Thief

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a six-core, twelve-thread desktop processor based on the Comet Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 14 nm process node. Its base clock is 2.90 GHz, with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. The chip features a shared 12 MB L3 cache, with 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 per core. This configuration places it in the 68th percentile among all tested CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 14185. In synthetic testing, its 3DMark single-thread score is 688, while its max-thread score reaches 4735, indicating a moderate gap between lightly-threaded and fully-loaded performance. Cinebench R23 results show a multicore score of 10283 and a single-core score of 1451, suggesting that the processor's strength lies in sustained multicore workloads rather than peak single-core responsiveness.

For this game, Thief (released 2014-02-24), the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and handle game logic, physics, and AI. The measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings indicate that the i5-10400F is not the limiting component in this pairing. Even at 1080p Low, where CPU overhead is typically highest relative to GPU load, the average frame rate reaches 125 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, and it suggests that the six physical cores and twelve threads are sufficient to keep up with the RTX 5080 in this title. The processor's 3DMark 16-thread score of 4748 and its max-thread score of 4735 are nearly identical, implying that the CPU is fully utilized when all threads are active, which is a good sign for a game that can leverage multiple cores.

The CPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score include the Intel Xeon 6756E (deltaPct 0.2), the Intel Core 7 160UL (deltaPct -0.3), the AMD EPYC 7552 (deltaPct 0.5), and the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (deltaPct -0.6). These deltas are all within 0.6%, meaning the i5-10400F's computational throughput is statistically indistinguishable from these other processors. However, in Thief's measured FPS, the CPU's performance is clearly adequate, as the frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a consistent pattern of GPU limitation. At 1080p Ultra, the average frame rate is 100 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it drops to 74 FPS, a 26% reduction that aligns with the increased pixel count, not with CPU bottlenecking. The CPU's boost clock of 4.30 GHz provides enough single-threaded speed for the game's core loop, as evidenced by the high frame rates even at low settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on which preset offers the best experience in Thief when using the Intel Core i5-10400F with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 125 FPS, Medium at 113 FPS, High at 102 FPS, and Ultra at 100 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 12 FPS, while the step from High to Ultra only costs 2 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset is highly efficient at 1080p, offering nearly the same frame rate as High while presumably providing better visual quality. The minimum frame rate for Medium at 1080p is 96 FPS, with a maximum of 130 FPS, indicating good frame pacing even in demanding scenes.

At 1440p, the pattern shifts slightly. Low averages 110 FPS, Medium 99 FPS, High 90 FPS, and Ultra 89 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra narrows to just 1 FPS, making the Ultra preset the obvious choice for 1440p users who want maximum visual fidelity without a meaningful performance penalty. The Medium preset at 1440p has a minimum of 85 FPS and a maximum of 114 FPS, which is still well within the range of a smooth experience. For 4K, the data shows Low at 92 FPS, Medium at 83 FPS, High at 75 FPS, and Ultra at 74 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 1 FPS, mirroring the 1440p result, but the drop from Medium to High is 8 FPS, which is more noticeable.

The best experience per the measured rows depends on the user's resolution target. For 1080p and 1440p, the Ultra preset is the recommended choice because it delivers frame rates that are only slightly lower than High—2 FPS and 1 FPS lower, respectively—while likely offering superior visual details. At 4K, the Ultra preset is also viable, with an average of 74 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for most displays. The Low preset at any resolution produces the highest frame rates, but the performance gain over Ultra is not proportional to the likely visual quality loss. For example, at 1080p, Low is 25% faster than Ultra, but the absolute frame rate of 100 FPS on Ultra is already sufficient for a fluid experience. Therefore, the data supports recommending Ultra settings for all resolutions, as the measured average frame rates never drop below 74 FPS, which is a comfortable margin above standard display refresh rates.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of GPU limitation as resolution increases. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 125 FPS at 1080p to 110 FPS at 1440p, a 12% reduction, and then to 92 FPS at 4K, a further 16% reduction from 1440p. This total drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 26.4%. At Medium settings, the averages are 113 FPS (1080p), 99 FPS (1440p), and 83 FPS (4K), representing a 26.5% total drop. High settings show 102 FPS (1080p), 90 FPS (1440p), and 75 FPS (4K), a 26.5% drop. Ultra settings follow the same trend: 100 FPS (1080p), 89 FPS (1440p), and 74 FPS (4K), a 26% drop.

