The Medium

The data for The Medium on this platform, pairing the Intel Core i7-12700K with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, reveals a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics card at higher resolutions but shows clear signs of CPU headroom at 1080p. The measured frame rates across the three resolutions and four quality presets provide a clear picture of where the bottleneck lies, and the rankings place this combination firmly in the upper echelon of tested systems. The analysis below interprets these specific results, focusing on the scaling behavior and component roles.

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

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 produces a significant and consistent performance drop across all settings, but the magnitude of that drop is the key indicator of system balance. At the Low preset, the average frame rate falls from 168.8 FPS at 1080p to 119.5 FPS at 4K, a reduction of roughly 29%. This relatively modest decline suggests that at Low settings, even at 4K, the GPU is still capable of pushing a high frame rate, and the CPU is not the primary obstacle. The scaling is more dramatic at the High preset, where performance drops from 80.7 FPS at 1080p to 52.9 FPS at 4K, a 34% reduction. This pattern strongly indicates that as the resolution increases, the rendering load on the GPU grows exponentially, making it the limiting component.

The data shows the most severe scaling at the Ultra preset. Here, the average FPS at 1080p is 67.4, which falls to 55.2 at 2560x1440 and then to 44.5 at 3840x2160. The incremental drop between each resolution step is substantial, confirming that the RTX 5070 Ti is being pushed to its absolute limits at 4K Ultra. The fact that the 1080p to 4K drop at Ultra is only about 34% (from 67.4 to 44.5) is telling; it implies that the GPU is already struggling at 1080p Ultra, and the additional pixel count at 4K does not proportionally increase the workload because the GPU is saturated. This points to a scenario where the i7-12700K is providing ample data for the GPU to process at all resolutions, and the frame rate is dictated almost entirely by the graphics card's rendering capabilities.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is the dominant force in this configuration, and its memory subsystem and clock speeds are directly reflected in the measured FPS. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 896.0 GB/s. In a game like The Medium, which is a horror title with potentially large texture assets, this high bandwidth is likely what allows the card to maintain playable frame rates at 4K High, where it manages an average of 52.9 FPS. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is also a critical factor; it is sufficient to hold the game's textures at 4K without spilling into slower system memory, which would cause stutters and severe frame drops. The benchmark results show a smooth progression of performance as settings are lowered, which suggests that memory capacity is not being exceeded at any of the tested configurations.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 2295 MHz and a boost of 2452 MHz, are high for a modern graphics card. The difference between the Low and High presets at 4K is stark: 119.5 FPS versus 52.9 FPS. This 66.6 FPS gap is a direct consequence of the increased shader and pixel workload at higher settings, which forces the GPU to run at its boost clock for longer periods. The performance at 4K Ultra (44.5 FPS) suggests that the GPU is hitting a thermal or power ceiling, as the boost clock cannot compensate for the sheer number of pixels and effects being rendered. The data indicates that the RTX 5070 Ti is a very capable card, but The Medium at 4K Ultra is a demanding task that pushes it to its limits, resulting in frame rates that are below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

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

Based on the measured average FPS, the optimal settings depend entirely on the target resolution and desired smoothness. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 80.7 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS standard and provides a good balance of visual fidelity and performance. While the Low preset reaches an impressive 168.8 FPS, the visual compromise is likely too significant for a horror game that relies on atmosphere. The Ultra preset at 1080p, at 67.4 FPS, is also viable, but the 13.3 FPS gain from High to Ultra is not worth the potential stability risk, making High the sweet spot for 1080p.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset, with an average of 97 FPS, is the clear recommendation. It offers a substantial performance buffer over the High preset (66.7 FPS), ensuring a smooth experience on high refresh rate monitors. The Ultra preset at 55.2 FPS is borderline, dipping below the 60 FPS ideal, so Medium is the safest choice. At 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The Medium preset, at 76.1 FPS, is the only option that provides a consistently smooth experience above 60 FPS. The High preset at 52.9 FPS is playable but may suffer from occasional dips, while the Ultra preset at 44.5 FPS is best avoided for a responsive experience. Therefore, the data suggests that users should prioritize the Medium preset at 4K, High at 1440p, and High at 1080p to achieve the best balance between visual quality and frame rate.

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

*Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium at with this hardware?*

A: The data suggests 2560x1440 on the Medium preset, which yields an average of 97 FPS, is the best balance of performance and fidelity. At 1920x1080, High runs at 80.7 FPS, and at 3840x2160, Medium runs at 76.1 FPS, both being viable, but 1440p Medium offers the highest frame rate above 60 FPS with a moderate resolution increase.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra performance compare to the 1080p Ultra performance?

