Outriders

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti delivers a remarkably consistent 60+ FPS experience across nearly all tested configurations in Outriders, with the data indicating that the High preset at 4K is the optimal balance of visual fidelity and performance for this pairing. While the GPU is capable of much higher frame rates at lower resolutions, the combination of this specific CPU and GPU shows its best synergy when targeting a smooth, high-fidelity 4K experience, as the Ultra preset represents a significant performance cost that outweighs its visual benefits in this title.

Settings Recommendations

For this specific CPU-GPU combination, the measured data clearly points to the High preset as the recommended starting point across all resolutions. At 4K, the High preset delivers an average of 61 FPS, which is precisely on the cusp of smooth gameplay for most displays. The jump to Ultra at 4K results in a substantial drop to 44 FPS, a 28% reduction from High that is likely to introduce noticeable stutter in a fast-paced looter shooter. Conversely, the Medium preset at 4K provides a comfortable 81 FPS average, but the visual downgrade from High is not justified when High already meets the 60 FPS threshold.

The data becomes more interesting at lower resolutions where the GPU is less taxed. At 1440p, the High preset produces an excellent 116 FPS, while Medium reaches 154 FPS and Low hits 183 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p manages 84 FPS, which is playable but still represents a significant drop from High. At 1080p, the differences between presets narrow in relative terms, with High at 171 FPS, Medium at 190 FPS, and Low at 214 FPS, while Ultra trails at 132 FPS.

The recommendation is straightforward: the High preset offers the most consistent and visually appealing experience for this combo. It maintains 60+ FPS at 4K, 100+ FPS at 1440p, and 170+ FPS at 1080p. The Ultra preset's performance penalty is consistent across all resolutions—roughly 28% lower than High at 4K, 28% lower at 1440p, and 23% lower at 1080p—which suggests a heavy reliance on GPU-intensive effects that do not scale well with this hardware configuration.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings six cores and twelve threads to this pairing, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake architecture processor has a 10 nm process node and shares an 18 MB L3 cache across its cores. The benchmark data shows this CPU performs admirably in both single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 910 and a max-threads score of 5890. Its Cinebench R23 results are particularly telling: a multicore score of 15989 and a single-core score of 2257.

In the context of Outriders, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU at higher resolutions but becomes more relevant at 1080p. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p, the difference between Low (214 FPS) and High (171 FPS) is 43 FPS, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU sufficiently at these frame rates. The CPU's percentile rank of 72 among all CPUs places it in the upper tier, and its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7643 (0.1% slower) and the Intel Core i3-14100F (0.9% slower), suggesting this processor is well-matched to the GPU's capabilities.

The 12-thread configuration is likely sufficient for Outriders, which is not typically a heavily threaded title. The data suggests the CPU is not a bottleneck at 4K, where the GPU is clearly the limiting factor (evidenced by the 61 FPS High vs. 44 FPS Ultra at 4K). However, at 1080p Low settings, the 214 FPS average indicates the CPU can handle high frame rates without holding back the RTX 3080 Ti.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing, and its specifications explain the performance profile observed. With 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, the GPU offers a memory bandwidth of 912.4 GB/s, which is crucial for high-resolution textures. The GA102 chip, built on an 8 nm Samsung process, contains 28,300 million transistors and features 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs. Its boost clock of 1665 MHz and memory clock of 1188 MHz (19 Gbps effective) contribute to a pixel rate of 186.5 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 532.8 GTexel/s.

The GPU's performance in Outriders is clearly resolution-dependent. The data shows a consistent pattern where the RTX 3080 Ti delivers diminishing returns as resolution increases. At 4K High, the 61 FPS average is respectable, but the Ultra preset's 44 FPS reveals the GPU's limits when pushed with maximum settings. The GPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 41187, places it in the high-end tier, but its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB (1.2% slower) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (0.8% faster), which are not gaming-focused cards.

