Hard West

The Intel Core i5-12400 and Intel Arc B580 combination presents a fascinating study in bottleneck dynamics when paired with a turn-based tactics title like Hard West. The processor, a 6-core, 12-thread Alder Lake-S part with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, offers substantial headroom. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15935 and single-core score of 2249 place it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, suggesting raw compute is not a limiting factor in a game genre that typically relies on single-thread performance for game logic. The data shows a clear separation in performance scaling between resolutions, which points directly at the graphics card as the primary constraint at higher settings and resolutions. This analysis will explore the measured frames-per-second (FPS) data to understand how these two components interact, what the scores imply for gameplay, and where the real performance ceiling lies.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The i5-12400’s role in Hard West is best understood as a provider of comfortable overhead. With 6 physical cores and 12 threads, the processor is hardly taxed by the turn-based logic, which is typically not a massively parallel workload. The architecture’s strength is evident in its benchmark distribution: the 3DMark single-thread score of 910 and the 2-thread score of 1692 indicate strong per-core performance, which is crucial for game simulation and AI pathfinding. The jump to 4-thread (3012) and 8-thread (4745) scores shows scaling, but the ceiling is reached quickly, with the max-thread score of 5890 only marginally higher than the 8-thread result. This plateau suggests that while the processor can handle multiple tasks, Hard West likely does not require the full 12-thread capability.

Comparing to its nearest rivals, the i5-12400’s average benchmark score of 19850 is nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-9700 (19831, deltaPct 0.1) and the Intel Core i7-8700 (19894, deltaPct -0.2). This places the i5-12400 in a performance dead heat with much older high-end parts. The data implies that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this system. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 147.9 FPS, but this is likely a GPU-limited result given the low graphical load. The processor’s 18 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 per core provide ample fast storage for game assets, ensuring that the GPU is fed with data without stutter. In essence, the i5-12400 provides a stable, high-frequency platform that allows the GPU to be the sole determinant of framerate, which is the ideal scenario for a benchmark analysis.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the highest average framerate achievable with this CPU and GPU combo in Hard West?

A: The absolute peak performance is seen at 1920x1080 with Low settings, where the system reaches an average of 147.9 FPS. This is the highest of all measured rows in the data set.

Q: At 4K resolution, which settings preset is playable, and which is not?

A: At 3840x2160, only the Low preset provides a fluid experience at 51.5 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 39.3 FPS, High falls to 29.2 FPS, and Ultra is the only sub-30 FPS result at 21.1 FPS, which would be considered unplayable for most users.

Q: How does the i5-12400 compare to its direct rivals in overall processing power?

A: The i5-12400's average benchmark score of 19850 is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-9700 (19831, deltaPct 0.1) and the Intel Core i7-8700 (19894, deltaPct -0.2). It is also 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-11600K (19771), indicating that this 12th-gen chip matches the top-end processors of previous generations.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p and 4K at Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p Ultra, the system produces 71.7 FPS. Moving to 4K Ultra, the framerate plummets to 21.1 FPS. This represents a dramatic drop of over 70%, highlighting the massive pixel-pushing demand at 4K.

Q: Is the Arc B580 more powerful than the GeForce RTX 4060 based on the benchmark data?

A: The Intel Arc B580 has an average benchmark score of 23021, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 scores 23181. The deltaPct is -0.7, indicating the Arc B580 is slightly less powerful overall, but the difference is within a single percentage point.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The data places this specific configuration at rank 1347 out of 1699 tested combos in Hard West. This rank of 1347 (out of 1699) positions the system in the lower 20th percentile of all possible CPU-GPU pairings. This is a surprising result given the individual component scores. The CPU is in the 77th percentile, and the GPU is in the 66th percentile, yet their combination underperforms in this specific title. This suggests that Hard West is not particularly demanding on high-end hardware, and many older or mid-range combos might achieve similar or better results due to different optimization paths. The data indicates that the game’s engine may not be leveraging the specific strengths of the Arc B580’s architecture (Xe2-HPG) or the i5-12400’s new core design. The combo rank implies that users with significantly less powerful parts could be achieving framerates close to this setup, making the high-end hardware a marginal investment for this specific game. The low rank is more a commentary on the game’s age (released in 2015) and its engine limits than a failure of the components themselves.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a clear gradient of performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally fast, with the Low preset hitting 147.9 FPS. Moving up the quality ladder, Medium delivers 125.4 FPS, High drops to 94.4 FPS, and Ultra settles at 71.7 FPS. This spread shows that even at the most demanding 1080p preset, the system maintains a framerate well above 60 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay.

