Minimum

The data for Minimum with the Intel Core i7-12700KF and AMD Radeon RX 570 shows a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics card, especially at higher resolutions. The 4 GB VRAM and the GCN 4.0 architecture of the RX 570 are the primary factors limiting performance, while the 12-core CPU provides ample headroom. The following analysis breaks down the measured results across resolutions and settings, offering a clear picture of what this combination can deliver.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for playable performance with this combo?

A: At 1920x1080, the system achieves a 53.1 FPS average on High settings and 80.6 FPS on Low, making 1080p the only resolution where all tested presets exceed a 30 FPS baseline except for Ultra, which averages 38.9 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700KF has an average benchmark score of 35355, placing it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs. It is effectively tied with the Intel Core i5-14400, which scores 35336, a delta of just 0.1%.

Q: Does the GPU’s average score place it in a competitive position?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 570 scores 30158 on average, placing it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, is only 0.2% ahead, indicating the RX 570 is positioned as a capable, if older, contender.

Q: What is the most demanding setting tested for this game?

A: The Ultra preset is the most demanding, yielding the lowest average frame rates at every resolution. At 3840x2160, it drops to a 16.1 FPS average, while at 1920x1080 it produces a 38.9 FPS average.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K?

A: The GPU is the clear limiting factor at 3840x2160. The difference between Low (25.4 FPS) and Ultra (16.1 FPS) is only 9.3 FPS, showing that the graphics card cannot handle the pixel load, while the CPU’s 20 threads remain largely underutilized.

Q: What is the system's overall ranking for this game?

A: The combination ranks 1674 out of 1733 tested combos in Minimum, placing it in the lower percentile of systems for this specific title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the decisive component in this system's performance profile. With a 4 GB GDDR5 memory pool and a 256-bit bus providing 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth, the card is sufficient for 1080p gaming but struggles under the demands of higher resolutions. Its base clock of 1168 MHz and boost clock of 1244 MHz, paired with 2048 shading units, deliver a FP32 compute rating of 5.095 TFLOPS. This raw compute power is directly reflected in the measured FPS, where the card’s limits become apparent.

At 1920x1080, the RX 570 shows its strengths, moving from 80.6 FPS on Low to 53.1 FPS on High. However, the transition to 2560x1440 causes a significant performance cliff, with High settings dropping to 35.9 FPS. The 4 GB VRAM buffer is likely a factor here, as the increased texture and geometry loads at 1440p begin to exceed the card's memory capacity. The situation worsens at 3840x2160, where even Low settings only produce a 25.4 FPS average. The data suggests that the RX 570's pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth are insufficient for 4K, making the card the primary bottleneck in this configuration.

The GPU's overall benchmark score of 30158 places it in the 74th percentile, and its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, is only 0.2% ahead. This indicates that despite its age, the RX 570 remains a relatively balanced performer in synthetic tests. Yet, in Minimum, the gap between its theoretical capabilities and practical game performance widens due to the demanding nature of the title at high presets. The gap between Medium (19.8 FPS) and High (20.2 FPS) at 4K is negligible, showing that the card is saturated and settings tweaks yield minimal returns once the resolution exceeds its comfort zone.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF provides a robust foundation for this system, featuring 12 cores and 20 threads based on the Alder Lake architecture. With a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, the CPU offers substantial single-thread performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4091. Its multi-core capabilities are equally strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 28979. This processing power is far beyond what Minimum requires, ensuring the CPU is not a limiting factor in the measured results.

In the benchmark data, the CPU’s influence is most visible at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system reaches 80.6 FPS, a figure that is likely near the CPU's maximum frame delivery for this game. However, as resolution increases, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's role diminishes. The CPU's average benchmark score of 35355 places it in the 89th percentile, and it is almost perfectly matched with the Intel Core i5-14400, which scores 35336, a delta of just 0.1%. This suggests that the i7-12700KF offers no meaningful advantage over its rival in this context, as the RX 570 holds back the system.

