The Medium

The Medium is a demanding horror title that stresses both GPU and CPU depending on the settings and resolution chosen. For the combination of the Intel Core i5-12400F and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, the measured data reveals a system that is capable of delivering smooth gameplay at lower resolutions and settings, but which struggles to maintain playable frame rates at higher fidelity presets. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across all tested configurations, interprets the scaling behavior, and contextualizes the results against the hardware's benchmark standings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the Low settings preset, the average FPS drops from 91 at 1080p to 77 at 1440p, and finally to 60 at 4K. This represents a 34% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K, indicating that even at the lowest graphical fidelity, the rendering load at 4K nearly saturates the GPU's capabilities.

The scaling becomes more severe at higher settings presets. With Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 57 at 1080p to 48 at 1440p (a 16% drop), and then to 38 at 4K (a 33% drop from 1440p). The High preset shows a similar trend: 41 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 27 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset exhibits the most dramatic scaling, with averages of 32 FPS at 1080p, 27 FPS at 1440p, and just 21 FPS at 4K.

This scaling behavior strongly suggests that the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is the primary limiting component at resolutions above 1080p when using higher settings. The consistent reduction in FPS as pixel count increases points to fill-rate and memory bandwidth constraints, which are characteristic of a mid-range GPU being pushed beyond its comfortable operating range. At 1080p, the CPU has more headroom to feed the GPU, but even then, the Ultra preset's 32 FPS average indicates that the game's graphical demands quickly outpace the GPU's raw throughput.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F features 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake-S architecture processor has an L3 cache of 18 MB shared across all cores. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU posts a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 12380 and a single-core score of 1680, with a Geekbench multi-core score of 9472 and single-core score of 1964.

Given that the i5-12400F ranks in the 73rd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19039, it is clearly not the bottleneck in this pairing. The nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (avgScore 19047, deltaPct 0) and Intel Core i5-1335U (avgScore 18982, deltaPct 0.3), show that the i5-12400F sits at a performance parity point with these mobile and efficiency-focused parts, despite being a desktop-class processor with a 65W TDP.

The game's results indicate that the CPU's 12 threads and boost clock of 4.40 GHz are sufficient for maintaining frame pacing at 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed. However, the measured FPS at higher resolutions does not show any sudden drop that would indicate a CPU bottleneck; instead, the gradual decline aligns with GPU-bound rendering. The 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and multi-thread score of 5912 suggest that the CPU can handle the game's logic and draw calls without becoming a limiting factor, even when the GPU is producing 91 FPS at 1080p Low.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1920x1080 with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Medium settings is 57, with a minimum of 49 and a maximum of 66.

Q: Can this combo maintain 60 FPS at 1440p?

A: Only at the Low settings preset does the average FPS reach 77. At Medium settings, the average drops to 48, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the GPU's 8 GB VRAM affect 4K performance?

A: The 8 GB GDDR6 memory with a 256.0 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for Low settings at 4K (60 FPS average), but at Medium and above, the average FPS falls to 38 or lower, indicating memory bandwidth constraints.

Q: What is the best resolution for a stable 60 FPS experience?

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the average FPS is 91. For a more visually demanding experience, 1080p Medium (57 FPS) or 1440p Low (77 FPS) are the only configurations that come close to or exceed 60 FPS.

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

A: The i5-12400F has an average benchmark score of 19039, which is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS (19047) and the Intel Core i5-1335U (18982), with deltaPct values of 0 and 0.3 respectively.

Q: Does the game utilize the CPU's multi-threading capabilities?

A: The 12-thread processor shows strong multi-threaded synthetic scores (Cinebench R23 multi-core 12380), and the game's consistent FPS across resolutions suggests the CPU is not a limiting factor, even when all threads are active.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-12400F and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks 2669 out of 3724 tested combos for The Medium. This places the combo in the lower 28th percentile of all tested systems, which aligns with the measured FPS results showing that this hardware struggles with higher settings.

The rank reflects the GPU's position relative to all tested graphics cards, as the RX 6600 XT sits in the 70th percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 24442. The GPU's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630 (avgScore 24277, deltaPct 0.7) and the Intel Arc A350M (avgScore 24647, deltaPct -0.8), showing that the RX 6600 XT is competitive with entry-level and older mid-range cards, but not with higher-tier options.

The combo's rank of 2669 out of 3724 suggests that many other tested configurations deliver better performance in this specific title. This is likely due to the game's heavy reliance on GPU rendering capabilities, where the RX 6600 XT's 2048 shading units and 64 ROPs are insufficient for high-fidelity settings at higher resolutions. The CPU's strong synthetic scores (73rd percentile) do not compensate for the GPU's limitations in this GPU-intensive horror title.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combo is achieved at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which delivers an average of 57 FPS with a minimum of 49 FPS. This configuration provides a balance between visual quality and playable frame rates, staying above the 30 FPS minimum that is often considered acceptable for slower-paced horror games.

For players prioritizing smoothness over visual fidelity, 1920x1080 with Low settings yields an average of 91 FPS, offering a comfortable margin for frame rate fluctuations. At 1440p, the Low preset (77 FPS average) is the only setting that maintains a consistently high frame rate, while Medium at 1440p (48 FPS average) is borderline playable but may experience noticeable stutter during intense scenes.

The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as even at 1080p it only achieves a 32 FPS average. At 4K, only the Low preset (60 FPS average) reaches playable levels, while Medium (38 FPS) and High (27 FPS) fall below acceptable thresholds. The data clearly indicates that this hardware is best suited for 1080p gaming, with 1440p being viable only at reduced settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS across all settings presets is as follows: Low delivers 91 FPS, Medium delivers 57 FPS (min 49, max 66), High delivers 41 FPS, and Ultra delivers 32 FPS. This resolution shows the widest range of performance, from smooth 90+ FPS at Low to barely playable 32 FPS at Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops across all presets: Low achieves 77 FPS, Medium achieves 48 FPS (min 41, max 55), High achieves 34 FPS, and Ultra achieves 27 FPS. The step from 1080p to 1440p results in a 15-20% reduction in average FPS across most settings, with the Low preset showing the smallest relative drop.

At 3840x2160, the performance degrades significantly: Low still manages 60 FPS, Medium drops to 38 FPS (min 32, max 43), High falls to 27 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 21 FPS. The 4K resolution exposes the GPU's limitations, with only the Low preset maintaining a 60 FPS average, and all other presets falling below the 40 FPS mark.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with a 7 nm process node, featuring 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. It operates at a base clock of 1968 MHz and a boost clock of 2589 MHz, with a game clock of 2359 MHz. The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s.

The GPU's synthetic benchmark scores show a Passmark G3D score of 16461 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1804. These results place the GPU in the 70th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 24442. The nearest rivals, including the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630 (deltaPct 0.7) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (deltaPct 1.1), indicate that while the RX 6600 XT is competitive with these older cards, it does not offer the raw compute power of higher-tier modern GPUs.

In The Medium, the GPU's role is decisive. The measured FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a clear pattern of GPU-bound performance, where the 8 GB VRAM and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth become limiting factors at higher resolutions and settings. The 32 RT cores are present but do not appear to provide sufficient acceleration for the game's ray-traced effects, as evidenced by the significant FPS drops at Ultra settings. The GPU's 160W TDP and dual-slot design suggest it is a mid-range part, and the benchmark data confirms that it is best suited for 1080p gaming with medium-to-high settings, rather than high-resolution or high-fidelity gaming.