Minimum

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 delivers a wide spread of frame rates in Minimum, with the gap between the lowest and highest settings at 4K reaching 55.1 FPS. This scaling pattern reveals a system that is heavily influenced by both the CPU's architectural limits and the GPU's raw throughput, depending on the resolution and preset selected. The data shows a consistent hierarchy where Low settings at 1080p produce the highest average at 298.8 FPS, while Ultra at 4K drops to 50.2 FPS, a sixfold difference that underscores how the workload shifts between components.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS across resolutions demonstrates classic scaling behavior, but with a notable inflection point. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 298.8 FPS, which is 55% higher than the 193.8 FPS recorded at 1440p under the same preset. The drop from 1440p to 4K at Low settings is less severe, falling to 105.3 FPS, a reduction of 45.7%. This pattern indicates that at lower resolutions, the frame rate is increasingly constrained by the CPU's ability to feed the GPU, as the i3-12100F's four cores and eight threads reach their limit.

At High settings, the scaling is more gradual: 192.6 FPS at 1080p, 126.3 FPS at 1440p, and 67.4 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is 34.4%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 46.6%. This widening gap at higher resolutions suggests the GPU begins to take on a more dominant role, as the RTX 5070's 12 GB of GDDR7 memory and 672.0 GB/s bandwidth become the limiting factor. The data points to a system where the CPU is the primary bottleneck at 1080p, but the GPU becomes increasingly responsible for performance as pixel count rises.

Ultra settings tell a similar story with a steeper curve: 150.1 FPS at 1080p, 97.2 FPS at 1440p, and 50.2 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p drop is 35.2%, while the 1440p to 4K drop is 48.4%. This consistent pattern across all presets indicates that the GPU's workload scales predictably with resolution, but the absolute frame rates at 4K Ultra (50.2 FPS) suggest the RTX 5070 is the limiting component in this scenario, as the CPU still has headroom to push more frames if the GPU could render them faster.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a four-core, eight-thread processor from the Alder Lake architecture, running at a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its benchmark scores show strong single-thread performance, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1681 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2224. However, its multi-threaded capabilities are more modest, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11912 and a Passmark multithread score of 14015.

In Minimum, the CPU's role is most apparent at 1080p, where the frame rates exceed 190 FPS across all settings. At Low settings, the 298.8 FPS average is likely near the CPU's maximum frame output capability, as the GPU is underutilized at this resolution. The 3DMark 4-thread score of 2859 and 8-thread score of 4026 indicate that the processor can handle moderate thread counts, but the 16-thread score of 4051 shows diminishing returns beyond eight threads, which aligns with the CPU's physical core count.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 72 versus all CPUs places it above average, but its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX (deltaPct -0.1) and the Intel Core i7-1250U (deltaPct 0.4). This suggests that while the i3-12100F is not a top-tier processor, its performance in this game is sufficient to avoid severe bottlenecks at higher resolutions. The data indicates that at 4K, the CPU is not the primary constraint, as the frame rates drop more due to GPU load than CPU limitations. However, at 1080p Low, the CPU's single-thread performance (Passmark single-thread score of 3444) becomes the ceiling, preventing the GPU from reaching its full potential.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU with 6144 shading units, 192 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output units. It operates at a base clock of 2325 MHz and a boost clock of 2512 MHz, with 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus delivering 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its compute capabilities are substantial, with an FP32 throughput of 30.87 TFLOPS and a pixel rate of 201.0 GPixel/s.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 83rd percentile versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 41687. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 (deltaPct 0.6) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (deltaPct 0.2), indicating that the RTX 5070 performs comparably to previous-generation high-end cards. In Minimum, the GPU's role becomes dominant at 4K, where the frame rates drop to between 50.2 FPS (Ultra) and 105.3 FPS (Low). The 4K Low result of 105.3 FPS is particularly telling, as it shows the GPU can handle low-complexity scenes at high resolution, but the jump to Medium (81.2 FPS) and High (67.4 FPS) demonstrates how quickly the GPU's fill rate and shading capacity become taxed.

