Ready Or Not

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers an extraordinary performance envelope in Ready Or Not, but the data reveals a clear and consistent bottleneck: the CPU. While the GPU is capable of producing massive frame rates, the scaling from 1080p to 4K shows that this combo is far more balanced at higher resolutions, where the graphics card is allowed to stretch its legs. The benchmark results indicate that this pairing is best suited for 1440p and 4K gameplay, where the frame rates remain exceptionally high without being artificially capped by processor limitations.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a dramatic and telling drop as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 411.2 FPS, but this falls to 258.7 FPS at 2560x1440 and further down to 134.9 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 67.2% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K at High settings. Such a steep decline indicates that at 1080p, the system is heavily limited by the CPU, as the RTX 4090 is not being fully utilized. The fact that the 1080p numbers exceed 400 FPS in most presets suggests the processor is the primary constraint, as the GPU would otherwise be pushing even higher numbers.

The pattern holds across all settings. At Low settings, the frame rate drops from 521.3 FPS at 1080p to 328.7 FPS at 1440p, and then to 174.6 FPS at 4K. This is a 66.5% reduction from 1080p to 4K, nearly identical to the High preset. The consistency of this scaling across presets reinforces the conclusion that the limiting component shifts from the CPU at lower resolutions to the GPU at 4K. At 1080p, the CPU is the bottleneck; at 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, which is why the frame rate drop is so pronounced.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark scores show solid single-thread performance, with a 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and a cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 2249. In multi-threaded workloads, it achieves a cinebench_r23_multicore score of 15935. These numbers place the CPU at the 77th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19850.

In Ready Or Not, the CPU's role is evident in the 1080p results. The game is clearly capable of exceeding 500 FPS at Low settings, but the processor cannot feed the GPU fast enough to reach higher numbers. The 3dmark_16_threads score of 5873 and the 3dmark_max_threads score of 5890 indicate that the CPU's multi-threaded capability is sufficient for the game's demands, but the single-thread performance becomes the limiting factor at extreme frame rates. The data shows that the CPU is the primary constraint at 1080p, as evidenced by the relatively flat scaling between Low (521.3 FPS) and High (411.2 FPS) presets at that resolution, which is a smaller gap than what the GPU would produce if it were the bottleneck.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 43rd out of 1748 tested combos in Ready Or Not. This places it in the top 2.5% of all configurations tested, which is an exceptional result. The rank reflects the overall performance across all resolutions and settings, and it underscores that despite the CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions, the combination is still one of the fastest available for this game.

The CPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores include the Intel Core i7-9700 (avg score 19831, deltaPct 0.1), Intel Core i7-8700 (avg score 19894, deltaPct -0.2), AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX (avg score 19928, deltaPct -0.4), and Intel Core i5-11600K (avg score 19771, deltaPct 0.4). These rivals are all within 0.4% of the i5-12400's average score of 19850, indicating that the CPU's performance is very much in line with these other processors. However, the RTX 4090's raw power, combined with the i5-12400's adequate multi-threading, is what pushes this combo to its high rank.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, it achieves 521.3 FPS, which drops to 453.8 FPS at Medium, 411.2 FPS at High, and 287.7 FPS at Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra is 233.6 FPS, showing that the Ultra preset imposes a significant load, but the system still maintains well over 280 FPS, making it more than capable for any high-refresh-rate monitor.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain extremely high. Low settings produce 328.7 FPS, Medium hits 289.1 FPS, High reaches 258.7 FPS, and Ultra drops to 183.2 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High settings is a reduction of 152.5 FPS, which is a 37.1% decrease. This is a substantial drop, but the absolute numbers are still in the upper echelon of gaming performance.

At 3840x2160, the GPU takes over as the primary bottleneck. Low settings produce 174.6 FPS, Medium hits 149.1 FPS, High reaches 134.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 94.7 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that falls below 100 FPS, and it still delivers a playable 94.7 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 79.9 FPS, which is a 45.8% reduction, showing that the Ultra preset at 4K is the most demanding scenario for this combo.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo can achieve in Ready Or Not?*

A: The highest average FPS is 521.3, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Does this combo maintain playable frame rates at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: Yes, the average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 94.7, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 411.2 at 1920x1080 to 258.7 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 152.5 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data indicates the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p, as the frame rates are extremely high and the scaling between presets is relatively small compared to higher resolutions.

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

A: This combo ranks 43rd out of 1748 tested combos in Ready Or Not.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average FPS is 94.7, recorded at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, the High preset at 2560x1440 is the recommended configuration. It delivers 258.7 FPS, which is more than sufficient for any high-refresh-rate display, and it offers a significant visual upgrade over Medium settings. At 4K, the High preset at 134.9 FPS is the optimal choice, as it provides a substantial improvement over Medium (149.1 FPS) while maintaining frame rates well above 120 FPS.

If raw performance is the priority, the Low preset at 1080p, producing 521.3 FPS, is the fastest option, but it sacrifices visual quality. For players with 4K displays who want the best visuals, the Ultra preset at 94.7 FPS is still playable, but the High preset offers a better experience with a 40.2 FPS increase. The Medium preset at 1440p (289.1 FPS) is a solid middle ground for those who want high frame rates without the visual compromises of Low settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a formidable graphics card, built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process node. It features 16384 shading units, 512 texture mapping units, and 176 raster output units, along with 128 ray tracing cores. The GPU has a base clock of 2235 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz, with 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s. Its benchmark scores are impressive, with a passmark_g3d score of 38194 and a geekbench_opencl score of 317684, placing it at the 91st percentile against all GPUs.

In Ready Or Not, the GPU's role becomes dominant at 4K resolution. The measured FPS at 3840x2160 shows a clear scaling with settings, from 174.6 FPS at Low to 94.7 FPS at Ultra. This scaling is more pronounced than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution. The RTX 4090's 24 GB of VRAM and massive compute power are fully utilized at 4K, and the data shows that it can handle even the most demanding presets with playable frame rates. The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores, such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4 (avg score 66733, deltaPct -0.4) and NVIDIA Tesla P40 (avg score 66127, deltaPct 0.5), are significantly behind in gaming performance, underscoring the RTX 4090's superiority in this title.