The CPU's 25 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory are notable, but they do not translate into higher frame rates when the GPU is saturated. The data implies that even a weaker CPU could deliver similar results in Minimum at 4K, as the RX 570's 39.81 GPixel/s pixel rate is the limiting factor. The CPU's role is to ensure the GPU is fed with data, and in this case, it does so without issue, allowing the GPU's performance ceiling to be the sole determinant of FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system performs admirably: Low settings yield an 80.6 FPS average, Medium produces 63.5 FPS, High reaches 53.1 FPS, and Ultra drops to 38.9 FPS. This resolution is the only one where all presets are potentially playable, with even Ultra maintaining a frame rate above 30 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the impact of the GPU's limitations becomes more pronounced. Low settings average 51.3 FPS, which is a 29.3 FPS drop from 1080p Low. Medium settings yield 39.7 FPS, and High drops to 35.9 FPS. Ultra falls to 26.9 FPS, which dips below the 30 FPS threshold. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1440p shows a 24.4 FPS difference, indicating that the GPU struggles with the increased pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the system is clearly overmatched. Low settings produce a 25.4 FPS average, Medium drops to 19.8 FPS, High is slightly better at 20.2 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 16.1 FPS. The anomaly where High (20.2 FPS) outperforms Medium (19.8 FPS) is minor but notable, suggesting that the Medium preset might use certain settings that are disproportionately expensive on this hardware. Overall, the 4K results are uniformly unplayable, with no preset achieving even 30 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a severe performance drop, highlighting the GPU as the primary constraint. At High settings, the system moves from 53.1 FPS at 1920x1080 to 35.9 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 17.2 FPS, and then to 20.2 FPS at 3840x2160, a further 15.7 FPS drop. This represents a total decline of 32.9 FPS from 1080p to 4K, or roughly a 62% reduction in frame rate.

The scaling pattern differs by settings preset. On Low settings, the drop from 1080p (80.6 FPS) to 1440p (51.3 FPS) is 29.3 FPS, but the drop from 1440p to 4K (25.4 FPS) is 25.9 FPS. This indicates that at lower settings, the GPU is more likely to be the bottleneck even at 1440p, as the CPU has less work to do. Conversely, on Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p (38.9 FPS) to 1440p (26.9 FPS) is 12.0 FPS, and from 1440p to 4K (16.1 FPS) is 10.8 FPS, showing a more gradual decline.

This data suggests that the limiting component is unequivocally the GPU. The 4 GB VRAM and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the demands of 4K rendering, leading to a situation where even lowering settings from Ultra to Low only recovers 9.3 FPS at 4K. The CPU, with its high multi-threaded scores like 28979 in Cinebench R23, is not the bottleneck; rather, the RX 570's 5.095 TFLOPS of compute power is simply not enough for the pixel density of 4K.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this system is at 1920x1080. For a smooth, high-refresh-rate experience, Low settings provide the best performance at 80.6 FPS, but this comes at the cost of visual fidelity. For a balanced approach, Medium settings at 63.5 FPS offer a good compromise between frame rate and image quality, making it the recommended preset for most users.

High settings at 1080p are also viable, with a 53.1 FPS average that is suitable for standard 60 Hz displays. Ultra settings at 1080p, while producing 38.9 FPS, may be acceptable for slower-paced gameplay but will struggle with fast action. At 2560x1440, Low settings at 51.3 FPS are the only preset that consistently delivers above 50 FPS, making it the recommended choice for this resolution. Medium and High settings are playable but may experience dips, while Ultra at 26.9 FPS is not recommended.

At 3840x2160, no preset is playable, with the highest average being 25.4 FPS on Low. The data clearly indicates that 4K is not a viable option for this hardware combination. For the best experience per the measured rows, users should prioritize 1080p with Medium or High settings to achieve a balance between visual quality and performance, avoiding the Ultra preset which incurs a significant 14.2 FPS penalty over High at this resolution.