Red Dead Redemption 2

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

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread Alder Lake-S desktop processor with a 2.50 GHz base clock and a 4.40 GHz boost clock. Its 18 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 per core provide substantial on-die storage for game assets and thread scheduling. In the context of Red Dead Redemption 2, a game known for its open-world simulation and AI-driven NPC behavior, this CPU's multi-threaded throughput is the foundation for maintaining consistent frame pacing.

Benchmark data places this CPU in the 73rd percentile among all tested processors. Its 3DMark 16-thread score of 5895 and max-thread score of 5912 are nearly identical, indicating that the 12 threads are fully utilized without significant scaling drop-off beyond 16 threads. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 12380 and Geekbench multicore score of 9472 reinforce that this is a solid mainstream performer. For Red Dead Redemption 2 specifically, the game's engine can leverage multiple cores for physics, AI, and streaming, and the i5-12400F's 6 physical cores with Hyper-Threading provide a balanced workload distribution.

The single-thread performance is equally important. The 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1680 indicate strong per-core efficiency. Red Dead Redemption 2's frame pacing in CPU-bound scenarios, such as dense towns or during horse travel across the map, depends on the ability of the primary game thread to issue draw calls quickly. The 4.40 GHz boost clock helps here, though the game's overall performance in this combo suggests the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The nearest rivals for this CPU, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (deltaPct 0), Intel Core 3 201E (deltaPct -0.1), Intel Core i5-1335U (deltaPct 0.3), and AMD EPYC 7773X (deltaPct 0.3). These deltas are all within 0.3% of the i5-12400F's average score of 19039, meaning that for pure CPU compute, this processor is statistically tied with those alternatives. However, in Red Dead Redemption 2, the measured FPS results are far more dependent on the Intel Arc B570 GPU, as will be shown in the resolution scaling section.

The CPU's 65W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 platform make it a conventional desktop part, but its performance class is what matters here. The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 79 FPS average, which is the highest measured result across all configurations. This suggests that when the GPU is not heavily taxed, the CPU can feed frames adequately. The drop from 79 FPS at 1080p Low to 59 FPS at 1440p Low (a 25% reduction) is a GPU-side scaling effect, not a CPU limitation. The i5-12400F is not the bottleneck in this pairing; rather, the Arc B570's rendering throughput dictates the frame rates at higher resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400F + Intel Arc B570 combo ranks 2335 out of 2902 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database. This rank reflects the GPU's modest performance in this title rather than the CPU's compute capability.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-12400F's average benchmark score is 19039. The AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS scores 19047 (0% delta), the Intel Core 3 201E scores 19056 (-0.1% delta), the Intel Core i5-1335U scores 18982 (0.3% delta), and the AMD EPYC 7773X scores 18979 (0.3% delta). All are within 0.3% of the i5-12400F, indicating near-identical compute performance.

Q: What is the best FPS result for this combo in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: The highest average FPS is 79, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The next best is 59 FPS at 1920x1080 Medium and 59 FPS at 2560x1440 Low, showing that resolution and settings trade-offs can produce similar outcomes.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary limiter. At 1080p Low (79 FPS) versus 4K Low (39 FPS), the FPS drops by 51% when resolution increases fourfold, which is a GPU-bound scaling pattern. The CPU's single-thread and multi-thread scores are sufficient to avoid bottlenecking at these frame rates.

Q: What is the GPU's synthetic performance percentile?

A: The Intel Arc B570 sits in the 65th percentile among all tested GPUs. Its Passmark G3D score is 14195, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 2649, placing it near the GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% delta) and Intel Arc A750 (-0.1% delta).

Q: Does the combo achieve playable frame rates at 4K?

A: At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 18, which is not playable. At 4K High, it is 24 FPS; at 4K Medium, 29 FPS; and at 4K Low, 39 FPS. Only the 4K Low setting approaches a minimally playable 40 FPS, while other 4K settings fall below 30 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear GPU-bound scenario. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 79 at 1920x1080 to 59 at 2560x1440, then to 39 at 3840x2160. The 1080p-to-1440p drop is 25.3%, and the 1440p-to-4K drop is 33.9%. Across the full range from 1080p to 4K, the FPS falls by 50.6%. This is a classic resolution-scaling curve where pixel count increases (2.25x from 1080p to 4K) but FPS does not drop proportionally, indicating that other factors like bandwidth and cache efficiency partially mitigate the load.

At Medium settings, the pattern is similar: 59 FPS at 1080p, 44 FPS at 1440p, and 29 FPS at 4K. The 1080p-to-1440p drop is 25.4%, and the 1440p-to-4K drop is 34.1%. The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and Medium settings suggests that the Arc B570's rendering pipeline scales predictably with resolution, which is typical for a GPU with a 160-bit memory bus and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth.

At High settings, the FPS is 49 at 1080p, 37 at 1440p, and 24 at 4K. The 1080p-to-1440p drop is 24.5%, and the 1440p-to-4K drop is 35.1%. Again, the scaling is stable. At Ultra settings, the numbers are 36 FPS at 1080p, 27 at 1440p, and 18 at 4K, with a 25% drop and then a 33.3% drop. The fact that the percentage drops are nearly identical across all four settings levels (roughly 25% for the first step and 34% for the second) strongly implies the GPU is the consistent bottleneck; a CPU bottleneck would show a less steep decline at higher resolutions because the CPU workload would remain constant.

