Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread desktop processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache and support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory make it a flexible foundation for a gaming rig. In synthetic testing, this chip posts a multi-threaded score of 5003 in Cinebench R20 and a single-core score of 706 in the same test, while its Geekbench results show 7413 multi-core and 2224 single-core. These numbers place it in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 13516. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, scores 13534, meaning the i3-12100F trails by just 0.1%, while the Intel Core i7-1250U is 0.4% behind this chip, and the Core i3-10105 lags by 0.6%. For a game like Lockdown Protocol, an FPS title, the balance between the CPU’s single-thread strength and its limited core count is critical. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo hits 220 FPS average, which suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at high frame rates. However, the 4-core/8-thread configuration means that the processor’s headroom is finite; the benchmark scores indicate that while single-threaded performance is solid, scaling beyond eight threads yields minimal gains, as the 3DMark max-thread score of 4023 is nearly identical to the 8-thread score of 4026. This suggests the i3-12100F will not bottleneck in this game’s typical load, but its performance ceiling is clearly defined by its physical core count.

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

The Core i3-12100F’s 4 cores and 8 threads are the defining factor for Lockdown Protocol. The game’s frame rates across resolutions and settings show that the CPU is rarely the limiting component, except at the highest refresh rates. At 1080p Low, the average FPS of 220 indicates the game is being driven hard by the processor, but this is a best-case scenario for the CPU’s single-thread performance, which scores 893 in 3DMark single-thread and 1681 in Cinebench R23 single-core. When settings are raised to Ultra at 1080p, the average drops to 103 FPS, a shift that is primarily a GPU load increase, but the fact that the frame rate does not collapse shows the CPU can maintain a reasonable minimum floor. The processor’s boost clock of 4.30 GHz is critical here; games like Lockdown Protocol often rely on a few heavily loaded threads, and the i3-12100F’s ability to sustain high clocks on those threads is reflected in the 0.1% deltaPct against the Threadripper PRO 3975WX, a much larger and more expensive chip. This means that for this game, the i3-12100F is effectively on par with that rival in aggregate CPU performance, despite having far fewer cores. The 4-core design also means that the CPU’s power draw is modest, with a TDP of 58 W, which allows the RTX 4060 Ti to operate without thermal constraints from the processor. The data shows that the CPU’s multi-threaded scores, such as the 11912 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, are respectable for a quad-core, but they are not the primary driver of Lockdown Protocol’s performance; instead, the combination of a high boost clock and adequate cache (12 MB L3) ensures that frame pacing remains consistent.

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

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve over 100 FPS average in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The data shows that at 2560x1440 with High settings, the average FPS is 98.7, which is just below 100. To consistently exceed 100 FPS, you must use 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which yields 157 FPS average, or 2560x1440 with Low settings, which yields 161.9 FPS. At 3840x2160, even Low settings only produce 101.6 FPS average, so 4K is viable only for lower refresh rates.

Q: How does the i3-12100F compare to its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, in overall CPU benchmarks?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13516, while the Threadripper PRO 3975WX scores 13534. This results in a deltaPct of -0.1%, meaning the i3-12100F is effectively tied with that rival, being only 0.1% behind. This is notable because the Threadripper is a workstation-class processor, but in the benchmarks recorded, the quad-core i3 holds its own.

Q: Is the RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB a bottleneck at 4K Ultra in this game?

A: Yes, the measured FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 48.4 FPS average, which is below playable standards for a fast-paced FPS. The GPU’s 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2913 places it in the 17th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rival, the GT 555M, scores identically, indicating that the 8 GB card struggles with the highest settings at 4K.

Q: What is the difference in performance between 1080p Low and 1080p Ultra for this combo?

A: The average FPS drops from 220 at Low to 103 at Ultra, a reduction of 117 FPS. This shows that the GPU is the primary factor in settings scaling, as the CPU’s role is consistent; the i3-12100F’s single-thread score of 893 in 3DMark is sufficient to keep up with the GPU’s load changes.

Q: Does the CPU’s multi-threaded performance scale well beyond 8 threads?

A: No. The 3DMark 16-thread score is 4051, while the 8-thread score is 4026, and the max-thread score is 4023. This means adding more threads than the 8 threads available does not improve performance, confirming that the i3-12100F is a true 4-core/8-thread chip with no hyper-threading headroom beyond its design.

Q: Can this combo handle 1440p High settings without dropping below 60 FPS?

A: The measured average at 2560x1440 High is 98.7 FPS, which is well above 60 FPS. Given that the minimum FPS is not recorded in the data, the average suggests that the combo is capable of maintaining smooth gameplay at this resolution and settings, though the 8 GB VRAM of the RTX 4060 Ti may be a consideration for texture-heavy scenes.

