The Medium

# Resolution Scaling

The Medium presents a demanding workload for this Intel Core i7-12700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 pairing, and the resolution scaling data reveals a system that becomes progressively GPU-bound as pixel count rises. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces 83 FPS average. Dropping to 2560x1440 Low, the average falls to 70 FPS, a 15.7% reduction. Pushing further to 3840x2160 Low, the average lands at 55 FPS, another 21.4% decline from the 1440p figure. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU that is increasingly overwhelmed by pixel throughput as resolution climbs.

The High settings row tells a similar but more compressed story. At 1080p High, the average is 37 FPS. At 1440p High, it slips to 31 FPS, an 16.2% drop. At 4K High, the average bottoms out at 25 FPS, a 19.4% decrease from the 1440p result. The Medium preset shows the most detailed data with minimum and maximum values recorded for each resolution. At 1080p Medium, the average is 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 and maximum of 60. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 44 FPS, with minimum 37 and maximum 50. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 34 FPS, with minimum 29 and maximum 40.

The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding configuration tested, produces the lowest averages across the board. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 30 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it declines to 25 FPS. At 4K Ultra, the average reaches just 20 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution is substantial; at 1080p, the spread is 53 FPS (83 down to 30), while at 4K, the spread narrows to 35 FPS (55 down to 20). This narrowing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is becoming the limiting component regardless of settings, as the pixel fill rate dominates the performance equation.

The data suggests that the RTX 2060's 6 GB GDDR6 memory and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are stressed by the game's visual demands, particularly at 4K where even Low settings yield only 55 FPS. The CPU has headroom at higher resolutions, as evidenced by the relatively modest FPS deltas between settings at 4K compared to the larger deltas observed at 1080p. This is the signature of a system where the graphics card is the primary constraint, not the processor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is built on the Turing architecture with a TU106 chip fabricated on a 12 nm process at TSMC. The chip contains 10,800 million transistors on a 445 mm² die. The GPU operates with a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz. Memory runs at 1750 MHz, effectively 14 Gbps, across a 192-bit bus, yielding 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 6 GB GDDR6 frame buffer is a notable constraint in a horror title like The Medium, which relies on dense atmospheric scenes and high-resolution textures.

The GPU's compute resources include 1920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, 48 raster operation units, 30 ray tracing cores, and 240 tensor cores. The pixel rate is 80.64 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 201.6 GTexel/s. Floating point performance is rated at 6.451 TFLOPS for FP32 and 12.90 TFLOPS for FP16 with a 2:1 ratio. The card draws up to 160 W and requires a single 8-pin power connector, with a suggested 450 W power supply. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x16, and the card measures 229 mm in length, 113 mm in height, and 35 mm in width, occupying a dual-slot footprint.

In the context of this game's measured results, the RTX 2060's memory configuration appears to be a limiting factor. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 20 suggests the 6 GB frame buffer is saturated, forcing texture streaming and causing the GPU to fall below playable thresholds. The GPU's overall benchmark percentile stands at 58, meaning it performs better than 58% of all GPUs in the database. Its average benchmark score is 15290. The nearest rivals in GPU benchmark scores include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 with a score of 15283 and a delta of 0%, the AMD Radeon 680M at 15270 with a delta of 0.1%, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM at 15199 with a delta of 0.6%, and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 at 15171 with a delta of 0.8%. These close scores indicate the RTX 2060 sits in a dense performance tier.

The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) aligns with The Medium's modern rendering requirements, and the Vulkan 1.4 API support provides additional compatibility. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU's capabilities are best utilized at 1080p, where the card can deliver 83 FPS on Low and 52 FPS on Medium, but the card struggles to maintain 60 FPS at any setting above Low at 1440p and above.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-12700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination ranks 2948 out of 3724 tested combos in The Medium. This places the pairing in the lower-mid tier of the database, with roughly 79% of tested combinations performing better. The rank reflects the GPU's position as the bottleneck, as the CPU is a high-end desktop processor that would normally pair with a more powerful graphics card.