The limiting component is unequivocally the Intel Arc B570. Its 10 GB GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus yields 380.0 GB/s bandwidth, which is adequate for 1080p but strained at 4K. The 24 FPS at 4K High and 18 FPS at 4K Ultra are below playability thresholds. The CPU's role in this scaling is minimal; the i5-12400F's compute scores would support far higher frame rates if the GPU were faster. The data shows no signs of CPU-induced frame drops at 1080p (where FPS is highest), as the 79 FPS result at Low settings is not a typical CPU-capped value for a 6-core/12-thread processor with this benchmark profile.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 79 FPS, which is the only configuration above 60 FPS. Medium settings yield 59 FPS with a minimum of 50 and maximum of 68, providing a smooth experience with occasional dips. High settings average 49 FPS, while Ultra drops to 36 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 43 FPS (54.4% reduction), showing that the Arc B570's performance headroom is limited at this resolution when settings are maxed.

At 2560x1440, the results shift downward. Low settings average 59 FPS, matching the 1080p Medium result, which indicates that the resolution increase is offset by the lower settings. Medium averages 44 FPS with a range of 38 to 51, High averages 37 FPS, and Ultra averages 27 FPS. The 1440p Ultra result of 27 FPS is below the 30 FPS threshold commonly considered minimally playable, while 1440p High at 37 FPS is borderline.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles. Low settings average 39 FPS, which is the only 4K result above 30 FPS. Medium averages 29 FPS with a minimum of 25 and maximum of 34, High averages 24 FPS, and Ultra averages 18 FPS. The 4K results across all settings are below what most users would consider acceptable for a smooth action-adventure experience, with only the Low preset approaching playability.

The settings-to-settings scaling at a fixed resolution is also informative. At 1080p, going from Low to Medium costs 20 FPS (25.3% drop), Medium to High costs 10 FPS (16.9% drop), and High to Ultra costs 13 FPS (26.5% drop). At 1440p, the drops are 15 FPS (25.4%), 7 FPS (15.9%), and 10 FPS (27.0%), respectively. At 4K, the drops are 10 FPS (25.6%), 5 FPS (17.2%), and 6 FPS (25.0%). The consistent pattern of Medium-to-High having the smallest drop suggests that the High preset includes some effects that are less demanding, while Ultra adds disproportionately expensive features.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 2335 out of 2902 tested combinations in Red Dead Redemption 2, which places it in the 19.5th percentile (meaning 80.5% of combos perform better). This rank is driven by the Intel Arc B570's modest performance in this title, not by the CPU. The i5-12400F's 73rd percentile CPU ranking and the GPU's 65th percentile ranking would suggest a mid-tier pairing, but the game-specific result is lower than those synthetic percentiles would predict.

To contextualize the GPU's standing: the Arc B570's average benchmark score is 20556, with nearest rivals being the GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (20534, 0.1% delta), Intel Arc A750 (20582, -0.1% delta), Quadro M4000M (20480, 0.4% delta), and Radeon R9 M390X (20662, -0.5% delta). These rivals are within 0.5% of the Arc B570's average score, meaning the GPU is statistically tied with several other mid-range parts. However, in Red Dead Redemption 2, the measured FPS indicates that the game engine may not be fully optimized for Intel's Xe2-HPG architecture, as the results are lower than what the synthetic scores would imply.

The CPU's rivals are also closely matched, with all deltas under 0.3%. This means that swapping the i5-12400F for a Ryzen 5 7535HS or an EPYC 7773X would likely produce nearly identical frame rates in this game, assuming the same GPU. The bottleneck is the GPU, and the rank reflects that. In practical terms, this combo is positioned for 1080p Medium-to-High gaming with occasional dips, and 1440p Low is viable. For Red Dead Redemption 2, users seeking higher settings at 1440p or any playable 4K would need a more powerful GPU.

The rank of 2335 out of 2902 also suggests that there are many combinations with significantly better performance. The data does not provide specific scores for higher-ranked combos, but the FPS breakdown shows that this pairing cannot exceed 79 FPS at 1080p Low, which is a modest ceiling for a modern desktop combo. The 10 GB VRAM and 160-bit bus are likely contributors to the 4K performance drop, as the memory bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s is a limiting factor at high pixel counts.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 1920x1080 with Medium settings. This configuration delivers an average of 59 FPS with a minimum of 50 and maximum of 68, providing a stable frame rate that stays above 50 FPS in the worst case. The 59 FPS average is close to the 60 FPS target, and the variance is narrow enough to avoid noticeable stutter. Choosing High at 1080p drops the average to 49 FPS, which is still playable but sacrifices the headroom needed for demanding scenes.

At 2560x1440, the recommended setting is Low, which produces an average of 59 FPS, identical to the 1080p Medium result. This allows users to enjoy a higher resolution without giving up frame rate, though the visual quality reduction may not be worth it for all users. If 1440p is preferred, Low is the only setting that maintains an average above 55 FPS; Medium drops to 44 FPS, which is borderline, and High falls to 37 FPS.

For 4K, no setting provides a fully playable experience. Low averages 39 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target but may be acceptable for users who prioritize resolution over smoothness. Medium averages 29 FPS with a minimum of 25, which will result in noticeable frame pacing issues during intense action. High and Ultra at 24 and 18 FPS respectively are not recommended for anything other than screenshots.

The best experience per the measured rows is 1080p Medium, balancing visual fidelity and frame rate. The 59 FPS average with a 50 FPS minimum ensures that the game remains responsive in most scenarios. If users have a variable refresh rate monitor, 1080p High at 49 FPS could also be viable, but the 10 FPS drop from Medium to High is a significant cost for what is likely a modest visual improvement. For 1440p users, Low is the only setting that avoids dropping below 55 FPS average, and the 59 FPS result matches 1080p Medium, making it a reasonable alternative if the resolution increase is valued more than texture quality. The data does not support any 4K settings as a recommended experience, as even the best 4K result (39 FPS Low) is below the 40 FPS threshold that many consider the minimum for playable action games.