Red Dead Redemption 2

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER delivers a highly capable Red Dead Redemption 2 experience, with the data showing a clear performance hierarchy that shifts from CPU-bound at lower resolutions to GPU-bound at 4K. This combination ranks in the 83rd percentile of all tested combos, making it a strong, well-balanced setup for this title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases, with the most dramatic drop occurring between 1080p and 1440p. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 105 FPS, which falls to 81.4 FPS at 2560x1440 — a 22.5% reduction. The jump from 1440p to 4K is less severe proportionally, with High settings dropping from 81.4 FPS to 55.2 FPS, a 32.2% decrease. This pattern suggests that at 1080p, the system is not fully GPU-limited, as the frame rate headroom allows the CPU to play a more significant role.

The scaling across all settings tiers confirms this interpretation. At Low settings, the combo achieves 172.1 FPS at 1080p, 127.8 FPS at 1440p, and 83.3 FPS at 4K. The fact that 4K Low still produces over 80 FPS indicates that even at the lowest graphical load, the GPU remains the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. At Ultra settings, the 4K result of 37 FPS is the only sub-60 FPS figure in the entire dataset, showing that the game's most demanding preset pushes the RTX 4070 SUPER to its limits at 4K.

The scaling behavior suggests that for competitive play or high-refresh monitors, 1080p or 1440p are the sweet spots. At 1080p Ultra, the 76.5 FPS result is solidly above the 60 FPS threshold, while 1440p Ultra dips to 54.8 FPS — playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. The limiting component at 4K is clearly the GPU, as the CPU's performance ceiling is far higher than what the GPU can deliver at that resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo holds position 278 out of 1,687 tested configurations, placing it in the top 16.5% of all CPU-GPU pairings tested in Red Dead Redemption 2. This percentile ranking indicates that the i7-12700K and RTX 4070 SUPER combination outperforms the vast majority of systems in this title, while still leaving headroom above it for more powerful — and likely more expensive — hardware.

The CPU itself ranks in the 89th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35,684. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, scores 35,802, a difference of only -0.3%, meaning the two processors are effectively performance equals. The Intel Core i7-13700T sits 0.6% behind at 35,468, while the Intel Core i5-14500HX is 0.7% ahead at 35,940. These tight deltas show that the i7-12700K is positioned in a densely competitive segment of the market, where small gains or losses of less than 1% separate it from direct competitors.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 84 is slightly lower than the CPU's 89, suggesting that the graphics card is the slightly weaker link in this pairing for general workloads. However, in Red Dead Redemption 2 specifically, the GPU's role is more pronounced, as the game's heavy graphical demands at higher presets and resolutions shift the balance toward the RTX 4070 SUPER. The combo's overall rank of 278 out of 1,687 reflects this balance — not a top-tier extreme setup, but a configuration that comfortably handles the game across most settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER brings 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is directly relevant to Red Dead Redemption 2's performance at higher resolutions, where texture data and geometry demands increase. The card's 7,168 shading units and 80 ROPs handle the game's rasterization workload, while its 56 RT cores and 224 tensor cores provide the architecture for ray tracing and DLSS features, should the game utilize them.

The GPU boosts to 2,475 MHz, with a base clock of 1,980 MHz. These clocks, combined with the 35.48 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, explain why the card delivers 172.1 FPS at 1080p Low — a figure that would be impossible without substantial raw throughput. The card's 220 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate it is a mainstream high-performance part, not an enthusiast-class flagship. The suggested 550 W PSU requirement is modest for the performance level.

In this game, the GPU's VRAM capacity is likely sufficient even at 4K Ultra, as the 37 FPS result at that preset is more likely a compute or bandwidth limitation than a memory capacity issue. The 12 GB allocation is ample for a 2018 title, even one with demanding open-world environments. The GPU's performance across settings tiers shows a consistent ~30-40% jump from Low to Ultra at each resolution, indicating that the card scales predictably with graphical load. The 4K Ultra result of 37 FPS, while low, is the only setting where the card fails to maintain playable framerates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers strong performance across all settings. Low settings produce 172.1 FPS, Medium 129 FPS, High 105 FPS, and Ultra 76.5 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 95.6 FPS, showing that the GPU has significant headroom even at the highest preset. The 76.5 FPS Ultra result is well above the 60 FPS target, making 1080p Ultra a fully viable option for smooth gameplay.

Moving to 2560x1440, the results remain playable across the board. Low settings hit 127.8 FPS, Medium 96.8 FPS, High 81.4 FPS, and Ultra 54.8 FPS. The Ultra preset dips below 60 FPS, which may be a concern for users with high-refresh 1440p monitors. High settings at 81.4 FPS strike a good balance between visual quality and smoothness, while Low settings provide a competitive edge for multiplayer modes with 127.8 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. Low settings deliver 83.3 FPS, Medium 61.7 FPS, High 55.2 FPS, and Ultra 37 FPS. The drop from Medium to High is 6.5 FPS, while the drop from High to Ultra is 18.2 FPS — a much steeper decline. This suggests that the Ultra preset introduces a disproportionately heavy load, likely through increased draw distances, shadow quality, or lighting effects. For 4K gaming, Low or Medium settings are required for a smooth experience, while High and Ultra are only suitable for less demanding moments or with the use of upscaling technologies.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K features 12 cores and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This configuration, based on the Alder Lake architecture, provides substantial multi-threaded throughput for modern games. The processor's 25 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core ensure that frequently accessed game data is kept close to the cores, reducing latency.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU's role is most evident at 1080p, where the lower GPU load allows the processor to keep pace with high frame rates. The 172.1 FPS Low result at 1080p demonstrates that the CPU can feed the GPU with enough frames to saturate it, even at lower graphical settings. The 3DMark benchmarks support this — the CPU scores 9,276 in the 16-thread test and 9,979 in the max-thread test, indicating strong multi-core performance. Single-thread performance is also solid, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1,043 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4,128.

The CPU's 89th percentile ranking against all processors, with an average benchmark score of 35,684, places it ahead of most CPUs on the market. Its nearest rivals all fall within 0.8% of its score, showing that it is competitively positioned. The 125 W TDP and 10 nm process node indicate a balance of power efficiency and performance. At 4K, the CPU's advantage becomes less relevant, as the GPU's workload dominates the frame time budget. However, at 1080p and 1440p, the i7-12700K's strong single-thread and multi-thread performance ensures it does not become a bottleneck, as evidenced by the consistent frame rates across resolution scaling.

FAQ

Q: What frame rate does this combo achieve at 1080p High settings?

A: The combo delivers 105 FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: Can this setup handle 4K gaming in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: At 4K, the combo achieves 83.3 FPS on Low settings, 61.7 FPS on Medium, and 55.2 FPS on High. Ultra settings drop to 37 FPS, so 4K gaming is feasible only at lower presets.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i7-12700K scores 35,684 on average, which is 0.3% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (35,802) and 0.7% behind the Intel Core i5-14500HX (35,940). It is 0.6% ahead of the Intel Core i7-13700T (35,468).

Q: What is the GPU's VRAM capacity and bandwidth?

A: The RTX 4070 SUPER has 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for competitive play?

A: For maximum frame rates, 1080p Low settings produce 172.1 FPS, while 1440p Low delivers 127.8 FPS. Both provide a significant competitive advantage over higher presets.

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

A: The combo ranks 278th out of 1,687 tested CPU-GPU pairings in Red Dead Redemption 2, placing it in the top 16.5% of all configurations.