Steamworld Build

The Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 pairing delivers a solid 1080p and 1440p experience in Steamworld Build, with the data showing a steep performance cliff only when pushing 4K Ultra settings. The combination ranks in the 48th percentile of all tested combos for this game, placing it at 836 out of 1730, which indicates a balanced mid-range setup that handles the city builder genre comfortably at mainstream resolutions. Benchmark results show the CPU holding its own against comparable processors, while the GPU demonstrates strong scaling across the game's four settings presets.

FAQ

Q: How does the Core i5-12400 compare to its closest rival in CPU benchmarks?

A: The processor sits within 0.4% of the Intel Core i5-11600K, with the i5-12400 scoring 19850 average versus 19771. It also edges out the Intel Core i7-9700 by 0.1%, scoring 19831, while trailing the Intel Core i7-8700 by 0.2% which scores 19894.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Steamworld Build?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 as the sweet spot, hitting 237.1 FPS on Low and 134.4 FPS on High settings. At 2560x1440, the combo still delivers smooth gameplay with 89.6 FPS on High, but 3840x2160 drops to 45.3 FPS on High and only 28.3 FPS on Ultra.

Q: How much VRAM does the RTX 5060 have and what memory type is used?

A: The GPU comes with 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration supports the game's demands up to High settings at 1440p without issue.

Q: Is the i5-12400 a 6-core processor?

A: Yes, it features 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its 18 MB of shared L3 cache helps with the game's simulation-heavy workloads.

Q: How does the RTX 5060 perform against its nearest rival in GPU benchmarks?

A: The GeForce RTX 5060 scores 30109 on average, matching the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT exactly with a 0% delta. It also leads the NVIDIA Tesla M60 by 0.5% and the RTX 5070 Mobile by 0.6%, while trailing the Radeon RX 570 by 0.2%.

Q: What FPS can players expect at 2560x1440 with Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows 116.7 FPS at this resolution and preset, which comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold for smooth city-building gameplay. Even Ultra settings at this resolution maintain 60.8 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings 6 cores and 12 threads to Steamworld Build, a configuration that aligns well with the game's simulation and pathfinding demands. With a base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost reaching 4.40 GHz, the processor demonstrates strong single-thread performance in synthetic tests, scoring 910 in 3dmark_single_thread and 2249 in Cinebench R23 single-core. This matters for city builders, where individual unit logic and UI responsiveness often depend on single-threaded efficiency.

Multi-threaded performance is equally robust, with the CPU scoring 5890 in 3dmark_max_threads and 15935 in Cinebench R23 multicore. These figures place the i5-12400 in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19850. The 10 nm Alder Lake architecture, with its 18 MB shared L3 cache, provides the kind of memory hierarchy that keeps simulation ticks consistent as the city grows. The processor's 65 W TDP suggests thermal headroom is not a concern in typical desktop builds.

The benchmark data shows the i5-12400 performing within 0.4% of four rival processors, including the Intel Core i7-9700 and AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX. This tight clustering indicates that for Steamworld Build, the CPU is not the bottleneck at most settings. The 3dmark 2-thread score of 1692, compared to 5873 for 16 threads, reveals that the processor scales well with additional load, which is useful when the game calculates resource distribution across large maps.

At 1080p, the CPU's contribution is measurable but secondary to the GPU. The jump from Low to High settings at 1920x1080 shows a 102.7 FPS difference, indicating that the graphics card determines frame rates more than the processor. However, at 4K Ultra where the GPU is heavily taxed, the CPU's 6-core design still keeps the simulation running smoothly, as evidenced by the 28.3 FPS result being limited by the GPU rather than processor stalls.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 uses 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration proves adequate for Steamworld Build's asset streaming, where textures and object data load as players zoom across their city. The GPU's 2280 MHz base clock and 2497 MHz boost clock provide the computational throughput needed for the game's rendering engine, which combines 3D building models with 2D UI overlays.