The 12 GB VRAM capacity is likely sufficient for Outriders at all tested settings, as the game does not appear to exceed this at 4K Ultra. The GPU's FP32 performance of 34.10 TFLOPS and its DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) ensure it can handle the game's modern rendering features. The data indicates the GPU is the primary determinant of performance at 4K, where the gap between Medium (81 FPS) and Ultra (44 FPS) is 37 FPS, a much larger spread than at 1080p (58 FPS between the same settings).

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti ranks 960th out of 3710 tested combinations in Outriders, placing it in the top 26% of all configurations. This ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component severely bottlenecks the other. The CPU's average benchmark score of 18683 places it 0.1% behind the AMD EPYC 7643 and 0.3% behind the Intel Core i7-1355U, while the GPU's average score of 41187 is 0.8% behind the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 and 1.7% behind the NVIDIA Tesla M40.

This ranking suggests that while this combo is not at the absolute top tier of performance, it offers a strong experience for Outriders. The 960th rank out of 3710 implies there are many combinations that perform better, but also a significant majority that perform worse. The data shows this combo excels at maintaining high frame rates at 1440p and 1080p, with 4K being its most challenging scenario.

The combo's ranking is likely influenced by the CPU's mid-range positioning (72nd percentile) combined with the GPU's high-end positioning (83rd percentile). This creates a system where the GPU can often outpace the CPU's ability to feed it at lower resolutions, but at 4K the GPU becomes the limiting factor, allowing the CPU to keep up more easily. The result is a combo that performs best at higher resolutions where the GPU's strengths are fully utilized.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear pattern of GPU limitation. At High settings, the FPS drops from 171 at 1080p to 116 at 1440p (a 32% reduction) and then to 61 at 4K (a 47% reduction from 1440p). This scaling is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where the CPU has sufficient headroom to feed the GPU at all resolutions.

The data shows that the RTX 3080 Ti's performance scales approximately linearly with pixel count, suggesting the GPU is the primary bottleneck at all resolutions for this combo. At Low settings, the drop from 1080p (214 FPS) to 1440p (183 FPS) is 14%, and to 4K (111 FPS) is 39% from 1440p. The 4K Low result of 111 FPS confirms that even at the lowest settings, the GPU is still the limiting factor at this resolution.

The scaling behavior indicates that the i5-12400 is not a bottleneck at any tested resolution. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see smaller FPS drops at higher resolutions as the GPU becomes less taxed. Instead, the consistent scaling across all settings points to the GPU being the sole performance limiter. This is particularly evident when comparing the 4K Ultra (44 FPS) to the 1080p Ultra (132 FPS), which shows a 67% reduction, closely matching the pixel count difference between these resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1080p, the data shows the following average FPS by preset:

• Low: 214 FPS
• Medium: 190 FPS (min 161, max 218)
• High: 171 FPS
• Ultra: 132 FPS

At 1440p, the average FPS results are:

• Low: 183 FPS
• Medium: 154 FPS (min 131, max 177)
• High: 116 FPS
• Ultra: 84 FPS

At 4K (3840x2160), the average FPS results are:

• Low: 111 FPS
• Medium: 81 FPS (min 69, max 93)
• High: 61 FPS
• Ultra: 44 FPS

The Medium preset is the only one with reported min and max FPS values, showing a 24 FPS spread at 1080p, a 46 FPS spread at 1440p, and a 24 FPS spread at 4K. This suggests frame pacing is most variable at 1440p Medium, which still maintains a playable 131 FPS minimum.

The overall picture is one of a capable combo that delivers smooth performance across the board, with the only sub-60 FPS result being the 4K Ultra preset at 44 FPS. The RTX 3080 Ti's 12 GB VRAM and high bandwidth ensure that even at 4K, texture streaming and memory bandwidth are not limiting factors, as evidenced by the 61 FPS High result. For users prioritizing visual quality, High at 4K is the recommended configuration; for those seeking higher frame rates, dropping to 1440p High or 1080p Ultra provides excellent alternatives without sacrificing the game's core experience.