At 1440p, the RTX 5070 delivers between 97.2 FPS (Ultra) and 193.8 FPS (Low), showing that the GPU has enough headroom for high refresh rate monitors at this resolution with most settings. The 12 GB VRAM capacity is likely sufficient for Minimum's requirements, as the game's release date of 2014 suggests it does not demand excessive memory. The GPU's texture rate of 482.3 GTexel/s and FP32 performance indicate that it is well-suited for the game's third-person shooter rendering, but the data shows that at 1080p, the GPU is often waiting on the CPU, as evidenced by the smaller frame rate differences between Medium (228.4 FPS) and High (192.6 FPS) compared to the CPU-bound Low setting.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear picture of which settings offer the best balance of visual quality and performance. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 192.6 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay, while Ultra only drops to 150.1 FPS, a 22% reduction that may still be acceptable for users with high refresh rate displays. The Medium preset at 228.4 FPS offers a 18.6% performance increase over High, but the visual difference between Medium and High in a game from 2014 is likely minimal, making High the recommended choice for most users at this resolution.

At 1440p, the High preset's 126.3 FPS is the sweet spot, as it remains above 120 FPS and provides a substantial improvement over Medium (147.1 FPS) in visual quality. The Ultra preset at 97.2 FPS is still playable, but the 23% drop from High may not justify the marginal visual gains. For users prioritizing frame rate, Low at 193.8 FPS is an option, but the data suggests that High offers the best compromise between fidelity and speed.

At 4K, the situation changes dramatically. The High preset's 67.4 FPS is barely above the 60 FPS threshold, while Medium (81.2 FPS) provides a more comfortable margin. The Ultra preset at 50.2 FPS is below the ideal playable threshold, so it is not recommended. The Low preset at 105.3 FPS offers excellent performance, but it likely sacrifices significant visual detail. For 4K, the Medium preset appears to be the best recommendation, as it delivers 81.2 FPS while maintaining a reasonable level of visual quality. Across all resolutions, the data indicates that High settings at 1080p and 1440p, and Medium at 4K, provide the most balanced experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination ranks 335th out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the top 19.3% of all configurations. This ranking is notable given the CPU's modest specifications, as it suggests that the GPU's performance is the primary driver of the combo's overall position. The rank is likely influenced by the CPU's limitations at lower resolutions, where the frame rates are capped by the i3-12100F's single-thread performance.

The combo's position relative to other tested configurations indicates that it outperforms the majority of systems in this game, but it is not among the top performers. The CPU's percentile ranking of 72 and the GPU's percentile ranking of 83 both contribute to this overall standing, but the GPU's higher percentile suggests it is the stronger component in this pairing. The rank of 335 out of 1733 means there are 334 combos that achieve higher frame rates in Minimum, likely featuring more powerful CPUs that can better utilize the RTX 5070 at 1080p. At higher resolutions, where the GPU becomes the bottleneck, this combo's rank would likely improve, as the CPU's limitations are less impactful.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured frame rates are exceptional across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 298.8 FPS, which is the highest recorded in this dataset. Medium settings deliver 228.4 FPS, while High settings achieve 192.6 FPS. Ultra settings drop to 150.1 FPS, which is still a very playable frame rate. The performance gap between Low and Ultra is 148.7 FPS, indicating a wide range of options for users with different display capabilities.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show the expected reduction from 1080p. Low settings average 193.8 FPS, which is a 35.1% drop from the 1080p Low result. Medium settings achieve 147.1 FPS, High settings reach 126.3 FPS, and Ultra settings deliver 97.2 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 96.6 FPS, a smaller spread than at 1080p, suggesting that the GPU is starting to become a more significant factor.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops considerably. Low settings still manage an average of 105.3 FPS, which is playable, but Medium settings fall to 81.2 FPS. High settings average 67.4 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 50.2 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 55.1 FPS, which is the smallest spread across all resolutions, confirming that the GPU is the limiting component at this resolution. The data shows a clear progression: the combo excels at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, only Low and Medium settings provide adequate frame rates for smooth gameplay.