Palworld

Palworld, a Survival title released on 2024-01-18, presents a unique scaling challenge for the Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. The benchmark data shows a configuration that is heavily skewed toward GPU capability, yet the CPU's 4-core/8-thread design creates a distinct bottleneck at lower resolutions. The measured FPS across 1080p, 1440p, and 4K with four quality presets reveals how this combination behaves in practice, with the RTX 4090's immense power often waiting on the i3-12100F to feed it data.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in Palworld?

A: The highest average FPS is 321.5, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is followed closely by 287.7 FPS at 1080p Medium and 229.5 FPS at 2560x1440 Low, showing that the GPU is capable of producing very high frame rates when the CPU is not the limiting factor.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 61.6. This is the most demanding configuration tested, and while it is playable, it represents a significant 82.3% reduction in FPS compared to the best-case scenario of 321.5 FPS at 1080p Low.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The data indicates the CPU is the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions. For instance, at 1080p, the FPS difference between Low (321.5) and Medium (287.7) is only 33.8 FPS, whereas at 4K, the difference between Low (128.6) and Medium (106.6) is 22 FPS. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU limits performance more than the GPU, as the GPU is not being fully utilized.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 57th out of 1718 tested combinations in Palworld, placing it in the top 3.3% of all configurations. This high percentile is driven by the RTX 4090's raw power, despite the relatively modest CPU.

Q: How does the RTX 4090's VRAM capacity relate to its performance in Palworld?

A: The RTX 4090 features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory with a 384-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s. This substantial memory allocation ensures that VRAM is not a limiting factor in Palworld, even at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS of 61.6 is still above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average FPS drops from 217.7 at 1080p to 144.1 at 1440p, and further to 79.7 at 4K. This represents a 63.4% decrease in FPS from 1080p to 4K, demonstrating the increasing GPU load at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data suggests that the optimal experience depends heavily on the user's display resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p and 1440p panels, the High preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. At 1080p, High delivers 217.7 FPS, which is only 6.4% lower than the 321.5 FPS seen at Low, but with significantly better visuals. Similarly, at 1440p, High achieves 144.1 FPS, which is still well above the 113 FPS of Ultra, providing a smoother experience with a less demanding preset.

For 4K displays, the Medium preset is the recommended starting point. It produces 106.6 FPS, which is higher than the 79.7 FPS at High and the 61.6 FPS at Ultra. While Ultra might be tempting for maximum fidelity, the performance drop to 61.6 FPS is substantial, and Medium offers a more fluid experience. The Low preset at 4K produces 128.6 FPS, but this sacrifices too much visual quality for a marginal gain over Medium. Therefore, the data suggests that Medium is the "sweet spot" for 4K, providing a high frame rate without compromising the game's visual presentation.

The Ultra preset is only recommended for users with top-tier 1080p or 1440p high-refresh-rate monitors who prioritize image quality over raw FPS. At 1080p, Ultra still delivers 167.6 FPS, which is excellent, but the jump from High to Ultra is 50.1 FPS, indicating a significant performance cost for the extra visual detail. The data clearly shows that High is the most efficient preset for most scenarios, while Medium is the best fallback for 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic CPU-bound scenario at lower resolutions. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 321.5 at 1080p to 229.5 at 1440p, a 28.6% decrease. However, from 1440p to 4K, the drop is from 229.5 to 128.6, a 44.0% decrease. This pattern indicates that at 1080p, the i3-12100F is limiting the RTX 4090, preventing it from reaching its full potential. The 92 FPS difference between 1080p and 1440p at Low settings is substantial, but the 100.9 FPS difference between 1440p and 4K is even larger, showing that the GPU is finally becoming the bottleneck at 4K.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is more linear. The FPS drops from 167.6 at 1080p to 113 at 1440p, a 32.6% decrease, and then from 113 to 61.6 at 4K, a 45.5% decrease. This suggests that at Ultra, the GPU is more consistently the limiting factor, as the CPU has less headroom to become a bottleneck. The data shows that the RTX 4090 is best utilized at 4K with Medium or High settings, where it can stretch its legs without being held back by the 4-core CPU. At 1080p, the CPU is clearly the limiting component, as evidenced by the relatively small FPS gains from reducing settings from High to Low.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination ranks 57th out of 1718 tested combos in Palworld. This puts it in the top 3.3% of all configurations, which is impressive given the CPU's modest specifications. The ranking is almost entirely attributable to the RTX 4090, which sits in the 91st percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, while only in the 72nd percentile of all CPUs, still manages to keep up enough to not drag the combo down significantly.

The CPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score include the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, which scores 13534, just 0.1% higher than the i3-12100F's 13516. The Intel Core i7-1250U scores 13462, 0.4% lower, and the Intel Core i3-10105 scores 13430, 0.6% lower. These close scores highlight that the i3-12100F is a capable performer for its class, even if it is not a top-tier CPU. In Palworld specifically, the combo's rank of 57 suggests that the game is not heavily CPU-bound at the resolutions tested, allowing the RTX 4090 to dominate.

The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4, score 66733, just 0.4% higher than the RTX 4090's 66473. This indicates that the RTX 4090 is at the very top of the GPU hierarchy, and its performance in Palworld is consistent with its benchmark scores. The combo's overall rank confirms the GPU's power, but the data also shows that a stronger CPU would likely push this combo even higher in the rankings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is the undisputed powerhouse in this configuration. With 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, it offers a massive 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. This is crucial for Palworld, which has large open-world environments that can benefit from high memory bandwidth. The GPU's 16,384 shading units and 128 RT cores provide immense compute power, as evidenced by its 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 performance. The card's boost clock of 2520 MHz ensures that it can deliver these resources efficiently.

The GPU's memory clock is rated at 1313 MHz, effective 21 Gbps, which is what enables the 1.01 TB/s bandwidth. In Palworld, this translates to high frame rates even at 4K, with the Medium preset achieving 106.6 FPS. The RTX 4090's architecture, based on Ada Lovelace and manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC, is highly efficient, allowing it to maintain high clocks without excessive power draw. The GPU's 450 W TDP is substantial, but the performance it delivers in this game justifies the power requirement.

The data shows that the RTX 4090 is not the limiting factor in this combo. At 1080p, the GPU is idle much of the time, waiting for the CPU to send instructions. However, at 4K, the GPU is fully utilized, and its performance is directly reflected in the FPS numbers. The 24 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for Palworld, ensuring no texture pop-in or stuttering due to memory constraints. The GPU's 91st percentile ranking among all GPUs is well-deserved, and its role in this combo is to provide the raw horsepower that the i3-12100F can only partially unlock.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings yield an average of 321.5 FPS, which is the peak performance for this configuration. Medium settings produce 287.7 FPS, a 10.5% reduction from Low. High settings follow with 217.7 FPS, which is 24.3% lower than Medium. Ultra settings bring the average down to 167.6 FPS, a 23.0% drop from High. This progression shows that each step up in quality costs a significant number of frames, but even Ultra remains well above the 144 FPS threshold for high-refresh-rate displays.

Moving to 2560x1440, the FPS figures scale down as expected. Low settings average 229.5 FPS, which is 28.6% lower than at 1080p. Medium settings produce 190.6 FPS, a 16.9% decrease from Low. High settings average 144.1 FPS, which is 24.4% lower than Medium. Ultra settings drop to 113 FPS, a 21.6% reduction from High. At this resolution, the combo still provides excellent performance, with even Ultra settings remaining playable on most monitors.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is finally tested to its limits. Low settings average 128.6 FPS, which is 44.0% lower than at 1440p. Medium settings produce 106.6 FPS, a 17.1% reduction from Low. High settings average 79.7 FPS, which is 25.2% lower than Medium. Ultra settings bring the average down to 61.6 FPS, a 22.7% drop from High. This is the only resolution where the combo struggles to maintain high frame rates, but the 61.6 FPS at Ultra is still playable. The data clearly shows that the optimal experience is at 1440p with High settings, where the combo delivers 144.1 FPS, balancing visual quality and performance.