Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG from Spiders, presents a demanding workload that scales predictably across resolutions when paired with the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER. The measured data reveals a system that is firmly GPU-limited at higher resolutions, with the CPU’s four cores providing sufficient headroom to keep frame rates climbing as the graphical load decreases. This analysis walks through the measured FPS data, the roles of the GPU and CPU, and how this specific combination ranks against other tested hardware.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 produces a consistent and substantial drop in average frame rates across all settings, indicating that the rendering load is scaling directly with pixel count. At the High preset, the average FPS falls from 108 at 1080p to 75 at 1440p, a reduction of 33 frames, before settling at 45 at 4K. This steep decline from 1440p to 4K, a 30 FPS drop, confirms that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary limiting factor; the GPU’s pixel throughput is being saturated as the resolution increases.

The scaling pattern is even more pronounced when examining the Low preset. Here, the average FPS at 1080p is 152, which drops to 105 at 1440p and further to 63 at 4K. The fact that the Low preset at 1080p achieves over 150 FPS suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at high rates, but the GPU cannot maintain that pace as the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K. The difference between the High and Low presets at 1080p is 44 FPS (108 vs 152), but at 4K this gap narrows to just 18 FPS (45 vs 63), demonstrating that the GPU’s fixed rendering capacity becomes the dominant bottleneck at higher resolutions.

The Medium preset offers the only min/max FPS data in the pack, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the average is 119 FPS with a minimum of 101 and a maximum of 137, showing a relatively tight 36 FPS range. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 83 FPS, with min/max of 70 and 95, respectively, maintaining a similar 25 FPS spread. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 49 FPS, with a minimum of 42 and a maximum of 57, indicating that while the system remains playable, the variance suggests occasional stutters as the GPU hits its limits. The data shows that 4K performance is consistently below 60 FPS on every preset, making it a challenging target for this combination, while 1440p and 1080p offer much more comfortable performance margins.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, built on the Turing architecture with a 12 nm process node, is the decisive component in this pairing. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s, which is sufficient for the texture data in Greedfall at 1080p and 1440p, but the benchmark results indicate that raw compute and memory bandwidth are strained at 4K. The GPU’s boost clock of 1650 MHz, with a base of 1470 MHz, helps drive the 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, yet the measured FPS at 4K Ultra (29 FPS) shows that the card is overwhelmed when all graphical features are enabled.

The GPU’s role is best illustrated by the difference between the Low and Ultra presets at each resolution. At 1080p, the gap is 83 FPS (152 vs 69), but at 4K, the gap shrinks to 34 FPS (63 vs 29). This compression at higher resolutions is a classic sign of GPU saturation; when the pixel shader workload becomes the bottleneck, the additional cost of Ultra settings has a smaller absolute impact on frame rate because the GPU is already struggling to fill pixels. The RTX 2060 SUPER’s 64 ROPs and 105.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are the likely culprits for the 4K performance ceiling.

The GPU’s benchmark scores place it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 18093. Its nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile (18159, delta -0.4%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (18189, delta -0.5%), showing that the RTX 2060 SUPER is competitive with those parts in synthetic tests. Interestingly, the AMD Radeon RX 460 (18373, delta -1.5%) and Intel Arc A770M (18383, delta -1.6%) score slightly higher, but the measured Greedfall data shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER delivers playable performance at 1440p, which aligns with its mid-range positioning. The 8 GB memory size is a key asset; the data does not show any signs of texture swapping or memory-related stutters at 1080p or 1440p, where the card delivers smooth average FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Based strictly on the measured FPS rows, the High preset at 2560x1440 offers the best balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 75 FPS. This is above the 60 FPS threshold typically considered smooth, and the 25 FPS gap to the Ultra preset (48 FPS) suggests that High is the sweet spot for this resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 108 FPS, which is excellent for fast-paced action, and the Medium preset at 119 FPS is also viable, but the jump to Ultra (69 FPS) is a significant sacrifice for marginal visual gains.

For users prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p yields 152 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play or for those with high refresh rate monitors. However, at 4K, the Low preset (63 FPS) is the only option that approaches playability, but even it falls short of a locked 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K (49 FPS) is a compromise, but the min FPS of 42 indicates potential dips below 45 FPS, which could be noticeable in combat scenarios. The data suggests that 4K is not a recommended target for this combination, as even the lowest settings cannot consistently maintain 60 FPS.

The Ultra preset is the least advisable choice across all resolutions. At 1080p, it drops to 69 FPS, at 1440p to 48 FPS, and at 4K to 29 FPS, making it a heavy burden on the RTX 2060 SUPER. Given that the High preset at 1440p provides 75 FPS and the High preset at 1080p provides 108 FPS, the Ultra preset’s performance penalty is substantial. The measured data clearly indicates that High settings offer the most consistent experience, and users should avoid Ultra unless they are willing to accept sub-50 FPS performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings shows a clear hierarchy. The Low preset achieves 152 FPS, followed by Medium at 119 FPS, High at 108 FPS, and Ultra at 69 FPS. The Medium preset’s min/max of 101/137 FPS indicates a stable frame delivery, with the average sitting comfortably above 100 FPS. The High preset’s 108 FPS average is impressive, but the Ultra preset’s drop to 69 FPS is a steep 36% reduction from High, suggesting that the Ultra settings include effects that heavily tax the GPU’s shading units.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low runs at 105 FPS, Medium at 83 FPS (with min/max of 70/95), High at 75 FPS, and Ultra at 48 FPS. The 1440p High preset’s 75 FPS is a solid result, and the Medium preset’s 83 FPS offers a small boost for those who prefer higher frame rates. The Ultra preset’s 48 FPS falls below the 60 FPS target, making it a less desirable option at this resolution. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 57 FPS, which is less than the 83 FPS difference at 1080p, again confirming the GPU’s growing bottleneck.

