Road 96

Road 96 is an adventure title that, per the measured data, behaves as a surprisingly scalable workload for the Intel Core i5-12600KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 combination. The dataset across three resolutions and four settings presets shows a system that can deliver high refresh rates at 1080p, remain entirely playable at 1440p, and only begins to show its limits at 4K with the heaviest presets. The analysis below interprets these measured frames, the role of the CPU's core and clock configuration, the GPU's memory and boost behavior, and how this pair ranks among all tested combinations in this specific game.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy for this combo. At 1920x1080, every preset exceeds the 100 FPS threshold: High averages 134 FPS, Medium averages 167 FPS, Ultra averages 105 FPS, and Low reaches 228 FPS. The gap between Medium and High is 33 FPS, while the gap between High and Ultra is 29 FPS, suggesting that the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance headroom for high-refresh displays. The data shows Medium at 1080p is the sweet spot, delivering 167 FPS average with a minimum of 142 FPS, ensuring no frame drops below typical 144 Hz refresh thresholds.

At 2560x1440, the same pattern holds. Medium provides 106 FPS average, High 86 FPS, and Ultra 67 FPS. The 90 FPS minimum on Medium keeps this preset viable for most 144 Hz monitors, though the 122 FPS maximum indicates the CPU and GPU are not fully saturated. Low at 145 FPS is the only preset that breaks the 144 FPS barrier, but the visual trade-off is significant. For 1440p gaming, Medium is the recommended preset: it stays comfortably above 100 FPS and offers a substantial improvement over High (20 FPS gain) and Ultra (39 FPS gain).

At 3840x2160, the situation changes. High averages 45 FPS, Medium 56 FPS, Low 77 FPS, and Ultra 35 FPS. None of these reach the 60 FPS standard for smooth play, though Medium at 56 FPS is the closest at a 4 FPS deficit. The minimum FPS on Medium at 4K is 48, which means the frame pacing is still stable. For a strictly playable experience, Medium is the only preset that approaches a playable threshold, while Low at 77 FPS is the only way to exceed 60 FPS at 4K. The recommendation is to use Medium at 1440p for a high-refresh experience, and Medium at 4K as the best compromise between visual quality and playability.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 has a base clock of 1500 MHz and a boost clock of 1725 MHz on a GA104 chip built on Samsung's 8 nm process. The memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. For Road 96, the measured data shows that this GPU is not the primary limiter at 1080p and 1440p. At 1080p, the FPS delta from Low to Ultra is only 123 FPS (from 228 to 105), which is a 54% reduction, but the GPU is still delivering over 100 FPS even at Ultra. The 134 FPS at 1080p High suggests the GPU is not running at its maximum boost clock for extended periods, as the CPU is likely delivering frames faster than the GPU can render.

The 448 GB/s bandwidth becomes relevant at 4K. The 4K Medium preset drops to 56 FPS, while 4K Ultra falls to 35 FPS. The bandwidth and memory size (8 GB) are not the bottleneck for this data, as even the heaviest preset at 4K uses less than the 8 GB available. The pixel rate of 165.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 317.4 GTexel/s are the physical limits that determine the 4K performance. The GPU compute score of 11195 in Passmark and the G3D score of 22214 reflect the raw compute capacity that scales with resolution. The 4K High preset's 45 FPS and 4K Ultra's 35 FPS are consistent with the GPU's fillrate limitations, not a memory bandwidth deficit.

The RTX 3070 has 5888 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. The TMU and ROP counts directly influence the texture-heavy scenes in Road 96, an adventure game with significant environmental detail. The 184 TMUs process textures at a rate that yields 317.4 GTexel/s, which is sufficient for the 1080p and 1440p rendering. At 4K, the 96 ROPs are the limiting factor—the pixel rate of 165.6 GPixel/s is what caps the 4K High at 45 FPS. The data shows that the GPU is the component that dictates the 4K performance, as the CPU has more than enough performance to feed the GPU at that resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF has 10 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. The 3DMark scores show a 16-thread score of 7956, a single-thread score of 1016, and a 2-thread score of 1995. In Cinebench R23, the multi-core score is 23391 and the single-core score is 3302. These numbers indicate a CPU that is extremely capable for both single-threaded and multi-threaded tasks. In Road 96, an Adventure game likely single-threaded physics and AI, the single-core performance is more relevant, but the multi-core nature of the CPU ensures that background tasks and any threaded systems won't interfere.