A: The average frame rate at 3840x2160 Ultra is 44.5 FPS, which is 22.9 FPS lower than the 67.4 FPS achieved at 1920x1080 Ultra. This indicates a 34% performance drop when moving from 1080p to 4K at the highest settings, highlighting the significant GPU load increase.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck at any resolution?

A: The benchmark results indicate the CPU is not a limiting factor at any resolution tested. The frame rates scale consistently with resolution and settings, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. Even at 1080p Low, where the CPU has the least to do for rendering, the system achieves 168.8 FPS, suggesting the i7-12700K has headroom left.

Q: What is the difference in frame rate between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves an average of 153.9 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves only 55.2 FPS. This represents a massive 98.7 FPS difference, showing the enormous impact of the Ultra settings on the GPU's rendering workload.

Q: Does the GPU have enough memory for 4K textures?

A: Yes, the GPU is equipped with 16 GB of GDDR7 memory. The fact that the game runs at an average of 44.5 FPS at 4K Ultra without crashing or showing signs of memory swapping suggests that the 16 GB capacity is sufficient for the game's highest texture quality settings.

Q: How does this system's ranking compare to other tested combos?

A: This combination ranks 123rd out of 1689 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the top 7.3% of all systems tested, indicating that it is a high-performance configuration for this specific title.

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

The Intel Core i7-12700K, with its 12 cores and 20 threads, is a robust processor that appears to be more than adequate for The Medium. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 5.00 GHz are high, and the benchmark results show that the game's frame rates are predominantly dictated by the GPU. This is a typical scenario for a modern game at high resolutions, but the CPU's strength is evident in the consistency of the frame rates. The processor's high single-thread performance, as evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1043 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2561, ensures that the game's primary game logic and rendering thread are never starved for processing power.

The multi-core performance is also a factor, even if not directly measured in game FPS. The i7-12700K's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29241 and Passmark multi-thread score of 34404 show that it can handle background tasks and any multi-threaded game processes without causing frame dips. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system reaches 168.8 FPS, which is a high frame rate that would stress a weaker CPU. The fact that the frame rate scales down smoothly as the resolution increases, rather than plateauing, is definitive proof that the CPU is not the bottleneck. The processor's 25 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps in keeping frequently accessed game data close to the cores, further reducing latency and ensuring that the GPU is always fed with data.

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

At 1920x1080, the measured average frame rates are as follows: Low settings produce a very high 168.8 FPS, which drops to 112.2 FPS on Medium, then to 80.7 FPS on High, and finally to 67.4 FPS on Ultra. This shows a clear and steady decline as the quality preset increases, with the largest single-step drop being 32.5 FPS between Low and Medium.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down as expected. The Low preset averages 153.9 FPS, still a very high number. The Medium preset averages 97 FPS, which is a significant 56.9 FPS drop from Low. High settings bring the average down to 66.7 FPS, and Ultra is the lowest at 55.2 FPS. The difference between Medium and High is 30.3 FPS, indicating a heavy cost for the higher quality effects.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly under the most stress. The Low preset still manages an average of 119.5 FPS, which is impressive. The Medium preset drops to 76.1 FPS, a 43.4 FPS reduction. High settings average 52.9 FPS, and Ultra is the most demanding, with an average of just 44.5 FPS. The progression from Medium to High at 4K is a 23.2 FPS loss, and the step from High to Ultra is an 8.4 FPS loss, showing that the Ultra preset is a heavy addition at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti ranks 123rd out of 1689 tested combos for The Medium. This is a strong result, placing the system in the top 7.3% of all configurations in the database. This high ranking is a direct consequence of the powerful GPU and capable CPU pairing. The RTX 5070 Ti's average benchmark score of 52086 is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080, which has a score of 52085 and a deltaPct of 0. This indicates that the 5070 Ti is performing exactly as expected for its class.

The CPU, while not the main driver of game performance, also holds its own. The i7-12700K's average benchmark score of 35684 places it close to the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, which has a deltaPct of -0.3, and ahead of the Intel Core i7-13700T by a margin of 0.6%. This suggests that the CPU is a solid performer that is not holding back the GPU. The ranking of 123rd implies that there are 122 other combinations that achieve a higher average FPS in this specific game, likely featuring more powerful GPUs such as the RTX 4090 or newer top-tier models. However, this specific pairing provides a very high level of performance that will satisfy the vast majority of users, especially those targeting high refresh rate gaming at 1440p or smooth 4K gaming on Medium settings.