Palworld

Palworld, a survival title released in early 2024, presents an interesting challenge for the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination. The measured data for this pairing reveals a system that is highly capable at mainstream resolutions but begins to show its limitations when pushed to the extremes. This analysis will break down the benchmark results, focusing on how the game scales with resolution, where the CPU and GPU each exert their influence, and what the final performance numbers mean for a player’s experience.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The benchmark data for Palworld shows a clear and expected trend: performance degrades as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo achieves an average of 112 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High drops this to 74 FPS, a reduction of 38 FPS. At 3840x2160 High, the average falls further to 41 FPS. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets, from Low to Ultra.

The scaling between 1080p and 1440p is particularly telling. At High settings, the drop from 112 FPS to 74 FPS represents a 33.9% decrease. This is a substantial penalty, but the absolute numbers at 1440p High (74 FPS) remain perfectly playable. However, the step from 1440p to 4K is more punishing. The 4K High average of 41 FPS is a 44.6% drop from the 1440p figure. This steeper decline at 4K suggests that the rendering load is overwhelming the GPU's capabilities.

The data implies that the RTX 4060 is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. The 8 GB frame buffer and 128-bit memory interface, which provides 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are likely being saturated by the demands of 4K rendering in Palworld. The sheer number of pixels at 3840x2160 requires the GPU to work much harder, and the performance cliff between 1440p and 4K points to the GPU hitting a memory bandwidth or raw compute wall.

At 1080p, the situation appears different. The jump from High (112 FPS) to Low (180 FPS) is significant, but the fact that the frame rate can scale this high suggests that the CPU is not a hard bottleneck at this resolution. If the i5-10400F were severely limiting the system, we would expect to see a performance plateau where increasing the graphics load doesn't change the FPS much. Instead, we see a consistent, though not linear, drop in performance as resolution increases, which is classic GPU-bound behavior.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the most balanced experience for this hardware combination is the Medium preset. It offers a substantial performance uplift over High while maintaining high frame rates that are suitable for the fast-paced combat and exploration in Palworld.

At 1080p, the Medium preset delivers an average of 146 FPS, with a minimum of 124 FPS and a maximum of 168 FPS. This is a 30% improvement over the High preset's 112 FPS average. The 124 FPS minimum ensures that the frame rate rarely dips into a range that would cause noticeable stutter, providing a smooth experience on high-refresh-rate monitors.

The Medium preset also holds up well at 1440p, averaging 96 FPS with a minimum of 82 FPS. This is a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS threshold for standard displays and provides a great experience for 144Hz panels. At 4K, Medium produces an average of 53 FPS, which is borderline playable, but the minimum of 45 FPS indicates that there will be noticeable dips during busy scenes.

The High preset is a viable option for players who prioritize visual fidelity over maximum frame rates. At 1080p High, the 112 FPS average is still very good. At 1440p High, the 74 FPS average is acceptable. However, the Ultra preset is not recommended. It provides the most visually demanding experience, but the performance cost is steep, with averages of 85 FPS at 1080p, 56 FPS at 1440p, and just 31 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset's 4K performance is too low for a comfortable experience.

Therefore, the sweet spot is Medium. It provides the best balance between visual quality and performance across all measured resolutions, ensuring that the RTX 4060 and i5-10400F can deliver a high frame rate without sacrificing too much in the way of graphical detail.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Comet Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. For a game like Palworld, which involves a large open world, many creatures, and building mechanics, the CPU's multi-threaded performance is crucial for handling game logic, physics, and AI.

The CPU's benchmark scores provide context for its capabilities. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 10283, and its single-core score is 1451. These scores place the i5-10400F in the 68th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is a solid mid-range performer. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 4748, which is nearly identical to the max-threads score of 4735, suggests that the CPU's performance scales well with additional threads up to its 12-thread limit.

In the Palworld results, the CPU's role is most apparent at lower resolutions. The fact that the system can achieve 180 FPS at 1080p Low settings suggests that the i5-10400F has enough headroom to push a very high number of frames. However, the transition from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings shows a 33.9% drop in FPS (from 180 to 119), which is a larger penalty than what is seen between 1440p and 4K at the same settings (a 44.5% drop from 119 FPS to 66 FPS).

