Thief

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 delivers a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Thief, with the data clearly showing that the graphics card becomes the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases. The measured FPS progression from 1080p to 4K demonstrates a classic GPU-bound scenario, where the CPU’s headroom is masked by the GPU's rendering ceiling. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 128 FPS, which drops by roughly 23% to 97 FPS at Medium, and further to 74 FPS at High. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 70 FPS, indicating that the GPU is already working hard to maintain high detail levels. Moving to 2560x1440, the same settings pattern shows 88 FPS at Low, 66 FPS at Medium, 51 FPS at High, and 48 FPS at Ultra — a clear step-down that highlights the GTX 1070’s 8 GB GDDR5 memory and 256-bit bus width being taxed by the higher resolution. At 3840x2160, the performance drops dramatically: Low settings average 51 FPS, Medium averages 39 FPS (with a minimum of 33 FPS and maximum of 45 FPS), High averages 30 FPS, and Ultra falls to 28 FPS. This scaling behavior indicates that Thief is heavily reliant on the GPU, and the i5-12400’s 6 cores and 12 threads are not the bottleneck at any tested configuration.

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

The FPS degradation across resolutions is steep and consistent, pointing squarely at the GTX 1070 as the limiting component. From 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at High settings, the average FPS falls from 74 to 51, a reduction of 31%. Scaling that to 3840x2160 at High brings the average down to 30 FPS, which is a 59% drop from the 1080p figure. At Low settings, the 1080p average of 128 FPS drops to 88 FPS at 1440p (a 31% reduction) and then to 51 FPS at 4K (a 60% reduction from 1080p). This pattern — where the percentage drop from 1440p to 4K is nearly identical to the drop from 1080p to 1440p — suggests a linear relationship between pixel count and rendering load, which is typical for a GPU-bound title. The i5-12400, with its boost clock of 4.40 GHz and 18 MB of shared L3 cache, shows no signs of stalling the frame rate, as even the lowest 4K averages (28 FPS at Ultra) are far above what would indicate CPU limitations. The GTX 1070’s 1920 shading units and 64 ROPs are likely the constraint, as the memory bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s must feed a growing number of pixels with each resolution step. Notably, the 4K Medium preset shows a minimum FPS of 33 and a maximum of 45, which brackets the average of 39 FPS — suggesting occasional frame-time spikes that could be attributed to GPU memory pressure or driver overhead, but not CPU stalls. In contrast, the 1440p Medium preset has a tighter range (56 to 76 FPS), indicating more stable performance at that resolution. The data supports the conclusion that the GTX 1070 is the limiting component across all resolutions, with the CPU’s role being secondary at best.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The benchmark database ranks this specific combination at position 3079 out of 3720 tested combos for Thief, placing it in the lower 17% of all configurations. This percentile ranking reflects the age and tier of the components: the GTX 1070, released in 2016, sits at the 47th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the i5-12400, released in 2022, ranks at the 72nd percentile among all CPUs. The disparity in their relative standings explains why the combo’s overall rank is dragged down by the GPU — the CPU is a modern mid-range part, but the GPU is a legacy high-end card from a previous generation. Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the i5-12400’s average benchmark score of 18683 is within 1% of the AMD EPYC 7643 (18697, delta -0.1%), the Intel Core i7-1355U (18730, delta -0.3%), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 (18811, delta -0.7%), while being 0.9% ahead of the Intel Core i3-14100F (18519). This clustering indicates that the i5-12400 is a solid performer in isolation, but it cannot compensate for the GTX 1070’s lower standing. The GPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD FirePro W5000 (9803, delta -0.2%), NVIDIA Quadro M2000M (9832, delta -0.5%), NVIDIA Tesla M10 (9724, delta 0.6%), and NVIDIA Tesla C2070 (9716, delta 0.7%), with the GTX 1070’s average benchmark score of 9780 sitting almost exactly in the middle of that group. For Thief specifically, the combo’s rank of 3079 out of 3720 means that roughly 83% of tested configurations deliver higher average frame rates, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing that 4K Ultra is only marginally playable at 28 FPS. The rank also suggests that many combos with newer mid-range GPUs or older high-end cards outperform this pairing, despite the i5-12400’s strong synthetic scores.

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

The GTX 1070’s specifications directly influence the measured FPS in Thief. With 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, the card has ample capacity for 1080p and 1440p textures, but the 4K results show strain. The base clock of 1506 MHz and boost clock of 1683 MHz are modest by modern standards, and the memory runs at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective), yielding a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. At 4K, the pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s become limiting factors, as evidenced by the average FPS dropping below 30 at Ultra settings. The FP32 performance of 6.463 TFLOPS is sufficient for Thief’s DirectX 11-era rendering, but the 150 W TDP and PCIe 3.0 x16 interface are not bottlenecks. The GPU’s driver support for DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 ensures compatibility, but the game’s 2014 release date means it likely uses older API paths. The 4K Medium preset’s minimum FPS of 33 and maximum of 45 suggest that the GPU is hitting memory bandwidth limits during complex scenes, as the 8 GB capacity is not exhausted but the 256.3 GB/s transfer rate is stressed. In contrast, the 1080p Medium preset’s minimum of 82 and maximum of 111 FPS show that the GPU has plenty of headroom at lower resolutions, confirming that the card’s rendering capabilities, not its memory size, are the primary constraint. The 47th percentile ranking among all GPUs places the GTX 1070 in the lower half of the database, which aligns with its mid-range performance in Thief — it can handle 1080p High comfortably but struggles with 4K Ultra.