The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is not the bottleneck. The 1080p Low preset reaches 228 FPS, which is near the limit of what a typical high-refresh monitor can display. The 1080p High at 134 FPS and the 1080p Medium at 167 FPS indicate that the CPU can generate frames well above the GPU's rendering capability. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 1995 and 4-thread score of 3806 show that the CPU's per-core performance is strong, which matches the 1080p results where the CPU is the limiting factor. The single-thread PassMark score of 3925 is a good predictor of this game's behavior.

At 1440p, the CPU still has headroom. The 1440p Medium at 106 FPS with a 90 FPS minimum shows that the CPU is not dropping frames. The 1440p Low at 145 FPS is well above the 144 Hz threshold, and the 1440p High at 86 FPS is CPU-bound at that preset. The 4K results show the CPU is never the bottleneck—even the 4K Low at 77 FPS is lower than the 1440p High, meaning the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's 16 threads ensure that any background tasks don't interfere with the game's frame pacing.

The CPU's 20 MB of L3 cache and DDR5 support (the CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5) give it an edge in data-heavy scenes. The benchmark scores for data compression (343231) and floating-point math (67074) indicate that it can handle the game's streaming assets without causing hitches. The CPU's percentile versus all CPUs is 79, meaning it is in the top 21% of all tested CPUs, which is a strong position for a game that is mostly GPU-limited at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 144 Hz monitor at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 delivers an average of 106 FPS with a minimum of 90 FPS, making it the only preset that stays above 90 FPS at 1440p. High averages 86 FPS, Ultra 67 FPS, and Low 145 FPS, so Medium is the recommended preset for a 144 Hz display.

Q: Will 8 GB of VRAM be a problem in Road 96?

A: The measured data shows that the 8 GB GDDR6 on the RTX 3070 is not a limiting factor. The 4K Ultra preset averages 35 FPS and is limited by the GPU's fill rate, not by memory capacity. The 448 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for all tested settings, and no preset shows signs of a VRAM shortage.

Q: How does the CPU's clock speed affect the game's frame rate?

A: The i5-12600KF has a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, which contributes to the 1080p Low preset hitting 228 FPS. The single-thread score of 1016 in 3DMark and 3925 in PassMark indicate that the CPU can feed the GPU at high rates. At 1440p and above, the CPU is not a bottleneck, as the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

Q: What is the average FPS at 4K with the High preset?

A: The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with High settings is 45 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS threshold, so for 4K, the Medium preset (56 FPS) is the closest to a playable experience.

Q: Is the combo ranked high among all tested configurations?

A: The combo rank is 1590 out of 3713 tested combos, placing it in the 42nd percentile (1590/3713). This is a mid-pack position, which is consistent with the game's moderate GPU requirements—the CPU is below the top 20% of CPUs, and the GPU is in the 61st percentile of all GPUs.

Q: How does the i5-12600KF compare to its nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks?

A: The i5-12600KF's average benchmark score is 27799, which is 0.3% behind the Intel Core i9-10900K (27872) and 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (27712). It also trails the Ryzen 7 6800U by 0.3% and the Ryzen 7 5800X3D by 0.3%. These differences are negligible, meaning the CPU is on par with that generation's top performers.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS shows a consistent downward trend as resolution increases. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 228 at 1080p to 145 at 1440p (a 36% reduction) and then to 77 at 4K (a 66% reduction from 1080p). At High settings, the drop is from 134 to 86 (36%) and then to 45 (66%). The Medium preset shows a similar pattern: 167 to 106 (37%) to 56 (66%). This pattern is consistent across all presets, indicating that the scaling is resolution-bound.

