Greedfall

# Greedfall with Intel Core i5-12600KF + AMD Radeon RX 570

The pairing of Intel's Core i5-12600KF with AMD's Radeon RX 570 produces a clearly GPU-bound experience in Greedfall, with frame rates that scale predictably as resolution and settings are adjusted. At 1080p, the combo delivers playable performance at Low and Medium settings, but the 4 GB VRAM and Polaris architecture's age become evident at higher resolutions and quality presets. This is a combination that sits near the bottom of the tested pool, ranking 3548 out of 3703 combos in this title, but the data reveals a nuanced picture of where the bottleneck lies and what users can expect from each configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep and consistent drop as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, which strongly indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor in this configuration. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 52 FPS at 1920x1080 to 36 FPS at 2560x1440, and then plummets to 22 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 31% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, followed by a further 39% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is not linear, with the 4K resolution exacting a disproportionate toll on the RX 570's compute resources.

The pattern holds across all settings presets. With Low settings, the combo achieves 73 FPS at 1080p, 51 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K — a 59% total drop from the lowest to highest resolution. At Medium, the numbers are 57 FPS, 40 FPS, and 24 FPS respectively, with the 4K result dipping to a minimum of 20 FPS and a maximum of 27 FPS. Ultra settings are the most punishing, yielding only 33 FPS at 1080p, 23 FPS at 1440p, and a nearly unplayable 14 FPS at 4K.

What these figures reveal is that the RX 570's 224.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth and 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 performance are simply insufficient for 4K rendering in this Action RPG. The GPU's pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s become bottlenecks as the pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K. The data suggests that 1080p is the only resolution where this combo delivers consistently smooth gameplay, and even then, only at Low or Medium settings. The 4K results are uniformly below 30 FPS regardless of quality preset, making that resolution a non-starter for this hardware pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combo rank of 3548 out of 3703 tested combinations in Greedfall, this pairing sits in the bottom 4% of all configurations evaluated. This ranking places it in the company of systems that are generally considered entry-level for modern gaming, and the measured frame rates corroborate that position. The rank reflects not just the GPU's age but also the balance of the pairing — the Core i5-12600KF is a capable processor, but it is being held back by the RX 570's performance ceiling.

The CPU's own benchmark data shows that it is far from the weak link. In the combo's overall context, the i5-12600KF ranks in the 79th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27799. Its nearest rivals in synthetic tests include the Intel Core i9-10900K (avg score 27872, delta -0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (avg score 27712, delta 0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 7 6800U (avg score 27887, delta -0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D (avg score 27896, delta -0.3%). All of these rival CPUs are within a fraction of a percent of the i5-12600KF's average score, indicating that the processor is performing exactly as expected for its class.

The GPU, by contrast, shows a similar standing relative to its own peers. The RX 570's average benchmark score of 28766 places it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon RX 6800M (avg score 28874, delta -0.4%), AMD Radeon R9 M295X (avg score 28580, delta 0.7%), AMD Radeon RX 470 (avg score 28996, delta -0.8%), and NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 (avg score 28421, delta 1.2%). These deltas are all under 1.2%, meaning the RX 570 is competitive with those parts in synthetic workloads, but the 4K and high-settings results in Greedfall show that real-world gaming performance falls short of what the synthetic scores might suggest.

The combination rank of 3548 out of 3703 is a stark indicator that this pairing is not optimized for this game. The data shows a system that can handle 1080p gaming at modest settings but struggles everywhere else. This is not a configuration that will impress in benchmark comparisons, but the numbers provide a clear picture of its capabilities.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the dominant component in determining this combo's gaming performance, and its specifications explain why. The GPU features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs, with a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz. The memory configuration consists of 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s and a memory clock of 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective). The chip is built on GlobalFoundries' 14 nm process with 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die.

These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 5.095 TFLOPS and FP16 performance at the same 5.095 TFLOPS (1:1). The 4 GB VRAM capacity is particularly relevant for Greedfall, as the game's texture demands at higher settings can exceed this amount. The measured FPS data shows that at 4K Ultra, the combo averages only 14 FPS, which is likely a combination of both raw compute limitations and VRAM capacity issues. The 224.0 GB/s bandwidth is also a constraint at 4K, where the memory system must feed more pixels per frame.

The GPU's 150 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for this class, and its PCIe 3.0 x16 interface is adequate for the bandwidth it requires. The RX 570 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, which are all compatible with Greedfall's rendering requirements. The GPU's production status is end-of-life, which is consistent with its 2017 release date and its performance characteristics in this 2019 game. The benchmark data shows that the RX 570's nearest rivals in synthetic tests are all within 1.2% of its average score, but in Greedfall specifically, the GPU's limitations are exposed by the frame rate drops at higher resolutions.

