Palworld

Palworld, the survival title released in January 2024, presents a demanding open-world environment where the Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 combination demonstrates a clear performance hierarchy across different resolutions and settings. The measured data for this pairing reveals a system that is heavily influenced by graphical settings at higher resolutions, while showcasing the substantial headroom of the CPU at lower ones. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS metrics to understand the balance between the processor and graphics card.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, pointing to the GPU becoming the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 198 FPS at 1920x1080 to 130 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 68 FPS. Moving to 3840x2160, the average drops further to 72 FPS, representing a 126 FPS decline from the 1080p baseline. This pattern indicates that while the RTX 4080 is powerful, the sheer pixel throughput at 4K demands significantly more work from the graphics card, scaling almost linearly with the increase in resolution.

The scaling behavior is even more pronounced at the Low preset, where the system is less constrained by graphical fidelity. At 1920x1080, the combination produces an average of 318 FPS, which is exceptionally high and suggests the CPU is doing the heavy lifting to feed the GPU. At 2560x1440, this drops to 209 FPS, and at 3840x2160, it falls to 116 FPS. The 202 FPS difference between 1080p and 4K on Low settings highlights that even with minimal graphical load, the GPU is still the bottleneck at higher resolutions, as it cannot maintain the same frame throughput when rendering more pixels.

The data suggests that for players targeting high refresh rate monitors at 1080p or 1440p, this combo will easily surpass the 144 Hz mark on High settings, with 198 and 130 FPS respectively. However, at 4K, the average of 72 FPS on High is just above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, indicating that this resolution is the point where the GPU's limits become apparent. The jump from Medium to Ultra at each resolution also shows a clear cost: at 4K, the average FPS drops from 94 on Medium to 55 on Ultra, showing that the highest preset demands a significant performance sacrifice.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF, with its 12 cores and 20 threads, provides a robust foundation for Palworld's simulation and physics workloads. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz ensure that single-threaded tasks are handled swiftly, which is crucial for game logic and world-streaming. The processor's benchmark results, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 28838 and a single-core score of 4071, indicate strong overall throughput that prevents the CPU from becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios.

Evidence of the CPU's capability is seen in the 1080p Low preset results, where the average FPS reaches 318. This high frame rate is only achievable if the CPU can process game state updates and issue draw calls faster than the GPU can render them. The processor's performance relative to its rivals is tight; it sits within 0.2% of the Intel Core i5-13600T and 0.1% of the Intel Core i7-13700T based on average benchmark scores. This suggests that while the 12700KF is a strong performer, its headroom is nearly identical to those alternatives.

As resolution increases, the CPU's role diminishes relative to the GPU. The frame rate drops at 4K are primarily attributed to the GPU's rendering load, not CPU limitations. The CPU maintains its performance level, but the GPU cannot keep pace with the increased pixel count. The data indicates that the 12700KF is more than sufficient for this title, as it never appears to be the limiting factor even at the highest frame rates measured. The processor's 25 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory provide ample bandwidth for game data, ensuring smooth operation without stutters.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, with its 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 256-bit bus, is the dominant component in this pairing. Its memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s and boost clock of 2505 MHz allow it to handle complex textures and effects at high resolutions. The GPU's benchmark scores, including a Passmark G3D score of 34457 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 263779, place it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs, indicating its high-end positioning.

The GPU's role is most evident in the scaling from Medium to Ultra settings. At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops from 169 on Medium to 99 on Ultra, a 70 FPS difference. This substantial hit is due to the increased shader complexity and texture detail that the RTX 4080 must process. The GPU's 9728 shading units and 76 RT cores are fully utilized at the Ultra preset, but the performance cost is notable. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 55 shows that even a top-tier card struggles with the most demanding settings at the highest resolution.