The combo's rank is influenced by the GPU's 58th percentile standing among all GPUs, which is modest for a modern title with heavy visual effects. The CPU, by contrast, sits at the 84th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35287. The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are the Intel Core i5-13600T with an average score of 35305 and a delta of -0.1%, the Intel Core i7-12700KF at 35365 with a delta of -0.2%, the Intel Core i7-13700T at 35403 with a delta of -0.3%, and the Intel Core 5 213PE at 35428 with a delta of -0.4%. These minuscule deltas show the i7-12700K is essentially tied with its closest competitors in pure CPU throughput.

The disparity between CPU and GPU percentiles explains the combo's rank: the processor is capable of feeding the graphics card at 1080p, but the GPU cannot translate that headroom into high frame rates at higher resolutions. The data shows that the combo's rank would likely improve with a stronger GPU, but as configured, it sits below the median of all tested systems. The measured FPS at 1080p Low of 83 FPS is respectable, but the inability to maintain 60 FPS at 1080p High (37 FPS average) and the sharp decline to 20 FPS at 4K Ultra demonstrate the performance ceiling imposed by the RTX 2060.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 83 FPS, which is the highest average recorded for this combo. The Medium preset at 1080p produces an average of 52 FPS, with a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 60 FPS. The High preset at 1080p averages 37 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 30 FPS. The transition from Low to Medium at 1080p costs 31 FPS, while the transition from Medium to High costs 15 FPS, and from High to Ultra costs 7 FPS. This diminishing returns pattern indicates that the Low to Medium jump has the most significant impact on visual quality versus performance.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 70 FPS, a 15.7% reduction from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 44 FPS, with a minimum of 37 and a maximum of 50 FPS. The High preset averages 31 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 25 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 45 FPS, narrower than the 53 FPS gap at 1080p. The minimum and maximum values for the Medium preset show a 13 FPS spread at 1440p, compared to a 16 FPS spread at 1080p, indicating slightly more consistent frame pacing at the lower resolution.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 55 FPS, which is the only 4K preset that approaches playability. The Medium preset at 4K averages 34 FPS, with a minimum of 29 and a maximum of 40 FPS. The High preset averages 25 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 20 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 4K is 35 FPS, the narrowest of any resolution, confirming that the GPU is fully saturated at 4K regardless of settings. The Medium preset's minimum of 29 FPS at 4K suggests occasional dips into stutter territory, while the maximum of 40 FPS shows the ceiling for this configuration.

Comparing the same preset across resolutions, the Low preset drops from 83 FPS at 1080p to 70 FPS at 1440p and 55 FPS at 4K. The Medium preset drops from 52 FPS at 1080p to 44 FPS at 1440p and 34 FPS at 4K. The High preset drops from 37 FPS at 1080p to 31 FPS at 1440p and 25 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset drops from 30 FPS at 1080p to 25 FPS at 1440p and 20 FPS at 4K. The consistent pattern across presets shows that each resolution step costs roughly 15-20% of performance, with the 4K step being slightly more punishing for the Low preset.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a 12-core, 20-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on a 10 nm process at Intel. The CPU has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, with a TDP of 125 W. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, and the L3 cache is 25 MB shared, with 1.25 MB L2 per core and 80 KB L1 per core. The processor uses the Intel Socket 1700 and includes UHD Graphics 770 as integrated graphics. The CPU was released in November 2021 with a launch MSRP of $409, and it has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i7-12700K shows strong single-thread and multi-thread performance. The Cinebench R23 multicore score is 19784, with a single-core score of 1850.5. The Geekbench multicore score is 15790, and the single-core score is 2308. The 3DMark tests show a max-threads score of 9979 and a single-thread score of 1043. The PassMark multithread score is 34404, and the single-thread score is 4013. The CPU's average benchmark score is 35287, and it ranks at the 84th percentile among all CPUs.

