Greedfall

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread desktop processor built on Intel's Alder Lake architecture and manufactured on a 10 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, with a 12 MB shared L3 cache. The CPU's single-threaded strength is evident in its 3DMark single-thread score of 893, while its 3DMark 16-thread score of 4051 indicates that its multithreaded scaling is modest despite the 8 threads. In Greedfall, an Action RPG, the processor's high per-core performance is likely to be more relevant than its raw thread count, as the game's workload tends to favor fewer, stronger cores. The 8-thread and max-thread 3DMark scores of 4026 and 4023, respectively, are nearly identical to the 16-thread result, showing that the CPU's performance is effectively capped beyond its physical 4 cores. This configuration pairs the processor with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, a high-end Ampere GPU with 8704 shading units and a boost clock of 1710 MHz. At 1080p, the combination's results will hinge on whether the CPU can feed the RTX 3080's massive rendering throughput, while at 4K, the GPU's 760.3 GB/s memory bandwidth and 10 GB of GDDR6X become the dominant factors.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F's role in this Greedfall combo is defined by its moderate core count and high clock speeds. With only 4 cores and 8 threads, the processor relies on its 4.30 GHz boost clock and strong single-thread performance to keep up with the RTX 3080. The data shows that the CPU's single-thread 3DMark score of 893 is its standout metric, and this is directly relevant to Greedfall's engine, which typically does not scale massively across many cores. The processor's Cinebench R23 multicore score of 11912 is respectable, but its single-core score of 1681 is proportionally much stronger, indicating that the CPU is better suited to lightly-threaded tasks. In the context of this game, the i3-12100F's job is to maintain a high frame rate ceiling, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the primary bottleneck. The 8-thread 3DMark score of 4026 is only slightly lower than the 16-thread score of 4051, confirming that the CPU's performance is saturated with just 8 threads, which is exactly what Greedfall's engine is likely to use. However, the processor's Passmark single-thread score of 3444 and its percentile ranking of 72 against all CPUs suggest that while it is competent, it is not a top-tier performer by modern standards. The CPU's 58 W TDP and 163 mm² die size indicate a power-efficient design, but the benchmark results will reveal whether its 4-core limitation becomes a visible constraint in this GPU-heavy pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 achieves a rank of 518 out of 1705 tested combos in Greedfall. This places the combo in the 30th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 70% of other CPU-GPU pairings deliver higher average frame rates in this game. The ranking is a direct reflection of the imbalance between the CPU's modest compute capabilities and the GPU's high-end performance. The RTX 3080 ranks in the 80th percentile among all GPUs based on its average benchmark score of 35787, which is a strong result. In contrast, the i3-12100F's percentile of 72 among all CPUs is slightly lower, but the gap in relative performance is more pronounced in gaming workloads. The data suggests that the CPU is the limiting factor in this combo, as the GPU is capable of much higher frame rates when paired with a stronger processor. The combo's rank of 518 indicates that while this pairing is playable, it does not fully utilize the RTX 3080's potential in Greedfall. Rival CPUs with similar average benchmark scores, such as the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, which is only 0.1% behind the i3-12100F in average score, would likely yield a similar rank if paired with the same GPU, indicating that the CPU's performance class is the primary determinant of this combo's standing.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of scaling across resolutions, which reveals the shifting bottleneck between the CPU and GPU. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo achieves an average of 167.6 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at High settings, the average drops to 119.9 FPS, a 28% reduction. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average falls further to 72 FPS, which is a 40% drop from the 1440p result and a 57% drop from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is typical of a system where the GPU becomes increasingly dominant as resolution rises. The 1080p results are likely constrained by the CPU's 4-core limit, as the frame rates are very high but not as high as they could be with a more powerful processor. The 1440p results show a more balanced load, while the 4K results are almost entirely GPU-bound, as evidenced by the RTX 3080's strong raw performance. The Low settings results further illustrate this: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 237 FPS, but at 1440p Low it drops to 163.7 FPS (a 31% decrease), and at 4K Low it falls to 100.4 FPS (a 39% decrease from 1440p). The percentage drops are consistent across settings, indicating that the limiting component changes predictably with resolution. At 1080p, the CPU's inability to process frames faster than around 237 FPS is the ceiling, while at 4K, the GPU's rendering capacity is the primary constraint.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four quality settings. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average of 237 FPS on Low settings, 187.7 FPS on Medium, 167.6 FPS on High, and 109.1 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra is 127.9 FPS, showing that the quality settings have a substantial impact on the frame rate at this resolution. The CPU's influence is most apparent at 1080p Low, where the 237 FPS result is likely near the maximum the i3-12100F can sustain, even with the RTX 3080's power. At 2560x1440, the averages are 163.7 FPS on Low, 130.9 FPS on Medium, 119.9 FPS on High, and 74.4 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings, with an average reduction of about 30%. At 3840x2160, the averages are 100.4 FPS on Low, 79 FPS on Medium, 72 FPS on High, and 45.7 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Ultra result of 45.7 FPS is the lowest measured, indicating that even the RTX 3080 struggles with the game's maximum settings at this resolution. The scaling from Medium to High at 4K is relatively small (a 7 FPS difference), while the jump from High to Ultra is much larger (a 26.3 FPS drop), suggesting that Ultra settings impose a significant rendering cost. The data shows that the combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver smooth frame rates even at High settings, while 4K gaming requires lower settings to maintain playable performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this CPU-GPU pairing in Greedfall?

A: Based on the measured FPS data, 2560x1440 with High settings delivers an average of 119.9 FPS, which is a strong balance of visual quality and performance. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo achieves 167.6 FPS, but the CPU becomes a limiting factor at lower resolutions.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At 1920x1080 High, the average is 167.6 FPS, while at 3840x2160 High, the average drops to 72 FPS. This represents a 57% reduction in frame rate, showing that the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck at 4K.

Q: Is the Intel Core i3-12100F a bottleneck for the RTX 3080 in this game?

A: The data suggests yes, particularly at 1080p. The 1080p Low result of 237 FPS is likely near the CPU's maximum frame rate ceiling, while the GPU could potentially render more frames if paired with a stronger processor. The combo's rank of 518 out of 1705 indicates that many other CPU-GPU pairings perform better.

Q: How does the RTX 3080's performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 3080 has an average benchmark score of 35787, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro Duo and 0.9% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE. It is 0.4% lower than the AMD Radeon 880M and 1% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Mobile.

Q: What is the impact of Ultra settings on the combo's frame rate?

A: At 1920x1080 Ultra, the combo achieves 109.1 FPS, which is a 35% drop from High settings. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average falls to 45.7 FPS, which is a 37% drop from High settings. Ultra settings impose a significant rendering cost that the combo cannot fully offset, especially at higher resolutions.

Q: How does the CPU's multithreaded performance affect the game's results?

A: The i3-12100F's 3DMark 16-thread score of 4051 is nearly identical to its 8-thread score of 4026, indicating that the CPU's performance is capped at 8 threads. This is relevant because Greedfall likely uses up to 8 threads, and the CPU's 4-core design provides adequate but not exceptional performance. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 11912 is moderate, but the single-core score of 1681 is relatively strong, which helps in this game.