Comparing the RTX 4080 to its nearest rivals, the data shows a near-tie with the RTX 4080 SUPER, which has a delta of just 0.1%. However, it is 2.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB and 2.7% behind the AMD Radeon 8060S in average benchmark scores. Despite these statistical differences, the RTX 4080's 16 GB VRAM capacity is a key advantage for Palworld, as the game's large world and numerous objects can consume significant memory. The GPU's memory clock of 1400 MHz, effective 22.4 Gbps, ensures that data is transferred quickly, preventing texture pop-in and maintaining consistent frame times.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance for this combo. At 1920x1080, Medium produces an average of 257 FPS with a minimum of 219 FPS, ensuring a consistently high frame rate that exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers 169 FPS average with a minimum of 144 FPS, which is ideal for 144 Hz displays. Even at 3840x2160, Medium maintains a playable average of 94 FPS, with a minimum of 80 FPS, making it the only preset besides Low that stays comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold at 4K.

The High preset is also viable for 1440p gaming, providing 130 FPS average, but it falls short of the Medium preset's consistency at 4K with only 72 FPS. The Ultra preset, while visually appealing, shows the steepest performance cost, with averages of 150 FPS at 1080p, 99 FPS at 1440p, and 55 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is below the 60 FPS target, which may lead to noticeable stutter on standard displays. Therefore, for a smooth experience across all resolutions, Medium is the recommended setting, as it provides the highest minimum frame rates and avoids the performance cliffs seen at Ultra.

For players prioritizing frame rate over graphics, the Low preset is capable of delivering exceptional numbers, such as 318 FPS at 1080p and 116 FPS at 4K. However, the visual downgrade is significant. The data suggests that Medium is the sweet spot, as it offers a substantial improvement over Low in visual fidelity while retaining frame rates that are high enough for competitive or fast-paced gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 247th out of 3711 tested combos in Palworld. This places it in the top 6.7% of all configurations tested, indicating that it is a high-performance pairing that outperforms the vast majority of systems. The rank reflects the balance between the CPU and GPU, where both components are powerful enough to avoid creating a significant bottleneck.

The rank also implies that while the combo is strong, there are 246 other configurations that achieve higher frame rates in this game. These likely include combinations with more recent or higher-tier CPUs and GPUs, such as those from the GeForce 50-series or newer Intel processors. However, the 247th position is a strong showing, especially considering the CPU's release date in November 2021 and the GPU's release in September 2022. The combo effectively leverages the strengths of both components to deliver a high level of performance in Palworld.

The data suggests that the combo is more GPU-limited than CPU-limited, as the GPU's percentile rank of 86 is slightly higher than the CPU's percentile rank of 85. This indicates that the GPU has slightly more headroom relative to its peers, but the overall balance is well-matched. The ranking of 247 out of 3711 indicates that users with this setup can expect a smooth and responsive experience in most scenarios, with the only compromises occurring at the highest settings and resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS for this combo at 2560x1440 with High settings is 130.

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

A: No, the average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 55, which is below the 60 FPS target.

Q: Which preset provides the highest minimum frame rate at 1080p?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 has a minimum FPS of 219, which is the highest among the presets with recorded minimum values.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Palworld?

A: It ranks 247th out of 3711 tested combos.

Q: What is the GPU's memory bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 has a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s.

Q: What is the CPU's boost clock speed?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700KF has a boost clock of 5.00 GHz.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact measured average FPS for each resolution and settings preset combination.

| Resolution | Settings | Average FPS | Minimum FPS | Maximum FPS |

|------------|----------|-------------|-------------|-------------|

| 1920x1080 | Low | 318 | N/A | N/A |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 257 | 219 | 296 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 198 | N/A | N/A |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 150 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 209 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 169 | 144 | 195 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 130 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 99 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 116 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 94 | 80 | 108 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 72 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 55 | N/A | N/A |

The data reveals a consistent step-down in performance as both resolution and settings increase. The largest single drop occurs when moving from Medium to Ultra at 4K, where the average FPS decreases by 39. The Medium preset is the only one that provides minimum frame rate data for all three resolutions, showing a range from 219 FPS at 1080p to 80 FPS at 4K. This consistency makes it the most reliable choice for maintaining a steady experience. The High and Ultra presets lack minimum and maximum data, but their averages indicate a clear performance hierarchy. Overall, the measured breakdown confirms that this combo excels at 1080p and 1440p, while 4K gaming requires a careful selection of settings to maintain playable frame rates.