Overpower

Overpower, an action title released in August 2023, presents a demanding workload for the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 combination. The measured data for this pairing shows a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics card, with the CPU demonstrating sufficient headroom for the tested configurations. This analysis examines the benchmark results across three resolutions and four quality presets to determine the operational boundaries of this hardware pairing.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combo achieves in Overpower?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 62.2, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is the only configuration that breaks the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13516, which is effectively tied with the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX (13534, deltaPct -0.1%). It also edges out the Intel Core i7-1250U by 0.4% and the Intel Core i3-10105 by 0.6%.

Q: What is the GPU's synthetic performance percentile?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 sits at the 43rd percentile when compared to all GPUs, indicating it performs below the median. Its average benchmark score is 8713, placing it within a tight margin of rivals like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile (8746, deltaPct -0.4%) and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 (8761, deltaPct -0.5%).

Q: Is the 4K resolution playable with this setup?

A: At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS recorded is 47.4 on Low settings. All other settings at this resolution yield averages below 30.1 FPS, with Ultra dropping to 24.3 FPS, indicating a generally poor experience at 4K.

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking among tested systems?

A: This specific combination of CPU and GPU ranks 1658 out of 1744 tested combos in Overpower, placing it in the bottom 5% of all systems tested for this game.

Q: Does the CPU's multi-threaded performance show a significant advantage over its single-threaded score?

A: In Cinebench R23, the multi-core score is 11912, while the single-core score is 1681. This represents a substantial scaling to 8 threads, confirming the processor's ability to utilize its 4 cores and 8 threads effectively, though the game's GPU bottleneck limits the impact on frame rates.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its synthetic performance is solid, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11912 and a single-core score of 1681. The CPU's 12 MB of shared L3 cache and support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory indicate a modern, capable foundation for gaming.

In the context of Overpower, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The data shows that frame rates scale significantly with resolution and settings in a pattern typical of GPU-bound scenarios. For instance, at 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 62.2 on Low to 29.8 on Ultra, a reduction of over 50%. If the CPU were the primary bottleneck, the frame rate would remain more consistent across these settings as the GPU workload changes. The i3-12100F's benchmark scores, such as the 3DMark single-thread score of 893, suggest it has enough processing power to feed the GTX 1650 in most situations, but it is not the limiting factor determining the playable framerates in this game.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this hardware combination in Overpower is found at 1920x1080 with Low settings, which yields an average of 62.2 FPS. This is the only preset and resolution pairing that provides a frame rate comfortably above the 60 FPS mark, ensuring smooth gameplay. Moving to Medium settings at the same resolution drops the average to 37.6 FPS, a significant 40% reduction, which may introduce noticeable stutter or input lag for users sensitive to frame pacing.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset provides an average of 57.3 FPS, which is a viable alternative for users with 1440p monitors who prefer higher resolution over maximum visual fidelity. However, the High preset at this resolution is nearly unplayable at 31.5 FPS. For users prioritizing visual quality, the 3840x2160 Low preset (47.4 FPS) is a last resort, but the 1920x1080 Low setting is clearly the sweet spot, balancing performance and playability. The data suggests that the High and Ultra presets are not suitable for this combination at any resolution, as even the best-case scenario (1920x1080 High) only reaches 37.2 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

This system, featuring the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, holds a rank of 1658 out of 1744 total combinations tested in Overpower. This places it in the 1658th position, meaning that only 86 tested configurations perform worse. This low ranking is primarily attributable to the GPU's limited capabilities. The GTX 1650 is at the 43rd percentile among all GPUs, and its measured performance in this game reflects that standing.

The CPU, in isolation, is a more capable component, ranking in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs. This discrepancy between the CPU's relative strength and the system's poor game ranking underscores the GPU bottleneck. The CPU's nearest rivals include high-end workstation chips like the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, illustrating that the i3-12100F's processing power is not the source of the system's low standing. The data indicates that while the CPU has the headroom, the GTX 1650 simply cannot translate that into playable frame rates at higher quality settings in this action game.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is the primary performance limiter in this configuration. It is a Turing-architecture GPU with 896 shading units, 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, and a memory bandwidth of 128.1 GB/s. Its boost clock is 1665 MHz, and it achieves a Passmark G3D score of 7880. This places the card at the 43rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 8713, putting it in a close performance cluster with the NVIDIA Quadro P2200 (8671, deltaPct 0.5%).

The GPU's 4 GB VRAM capacity is a likely factor in the severe performance drops when moving from Low to Medium settings. The data shows a dramatic fall at 1920x1080 from 62.2 FPS on Low to 37.6 FPS on Medium, a 40% decrease. This pattern repeats at all resolutions, suggesting that the higher texture and geometry detail levels of the Medium preset and above exceed the GPU's memory bandwidth or capacity, causing a steep decline in rendering throughput. The card's end-of-life production status and its modest FP32 performance of 2.984 TFLOPS further cement its role as the bottleneck, preventing the system from achieving higher frame rates regardless of the CPU's readiness.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the resolution provides the best results for this combo. The Low preset is the standout, with an average FPS of 62.2. The Medium and High presets are nearly identical, with averages of 37.6 and 37.2 FPS respectively. The Ultra preset drops to 29.8 FPS. This data shows a clear cliff between Low and Medium, with the higher presets offering no meaningful advantage over Medium for a significant performance cost.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset remains the most playable option, achieving an average of 57.3 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 36.7 FPS, while High is at 31.5 FPS. The Ultra setting is the worst performer here, with an average of 25.1 FPS. This resolution demonstrates a similar pattern, with Low being the only setting to approach a playable frame rate.

At 3840x2160, the limitations of the GPU are most apparent. The Low preset achieves an average of 47.4 FPS, which is the only configuration at this resolution to break 30 FPS. The High setting drops to 30.1 FPS, followed by Medium at 28.7 FPS and Ultra at a lowly 24.3 FPS. The data across all resolutions suggests a consistent trend: the GTX 1650 is only capable of delivering smooth performance when paired with the Low preset, and even then, only at 1920x1080 or 2560x1440. The combination of high resolution and high settings results in unplayable frame rates, confirming the GPU as the definitive performance ceiling for this system.