At 3840x2160, the results are the most constrained. Low leads with 63 FPS, followed by Medium at 49 FPS (min/max of 42/57), High at 45 FPS, and Ultra at 29 FPS. The gap between Low and High is only 18 FPS, and the Ultra preset’s 29 FPS is clearly unplayable for a smooth experience. The Medium preset’s minimum of 42 FPS is concerning, as it indicates that frame rates can dip below 45 FPS during intense scenes. The data shows that 4K is only viable with the Low preset, and even then, the average of 63 FPS is not consistently maintainable, given the other presets’ min/max behavior.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in Greedfall?

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 with the High preset offers an average of 75 FPS, which is the best balance of quality and performance. 1920x1080 provides higher frame rates (108 FPS on High), but 1440p is the highest resolution where the system stays above 60 FPS on the High preset.

Q: Can this system run Greedfall at 4K?

A: The data shows 4K performance is limited. The Low preset averages 63 FPS, but Medium drops to 49 FPS, High to 45 FPS, and Ultra to 29 FPS. Only the Low preset approaches playability, but it may not maintain a consistent 60 FPS.

Q: How much of a performance hit does the Ultra preset cause?

A: At 1080p, Ultra (69 FPS) is 39 FPS lower than High (108 FPS). At 1440p, Ultra (48 FPS) is 27 FPS lower than High (75 FPS). At 4K, Ultra (29 FPS) is 16 FPS lower than High (45 FPS). The hit is significant at all resolutions.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The scaling from 1080p to 4K indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the CPU can push 152 FPS, but as resolution increases, the GPU’s rendering capacity becomes the constraint, with 4K Low dropping to 63 FPS.

Q: What is the average FPS on Medium settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the average FPS is 83, with a minimum of 70 and a maximum of 95, per the measured data.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested configurations?

A: This combination is ranked 2624 out of 3703 tested combos for Greedfall, placing it in the lower portion of the database’s results, but the measured FPS data shows it can handle 1080p and 1440p well.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F, with its 4 cores and 8 threads, plays a supporting role in Greedfall’s performance. Its base clock of 3.30 GHz and boost clock of 4.30 GHz, combined with a 12 MB shared L3 cache, provide enough single-thread throughput for the game’s engine. The CPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1674 and a multi-core score of 11860, show solid performance, but the game’s scaling pattern suggests that the GPU is the primary determinant of frame rate.

The CPU’s passmark single-thread score of 3444 is respectable, and its 3DMark single-thread score of 893 indicates strong per-core performance. However, at 1080p with the Low preset, the system achieves 152 FPS, which is a high frame rate that still does not reveal a CPU bottleneck. The fact that frame rates drop uniformly across all presets when moving to higher resolutions points to the GPU being the limiting factor, as the CPU’s workload does not increase significantly with resolution.

The i3-12100F’s nearest rivals in the CPU database include the Intel Core 3 N355 (avg score 13492, delta 0%) and the Intel Core i5-9500 (avg score 13452, delta 0.3%), showing that it sits in a competitive mid-range position. Its percentile of 68 places it above average, but in Greedfall, the CPU’s role is to maintain a high enough frame ceiling. The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is not a constraint, as the system reaches 152 FPS on Low, but at 4K, the GPU’s limitations dominate, and the CPU’s strength is largely irrelevant. The CPU’s 58 W TDP and 10 nm process indicate an efficient part, but its 4 cores may limit performance in more CPU-intensive scenes, though the measured FPS data does not show any such dips.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested CPU/GPU combinations for Greedfall, this pairing of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is ranked 2624 out of 3703 combos. This places it in the 71st percentile of tested configurations, which is below the median but not at the bottom. The rank reflects the GPU’s mid-range position (62nd percentile) and the CPU’s slightly higher standing (68th percentile), but the combination’s overall performance is limited by the GPU’s 4K struggles.

The measured FPS data tells a more nuanced story than the raw rank suggests. At 1080p, the combo achieves 108 FPS on High, which is a very playable result and likely outperforms many higher-ranked combos that may be paired with weaker GPUs. At 1440p, the 75 FPS on High is also solid, indicating that the combo is well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming. The rank of 2624 is dragged down by the 4K results, where the combo falls below 60 FPS on all presets, but for the majority of users targeting 1080p or 1440p, this pairing is more capable than the rank might imply.

The GPU’s nearest rivals, such as the RTX 3060 Mobile and AMD Radeon Pro 5700, score similarly in synthetic benchmarks, but the measured Greedfall data shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER can deliver 75 FPS at 1440p High, which is a strong result. The combo’s rank of 2624 out of 3703 means that 1079 combos are slower, but the data shows that this configuration is a reliable choice for 1080p high refresh rate gaming and 1440p 60+ FPS gaming, with 4K being the only major weakness. The overall assessment is that this is a balanced mid-range pairing, where the GPU is the primary performance limiter at higher resolutions, but the CPU provides ample support at lower resolutions.