The Medium

The Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti combination in The Medium produces a clear performance hierarchy where the GPU is the dominant factor at higher resolutions, but the CPU's substantial multi-threading capacity ensures headroom at lower settings. With a combo rank of 197 out of 1,689 tested configurations, this pairing sits in the top 12% of all tested systems, placing it well above the median for this horror title. The data shows a component pairing that excels at 1440p and delivers playable 4K performance, though the gap between Low and Ultra settings reveals significant scalability.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K brings a 12-core, 20-thread configuration based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This processor posts a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29,241 and a single-core score of 4,128, alongside a Geekbench multi-core result of 13,892. The processor's 25 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache provide substantial data locality for the game's streaming requirements. The CPU's average benchmark score of 35,684 places it at the 89th percentile among all CPUs, demonstrating that this chip is far more capable than the majority of processors tested.

In The Medium, the CPU's role becomes evident when examining the frame rate progression from High to Low settings. At 1080p, the average frame rate jumps from 78.2 FPS on High to 169 FPS on Low, a massive increase that indicates the CPU can feed frames well beyond the GPU's capabilities when the graphical load is reduced. The processor's multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its 3DMark 16-thread score of 9,276 and max-thread score of 9,979, suggests the game can utilize the chip's 20 threads effectively. The nearest CPU rivals show this chip's competitive position: the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 trails by a negligible 0.3%, while the Intel Core i7-13700T is 0.6% ahead, and the Intel Core i5-14500HX sits 0.7% behind.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process node, featuring 7,680 shading units and 60 RT cores. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus delivers 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, with the memory clocked at 1,313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The GPU's boost clock of 2,610 MHz and FP32 performance of 40.09 TFLOPS position it as a high-end part, reflected in its 85th percentile ranking among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 44,900.

The GPU's VRAM capacity and bandwidth directly influence The Medium's performance at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate drops to 41.1 FPS, while 4K High produces 50.5 FPS, suggesting that the 12 GB frame buffer is being taxed by the game's high-resolution textures and effects. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 31,624 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5,024 indicate strong raw compute capability. Compared to its nearest rivals, the RTX 4070 Ti trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile by 0.6% but leads the AMD Radeon Pro 580 by 1.6%, showing that this desktop GPU holds its own against mobile and workstation parts.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates reveal a steep performance cliff as resolution increases. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 169 FPS, which drops to 146.5 FPS at 1440p Low (a 13.3% reduction) and then to 114.4 FPS at 4K Low (a 32.3% reduction from 1080p). This pattern indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The scaling is more dramatic at High settings: 78.2 FPS at 1080p, 66 FPS at 1440p, and 50.5 FPS at 4K, representing a 15.6% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 35.4% drop from 1080p to 4K.

The data shows that this system is not CPU-limited at any resolution tested. The 1080p Low result of 169 FPS demonstrates that the i7-12700K can drive frame rates well above 144 Hz, while the GPU's load increases proportionally with resolution. At 4K Ultra, the 41.1 FPS result indicates the GPU is fully saturated, with the CPU having ample headroom. The consistent frame rate drops across all settings as resolution increases confirm that the RTX 4070 Ti is the primary bottleneck for this title, particularly at 4K where even Low settings require significant GPU throughput.

Settings Recommendations

The most balanced experience comes from the Medium preset across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the combo delivers 113 FPS, which is 33 FPS higher than High settings and only 56 FPS lower than Low, while providing substantially better visual quality than Low. At 1440p Medium, the 92.6 FPS result remains well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, offering a 26.6 FPS advantage over High settings. Even at 4K Medium, the 70.2 FPS average is playable, making this the highest quality preset that maintains 60+ FPS at 4K.

For users prioritizing maximum visual fidelity, Ultra settings are only viable at 1080p where the 61.2 FPS average barely clears the 60 FPS bar. At 1440p Ultra, the 49.3 FPS result falls below this threshold, and 4K Ultra at 41.1 FPS is not recommended for smooth play. The High preset serves as a middle ground, delivering 78.2 FPS at 1080p and 66 FPS at 1440p, but the 50.5 FPS at 4K makes it borderline. The data strongly suggests Medium as the optimal preset for this combination, as it offers the best frame rate-to-quality trade-off across all three resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at 4K Medium settings the combo achieves 70.2 FPS, which is comfortably playable. At 4K High, the average drops to 50.5 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it falls to 41.1 FPS, so Medium is the recommended preset for 4K gaming.

Q: How much of a performance difference is there between Low and Ultra settings?

A: At 1080p, the difference is 107.8 FPS (169 FPS Low versus 61.2 FPS Ultra). At 1440p, the gap is 97.2 FPS (146.5 versus 49.3), and at 4K it narrows to 73.3 FPS (114.4 versus 41.1).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The GPU is the limiting component at all tested resolutions. Evidence includes the 1080p Low result of 169 FPS, which shows the CPU can produce frame rates far beyond what the GPU can render at higher settings, and the consistent frame rate drops as resolution increases.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: 1440p Medium offers the best balance, delivering 92.6 FPS with good visual quality. At 1080p Medium, the 113 FPS result is excellent for high-refresh-rate displays, while 4K Medium at 70.2 FPS is viable for larger screens.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 197th out of 1,689 tested configurations, placing it in the top 11.7% of all systems tested in The Medium, indicating above-average performance for this title.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p and 4K at the same settings?

A: At Low settings, 4K performance is 32.3% lower than 1080p (114.4 versus 169 FPS). At Medium, the drop is 37.9% (70.2 versus 113 FPS), and at High, the reduction is 35.4% (50.5 versus 78.2 FPS).

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the frame rate ranges from 169 FPS at Low to 61.2 FPS at Ultra. Medium produces 113 FPS, while High delivers 78.2 FPS. The spread of 107.8 FPS between Low and Ultra demonstrates the game's wide scalability on this hardware. The 1080p results show that all settings except Ultra maintain frame rates well above 60 FPS, with Medium and Low exceeding 100 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the results shift downward: Low produces 146.5 FPS, Medium 92.6 FPS, High 66 FPS, and Ultra 49.3 FPS. The 1440p data shows that Medium remains above 90 FPS, while High still clears 60 FPS. Ultra falls below the 60 FPS threshold, making it marginal for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the performance envelope tightens considerably. Low achieves 114.4 FPS, Medium 70.2 FPS, High 50.5 FPS, and Ultra 41.1 FPS. The 4K results reveal that only Low and Medium maintain playable frame rates, with High and Ultra falling below 60 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 41.1 FPS represents the lowest measured performance in this dataset.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti achieves a rank of 197 out of 1,689 tested combos in The Medium. This places the system in the top 11.7% of all configurations tested, indicating that this pairing is significantly better than the majority of systems evaluated. The rank reflects the balanced performance of both components: the CPU's 89th percentile standing and the GPU's 85th percentile ranking combine to produce a system that excels in this game.

The data shows that this combo outperforms most systems in the database, with only 196 configurations achieving higher frame rates in The Medium. The rank is particularly impressive given that the GPU is listed as end-of-life and the CPU was released in late 2021, suggesting that this pairing remains competitive against newer hardware. The measured frame rates across all settings and resolutions consistently exceed the performance of lower-ranked systems, with the 1080p Low result of 169 FPS representing a high-water mark that many systems cannot reach.