Palworld

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti presents a familiar mid-range combination for Palworld, a Survival title that launched in 2024. The measured data reveals a configuration where the GPU is the primary driver of frame rates, but the scaling pattern shows how quickly the graphics card becomes the bottleneck as resolution climbs. The 3060 Ti ranks in the 69th percentile of all GPUs, while the CPU sits higher at the 77th percentile, suggesting the processor has headroom to spare.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, pointing squarely at the GPU as the limiting factor. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 187.2 at 1920x1080 to 122 at 2560x1440, then further to 67.3 at 3840x2160. That represents a 64% reduction from 1080p to 4K, a massive hit that only a graphics-bound workload can produce. The pattern repeats across all quality presets, with High settings dropping from 114.9 at 1080p to 41.5 at 4K, a 64% decline that mirrors the Low preset almost exactly.

The interesting nuance is that the CPU is not holding things back even at the lowest resolution. At 1080p Low, the system produces 187.2 FPS, which is well beyond typical monitor refresh rates and shows the i5-12400F can feed the GPU adequately. The 3dmark single-thread score of 909 and the 3dmark 2-thread score of 1699 indicate solid per-core performance, and Palworld’s Survival genre typically benefits from strong single-threaded responsiveness. The CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads, boosting to 4.40 GHz, are enough to keep pace.

The scaling between Medium and High at each resolution is also revealing. At 1440p, Medium produces 98.1 FPS while High drops to 79.5, a 19% penalty for the visual upgrade. At 4K, the gap narrows slightly: Medium runs at 56.6 FPS versus High’s 41.5, a 27% penalty. This widening gap at higher resolutions confirms that the RTX 3060 Ti’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are being taxed more heavily as pixel count rises. The GPU’s boost clock of 1665 MHz and 16.20 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are simply not enough to maintain frame rates at 4K Ultra, which falls to 34.9 FPS.

GPU Role

The RTX 3060 Ti is the star of this benchmark, and its specifications explain the measured results. With 4864 shading units, 152 texture mapping units, and 80 ROPs, the card is built for 1440p gaming, and the data supports this. At 1440p High, the average of 79.5 FPS is playable, while 1440p Ultra drops to 60.4 FPS, right at the edge of smoothness. The 8 GB of VRAM is a critical factor in Palworld, where the open-world Survival design can load large textures and many objects simultaneously.

The memory clock runs at 1750 MHz, effectively 14 Gbps, delivering that 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. This is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K the card’s 256-bit bus width and 8 GB capacity become strained. The 4K Medium result of 56.6 FPS versus the 4K High result of 41.5 FPS shows that reducing texture and shadow quality can free up memory bandwidth, but the card still cannot approach the 60 FPS target at 4K without dropping to Low settings, which yields 67.3 FPS.

The GPU’s 3dmark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2626 and its Passmark G3D score of 20349 place it in the 69th percentile, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon RX 6700M (0.2% ahead) and the Radeon RX 6600 (0.5% ahead). This means the 3060 Ti is competitive with those cards, but none of them are 4K powerhouses. The 17,400 million transistors on Samsung’s 8 nm process, with a die size of 392 mm², draw 200 W of power, and the suggested PSU of 550 W indicates this is a mainstream power draw. The card’s end-of-life production status suggests it is a mature product, but the benchmark data shows it remains viable for 1080p and 1440p Palworld play.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows offer clear guidance for the best experience. At 1920x1080, Ultra settings run at 92 FPS, which is smooth and visually rich. The jump to High at 114.9 FPS is a 25% improvement, while Medium at 154.6 FPS is a 68% improvement over Ultra. For competitive play or high refresh rate monitors, Medium is the sweet spot, offering 154.6 FPS that exceeds most 144Hz displays. Low at 187.2 FPS is only for the most extreme refresh rates and comes with significant visual compromises.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation shifts. Medium at 98.1 FPS is the best balance, providing a smooth experience with good detail. High at 79.5 FPS is still playable and offers better textures, but the 19% drop from Medium might not be worth it for all players. Ultra at 60.4 FPS is borderline, and the data suggests that the 8 GB VRAM is being pushed hard at this setting. For most users, Medium or High at 1440p is the target.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 3060 Ti struggles. Ultra at 34.9 FPS is not playable, and High at 41.5 FPS is only marginally better. Medium at 56.6 FPS is approaching playability but is still below the 60 FPS threshold. Low at 67.3 FPS is the only 4K setting that clears 60 FPS, but the visual quality is severely reduced. The data indicates that 4K is not a realistic target for this combination in Palworld, and players should stick to 1440p or 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings is usable. Low averages 187.2 FPS, Medium 154.6 FPS, High 114.9 FPS, and Ultra 92 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 95 FPS, showing that the GPU has significant headroom at this resolution. The i5-12400F’s Cinebench R23 multicore score of 16518 and single-core score of 2332 indicate the CPU is not a bottleneck here, as even the highest frame rates do not stress the processor.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 122 FPS for Low, 98.1 FPS for Medium, 79.5 FPS for High, and 60.4 FPS for Ultra. The drop from 1080p Low to 1440p Low is 65 FPS, a 35% reduction that is directly attributable to the increased pixel count. The GPU’s pixel rate of 133.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 253.1 GTexel/s are being utilized more fully at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 67.3 FPS for Low, 56.6 FPS for Medium, 41.5 FPS for High, and 34.9 FPS for Ultra. The 4K Ultra result is less than half of the 1080p Ultra result, and the 4K High result is barely above 40 FPS. The RTX 3060 Ti’s 80 ROPs are simply overwhelmed by the 8.3 million pixels at 4K, and the data shows that the card is designed for 1440p, not 4K.

FAQ

Q: Can the Intel Core i5-12400F and RTX 3060 Ti run Palworld at 60 FPS at 1440p?

A: Yes, at Medium settings the average is 98.1 FPS, and at High settings it is 79.5 FPS. Ultra drops to 60.4 FPS, which is right at the threshold, but the data shows 60 FPS is achievable at Medium and High.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combination?

A: 2560x1440 is the optimal resolution. The data shows playable frame rates across all settings, with Medium at 98.1 FPS and High at 79.5 FPS. 1080p is also excellent, but 4K is only playable at Low settings, which yields 67.3 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 3060 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 3060 Ti scores 25120, which is 0.2% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6700M (25180) and 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6600 (25235). It outperforms the AMD Radeon 890M by 0.5%, which scores 25246.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck in this game?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The i5-12400F has a 3dmark max-thread score of 5912 and a Passmark multithread score of 19433, placing it in the 77th percentile. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 187.2 FPS, showing the CPU can feed the GPU effectively.

Q: What settings should I use for a 144Hz monitor at 1080p?

A: Medium settings at 1920x1080 produce an average of 154.6 FPS, which exceeds 144 Hz. High drops to 114.9 FPS, which is below 144 Hz, so Medium is the recommended preset for maximum refresh rate utilization.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM limit performance at 4K?

A: Yes, the data shows 4K performance is poor. At 4K Ultra, the average is 34.9 FPS, and at 4K High it is 41.5 FPS. Only Low settings at 4K reach 67.3 FPS, indicating that the 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for high-quality 4K rendering in Palworld.