The consistency of the percentage drop across all settings—approximately 26% from 1080p to 4K—is a strong indicator that the limiting component is the GPU. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rate drop would be less pronounced at higher resolutions, because the GPU would be waiting for the CPU at lower resolutions, and the scaling would flatten out. Instead, the data shows a linear relationship between pixel count and frame rate, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. The RTX 5080, with its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, offers 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is ample for this 2014 title. The GPU's boost clock of 2617 MHz and its 10752 shading units are far more than enough to handle Thief's graphics workload, even at 4K Ultra.

The fact that the frame rate scaling is nearly identical across settings suggests that the game's engine is efficiently utilizing the GPU's resources, and the CPU is consistently feeding it without becoming a bottleneck. The i5-10400F's 3DMark 8-thread score of 3929 and its passmark multithread score of 12115 indicate that it has enough headroom to maintain these frame rates. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average frame rate is 74 FPS, which is only 26% lower than 1080p Ultra's 100 FPS. This is a textbook example of GPU-bound scaling, where the RTX 5080's raw compute power is the primary driver of performance, and the CPU's role is secondary. Users can expect that any resolution scaling will be handled smoothly by this combination, with no unexpected frame rate cliffs that would indicate a CPU limitation.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p Ultra settings?

A: The measured average frame rate at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 100 FPS.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1440p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 90 FPS at 2560x1440 to 75 FPS at 3840x2160, a reduction of 15 FPS.

Q: Does the Intel Core i5-10400F bottleneck the RTX 5080 in this game?

A: No, the data shows that frame rates scale consistently with resolution, dropping by approximately 26% from 1080p to 4K across all settings, indicating a GPU-bound scenario rather than a CPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for Medium settings at 1440p?

A: The minimum FPS for Medium settings at 2560x1440 is 85 FPS, with a maximum of 114 FPS.

Q: Is the Ultra preset at 4K playable with this combo?

A: Yes, the measured average frame rate at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 74 FPS, which is above the standard 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the i5-10400F compare to its nearest CPU rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The i5-10400F has an average benchmark score of 14185, which is within 0.6% of its nearest rivals, including the Intel Xeon 6756E (14163, deltaPct 0.2) and the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277, deltaPct -0.6).

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a high-end graphics card built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, using TSMC's 5 nm process node. It features 10752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output pipelines. The GPU has 84 RT cores and 336 tensor cores, with a base clock of 2295 MHz and a boost clock of 2617 MHz. Memory is 16 GB of GDDR7 on a 256-bit bus, providing 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The card's transistor count is 45,600 million on a 378 mm² die, giving it a transistor density of 120.6M per mm². Its compute capabilities include 56.28 TFLOPS for both FP32 and FP16, with a pixel rate of 293.1 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 879.3 GTexel/s.

In Thief, the GPU's role is dominant, as evidenced by the resolution scaling pattern. At 1080p Low, the average frame rate is 125 FPS, which is likely capped by the game's engine or the CPU's ability to issue draw calls. However, as resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows, and the frame rates scale accordingly. The RTX 5080's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 8637, and its passmark G3D score is 36565, placing it in the 87th percentile among all GPUs. The GPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 8060S (avgScore 55757, deltaPct 0.6), the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (avgScore 55698, deltaPct 0.7), and the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (avgScore 54828, deltaPct 2.3). The RTX 5080's average benchmark score is 56083, which is 2.2% higher than the Radeon Pro W5700X but 2.2% lower than the Radeon RX 9070 GRE (avgScore 57367, deltaPct -2.2).