With 3840 shading units and 120 tensor cores, the RTX 5060 ranks in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs, scoring 20891 in Passmark G3D and 120785 in Geekbench OpenCL. The GPU's average benchmark score of 30109 places it in a dead heat with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, which scores 30097. This parity is reflected in the game's performance, where the RTX 5060 shows consistent scaling across settings rather than sudden drops.

The GPU's 19.18 TFLOPS FP32 performance handles Steamworld Build's draw calls efficiently. At 1920x1080, the data shows 237.1 FPS on Low settings, which drops to 182.7 FPS on Medium and 134.4 FPS on High. The step to Ultra at 93.8 FPS represents a 30% reduction from High, suggesting that the Ultra preset introduces rendering features that significantly tax the 8 GB VRAM buffer. This pattern repeats at 1440p, where High yields 89.6 FPS and Ultra drops to 60.8 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become apparent. High settings produce 45.3 FPS, below the 60 FPS target, while Ultra falls to 28.3 FPS. The 78.6 FPS result on Low at 4K indicates that the GPU can handle the resolution when texture quality is reduced. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth appears sufficient for the game's streaming needs, but the 8 GB capacity may force texture swapping at high resolution with Ultra settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The Core i5-12400 and RTX 5060 combination ranks 836 out of 1730 tested combos in Steamworld Build, placing it just below the median. This ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component drastically limits the other. The CPU's 77th percentile standing and the GPU's 73rd percentile positioning suggest that the combo sits in the upper-mid range of all possible configurations for this game.

In the context of the measured FPS data, this rank makes sense. The combo delivers 60.8 FPS at 1440p Ultra, which is playable but not exceptional, while achieving 134.4 FPS at 1080p High, which is smooth for a city builder. The rank of 836 indicates that many higher-end combos exist, particularly those with more powerful GPUs that can maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra, a task this pairing cannot accomplish.

The ranking also reflects the game's CPU-light nature. Since the i5-12400 performs within 0.4% of rivals like the i7-9700 in synthetic tests, upgrading the CPU alone would not meaningfully change this combo's rank. Conversely, the GPU's position relative to the RX 7700 XT suggests that a GPU upgrade would provide the most benefit for players seeking higher frame rates at 4K.

Compared to the 1730 total combos, the 836 rank means roughly half of tested systems outperform this pairing in Steamworld Build. However, the measured FPS data shows that this rank does not translate to poor playability at mainstream resolutions. The combo excels at 1080p and remains capable at 1440p, with the 4K Ultra setting being the only scenario where performance becomes marginal.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results across all settings. Low settings produce 237.1 FPS, which is 54.4 FPS higher than Medium's 182.7 FPS. High settings yield 134.4 FPS, while Ultra drops to 93.8 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 143.3 FPS range, indicating that the GPU has significant headroom at this resolution and that the CPU can feed frames efficiently.

Moving to 2560x1440, the pattern continues but with reduced margins. Low settings hit 154.1 FPS, Medium achieves 116.7 FPS, and High reaches 89.6 FPS. Ultra settings produce 60.8 FPS, which is exactly at the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. The data shows a 93.3 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution, suggesting the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as pixel count increases.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops become pronounced. High settings yield 45.3 FPS, Medium delivers 63.3 FPS, and Low reaches 78.6 FPS. Ultra settings produce 28.3 FPS, which is below playability thresholds for most users. Interestingly, Medium outperforms High by 18 FPS at this resolution, indicating that the High preset includes effects that tax the 8 GB VRAM more than the raw resolution alone.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: the difference between Medium and High settings widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the gap is 48.3 FPS; at 1440p, it narrows to 27.1 FPS; at 4K, High actually falls below Medium by 18 FPS. This suggests that the High preset at 4K triggers memory-intensive rendering paths that the RTX 5060's 8 GB capacity cannot fully accommodate. Players targeting 4K should use Medium settings to maintain frame rates above 60 FPS, as the 63.3 FPS result shows this is achievable.