The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly a 36% reduction, which is expected for a GPU that is fill-rate limited. The drop from 1440p to 4K is larger (66% from 1080p), which aligns with the pixel rate of the RTX 3070. The 165.6 GPixel/s pixel rate means that 4K (8.3 million pixels) requires more time per frame than 1440p (3.7 million pixels) and 1080p (2.1 million pixels). The 4K performance is exactly what a GPU with this pixel rate can deliver.

The scaling indicates that the CPU is not the bottleneck at any resolution above 1080p. The 1080p Low at 228 FPS is the only point where the CPU might be the limiting factor, but the 1440p Low at 145 FPS shows that the GPU is already the constraint at 1440p. The 4K results (77 FPS Low, 56 FPS Medium, 45 FPS High, 35 FPS Ultra) are all GPU-limited. This is a typical profile for a 1440p-class GPU being pushed beyond its comfort zone at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data is from the measuredFps array:

• 1920x1080, Low: 228 FPS average
• 1920x1080, Medium: 167 FPS average, 142 FPS minimum, 192 FPS maximum
• 1920x1080, High: 134 FPS average
• 1920x1080, Ultra: 105 FPS average

• 2560x1440, Low: 145 FPS average
• 2560x1440, Medium: 106 FPS average, 90 FPS minimum, 122 FPS maximum
• 2560x1440, High: 86 FPS average
• 2560x1440, Ultra: 67 FPS average

• 3840x2160, Low: 77 FPS average
• 3840x2160, Medium: 56 FPS average, 48 FPS minimum, 65 FPS maximum
• 3840x2160, High: 45 FPS average
• 3840x2160, Ultra: 35 FPS average

The Medium preset is the only one with min/max data across all resolutions. At 1080p, the Medium's 142 FPS minimum is 85% of the average, indicating a stable frame pacing. At 1440p, the 90 FPS minimum is 85% of the average, and at 4K, the 48 FPS minimum is 86% of the average. This consistency suggests that the Medium preset has the most uniform performance, with no severe drops.

The Ultra preset at each resolution is the heaviest preset and shows the largest drop from Medium. At 1080p, the Ultra is 38 FPS below Medium (105 vs 167). At 1440p, the Ultra is 39 FPS below Medium (67 vs 106). At 4K, the Ultra is 21 FPS below Medium (35 vs 56). The Ultra at 4K is the only preset that fails to reach a 30 FPS minimum, which is the lowest playable threshold.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Road, this CPU+GPU pair (Intel Core i5-12600KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070) holds rank 1590 out of 3713 tested combos. This places it in the 42nd percentile (1590/3713), which is a mid-pack position. The rank is relative to other combos that may include more powerful CPUs or GPUs, such as higher-end RTX cards or newer generation CPUs.

The CPU's percentile versus all CPUs is 79, meaning it is in the top 79% of all CPUs. The GPU's percentile versus all GPUs is 61, meaning it is in the top 61% of all GPUs. The combo's rank is lower than the CPU's percentile and the GPU's percentile would suggest, which indicates that the game's performance is more tied to the GPU than to the CPU. The CPU is a strong performer, but the RTX 3070 is the limiting factor for the 4K results.

The rank of 1590 out of 3713 means there are many combos that achieve better performance, likely with higher-end GPUs like the RTX 3080 or RTX 4080. However, the combo is also ahead of many lower-tier combos. The 42nd percentile is a result of the GPU being a mid-range card in the benchmark database (61st percentile GPU). The CPU's high percentile (79th) partially offsets the GPU's mid-range position, but the GPU's weight in this game is more significant. The 1080p results show that the CPU can push the RTX 3070 to high frame rates, but the 4K results show the GPU's limits, and the overall rank reflects that the combo is a solid mid-range performer in this game.