The CPU's role in The Medium is to feed the GPU with draw calls, physics calculations, and game logic. The measured FPS data indicates that the CPU is not the primary bottleneck in this combination. At 1080p Low, the 83 FPS average suggests the CPU can drive frame rates well above what the GPU can render at higher settings. The fact that the 1080p High average (37 FPS) is less than half of the 1080p Low average (83 FPS) indicates that the GPU's rendering workload, not CPU throughput, is limiting performance. The CPU's 20 threads and high boost clock provide ample headroom for the game's multithreaded workload, and the 25 MB L3 cache helps maintain smooth frame delivery.

The CPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all within 0.4% of its average score, showing that the i7-12700K sits at a performance plateau where minor differences in synthetic scores do not translate into meaningful FPS differences in games. The CPU's 84th percentile ranking confirms that it is a high-end processor, and in this combo, it is clearly not the component holding back performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Medium?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently achieves playable frame rates. At 1080p Low, the average is 83 FPS, and at 1080p Medium, the average is 52 FPS. At 1440p, only Low settings reach 70 FPS, while 4K Low averages 55 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2060's memory capacity affect The Medium's performance?

A: The 6 GB GDDR6 frame buffer is a limiting factor at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 20, and at 4K Medium, the minimum FPS is 29. The memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s is insufficient to maintain smooth performance at 4K with high-detail textures.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-12700K bottlenecking the RTX 2060 in this game?

A: No, the data shows the CPU is not the limiting component. The CPU ranks at the 84th percentile among all CPUs, and the FPS scaling between resolutions and settings indicates the GPU is the primary constraint. At 1080p Low, the 83 FPS average demonstrates the CPU can drive high frame rates.

Q: What is the combo's rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 2948 out of 3724 tested combinations in The Medium, placing it in the lower-mid tier. The GPU's 58th percentile standing among all GPUs is the main factor in this rank, while the CPU's 84th percentile shows the processor is capable of more.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 2060's average benchmark score is 15290. Its nearest rivals are the GTX 580 (15283, 0% delta), AMD Radeon 680M (15270, 0.1% delta), RTX 3050 OEM (15199, 0.6% delta), and AMD Radeon RX 7600 (15171, 0.8% delta). These scores indicate the GPU is competitive with these parts in synthetic tests.

Q: Can the combo handle the Ultra preset at any resolution?

A: The Ultra preset produces an average of 30 FPS at 1080p, 25 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K. None of these averages reach 60 FPS, and only the 1080p result approaches playability. The Medium preset at 1080p provides a better balance with 52 FPS average.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and frame rate expectations. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance, with an average of 52 FPS and a minimum of 44 FPS. This is the only preset at 1080p that stays above the 30 FPS minimum threshold while providing a reasonable visual upgrade over Low. The Low preset at 1080p delivers 83 FPS average, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays, but the visual quality reduction may be noticeable in a horror game that relies on atmospheric detail.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only configuration that achieves a playable average of 70 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 44 FPS, which is borderline for a horror game where smooth motion is important. The minimum of 37 FPS at 1440p Medium indicates occasional stutter, but the 50 FPS maximum shows the potential for acceptable performance in less demanding scenes. Users targeting 1440p should accept Low settings for consistent playability.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 55 FPS, which is the only 4K configuration that approaches playability. The Medium preset at 4K averages 34 FPS with a minimum of 29 FPS, which risks dipping below the threshold for smooth gameplay. The High and Ultra presets at 4K are not recommended, as they average 25 and 20 FPS respectively, rendering the game effectively unplayable.

For the best overall experience, the 1080p Medium preset is the recommended configuration. It provides a 52 FPS average, a 44 FPS minimum, and a 60 FPS maximum, which keeps the game within a playable range while preserving enough visual fidelity for the horror atmosphere. Users who prioritize frame rate over visuals can opt for the 1080p Low preset at 83 FPS, while those who accept lower frame rates for higher detail can try the 1080p High preset at 37 FPS. The Ultra preset should be avoided at all resolutions, as the performance cost outweighs the visual benefits for this GPU.