The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, places heavy demands on hardware, and the pairing of the Intel Core i3-12100F with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti produces a very specific performance profile across resolutions. The data shows a system that is firmly capable at 1080p but quickly runs out of headroom as pixel count climbs, with the GPU acting as the primary bottleneck in most scenarios.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS demonstrates a steep and predictable decline as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 72.4 FPS at 1080p to 50.0 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of roughly 31%. The further jump to 4K is more punishing, with the average falling to 23.9 FPS, which represents a 52% loss compared to the 1440p result and a 67% loss from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern indicates that the rendering load is scaling almost directly with the pixel count, a classic sign of a GPU-bound workload.

The behavior at Low settings reinforces this conclusion. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 108.6 FPS, which is a very playable result. At 1440p Low, the average drops to 70.9 FPS, and at 4K Low, it falls to 38.8 FPS. The fact that even the lowest quality preset cannot maintain 60 FPS at 4K is telling; it suggests that the GTX 1660 Ti is the limiting component, as reducing the graphical load does not provide enough of a boost to overcome the sheer number of pixels being processed.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens significantly at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low (108.6 FPS) and Ultra (58.5 FPS) is a substantial 50.1 FPS. At 4K, the difference between Low (38.8 FPS) and Ultra (20.7 FPS) is only 18.1 FPS. This compression of the performance envelope at 4K is a strong indicator that the GPU is saturated; it is working at its maximum capacity regardless of the quality settings, and the primary variable affecting performance is the resolution itself. The data suggests that for 4K gaming, no preset will provide a smooth experience, as even the lowest settings fail to reach 40 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its benchmark scores are respectable for a modern entry-level desktop chip, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 11912 and a single-core score of 1681. The processor’s performance in synthetic tests places it in the 72nd percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13516.

In the context of The Technomancer, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU’s. The frame rates at 1080p High (72.4 FPS) and even 1080p Ultra (58.5 FPS) are high enough to suggest that the processor is not the primary constraint at these settings. The game, being from 2016, is unlikely to leverage more than a few cores effectively, and the i3-12100F’s strong single-thread performance, evidenced by its Geekbench single-core score of 2224 and Passmark single-thread score of 3444, should be more than adequate for the game's logic and draw calls.

The CPU’s true limitation becomes apparent only when the GPU is not the bottleneck. Since the GTX 1660 Ti is the limiting factor in almost all measured scenarios, the CPU has ample headroom. The data does not show a scenario where the CPU holds back performance; the FPS scales almost entirely with resolution and settings, which are GPU-centric variables. The i3-12100F’s 12 MB of shared L3 cache and 8 threads provide a solid foundation, but the benchmark results indicate that its performance is effectively masked by the GPU's workload in this particular game.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear picture of the trade-offs between visual quality and frame rate. For a smooth 60 FPS experience at 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 89.0 FPS, offering a significant performance buffer. The High preset at 1080p also remains playable with 72.4 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold and provides better visual fidelity. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 58.5 FPS, which is just below the ideal mark, making High the optimal choice for 1080p gaming if a consistent 60 FPS is the target.

At 2560x1440, the situation changes. The High preset averages 50.0 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. The Medium preset is slightly better at 55.8 FPS, but still below 60. The Low preset is the only one that breaks the 60 FPS barrier at this resolution, achieving 70.9 FPS. For users prioritizing frame rate at 1440p, Low settings are the safest option, though Medium provides a better balance of visual quality and playability for those who can tolerate slightly lower frame rates.

Given the data, the best experience for this hardware combination is at 1080p with High settings. This preset offers a strong average FPS of 72.4, which is well above the playability threshold, and it avoids the visual compromises of Low or Medium. Pushing to 1440p requires a significant drop in quality to maintain playable frame rates, and 4K is not a viable option for this setup, as even the Low preset only manages 38.8 FPS, which is below the standard for a smooth experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is ranked 1429 out of 1656 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places the pairing in the bottom 14% of all configurations, which is a low ranking. This position reflects the fact that while the individual components are adequate for 1080p gaming, the overall system performance is not competitive with higher-end hardware that can handle higher resolutions and settings.

The CPU’s synthetic benchmark average of 13516 puts it in a similar performance class as the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, which scores 13534, and the Intel Core i7-1250U, which scores 13462. The i3-12100F is marginally faster than the Intel Core i3-10105 (13430) and the Intel Core i7-7700K (13280) by 0.6% and 1.8% respectively. However, these are mid-range to high-end processors from other generations, and the low combo rank is more attributable to the GPU's limitations than the CPU's.

The GPU itself, with an average benchmark score of 13925, sits just above the AMD Radeon RX 570X (13871) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 (13812). It is slightly slower than the NVIDIA Tesla K10 (14029) and the NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile (13821). This places the GTX 1660 Ti in the 55th percentile of all GPUs, indicating it is a mid-tier performer. The low combo rank suggests that this pairing is not well-suited for the high demands of The Technomancer at higher resolutions, and it is outclassed by a large majority of the other tested combinations.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is the dominant factor in this system’s gaming performance. It features 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. Its base clock is 1500 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz, and it has 1536 shading units. The card’s synthetic benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 12871 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1061, place it in the 55th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13925.

The performance data for The Technomancer strongly emphasizes the GPU’s role as the primary bottleneck. The frame rates across all settings and resolutions are dictated by the graphics card’s ability to render the scene. The fact that the FPS drops linearly with resolution, regardless of the quality preset, is direct evidence that the GPU is working at its limit. The card’s 6 GB of VRAM is also a potential concern at higher resolutions, though the data does not show a clear VRAM-related crash or stutter, only a general performance decline.

The GTX 1660 Ti’s compute capabilities, with a FP32 rating of 5.437 TFLOPS, are sufficient for 1080p gaming but are not enough for the demands of 4K in a game like The Technomancer. The card is effectively the ceiling for this system, and the CPU’s performance is sufficient to feed it at lower resolutions. The data indicates that any attempt to improve frame rates at 1440p or 4K would require a more powerful GPU, as the current one is unable to keep up with the increased pixel workload, regardless of the CPU’s available headroom.