Red Dead Redemption 2

# Red Dead Redemption 2: Intel Core i7-12700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER

The measured data for this pairing reveals a system that is heavily GPU-limited at higher settings, yet shows surprising CPU headroom at lower presets. The combo ranks 137th out of 1,687 tested combinations, placing it in the top 8% of all systems evaluated. The RTX 4080 SUPER's 16 GB of VRAM and 736.3 GB/s bandwidth appear sufficient for this game, as frame rates scale predictably with resolution, but the real story emerges when comparing the performance delta between Low and Ultra presets across each resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a clear pattern of diminishing returns as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 192.1 FPS, but this drops to 144.6 FPS at 1440p and further to 92.4 FPS at 4K. That represents a 51.9% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings. The percentage drop narrows when moving to higher presets — at Ultra settings, the system delivers 85.5 FPS at 1080p, 65.4 FPS at 1440p, and 42.6 FPS at 4K, a 50.2% reduction from 1080p to 4K.

The scaling pattern suggests the GPU becomes the limiting factor more rapidly at higher resolutions. The 4K High preset delivers 56.5 FPS, while the 1080p High preset delivers 119.8 FPS — a 52.8% difference. Interestingly, the gap between 1080p and 1440p is smaller than the gap between 1440p and 4K across all settings. At Medium settings, 1080p yields 145.5 FPS, 1440p yields 108.7 FPS, and 4K yields 74 FPS. The 25.3% drop from 1080p to 1440p contrasts with the 31.9% drop from 1440p to 4K, indicating that pixel count scaling is not linear and that the 4K resolution demands significantly more from the GPU.

This pattern implies that at 1080p, the CPU plays a more substantial role in determining frame rates. The i7-12700K's boost clock of 5.00 GHz and 20 threads help maintain high frame rates at lower resolutions, but once the resolution increases, the GPU's rendering workload dominates.

GPU Role

The RTX 4080 SUPER's specifications paint a picture of a high-end card designed for demanding workloads. Its 16 GB of GDDR6X memory with a 256-bit bus and 736.3 GB/s bandwidth provides ample memory bandwidth for this game's open-world textures. The GPU's boost clock of 2550 MHz and base clock of 2295 MHz are substantial, and with 10,240 shading units and 80 RT cores, the card has considerable raw compute power.

The measured results show that at 4K Ultra, the system drops to 42.6 FPS, suggesting that the GPU is being pushed to its limits. The 4K High preset at 56.5 FPS is more playable, but still below the 60 FPS threshold many players target. The GPU's FP32 performance of 52.22 TFLOPS and pixel rate of 285.6 GPixel/s indicate strong theoretical capabilities, yet the game's demands at 4K Ultra exceed what this card can deliver at playable frame rates.

The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a dramatic range: from 92.4 FPS down to 42.6 FPS, a 53.9% reduction. This indicates that the Ultra preset introduces rendering features that heavily tax the GPU. The card's 16 GB VRAM appears sufficient, as there are no signs of memory-related stutters in the data — the FPS drops are consistent and predictable across settings. The GPU's transistor count of 45,900 million on a 5 nm process from TSMC suggests efficient power delivery, though the TDP of 320 W indicates this is a power-hungry component.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K brings 12 cores and 20 threads to this combination, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz. Its 25 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for DDR4 and DDR5 position it as a capable gaming processor. The CPU's benchmark scores show strong multi-threaded performance — a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29,241 and a 3DMark max threads score of 9,979 — which supports the idea that this CPU is not the bottleneck in most scenarios.

However, the data reveals that at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 192.1 FPS, which approaches the practical limits of what many CPUs can feed to a GPU. The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 4,013 and 3DMark single-thread score of 1,043 indicate strong per-core performance, which is crucial for maintaining high frame rates in CPU-bound scenarios. The CPU's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35,684, places it slightly below the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (35,802, -0.3% delta) and above the Intel Core i7-13700T (35,468, +0.6% delta).

The difference between 1080p Low (192.1 FPS) and 1440p Low (144.6 FPS) is 24.7%, while the difference between 1440p Low and 4K Low (92.4 FPS) is 36.1%. This suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is keeping the GPU well-fed, but the GPU becomes more constrained as resolution increases. The CPU's 12 cores and 20 threads are more than sufficient for this game, which typically scales well beyond 8 threads.