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

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the combo’s performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 128 FPS, Medium averages 97 FPS with a range of 82 to 111 FPS, High averages 74 FPS, and Ultra averages 70 FPS. The step from Medium to High is 23 FPS, while the step from High to Ultra is only 4 FPS, indicating diminishing returns from the highest settings. At 2560x1440, Low averages 88 FPS, Medium averages 66 FPS (range 56 to 76 FPS), High averages 51 FPS, and Ultra averages 48 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 1440p is just 3 FPS, suggesting that Ultra settings impose a minimal additional load over High at this resolution. At 3840x2160, Low averages 51 FPS, Medium averages 39 FPS (range 33 to 45 FPS), High averages 30 FPS, and Ultra averages 28 FPS. The gap between Medium and High at 4K is 9 FPS, which is larger than the 3-4 FPS gap seen at lower resolutions, indicating that the higher resolution amplifies the cost of quality settings. The 4K Ultra result of 28 FPS is below the 30 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for playability, while 4K High at 30 FPS is borderline. The 4K Low average of 51 FPS is the most playable 4K configuration, but it still requires sacrificing visual quality. Across all resolutions, the Medium preset consistently provides a balance between frame rate and fidelity, with the 1080p Medium range of 82 to 111 FPS being particularly smooth.

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

Q: What is the best average FPS this combo achieves in Thief at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS at 1080p is 128 FPS, achieved with the Low settings preset.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 1440p with any settings preset?

A: Yes, at 1440p the Low preset averages 88 FPS and the Medium preset averages 66 FPS, both above 60 FPS. The High and Ultra presets fall below 60 FPS, averaging 51 FPS and 48 FPS respectively.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium, and what does it indicate?

A: The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 33 FPS, with a maximum of 45 FPS and an average of 39 FPS. This indicates that the frame rate is stable enough to remain above 30 FPS, but the 12 FPS range between minimum and maximum suggests occasional frame-time variance under load.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for Thief?

A: The combo ranks 3079 out of 3720 tested combos, placing it in the lower 17% of all configurations tested for this game.

Q: What is the GPU’s memory configuration and how does it relate to 4K performance?

A: The GTX 1070 has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. At 4K, the average FPS drops below 30 at High and Ultra settings, suggesting that the memory bandwidth is a limiting factor for higher resolutions.

Q: Is the CPU likely to bottleneck the GPU in Thief?

A: No, the data does not indicate CPU bottlenecking. The Intel Core i5-12400 has 6 cores and 12 threads with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, and the FPS scaling across resolutions is consistent with GPU-bound performance, as the frame rate drops proportionally with pixel count.

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

The Intel Core i5-12400 contributes to the combo’s performance through its 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. The processor’s L3 cache is 18 MB shared, and it supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory, though the benchmark data does not specify which memory type was used in testing. The CPU’s synthetic benchmarks show strong multi-threaded performance: Cinebench R23 multicore scores 15989, Geekbench multicore scores 8564, and Passmark multithread scores 18747. Single-thread performance is also solid, with Cinebench R23 singlecore at 2257 and Passmark single_thread at 3456. For a game like Thief, which was released in 2014 and is not known for heavy multi-threading, the i5-12400’s high single-core throughput is more relevant than its 12 threads. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 128 FPS, which is far above the 60 FPS target, indicating that the CPU can feed the GPU at high frame rates. Even at 4K Low, the 51 FPS average is not CPU-limited, as the GPU is clearly the bottleneck given the steep FPS drop from 1080p. The i5-12400’s 72nd percentile ranking among all CPUs places it well above the GTX 1070’s 47th percentile, confirming that the CPU has more headroom than the GPU in this pairing. The processor’s TDP of 65 W and 10 nm process node make it an efficient part, but these metrics do not directly affect Thief’s frame rates. The data shows that the CPU’s role is to provide consistent frame delivery without stutters, which it does, as evidenced by the minimum FPS values at 1440p Medium (56 FPS) and 4K Medium (33 FPS) being relatively close to their averages. In contrast, a weaker CPU might show larger drops in minimum FPS, but the i5-12400’s strong single-thread performance keeps the frame pacing stable.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance of frame rate and visual quality across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium delivers an average of 97 FPS with a range of 82 to 111 FPS, which is smooth and well above the 60 FPS threshold. The step up to High only provides 74 FPS, a 23 FPS reduction, while the step from High to Ultra is just 4 FPS (70 FPS), suggesting that Ultra’s added visual fidelity is not worth the performance cost at 1080p. At 1440p, Medium averages 66 FPS with a range of 56 to 76 FPS, which is playable but close to the 60 FPS line; dropping to Low would give 88 FPS for a more comfortable margin, but Medium still maintains a playable experience. At 4K, Medium averages 39 FPS, which is below 60 FPS but above the 30 FPS minimum for playability, and the minimum of 33 FPS indicates that frame drops are not severe. For users with a 4K display who need higher frame rates, Low at 51 FPS is the best option, as it provides a 12 FPS improvement over Medium with a noticeable loss in visual detail. High and Ultra at 4K are not recommended, as they average 30 FPS and 28 FPS respectively, which is too low for comfortable gameplay. The data suggests that Medium is the optimal preset for most users, as it provides a good visual experience at 1080p and 1440p while remaining playable at 4K. For users prioritizing frame rate over visuals, Low is recommended, especially at 1440p and 4K, where it delivers 88 FPS and 51 FPS respectively. The Ultra preset, despite being the highest quality, offers no meaningful advantage over High at any resolution, with only a 4 FPS difference at 1080p and 3 FPS at 1440p, making it a poor choice for this GPU.