This pattern indicates that while the CPU is capable, it is not the primary bottleneck in this configuration. The GPU is clearly doing the heavy lifting, and as the resolution increases, the strain on the GPU grows, leaving the CPU with more idle time. The data suggests that the i5-10400F provides sufficient computational power to keep up with the RTX 4060 at 1080p and 1440p, but it is not so powerful that it would mask the GPU's limitations at 4K.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the comprehensive database of tested hardware combinations for Palworld, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-10400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 holds a rank of 2006 out of 3711 total combinations. This places it in the 54th percentile of all tested combos, meaning that a majority of other systems perform better in this specific title.

This mid-pack ranking is a direct reflection of the hardware's individual strengths and weaknesses. The RTX 4060, while a capable 1080p and 1440p card, is not a top-tier performer. Its benchmark scores, such as the Passmark G3D score of 19545, place it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs. Similarly, the i5-10400F, with its average benchmark score of 14185, sits in the 68th percentile of all CPUs.

When combined, these two components create a system that is better than the sum of its parts in some ways, but the 4K performance holds it back. The ranking suggests that for Palworld, this combo is a solid mainstream choice, but it will not compete with high-end configurations that feature more powerful CPUs and GPUs. The data indicates that the combination is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but its lower rank is influenced by its struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K resolution.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the defining component in this system's gaming performance. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. Based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, it has a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz. Its raw compute power is rated at 15.11 TFLOPS for FP32 operations.

The GPU's role in Palworld is clear from the resolution scaling data. The RTX 4060 is the limiting factor at 1440p and 4K. The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, with the High preset falling from 112 FPS to 41 FPS. This indicates that the GPU's 8 GB of VRAM and its memory bandwidth are not sufficient to handle the increased data load at 4K resolutions efficiently.

The GPU's benchmark scores, such as its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2302 and its Passmark G3D score of 19545, show it is a competent performer, but its memory subsystem is a known constraint. In a game like Palworld, which has a large world with many textures and objects, the 8 GB VRAM can be a limitation at higher resolutions. The data suggests that the GPU is working at its maximum capacity at 4K, leading to the lower frame rates. At 1080p, the GPU has more headroom, allowing it to render frames quickly and achieve high FPS numbers.

The RTX 4060's performance is also reflected in its nearest rivals. Its average benchmark score of 17639 is very close to the AMD Radeon 780M, which has an average score of 17588, a difference of only 0.3%. This shows that the RTX 4060 sits in a competitive performance tier, but it is not a high-end card. In Palworld, this means it can deliver a great experience at mainstream resolutions, but it is not built for the demands of 4K gaming.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with the High preset?

A: The Intel Core i5-10400F and RTX 4060 combo delivers an average of 112 FPS at 1920x1080 resolution with the High settings preset.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the performance is playable but limited. The average FPS for the Ultra preset is 31, for High it is 41, for Medium it is 53, and for Low it is 66.

Q: Which settings preset provides the highest minimum frame rate at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 provides a minimum frame rate of 82 FPS. This is the only preset at this resolution with a reported minimum FPS in the data.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: The data shows a significant gap. The Low preset achieves an average of 180 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 85 FPS. This represents a 95 FPS difference between the two settings.

Q: How does this combo rank against all other tested combos in Palworld?

A: This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 ranks 2006 out of 3711 tested combinations.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: The benchmark data lists a minimum FPS of 45 for the 3840x2160 resolution with the Medium settings preset.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following is a complete breakdown of the measured average frame rates for the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 in Palworld.

1920x1080:

• Low: Average FPS of 180.
• Medium: Average FPS of 146, with a minimum of 124 and a maximum of 168.
• High: Average FPS of 112.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 85.

2560x1440:

• Low: Average FPS of 119.
• Medium: Average FPS of 96, with a minimum of 82 and a maximum of 110.
• High: Average FPS of 74.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 56.

3840x2160:

• Low: Average FPS of 66.
• Medium: Average FPS of 53, with a minimum of 45 and a maximum of 61.
• High: Average FPS of 41.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 31.

These numbers paint a complete picture of the system's capabilities. The i5-10400F and RTX 4060 are a strong pairing for 1080p gaming, capable of high refresh rates on all but the Ultra preset. At 1440p, the system remains very playable, with the Medium and High presets offering a good balance of visual quality and performance. The 4K results are the weakest, with only the Low preset achieving an average above 60 FPS, confirming that this hardware is not suited for 4K gaming at higher quality settings.