How This Combo Ranks

Ranking 137th out of 1,687 tested combinations places this system in the top 8.1% of all configurations. This is a strong result, reflecting the pairing of a high-end GPU with a capable mid-to-high-end CPU. The GPU's 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53,610, shows it sits just above the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (53,489, +0.2% delta) and the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (53,414, +0.4% delta). The CPU's 89th percentile ranking is similarly strong.

The game-specific ranking of 137 out of 1,687 suggests that while this combo is strong, there are 136 configurations that perform better in Red Dead Redemption 2 specifically. This could be due to combinations with more powerful GPUs or CPUs with higher single-thread performance. The measured data shows that this system can hit 60 FPS at 4K High (56.5 FPS is close but slightly below), and comfortably exceeds 60 FPS at 1440p High (88 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (85.5 FPS).

The rank relative to other combos indicates that for this particular game, the i7-12700K and RTX 4080 SUPER form a balanced pairing. The system's performance is not limited by a weak component, as evidenced by the smooth scaling across resolutions and settings. The data suggests that upgrading either component alone would yield diminishing returns for this title.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest preset that maintains 60 FPS at 4K?

A: The 4K High preset delivers 56.5 FPS, which is below 60 FPS. The 4K Medium preset achieves 74 FPS, so Medium is the highest preset that maintains 60 FPS at 4K.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score?

A: The i7-12700K's average benchmark score of 35,684 is 0.3% lower than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (35,802) and 0.6% higher than the Intel Core i7-13700T (35,468). It also trails the Intel Core i5-14500HX (35,940) by 0.7% and leads the Intel Core i7-13800H (35,416) by 0.8%.

Q: Is 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for Red Dead Redemption 2 at 4K?

A: The measured data shows no evidence of VRAM limitations. The 16 GB of GDDR6X memory with 736.3 GB/s bandwidth appears adequate, as frame rates scale consistently with settings changes without unexpected drops.

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, Low settings deliver 144.6 FPS while Ultra settings deliver 65.4 FPS. This represents a 79.2 FPS difference, or a 54.8% reduction from Low to Ultra.

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

A: The combo ranks 137th out of 1,687 tested combinations, placing it in the top 8.1% of all systems tested for Red Dead Redemption 2.

Q: At which resolution and settings does the system achieve its highest frame rate?

A: The highest measured frame rate is 192.1 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest is 42.6 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Settings Recommendations

The data suggests that for the best balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1440p or 4K provides the most compelling experience. At 4K Medium, the system delivers 74 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 1440p Medium, the system achieves 108.7 FPS, offering a smooth experience with room to spare. The Ultra presets at any resolution drop below 86 FPS, with 4K Ultra falling to 42.6 FPS, which is likely too low for smooth gameplay.

For players prioritizing frame rate, the Low preset at 1080p (192.1 FPS) or 1440p (144.6 FPS) offers maximum performance. The High preset at 1440p (88 FPS) provides a good middle ground, though it falls below 60 FPS at 4K (56.5 FPS). The data indicates that Medium settings at 4K offer the best combination of visual fidelity and playability, as the 74 FPS result is nearly 31% higher than the High preset's 56.5 FPS at the same resolution. The gap between Medium and High at 4K (17.5 FPS) is larger than the gap between Medium and Low (18.4 FPS), suggesting that the High preset introduces disproportionately heavy rendering effects.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the system delivers 92.4 FPS on Low, 74 FPS on Medium, 56.5 FPS on High, and 42.6 FPS on Ultra. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent decrease, with each preset level costing approximately 16-18 FPS. The 4K resolution clearly stresses the GPU, as even the Low preset cannot reach 100 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the results are 144.6 FPS on Low, 108.7 FPS on Medium, 88 FPS on High, and 65.4 FPS on Ultra. The 1440p resolution offers a significant improvement over 4K, with the Low preset exceeding 144 FPS and the Medium preset staying above 100 FPS. The Ultra preset at 65.4 FPS is just above the 60 FPS threshold.

At 1920x1080, the system achieves 192.1 FPS on Low, 145.5 FPS on Medium, 119.8 FPS on High, and 85.5 FPS on Ultra. The 1080p resolution shows the CPU's ability to push high frame rates, with the Low preset approaching 200 FPS. The Ultra preset at 85.5 FPS demonstrates that even at the highest settings, the system maintains excellent performance at this resolution. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p to 4K is consistent across all presets, with the largest absolute drops occurring at the Low preset and the smallest at the Ultra preset.