For a game like Thief, which was released in 2014, the RTX 5080's 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient, and the memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s ensures that texture streaming and high-resolution assets are handled without stutter. The GPU's boost clock of 2617 MHz provides the raw speed needed to maintain high frame rates at 4K, as confirmed by the measured 74 FPS average at 4K Ultra. The data shows that the GPU's performance is the primary determinant of the frame rates in this title, with the CPU playing a supporting role. The GPU's passmark DirectX 12 score of 151 is lower than its DirectX 11 score of 324, which may reflect the game's age and its use of DirectX 11, but the measured FPS indicates that the GPU is still delivering strong performance in this legacy title.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for Thief with the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is organized by resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset yields an average of 125 FPS. Medium settings produce an average of 113 FPS, with a minimum of 96 FPS and a maximum of 130 FPS. High settings average 102 FPS, and Ultra settings average 100 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a total reduction of 25 FPS, or 20%.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 110 FPS. Medium settings average 99 FPS, with a minimum of 85 FPS and a maximum of 114 FPS. High settings average 90 FPS, and Ultra settings average 89 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 21 FPS, or 19.1%. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 92 FPS. Medium settings average 83 FPS, with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 96 FPS. High settings average 75 FPS, and Ultra settings average 74 FPS. The reduction from Low to Ultra at 4K is 18 FPS, or 19.6%.

The data reveals that the average frame rate differences between settings are consistent across resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Medium and High is 11 FPS, while at 1440p it is 9 FPS, and at 4K it is 8 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is minimal: 2 FPS at 1080p, 1 FPS at 1440p, and 1 FPS at 4K. This pattern suggests that the Ultra preset provides diminishing returns over High, but the performance cost is negligible. The Medium preset's minimum FPS values are 96 FPS (1080p), 85 FPS (1440p), and 71 FPS (4K), all of which are above 60 FPS, indicating that even Medium settings provide a smooth experience at any resolution. The maximum FPS values for Medium are 130 FPS (1080p), 114 FPS (1440p), and 96 FPS (4K), showing headroom for frame rate variability in less demanding scenes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 1684 out of 3720 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the 55th percentile of all tested combinations. This rank is notable because the GPU is a high-end part, but the CPU is a mid-range processor from 2020. The fact that this combo ranks in the upper half of all tested configurations suggests that the game is not heavily CPU-dependent, allowing the RTX 5080 to shine despite the i5-10400F's relatively modest specifications. The CPU's percentileVsAllCpus is 68, and the GPU's percentileVsAllGpus is 87, so the combo's rank is lower than what the GPU alone would suggest, likely due to the CPU's influence in certain scenarios.

The rank of 1684 out of 3720 means that there are 2036 combos that score lower and 1683 combos that score higher. This places the combo in a competitive position, but it also indicates that there are many other CPU-GPU pairings that achieve better frame rates in this game. The data shows that the i5-10400F's nearest CPU rivals have average benchmark scores that are nearly identical, with deltas of 0.2% to -0.6%, which means that swapping the CPU for a different model would likely not change the combo's rank significantly. Similarly, the RTX 5080's nearest GPU rivals have average benchmark scores that are within 2.3% of the RTX 5080, suggesting that the combo's rank is stable within a narrow performance band.

The measured FPS data indicates that the combo's performance is strong at all resolutions, with the lowest average frame rate being 74 FPS at 4K Ultra. This is a high level of performance for a game from 2014, and it suggests that the combo rank could be higher if the game were more demanding. The rank of 1684 out of 3720 reflects the fact that many other combos, likely with newer or higher-end CPUs, may achieve higher frame rates, but the absolute performance of this combo is still excellent. The data supports the conclusion that the i5-10400F and RTX 5080 are well-matched for Thief, with the GPU providing the majority of the performance headroom and the CPU adequately supporting it without causing a bottleneck.