The Medium

The Medium presents a fascinating case study in how a horror title’s fixed-camera angles and pre-rendered environments interact with modern hardware. The measured data for the Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti combination reveals a system that is consistently capable, yet whose performance profile shifts dramatically depending on the chosen resolution and quality preset. The benchmark results indicate that this pairing is not a straightforward 1080p powerhouse, but rather a versatile configuration with distinct strengths at each tier, and the numbers invite a closer look at where the actual bottleneck lies.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The FPS data shows a clear and expected trend: as resolution increases, average frame rates decline. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo produces 46.3 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset drops this to 38.9 FPS, a reduction of roughly 16%. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average falls further to 31.8 FPS. This pattern is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering workload per pixel increases significantly with resolution.

However, the scaling is not uniform across all settings. At Low settings, the system moves from 131 FPS at 1080p to 107 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 86.9 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at Low is about 34%, which is less severe than the 31% drop seen at Ultra, but the absolute frame rates remain high enough to suggest the CPU is still feeding the GPU adequately. The data implies that at 1080p, particularly with lower settings, the Intel Core i5-12400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient to keep the RTX 3070 Ti busy, but the GPU’s raw throughput becomes the limiting factor as pixel count climbs.

The most telling observation is the gap between settings at each resolution. At 4K, the difference between Low (86.9 FPS) and Ultra (31.8 FPS) is a massive 55.1 FPS. This wide spread indicates that the RTX 3070 Ti’s 8 GB of GDDR6X memory and its compute units are heavily taxed by the higher-fidelity effects in The Medium. The game’s dual-reality rendering, which often displays two worlds simultaneously, appears to place an outsized burden on GPU resources. The data suggests that for a smooth 4K experience, users must make significant sacrifices in visual quality, as even High settings at 4K yield just 39.6 FPS.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark scores place it in the 77th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19221. In synthetic tests, it achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332, indicating strong all-around performance for a mid-range desktop chip.

In the context of The Medium, the CPU’s role appears secondary to the GPU, but it is not irrelevant. The fact that the system can hit 131 FPS at 1080p Low suggests the 12 threads are more than capable of handling the game’s logic and AI at high frame rates. The processor’s nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i7-8700K (with a deltaPct of 0.1%), show that the i5-12400F is essentially on par with older high-end parts in general compute. This parity implies that the CPU is not a weak link in this configuration.

However, the data also hints that the CPU might start to matter more at lower resolutions. The difference between 1080p Low (131 FPS) and 1440p Low (107 FPS) is a 24 FPS drop, which is less than the 31 FPS drop seen from 1440p to 4K at the same settings. This suggests that at 1080p, the GPU is still the primary constraint, but the CPU is working harder to maintain those high frame rates. The processor’s single-thread performance, as evidenced by its PassMark single-thread score of 3481, is likely a key factor in preventing a CPU bottleneck in a game that may rely on a main thread for rendering calls.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Looking at the measured rows, the choice of settings is a delicate balance between fluidity and visual fidelity. At 1920x1080, the High preset provides 56.2 FPS, which is playable but not exceptionally smooth for a horror game where tense moments benefit from high frame rates. The Ultra preset drops to 46.3 FPS, which is still playable but risks stuttering during fast camera transitions. The Medium preset offers 80.5 FPS, which is a substantial leap in smoothness and likely the sweet spot for 1080p gaming on this hardware.

At 2560x1440, the situation becomes more critical. Medium settings produce 68.9 FPS, which is a solid experience, while High falls to 50.9 FPS. The Ultra preset at 38.9 FPS is borderline, and the data suggests that players prioritizing a consistent frame rate should avoid it. The Low preset at 107 FPS is overkill for most displays but demonstrates headroom for future titles.

