Lockdown Protocol

# Lockdown Protocol: Intel Core i3-12100F + AMD Radeon RX 7700

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 delivers a surprisingly balanced 1080p and 1440p experience in Lockdown Protocol, a fast-paced FPS where frame rate consistency matters more than raw pixel counts. The measured data shows this combination sits at rank 1275 out of 2828 tested combos, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all configurations tested. The i3-12100F, a 4-core/8-thread Alder Lake part boosting to 4.30 GHz, pairs with a 16 GB RDNA 3.0 GPU that has 2560 shading units and a 256-bit memory bus. This is a combination that never hits a hard ceiling at 1080p, but the scaling behavior across resolutions tells a clear story about where the bottleneck shifts as pixel count rises.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data across all three resolutions and four quality presets points to Medium as the optimal settings choice for this combo. At 1080p, Medium delivers 142 FPS average with a minimum of 121 FPS and a maximum of 163 FPS — this is the only preset at any resolution that provides both a triple-digit average and a minimum frame rate above 120 FPS, which is critical for competitive play in an FPS title. The jump to High at 1080p drops the average to 124 FPS, which is still playable, but the minimum frame rate is not recorded, suggesting less consistency. Ultra at 1080p falls to 93 FPS average, which is a significant 35% reduction from Medium and likely introduces noticeable input latency in fast-twitch scenarios.

At 1440p, Medium again emerges as the sweet spot with 104 FPS average and a minimum of 88 FPS. This keeps the experience above the 60 FPS threshold with headroom for dips during intense firefights. High at 1440p averages 91 FPS, which is acceptable for casual play but starts to approach the territory where frame pacing could become an issue. The Low preset at 1440p hits 147 FPS, but the visual quality trade-off in a game where spotting enemies at range matters is rarely worth the extra frames. At 4K, Medium averages 67 FPS with a 57 FPS minimum — this is the only 4K preset that maintains playability, though it sits right at the edge of what most players would consider smooth. High at 4K drops to 59 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 44 FPS, which is below the threshold for comfortable play.

The data clearly shows that Medium is the best balance of visual fidelity and performance across all resolutions. It provides the highest minimum frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, and it is the only 4K preset that stays above 60 FPS average. Players prioritizing maximum competitive advantage should consider Low at 1080p for the 200 FPS average, but the Medium preset offers the best overall experience without sacrificing the visual clarity needed to track opponents.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows 1080p Medium provides 142 FPS average with a 121 FPS minimum, making it the most consistent experience. 1440p Medium is also strong at 104 FPS average, while 4K Medium drops to 67 FPS average with a 57 FPS minimum, which is borderline for competitive play.

Q: How does the i3-12100F's CPU performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13,494, which places it at the 68th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core 3 N355, scores 13,492 (0% delta), while the Intel Core i5-9500 scores 13,452 (0.3% faster). The Intel Core 5 120UL is 0.7% faster at 13,594, and the Intel Core i7-1250U is 1.1% faster at 13,351.

Q: Is the RX 7700's 16 GB VRAM sufficient for Lockdown Protocol at high settings?

A: The 16 GB GDDR6 memory on the RX 7700 provides ample capacity for any preset in this game. The measured data shows the GPU maintains playable frame rates even at 4K High (59 FPS average), indicating that VRAM is not a limiting factor in Lockdown Protocol's current implementation.

Q: What is the frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K at Medium settings?

A: At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 142 at 1080p to 104 at 1440p (a 27% reduction), then to 67 at 4K (a 53% reduction from 1080p). The minimum frame rate also drops from 121 at 1080p to 88 at 1440p and 57 at 4K.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: This combo ranks 1275 out of 2828 tested combinations, placing it in the 55th percentile of all combos tested for Lockdown Protocol. This indicates it performs better than the median configuration but is not in the top tier.

Q: Should I use Low settings for maximum competitive advantage?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 200 FPS average, which is the highest measured value across all settings and resolutions. For players who prioritize raw frame rate over visual quality, this preset provides the smoothest experience, but the Medium preset's 142 FPS average is likely sufficient for most competitive scenarios.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the dominant component in this pairing for Lockdown Protocol, as evidenced by the scaling behavior across resolutions. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock reaches 2459 MHz, with a game clock of 2041 MHz and a base clock of 1900 MHz. The 2560 shading units and 96 ROPs handle the rasterization workload efficiently, and the 40 ray tracing cores are present even if Lockdown Protocol likely does not heavily utilize them.

The GPU's memory configuration is particularly relevant for this game. The 16 GB capacity means there is no risk of VRAM exhaustion at any settings preset, and the 624.1 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming and asset loading do not become bottlenecks. The measured frame rates at 4K demonstrate this: even at Ultra settings, which would consume the most VRAM and bandwidth, the GPU still delivers 44 FPS average, indicating that the memory subsystem is not the limiting factor.