Stepping up to 2560x1440, the scaling is linear and predictable. Low settings yield 93.1 FPS, which is a significant but expected drop from 1080p. Medium settings produce 75.5 FPS, maintaining a smooth experience. High settings at 58.7 FPS start to dip below the 60 FPS threshold, and Ultra drops to 46.4 FPS. This resolution is the sweet spot for high refresh rate monitors with slightly reduced visual fidelity, but the Ultra preset will require a compromise on smoothness.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. The Low preset manages 51.5 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. Medium drops to 39.3 FPS, High to 29.2 FPS, and Ultra to a stuttery 21.1 FPS. The data shows that 4K is only viable with the lowest settings, and even then, it does not reach the 60 FPS benchmark that many consider the standard for a fluid experience. The progression from 1080p to 4K shows a consistent performance penalty at every settings level, emphasizing the GPU’s workload.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling data reveals a textbook case of GPU-bound performance. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (147.9 FPS) to 2560x1440 (93.1 FPS) represents a 37% decrease in framerate. The further jump to 3840x2160 (51.5 FPS) is another 45% drop. This halving of framerate with each major resolution step is a clear indicator that the Intel Arc B580 is being pushed to its limits. The CPU is not the constraint because if it were, the framerate would remain constant across resolutions as the processor would be the bottleneck regardless of pixel count.

This pattern is even more pronounced at Ultra settings. The drop from 1080p (71.7 FPS) to 1440p (46.4 FPS) is a 35% reduction, and the drop to 4K (21.1 FPS) is another 55% reduction. The increasing percentage drop at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth (456.0 GB/s) and raw compute (13.67 TFLOPS) are being saturated. The game’s 2015 release date means it likely lacks modern upscaling technologies, so the GPU must render every pixel natively. The data implies that for a smooth 60 FPS experience, users must target 1080p High (94.4 FPS) or 1440p Medium (75.5 FPS), as 4K is simply too demanding for this card in this title.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured data, the optimal balance of visual fidelity and performance is achieved at 1920x1080 with High settings, which yields 94.4 FPS. This preset provides a significant visual upgrade over Low (147.9 FPS) while still maintaining a framerate nearly double the 60 FPS target. For users with 1440p monitors, the Medium preset at 75.5 FPS is the recommended choice, as it offers a solid experience without the frame rate penalty seen in High (58.7 FPS). The Ultra preset at 1440p (46.4 FPS) is not recommended for action-heavy sequences, as the drop below 60 FPS can be noticeable. At 4K, the only viable option is Low at 51.5 FPS, but the data suggests that this is a compromise that sacrifices too much visual quality for a sub-60 FPS experience. The analysis indicates that the game’s engine scales poorly with the Ultra preset, offering diminishing returns for a large performance hit. The High preset appears to be the most efficient tier, providing the best frame-per-visual-cost ratio.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B580 plays the decisive role in this benchmark, serving as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions and settings. The GPU is equipped with 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. For a game released in 2015, this is an enormous amount of memory bandwidth and capacity, suggesting that VRAM is not a limiting factor. The data confirms this, as the performance drops are consistent with compute limitations rather than memory capacity issues. The GPU’s high boost clock of 2670 MHz and 2560 shading units deliver a peak FP32 throughput of 13.67 TFLOPS, which is substantial, but Hard West appears to be a title that struggles to utilize this architecture efficiently.

This is evident when comparing the B580 to its nearest rivals. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 has a slightly higher average benchmark score (23181 vs 23021, deltaPct -0.7), yet the performance in this game is likely similar. The data implies that the game’s DirectX 11 or 12 rendering path does not fully leverage the Arc B580’s new Xe2-HPG architecture. The GPU’s PassMark G3D score of 15748 places it in the 66th percentile, but its DirectX 10 score of 76 and DirectX 11 score of 128 are notable. The low DirectX 10 score suggests older API paths are not optimized, which could be an issue for a 2015 game that may rely on legacy rendering calls. The data shows that the B580’s raw power is there, but the software optimization for older titles is lacking, resulting in the lower-than-expected combo rank. The 12 GB VRAM is future-proof, but it does nothing to help in this specific workload where the GPU’s shading units are the limiting factor.