settings yield 83.3 FPS, while High settings achieve 63.7 FPS. Ultra drops to 47.5 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. Therefore, High settings offer the best balance of visual quality and frame rate.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K at any settings?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which produce an average of 61 FPS. All higher settings fall below 50 FPS, with Ultra at 23.9 FPS. This suggests that 4K is not a practical target for this pairing beyond the lowest quality preset.

Q: How does this combo's rank compare to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 1223 out of 1695 tested combinations for _Evolve_, placing it near the upper-middle of the distribution. This is consistent with the GPU's 69th percentile ranking, indicating that most faster combos are equipped with higher-tier graphics cards.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the recommended choice, as it still delivers 68.1 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. If a higher refresh rate is preferred, dropping to High increases the frame rate to 99.5 FPS with only a modest reduction in visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, High settings are the optimal compromise, providing 63.7 FPS. Medium settings offer a more comfortable margin at 83.3 FPS, but the visual downgrade may be noticeable. Ultra should be avoided, as 47.5 FPS is below the acceptable threshold for a fast-paced FPS.

For 3840x2160, Low settings are the only viable option, yielding 61 FPS. The Medium preset (49.1 FPS) and High preset (35.4 FPS) are too inconsistent for competitive play, and Ultra (23.9 FPS) is unplayable. The data suggests that users with 4K displays should either accept Low settings or reduce the resolution to 1440p for a better experience.