The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, shows a clear performance hierarchy with the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti. The data indicates that the Ultra preset is the most demanding setting, producing the lowest frame rates across all resolutions, while the Low preset offers the highest performance. For this specific hardware combination, the measured results suggest that the High preset provides the most balanced experience, delivering frame rates that are well above playable thresholds at 1440p and 4K without the severe performance penalty of Ultra. At 1080p, the High preset achieves 182.1 FPS, which is 39.2 FPS higher than Ultra but 29.6 FPS lower than Medium, making it a strong choice for high-refresh-rate displays.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data clearly shows that the Ultra preset is the most taxing configuration, with average FPS dropping to 47.6 at 4K, 89.2 at 1440p, and 142.9 at 1080p. While these numbers are still playable, the High preset offers a significantly better experience: 62.1 FPS at 4K, 117.9 FPS at 1440p, and 182.1 FPS at 1080p. The performance gap between High and Ultra is substantial, with High delivering 30.5% more frames at 4K and 27.5% more at 1440p. Given that the visual difference between High and Ultra in a 2016 title is often minimal, the High preset is the optimal choice for this combo. For users prioritizing maximum frame rates, the Medium preset provides a further boost, hitting 72.5 FPS at 4K and 138.5 FPS at 1440p, which may be preferable for competitive play where the extra responsiveness outweighs the graphical fidelity loss.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Alder Lake architecture, running at a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark results show a single-thread score of 910 in 3dmark and 2249 in Cinebench R23, while multi-threaded performance reaches 5890 in 3dmark max threads and 15935 in Cinebench R23. This CPU sits in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19850, putting it nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-9700 (deltaPct of 0.1%) and slightly ahead of the Core i7-8700 (deltaPct of -0.2%). In The Technomancer, which is primarily a GPU-bound title at higher resolutions, the CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are more than sufficient to avoid bottlenecking the RTX 4070 Ti. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 247 FPS, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU effectively even in less demanding scenarios. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support contribute to solid frame pacing, though the game’s engine appears to scale well with the CPU’s single-thread performance, as evidenced by the 3dmark single-thread score of 910.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is a powerhouse with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. Its Ada Lovelace architecture features 7680 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, with boost clocks reaching 2610 MHz. The GPU’s raw compute capability is 40.09 TFLOPS, and it ranks in the 85th percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 44900. In The Technomancer, the GPU is the dominant factor in determining frame rates, especially at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the combo manages 47.6 FPS, which is a 49.7% drop from the 94.8 FPS seen at 4K Low. This scaling shows that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and shading units are heavily taxed by the Ultra preset’s effects. The RTX 4070 Ti’s nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile, scores only 0.6% higher on average, meaning this desktop card is well-positioned to handle the game’s demands. The 12 GB VRAM is more than adequate for a 2016 title, even at 4K, as the highest VRAM usage would not exceed the capacity, allowing for smooth texture streaming without stutter.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti ranks 237th out of 1656 tested combos in The Technomancer, placing it in the top 14.3% of all configurations. This ranking is impressive given that the CPU is a mid-range 12th-gen part while the GPU is a high-end 40-series card. The data indicates that the GPU is the primary driver of this ranking, as the CPU’s performance is sufficient to keep up with the GPU’s output across all tested settings. Compared to other combos, this pairing excels at 1440p and 4K, where the GPU’s strengths are fully utilized. At 1080p, the combo’s 247 FPS on Low settings demonstrates headroom that many other pairings lack, suggesting that the CPU does not hold back the GPU even in CPU-light scenes. The rank of 237 out of 1656 means there are 236 combos that perform better, but those likely feature more powerful CPUs or GPUs, such as the RTX 5090 Mobile, which scores only 0.6% higher in average GPU benchmarks. Overall, this combo offers a high level of performance that is well above the median for the game.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play The Technomancer with this hardware?

A: The data shows that 1440p High provides the best balance, with 117.9 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and only 18.7% lower than the 1080p High result of 182.1 FPS.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from High to Ultra settings?

A: At 4K, the drop from High (62.1 FPS) to Ultra (47.6 FPS) is 14.5 FPS, representing a 23.4% reduction. At 1440p, the drop is 28.7 FPS (from 117.9 to 89.2), and at 1080p, the drop is 39.2 FPS (from 182.1 to 142.9).

Q: Is the RTX 4070 Ti better than the RTX 5090 Mobile?

A: The average benchmark scores show the RTX 4070 Ti at 44900, while the RTX 5090 Mobile scores 45152, giving the mobile card a 0.6% advantage. In practice, the desktop card is virtually equivalent.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 1080p?

A: The 1080p Low result of 247 FPS suggests minimal bottlenecking, as the CPU’s single-thread performance (910 in 3dmark single-thread) is sufficient to drive high frame rates. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p (104.1 FPS) is primarily due to GPU load.

Q: What is the lowest playable FPS for this combo?

A: The lowest measured average FPS is 47.6 at 4K Ultra, which is still playable but may feel less smooth. The High preset at 4K (62.1 FPS) is the lowest setting that stays comfortably above 60 FPS.

Q: How does this CPU compare to the Core i7-9700?

A: The Core i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 19850, which is 0.1% higher than the Core i7-9700’s 19831, making them effectively identical in performance for this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the average frame rates range from 247 FPS on Low to 142.9 FPS on Ultra. The High preset delivers 182.1 FPS, and Medium hits 212.7 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a 42.1% reduction in performance, indicating that the GPU is the limiting factor as settings increase. At 2560x1440, the averages are 176.6 FPS (Low), 138.5 FPS (Medium), 117.9 FPS (High), and 89.2 FPS (Ultra). The drop from Low to Ultra is 49.5%, which is more pronounced than at 1080p, confirming the GPU’s role in handling the higher pixel count. At 3840x2160, the averages drop to 94.8 FPS (Low), 72.5 FPS (Medium), 62.1 FPS (High), and 47.6 FPS (Ultra). The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that falls below 60 FPS, making High the recommended setting for 4K displays.

Resolution Scaling

The data reveals a clear trend in how frame rates scale with resolution. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings reduces the average FPS from 182.1 to 117.9, a 35.2% decrease. Going from 1440p to 4K at High further reduces it to 62.1, a 47.3% decrease from 1440p. This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting component, as the CPU’s workload does not increase proportionally with resolution. At Low settings, the scaling is similar: 1080p (247 FPS) to 1440p (176.6 FPS) is a 28.5% drop, and 1440p to 4K (94.8 FPS) is a 46.3% drop. The consistent percentage drops across settings suggest that the RTX 4070 Ti’s memory bandwidth (504.2 GB/s) and compute units are saturated as resolution increases. The fact that 4K Ultra produces 47.6 FPS, below the 60 FPS target, shows that this game’s Ultra preset is extremely demanding, and users should consider High to maintain smooth gameplay at 4K. Overall, the combo handles 1440p exceptionally well across all settings, while 4K requires a compromise between visual fidelity and frame rate.