Palworld

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 produces a fascinating benchmark profile in Palworld, one that is heavily dictated by the chosen resolution and graphics preset. The data reveals a system capable of delivering exceptionally high frame rates, yet the relationship between settings and performance is not always linear, offering clear insights into where the bottleneck lies.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a classic pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, but the magnitude of that drop is heavily influenced by the preset. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves a massive 329.6 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 232 FPS, a reduction of roughly 30%. At 4K Low, the average falls further to 129.5 FPS, which is still highly playable but represents a 44% decline from the 1440p figure. This steep scaling at lower presets indicates that the CPU is capable of feeding frames at an extremely high rate, and the GPU is only beginning to feel the load.

However, when the preset is raised to Ultra, the scaling behavior changes dramatically. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 169.7 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it drops to 111.4 FPS (a 34% decrease), and at 4K Ultra, it plummets to 59.6 FPS. This represents a 65% drop from 1080p to 4K. The fact that the 4K Ultra score is the only one below 60 FPS in the entire dataset suggests that at this extreme setting, the RTX 4090 is being pushed to its absolute limits. The gap between 1080p and 1440p Ultra (58.3 FPS) is smaller than the gap between 1440p and 4K Ultra (51.8 FPS), but the percentage drop is more severe at the higher resolution, indicating a shift toward GPU-bound rendering.

The Medium preset offers a middle ground. At 1080p, it yields 285.6 FPS, which is only slightly lower than the Low preset's 329.6 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 106.2 FPS, which is significantly higher than the 4K Ultra score. This indicates that the transition from Medium to Ultra carries a substantial performance penalty, likely due to advanced shading and post-processing effects that tax the GPU more heavily. The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the system is largely CPU-bound at lower presets, as the FPS numbers are high enough to suggest the GPU has headroom. At 4K Ultra, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor, as the frame rate drops to a level that is more typical of a demanding AAA title at maximum settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a monster of a GPU, and its specifications in the FACT PACK confirm its capability. It features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is likely a key reason why the card handles 4K High and Medium presets so well, as Palworld's open world requires large texture loads. The GPU's boost clock is rated at 2520 MHz, and its FP32 performance is listed at 82.58 TFLOPS, which positions it as one of the most powerful consumer cards available.

In the benchmark results, the RTX 4090's role is clear. At 1080p and 1440p with Low settings, the FPS numbers (329.6 and 232, respectively) are so high that they outpace what most CPUs could reasonably feed, yet the i5-12400F manages to keep up. This suggests the CPU is doing a solid job, but the GPU is not the limiting factor at these settings. However, when the resolution is scaled to 4K, the GPU's workload increases significantly. The drop from 1440p High (144.7 FPS) to 4K High (82.8 FPS) is a 43% reduction, which aligns with the increased pixel count. The 4K Ultra result of 59.6 FPS further confirms that the RTX 4090 is finally being saturated.

The GPU's VRAM capacity also plays a role. With 24 GB, the card does not face memory capacity issues even at 4K Ultra, which might cause stuttering on cards with less memory. Instead, the performance drop is purely computational, driven by the sheer number of pixels and the complexity of Ultra settings. Interestingly, the GPU's passmark G3D score is 38194, and its percentile against all GPUs is 91, indicating it is in the top tier. The nearest rivals in the FACT PACK (Tesla T4, Tesla P40, Radeon Pro Vega 56, Quadro P6000) are all workstation cards with lower gaming performance, which underscores the RTX 4090's dominance in this consumer benchmark.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing of the i5-12400F and RTX 4090 holds the 54th position out of 1718 combos for Palworld. This is an exceptionally high rank, placing it in the top 3.1% of all tested systems. The combo's performance is strong across all presets, but the rank reflects its ability to maintain high frame rates even at demanding settings. The CPU itself has a percentile of 77 against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19221. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-8700K, has a nearly identical average score of 19210, with a deltaPct of just 0.1%, meaning the i5-12400F is essentially on par with an older high-end part.

The GPU's percentile is even higher at 91, with an average benchmark score of 66473. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA Tesla T4, has a deltaPct of -0.4%, meaning the RTX 4090 is slightly ahead, but the gap is minimal. This indicates that while the GPU is a top-tier part, the CPU is not necessarily the best in class, yet the combination still ranks high because the GPU carries the load at higher resolutions. The rank of 54 suggests that there are 53 other combos that perform better, likely featuring newer or higher-end CPUs (like the i9 or Ryzen 9 series) paired with the same or similar GPUs. The data shows that this combo is not bottlenecked at 4K, but at 1080p Low, the CPU might be holding back the GPU from reaching even higher frame rates, as evidenced by the fact that the FPS does not scale linearly with resolution drops.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the ideal settings depend on the user's target frame rate and resolution. For 1080p gaming, the Ultra preset is the best choice, delivering 169.7 FPS, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on high-end monitors. The High preset at 219.2 FPS and Medium at 285.6 FPS offer even more headroom, but Ultra provides the best visual fidelity without sacrificing smoothness. For 1440p, the High preset is the sweet spot, hitting 144.7 FPS, which is ideal for a 144 Hz display. The Medium preset at 188.3 FPS is also viable, but Ultra at 111.4 FPS is still playable, though it might not fully saturate a 144 Hz panel.

At 4K, the situation is more nuanced. The High preset yields 82.8 FPS, which is smooth on a 60 Hz to 90 Hz display. The Medium preset at 106.2 FPS is better for higher refresh rates, while Ultra at 59.6 FPS is barely playable, dipping just under the 60 FPS threshold. For a 4K experience, the data clearly recommends the High preset as the best balance, offering a 39% performance increase over Ultra while likely retaining most of the visual quality. The Low preset at 4K (129.5 FPS) is viable for competitive play, but it sacrifices too much visual detail for a survival game where seeing enemies and resources is crucial. Ultimately, the Medium preset at 4K (106.2 FPS) is the most versatile, providing a high frame rate that works on both 60 Hz and 120 Hz displays without pushing the GPU to its limits.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 329.6 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low preset.

Q: Does this combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: No, the 4K Ultra preset yields an average of 59.6 FPS, which is just below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 4090's memory bandwidth impact 4K performance?

A: The GPU has 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth, which helps maintain high frame rates at 4K, as seen with the 82.8 FPS average on High settings.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-12400F a bottleneck for the RTX 4090 at 1080p?

A: The data suggests it might be, as the 1080p Low preset reaches 329.6 FPS, but the CPU's score is only 0.1% higher than the i7-8700K, indicating it is a capable, but not top-tier, match.

Q: What is the highest FPS recorded at 1440p?

A: The 1440p Low preset delivers the highest 1440p score at 232 FPS average.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested systems?

A: This combo is ranked 54th out of 1718 tested combinations for Palworld, placing it in the top 3.1% overall.