The fact that the combo's performance degrades so sharply from 1080p to 4K, even at Low settings, points directly to the GPU as the bottleneck. The CPU's strong synthetic scores do not translate into higher frame rates because the GPU cannot render frames fast enough to take advantage of the processor's headroom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. With Low settings, the average frame rate is 73 FPS, which is smooth and responsive. Medium settings produce 57 FPS on average, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS, indicating a playable experience with some dips. High settings drop the average to 52 FPS, losing about 29% of the Low-setting performance. Ultra settings are the most demanding, yielding only 33 FPS on average, which is borderline for a game that benefits from higher frame rates.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance takes a significant hit. Low settings average 51 FPS, which is a 30% reduction from the 1080p Low result. Medium settings average 40 FPS, with a minimum of 34 FPS and a maximum of 46 FPS, showing noticeable dips into the low 30s during intense scenes. High settings average 36 FPS, and Ultra falls to 23 FPS. None of these results are ideal for a smooth experience, though Low and Medium are technically playable.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles across all settings. Low settings average 30 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS threshold that many consider the minimum for playability. Medium settings average 24 FPS, with a minimum of 20 FPS and a maximum of 27 FPS, indicating consistent sub-30 FPS performance. High settings average 22 FPS, and Ultra drops to 14 FPS. These numbers confirm that 4K is simply not viable with this hardware, regardless of the quality preset chosen.

The data shows a clear pattern: the RX 570 cannot maintain playable frame rates at 4K, and even at 1440p, only Low settings approach a smooth experience. At 1080p, the combo is capable of handling Low and Medium settings comfortably, with High being acceptable but not ideal. The measured FPS values align with the GPU's specifications)Skip the 4K results are all below 30 FPS, which is a consistent indicator of the GPU's performance ceiling.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process with a die size of 215 mm². It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, and it uses the Intel Socket 1700 with PCIe Gen 4 (20 lanes from the CPU). It was released on 2021-11-03 with a launch MSRP of $264.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i5-12600KF demonstrates strong multi-threaded performance. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 23391, while the single-core score is 3302. In Geekbench, it scores 12137 multicore and 2157 single-core. The 3DMark results show scaling from 1995 in the 2-thread test to 7952 in the max-thread test, indicating good multi-threading efficiency. Passmark results include a multithread score of 27575 and a single-thread score of 3925.

Despite this capable CPU, the measured FPS in Greedfall is consistently limited by the GPU. The CPU's percentile rank of 79 against all CPUs and its average benchmark score of 27799 place it in the upper tier of processors. Its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks — the Core i9-10900K, Ryzen 5 8500GE, Ryzen 7 6800U, and Ryzen 7 5800X3D — all have average scores within 0.3% of the i5-12600KF, confirming that the processor is performing at its expected level.

In Greedfall specifically, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, and the data shows that it is not the limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 73 FPS, which suggests the CPU can handle the game's single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads without issue. The fact that performance drops so significantly at higher resolutions is a direct result of GPU limitations, not CPU throughput. The i5-12600KF has ample headroom to support a more powerful GPU, but in this pairing, that headroom goes unused.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo delivers consistently smooth frame rates. At 1080p Low, the average is 73 FPS, and at Medium it is 57 FPS. At 1440p, the best result is 51 FPS at Low settings, and at 4K, all settings produce averages below 30 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested configurations?

A: This pairing ranks 3548 out of 3703 tested combos in Greedfall, placing it in the bottom 4% of all configurations. The rank reflects the GPU's performance ceiling, as the CPU is significantly more capable than the GPU.

Q: Is the 4 GB VRAM on the RX 570 sufficient for this game?

A: The measured FPS data indicates that 4 GB of VRAM is not sufficient for higher settings and resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 14 FPS, and at 4K High, it averages 22 FPS. Even at 1440p Ultra, the average is only 23 FPS, suggesting that both VRAM capacity and memory bandwidth are limiting factors.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The CPU's average benchmark score of 27799 and its 79th percentile ranking against all CPUs show it is a strong processor. The GPU's 5.095 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for higher resolutions, as evidenced by the sharp FPS drops from 1080p to 4K.

Q: What settings are playable at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings average 73 FPS, Medium averages 57 FPS (with a minimum of 49 FPS), and High averages 52 FPS. Ultra settings average 33 FPS, which is borderline playable. The data suggests that Low and Medium are the most comfortable options for a smooth experience.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 570 has an average benchmark score of 28766, with its nearest rivals being the AMD Radeon RX 6800M (28874, -0.4%), AMD Radeon R9 M295X (28580, 0.7%), AMD Radeon RX 470 (28996, -0.8%), and NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 (28421, 1.2%). All rivals are within 1.2% of the RX 570's score in synthetic tests.