The RX 7700's position in the GPU hierarchy is interesting. It holds the 58th percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 15,852. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon R9 370X, scores 15,862 (0.1% faster), while the AMD Radeon RX 9060 is 1% faster at 16,014. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is 1.7% faster at 16,129. This places the RX 7700 in a competitive mid-range position, and the benchmark data shows it is well-matched to the i3-12100F for this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1275 out of 2828 tested combinations places this configuration in the 55th percentile of all systems tested for Lockdown Protocol. This is a solid mid-pack result, but it is importantly the ranking reflects the combination's overall performance across all tested workloads, not just this specific game. The i3-12100F's CPU performance, sitting at the 68th percentile of all CPUs, is slightly stronger than the GPU's 58th percentile ranking, suggesting the CPU is not the primary constraint in this pairing.

The measured FPS data supports this interpretation. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 200 FPS average, which is well above what most displays can refresh. The fact that the frame rate scales down predictably as resolution increases indicates that the GPU is the component being stressed as pixel count rises. At 4K Ultra, the 44 FPS average shows the GPU reaching its limits, while the CPU likely still has headroom given its 4-core/8-thread configuration with a 4.30 GHz boost clock.

Compared to other combos in the database, this ranking means there are roughly 1,273 configurations that perform better and 1,553 that perform worse. The delta to the next tier of performance is likely small, given that the nearest CPU rivals (Core 3 N355 at 0% delta, Core i5-9500 at 0.3% faster) and GPU rivals (R9 370X at 0.1% faster, RX 9060 at 1% faster) are all within a narrow band of performance. This suggests the combo is well-optimized for its price point, delivering consistent performance without any obvious weak link.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 142 at 1080p to 104 at 1440p (a 27% reduction) and then to 67 at 4K (a 53% reduction from the 1080p baseline). This scaling is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario: the RX 7700's fill rate and bandwidth are being taxed more heavily as the number of pixels increases.

The Low preset shows a similar trend, with 200 FPS at 1080p dropping to 147 at 1440p (a 27% reduction) and 95 at 4K (a 53% reduction). High settings follow the pattern: 124 FPS at 1080p, 91 at 1440p (27% reduction), and 59 at 4K (52% reduction). Ultra settings show the steepest absolute drop: 93 FPS at 1080p to 68 at 1440p (27% reduction) and 44 at 4K (53% reduction).

The consistency of these percentage drops across all settings presets is telling. In every case, the 1440p to 4K transition costs roughly the same 35-36% of the 1440p frame rate, while the 1080p to 1440p transition costs about 27%. This linear scaling behavior indicates that the GPU is the limiting component across all resolutions and settings. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see frame rates plateau at lower resolutions, particularly at 1080p Low where the 200 FPS average might approach the CPU's maximum frame generation capacity. The fact that the scaling remains consistent even at 4K Ultra (44 FPS) suggests the CPU has sufficient headroom to feed the GPU at all tested configurations.

The minimum frame rate data reinforces this conclusion. At Medium settings, the minimum FPS drops from 121 at 1080p to 88 at 1440p (27% reduction) and 57 at 4K (53% reduction). These minimums track the averages almost exactly, indicating that frame time consistency is maintained as resolution increases, which is a hallmark of GPU-bound performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1080p Results:

• Low: 200 FPS average. This is the highest measured frame rate for this combo, providing maximum smoothness for competitive play.
• Medium: 142 FPS average, with a minimum of 121 FPS and a maximum of 163 FPS. This is the most balanced preset, offering strong performance with good visual quality.
• High: 124 FPS average. A solid choice for players who want better visuals without sacrificing too much performance.
• Ultra: 93 FPS average. This preset shows a significant drop from High, indicating that the Ultra settings impose a heavy load on the GPU.

1440p Results:

• Low: 147 FPS average. Still very playable at this resolution, though the visual quality trade-off is more noticeable at this pixel density.
• Medium: 104 FPS average, with a minimum of 88 FPS and a maximum of 120 FPS. The minimum stays above 60 FPS, making this a viable option for high-refresh-rate monitors.
• High: 91 FPS average. A good option for players with 144 Hz displays who want to stay above 90 FPS.
• Ultra: 68 FPS average. This is the first preset where the average drops below 70 FPS, indicating the GPU is starting to struggle with the workload.

4K Results:

• Low: 95 FPS average. Surprisingly playable at 4K, though the visual fidelity is significantly reduced.
• Medium: 67 FPS average, with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 77 FPS. The minimum dips below 60 FPS, which may cause noticeable stuttering in demanding scenes.
• High: 59 FPS average. This is right at the 60 FPS threshold, making it marginal for smooth gameplay.
• Ultra: 44 FPS average. The most demanding preset at 4K, this is only suitable for players who prioritize visual quality over frame rate.

The data across all resolutions shows that this combo delivers its best performance at 1080p and remains viable at 1440p, but 4K gaming is only recommended at Medium settings or lower. The 16 GB VRAM and 624.1 GB/s bandwidth of the RX 7700 are sufficient for 4K textures, but the raw compute power (25.18 TFLOPS FP32) is not enough to maintain high frame rates at that resolution with demanding settings.