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

The measured FPS data across three resolutions reveals a clear trend: the frame rate scales inversely with resolution, but the magnitude of the drop is not uniform across settings. At 1080p Low, the average is 220 FPS; at 1440p Low, it falls to 161.9 FPS, a 26.4% reduction; and at 4K Low, it drops to 101.6 FPS, a further 37.2% reduction from 1440p. This pattern indicates that at Low settings, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as the CPU’s load is relatively light and the frame rate is driven by the RTX 4060 Ti’s ability to fill pixels. For High settings, the progression is 135.2 FPS at 1080p, 98.7 FPS at 1440p, and 67.1 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 32%, which is slightly less severe than the Low setting drop, suggesting that the GPU is still the limiting factor, but the CPU’s single-thread performance becomes more relevant as the game’s rendering load increases. At Ultra settings, the trend changes: 103 FPS at 1080p, 75.5 FPS at 1440p, and 48.4 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is particularly telling, as it is the only configuration where the average FPS falls below 50. This suggests that at Ultra, the combination of the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM and its 128-bit memory bus (with 288.0 GB/s bandwidth) is saturated, and the CPU’s 4 cores are not the limiting factor; instead, the GPU’s raw throughput, rated at 22.06 TFLOPS, is insufficient for the highest settings at 4K. The data implies that for this combo, the sweet spot is 1440p, where the GPU can maintain high frame rates across most settings, and the CPU’s boost clock of 4.30 GHz ensures that the game logic and physics are processed without stutter.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB ranks 692nd out of 1637 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the 42nd percentile of all configurations tested, meaning it outperforms roughly 945 other combos but is beaten by about 692. The rank is a reflection of the balance between the CPU and GPU: the i3-12100F’s average benchmark score of 13516 and the RTX 4060 Ti’s score of 2913 in 3DMark Steel Nomad create a pairing that is solidly mid-pack. The CPU’s percentile of 72 suggests it is a stronger component relative to its peers than the GPU, which is in the 17th percentile. This indicates that the RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB is the weaker link in this pairing, which is consistent with the measured FPS data showing that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The rank of 692 out of 1637 is not a top-tier result, but it is not a low-end one either; the data shows that this combo is capable of producing 220 FPS at 1080p Low, which is a high-refresh-rate experience, but it falls short of the top combos that likely pair higher-end CPUs with more powerful GPUs. The nearest CPU rival, the Threadripper PRO 3975WX, has a higher average score, but when paired with the same GPU, the overall combo rank would likely be similar, given that the CPU is not the limiting factor in most game scenarios.

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

The measured FPS data for Lockdown Protocol provides a complete picture of this combo’s capabilities. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 220 at Low settings to 103 at Ultra settings. The Medium preset yields 157 FPS, and High produces 135.2 FPS. This shows a steady decline as settings increase, with the largest single drop occurring from Low to Medium (63 FPS) and from High to Ultra (32.2 FPS). At 2560x1440, the averages are 161.9 FPS at Low, 113.7 FPS at Medium, 98.7 FPS at High, and 75.5 FPS at Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 86.4 FPS, which is a smaller absolute difference than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor. At 3840x2160, the averages are 101.6 FPS at Low, 75.1 FPS at Medium, 67.1 FPS at High, and 48.4 FPS at Ultra. The Low setting is the only 4K configuration that exceeds 100 FPS, and the Ultra setting is the only one below 50 FPS. Across all resolutions, the Low setting provides the highest frame rates, while Ultra provides the lowest, which is expected. The data also shows that the scaling from 1080p to 4K is not linear; for example, at High settings, the frame rate drops from 135.2 to 98.7 to 67.1, which is a 27% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 32% drop from 1440p to 4K. This suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s is a constraint at higher resolutions, as the 8 GB of GDDR6 memory is being pushed harder.

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

Based on the measured data, the best experience for this combo in Lockdown Protocol depends on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p users with a 144 Hz or 165 Hz monitor, the Medium preset is the optimal choice, as it delivers 157 FPS average, which is well above the refresh rate of most monitors and uses the GPU’s resources efficiently. The High preset at 1080p yields 135.2 FPS, which is also playable, but the 21.8 FPS difference between Medium and High is not worth the visual fidelity gain for a fast-paced FPS where frame rate is king. For 1440p, the High preset is the standout, with 98.7 FPS average, which is near the 100 FPS mark and provides a good balance of visual quality and performance. The Medium preset at 1440p offers 113.7 FPS, but the visual upgrade to High is significant, and the frame rate drop of 15 FPS is acceptable. For 4K, the Low preset is the only viable option for smooth gameplay, with 101.6 FPS average, but this sacrifices visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 75.1 FPS, which is still playable, but the Ultra preset at 48.4 FPS is not recommended for a competitive FPS. The data suggests that the best overall experience is at 1440p with High settings, as it delivers near-100 FPS while maintaining good graphical quality, and it avoids the CPU bottleneck that might occur at 1080p Low, where the 220 FPS result is likely CPU-bound and could cause inconsistent frame times. In summary, the RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB is best utilized at 1440p, where its 22.06 TFLOPS of compute power is well-matched to the i3-12100F’s single-thread capabilities.