For 3840x2160, the data is clear: Ultra at 31.8 FPS is not a viable option for smooth gameplay, and High at 39.6 FPS is still below the 60 FPS threshold. The Medium preset at 51.9 FPS is the only setting that approaches playability, but it still falls short. The Low preset at 86.9 FPS is the only 4K option that guarantees a fluid experience, but it sacrifices the atmospheric effects that define The Medium’s visual identity. The recommendation is to use Medium at 1080p or 1440p for the best balance, and to accept Low settings if 4K is mandatory.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the database of tested configurations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti holds a rank of 652 out of 1689 combos for The Medium. This places it in the upper-middle tier of all tested systems. The rank indicates that while this is not a top-tier enthusiast setup, it outperforms a majority of combinations. The RTX 3070 Ti’s general benchmark percentile of 74th against all GPUs is consistent with this ranking, showing that the GPU is the primary driver of its position.

The combo’s performance is notable when compared to the GPU’s nearest rivals. The AMD Radeon RX 590 GME has a deltaPct of 0.3% relative to the RTX 3070 Ti’s average score, yet in real-world gaming, the RTX 3070 Ti’s 8 GB of GDDR6X memory and higher texture rate of 339.8 GTexel/s give it a significant advantage in a title like The Medium, which appears to be memory-bandwidth sensitive. The rank of 652 suggests that there are many combos with faster CPUs or GPUs that achieve higher frame rates, but the data also shows that this setup is far from a budget compromise. It sits comfortably in the mid-range, capable of handling the game at playable settings across multiple resolutions, but it is not a top-100 contender, likely due to the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM limit being reached at higher settings.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is built on the Ampere architecture with 6144 shading units, 192 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units. Its base clock is 1575 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz, and it features 8 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 608.3 GB/s. The GPU’s 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores are designed for ray tracing and DLSS, but the measured data for The Medium does not include ray-tracing-specific tests, so the focus is on traditional rasterization.

The GPU’s role in this game is paramount. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 31.8 FPS, which is likely due to the game’s complex rendering techniques and the GPU’s VRAM capacity. The 8 GB of GDDR6X may become a limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings, as The Medium’s dual-world rendering can exceed this allocation, causing performance to plummet. The memory bandwidth of 608.3 GB/s is substantial, but the game’s data demands appear to outpace it at 4K Ultra.

The GPU’s general benchmark scores, such as a PassMark G3D score of 23356, indicate solid performance, but its nearest rivals show minimal deltaPct (e.g., AMD Radeon RX 6700 at -0.8%), suggesting that the RTX 3070 Ti is not head-and-shoulders above its peers in synthetic tests. However, in The Medium, the specific combination of its 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores, while not directly tested, likely contributes to its ability to handle the game’s visual effects at lower settings where VRAM is not exhausted. The data suggests that the GPU is the deciding factor for frame rates, with the CPU providing ample support.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

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

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 46.3 FPS.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations in The Medium?

A: This combo ranks 652 out of 1689 tested combos, placing it in the upper-middle tier.

Q: What is the 4K Low preset average frame rate?

A: At 3840x2160 with Low settings, the average frame rate is 86.9 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the bottleneck at 1080p Low?

A: The data shows 131 FPS at 1080p Low, which is high, but the GPU’s performance at higher settings suggests it is the limiting component, not the CPU.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the GPU?

A: The launch MSRP for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is 599 USD.

Q: How many cores and threads does the Intel Core i5-12400F have?

A: It has 6 cores and 12 threads.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following table details the exact measured average FPS for each resolution and settings combination.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|

| 3840x2160 | High | 39.6 |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 86.9 |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 51.9 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 31.8 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 50.9 |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 107 |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 68.9 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 38.9 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 56.2 |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 131 |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 80.5 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 46.3 |

At 1080p, the system ranges from 46.3 FPS on Ultra to 131 FPS on Low, showing a wide performance envelope. The 1440p results show a tighter range, from 38.9 FPS on Ultra to 107 FPS on Low. The 4K results are the most demanding, with Ultra at 31.8 FPS and Low at 86.9 FPS. The data confirms that the RTX 3070 Ti is a capable card, but The Medium’s high-end presets push it to its limits, particularly at 4K. The CPU’s performance remains consistent, allowing the GPU to be the sole determinant of frame rate across all tested configurations.