Minimum

# Minimum — Intel Core i3-12100F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER

The pairing of a 4-core/8-thread Intel Core i3-12100F with the massive NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER creates an intriguing imbalance in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. With the GPU ranked in the 88th percentile of all GPUs and the CPU in the 72nd percentile, benchmark results reveal a system where resolution and settings dramatically shift the bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 353.1 FPS, but at 4K Ultra it falls to 60.8 FPS — a 5.8x spread that tells a clear story about component limits.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across every settings preset. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (353.1 FPS) to 2560x1440 (226.7 FPS) represents a 35.8% reduction, and further to 3840x2160 (125.1 FPS) cuts another 44.8%. This pattern — where each resolution step costs roughly a third to nearly half of the remaining performance — strongly indicates the RTX 4080 SUPER is the primary driver of frame rates at lower resolutions, with the CPU able to feed frames faster than the GPU can render them.

High settings show a similar but slightly less aggressive scaling: 148.4 FPS at 1440p drops to 79.4 FPS at 4K, a 46.5% reduction. At Ultra, the 4K result of 60.8 FPS is nearly identical to what one might expect from a GPU-limited scenario, suggesting the graphics card is fully saturated. The data implies that at 1080p, the i3-12100F's 4 cores become the limiting factor, as the GPU has headroom but the CPU cannot push more frames. At 4K, the RTX 4080 SUPER's workload dominates, and the CPU's role diminishes.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a modest 4-core, 8-thread processor with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and boost up to 4.30 GHz. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache and Alder Lake architecture are adequate for a 2014 title, but the benchmark numbers suggest it struggles to keep up with the RTX 4080 SUPER at lower resolutions. The 3DMark 4-thread score of 2859 and 8-thread score of 4026 indicate that multi-threaded scaling is limited — the processor gains only 41% going from 4 to 8 threads, which is typical for a chip with this configuration.

In Minimum, the CPU's impact is most visible at 1080p. At Low settings, the combo achieves 353.1 FPS, but that number likely represents the ceiling of what the i3-12100F can produce, not the GPU's maximum. The 3DMark single-thread score of 893 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1681 are respectable for the CPU's class, yet they place it well below the top performers. Compared to its nearest rivals, the i3-12100F's average benchmark score of 13516 is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX (13534, -0.1%) and slightly ahead of the Intel Core i3-10105 (13430, 0.6%). This means the CPU is adequate for maintaining playable frame rates, but it cannot fully exploit the GPU's power at high FPS targets.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data clearly shows that Medium settings offer the best balance between visual quality and performance for this combo. At 1080p Medium, the system delivers 270.7 FPS — 23.4% lower than Low (353.1 FPS) but a substantial 58.6% higher than High (228.4 FPS) and 58.5% higher than Ultra (170.7 FPS). This suggests Medium is the sweet spot where the GPU is still heavily utilized without the CPU becoming a severe bottleneck.

At 1440p, Medium (172.9 FPS) is 23.7% faster than High (148.4 FPS) and 51.7% faster than Ultra (114 FPS), while still being 23.7% slower than Low (226.7 FPS). For 4K gaming, Medium (92.5 FPS) is the highest setting that maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, as Ultra (60.8 FPS) barely crosses that threshold and High (79.4 FPS) sits in between. Given that the game is from 2014 and likely does not benefit dramatically from Ultra presets, Medium provides the most headroom for consistent frame delivery across all resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

This configuration ranks 124th out of 1,733 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the top 7.2% of all systems. This is a strong showing, but it reflects the GPU's dominance rather than a balanced build. The RTX 4080 SUPER's 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs, combined with its average benchmark score of 53610, suggests the graphics card is the main contributor to this high ranking. The CPU's 72nd percentile and average score of 13516 are far less impressive, and the data implies that a stronger processor could push this combo higher.

The ranking also highlights how the combo's position varies by resolution. At 4K, the system is likely competitive with higher-end CPU pairings, as the GPU becomes the sole bottleneck. At 1080p, however, the combo's rank may be artificially limited by the CPU, meaning a user upgrading the processor could see significant gains without touching the GPU. The 1733-combo pool includes many systems with more balanced components, so this 124th place is respectable but not outstanding.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is a powerhouse with 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. Its 10240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs, combined with base and boost clocks of 2295 MHz and 2550 MHz respectively, provide immense raw compute — 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6600 and PassMark G3D score of 34245 confirm its high-end status.

In Minimum, the GPU's role is most evident at 4K, where it is clearly the limiting component. The transition from Ultra (60.8 FPS) to High (79.4 FPS) to Medium (92.5 FPS) to Low (125.1 FPS) shows a steady increase as the GPU workload decreases, with each settings tier yielding roughly 15-20 FPS gains. This linear scaling is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. Compared to its nearest rivals, the RTX 4080 SUPER's average score of 53610 is only 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (53489) and 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (53414), indicating that the GPU's lead over the competition is slim in synthetic benchmarks.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces 353.1 FPS on Low, 270.7 FPS on Medium, 228.4 FPS on High, and 170.7 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra is 182.4 FPS, a 51.7% reduction, showing that even at this resolution, settings have a massive impact. At 2560x1440, the scores are 226.7 FPS (Low), 172.9 FPS (Medium), 148.4 FPS (High), and 114 FPS (Ultra). The spread here narrows to 112.7 FPS, a 49.7% drop from Low to Ultra. At 3840x2160, the system delivers 125.1 FPS (Low), 92.5 FPS (Medium), 79.4 FPS (High), and 60.8 FPS (Ultra). The Low-to-Ultra gap is 64.3 FPS, a 51.4% reduction, consistent with the other resolutions.

Notably, the relative performance between settings is remarkably consistent across resolutions. Low is always the fastest, followed by Medium, then High, then Ultra, with the percentage differences between tiers remaining stable. This consistency suggests that the game's settings scale uniformly regardless of resolution, and that the combo's behavior is predictable. The 1080p Low result of 353.1 FPS is the single highest measurement, while the 4K Ultra result of 60.8 FPS is the lowest, and both represent the extremes of this system's capability.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i3-12100F a bottleneck for the RTX 4080 SUPER in this game?

A: Yes, particularly at 1080p. The 1080p Low result of 353.1 FPS is likely CPU-limited, as the RTX 4080 SUPER has the raw power to render far more frames. The CPU's 4 cores and 8 threads, with a 3DMark 4-thread score of 2859, cannot keep up with the GPU's 88th percentile performance.

Q: What is the best resolution to play at with this combo?

A: 1440p Medium (172.9 FPS) offers the best combination of visual fidelity and high frame rates. At 4K, even Medium (92.5 FPS) is playable, but 1440p provides a more comfortable margin above 144 Hz displays.

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

A: It ranks 124th out of 1,733 combos, placing it in the top 7.2%. The ranking is strong, but the CPU's 72nd percentile score of 13516 suggests a more powerful processor could improve the position.

Q: Why is the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K so large?

A: The 5.8x reduction from 353.1 FPS at 1080p Low to 60.8 FPS at 4K Ultra is due to the GPU becoming the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The RTX 4080 SUPER's workload quadruples at 4K, while the CPU's role diminishes.

Q: Should I use Ultra settings at any resolution?

A: Only at 1080p, where Ultra (170.7 FPS) still provides a high frame rate. At 1440p, Ultra (114 FPS) is borderline for high-refresh monitors, and at 4K, Ultra (60.8 FPS) barely achieves 60 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its closest rival?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score of 53610 is only 0.2% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (53489), indicating a near-tie in synthetic tests. In-game, the 16 GB VRAM and 736.3 GB/s bandwidth may provide advantages in texture-heavy scenes.