Thief

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-12400 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 combo capable of running Thief at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The measured data shows 66 FPS average at 3840x2160 with Low settings, and 50 FPS average with Medium settings. High and Ultra presets at 4K fall below 40 FPS, making them less suitable for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve 60+ FPS?

A: Both 1920x1080 and 2560x1440 deliver 60+ FPS across all tested presets. At 2560x1440, the average FPS ranges from 62 (Ultra) to 112 (Low). At 1920x1080, the range is 90 (Ultra) to 164 (Low). The 3840x2160 resolution only achieves 60+ FPS on the Low preset.

Q: How does the i5-12400 compare to its nearest CPU rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The i5-12400 has an average benchmark score of 18683. It sits within 1% of its nearest rivals: AMD EPYC 7643 (18697, -0.1%), Intel Core i7-1355U (18730, -0.3%), AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 (18811, -0.7%), and Intel Core i3-14100F (18519, +0.9%). The performance differences are negligible.

Q: How does the RTX 5050 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 5050 has an average benchmark score of 21035. Its nearest rivals include AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL (21153, -0.6%), AMD Radeon HD 8970M (21237, -1%), AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT (20713, +1.6%), and NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile (21379, -1.6%). The RTX 5050 is within 1.6% of all these parts.

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking among tested configurations in Thief?

A: This combo ranks 1710 out of 2851 tested combos, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database. The data indicates it outperforms roughly 40% of all tested configurations in this game.

Q: Which settings preset provides the best balance of quality and performance at 1080p?

A: The High preset at 1920x1080 delivers 95 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset runs at 90 FPS average, only 5 FPS lower, making Ultra the best choice if visual fidelity is prioritized. Medium runs at 124 FPS, but High or Ultra offer better visuals for a modest FPS cost.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings 6 cores and 12 threads to this configuration, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This Alder Lake-S architecture part, built on Intel's 10 nm process, features an 18 MB shared L3 cache and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory through a dual-channel interface. The CPU's benchmark profile shows strong multi-threaded capability for a mainstream desktop part.

In synthetic testing, the i5-12400 achieves a 3DMark max-thread score of 5890, while the 2-thread score sits at 1692. The single-thread 3DMark score is 910, indicating that the architecture handles lightly-threaded workloads competently. Cinebench R23 results show 15989 multi-core and 2257 single-core, while Geekbench reports 8564 multi-core and 1848 single-core. PassMark multi-thread performance reaches 18747, with a single-thread score of 3456.

Thief, as a 2014 stealth title, does not heavily stress modern multi-core processors. The game's engine was designed before the widespread adoption of many-core CPUs, meaning the i5-12400's six physical cores are more than sufficient. The CPU's 72nd percentile ranking versus all CPUs indicates it outperforms most processors in general compute tasks. The nearest rivals — AMD EPYC 7643, Intel Core i7-1355U, AMD Ryzen AI 5 330, and Intel Core i3-14100F — all score within 0.9% of the i5-12400, confirming that this CPU delivers performance consistent with its mainstream positioning.

The measured frame rates in Thief are unlikely to be limited by the CPU. Even at 1920x1080 with Low settings, where the GPU has the least work to do, the combo achieves 164 FPS average. This suggests the CPU can feed the GPU effectively at high frame rates. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 5873 and the 8-thread score of 4745 show that scaling from 8 to 16 threads yields modest gains, which is typical for games that do not use more than a few threads. The CPU's 65 W TDP and LGA 1700 socket make it a conventional desktop part, but in Thief, the bottleneck is clearly the GPU rather than the processor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using TSMC's 5 nm process. It packs 2560 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs, along with 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores. The GPU runs at a base clock of 2317 MHz with a boost clock of 2572 MHz. Memory consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

The RTX 5050's compute capabilities include 13.17 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 82.30 GPixel/s. Texture rate reaches 205.8 GTexel/s. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. It connects via PCIe 5.0 x8 and requires a single 8-pin power connector with a 300 W suggested PSU. The 130 W TDP makes it a moderately power-hungry card, though the data does not indicate any thermal throttling issues in Thief.

In Thief, the GPU's role is decisive. The measured FPS scales significantly with resolution and settings, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 164 (Low) to 90 (Ultra). At 2560x1440, the range drops to 112 (Low) to 62 (Ultra). At 3840x2160, the range falls to 66 (Low) to 36 (Ultra). This scaling pattern shows that the RTX 5050's 8 GB VRAM and 320 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the GPU's raw compute power becomes the limiting factor at 4K Ultra.

The GPU's 66th percentile ranking versus all GPUs, combined with an average benchmark score of 21035, places it in the mid-range segment. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT, scores 1.6% higher, while the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile scores 1.6% higher as well. The AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL and AMD Radeon HD 8970M score slightly lower. In a game like Thief, which is relatively older and does not require advanced ray tracing or DLSS features, the RTX 5050's strengths are sufficient for smooth 1080p and 1440p gameplay, but 4K requires dropping to Medium or Low presets to maintain playable frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings presets each, providing a complete picture of performance scaling.

At 1920x1080, the combo achieves its highest frame rates. Low settings produce 164 FPS average, which is far above the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings yield 124 FPS average with a minimum of 106 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. High settings drop to 95 FPS average. Ultra settings deliver 90 FPS average, the lowest at this resolution but still comfortably above 60 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 74 FPS, indicating that the GPU has substantial headroom at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but shows clearer scaling with settings. Low settings produce 112 FPS average. Medium settings yield 85 FPS average with a minimum of 72 FPS and a maximum of 98 FPS. High settings drop to 65 FPS average. Ultra settings deliver 62 FPS average, which is barely above the 60 FPS threshold. The difference between Low and Ultra is 50 FPS, showing that resolution scaling reduces the GPU's margin.

At 3840x2160, performance drops significantly. Low settings produce 66 FPS average, just above the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings yield 50 FPS average with a minimum of 43 FPS and a maximum of 58 FPS. High settings drop to 38 FPS average. Ultra settings deliver 36 FPS average, which is not suitable for smooth gameplay. The gap between Low and Ultra is 30 FPS, and even Low settings only barely achieve playable frame rates.

The data reveals that the RTX 5050's 8 GB VRAM is not the limiting factor in Thief, as even at 4K Ultra with 36 FPS, the game runs without reported VRAM-related issues. Instead, the GPU's compute throughput is the bottleneck. The 66 FPS at 4K Low versus 36 FPS at 4K Ultra represents a 45% performance drop, which is consistent with the increased shading and texture work required by the Ultra preset. For players targeting 60 FPS, the 2560x1440 resolution with High or Ultra settings is the sweet spot, while 1920x1080 allows maximum settings with room to spare.

How This Combo Ranks

This Intel Core i5-12400 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 combination ranks 1710 out of 2851 tested combos in Thief. This position places it in the 60th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 40% of combos perform better and 60% perform worse. The ranking reflects the mid-range nature of both components.

The CPU's 72nd percentile ranking versus all CPUs suggests the processor is not a weak link. The GPU's 66th percentile ranking versus all GPUs indicates the graphics card is similarly positioned. When combined in Thief, the overall combo ranking of 1710 out of 2851 is slightly lower than either component's individual percentile, which suggests that Thief's engine is more sensitive to GPU performance than CPU performance.

Compared to the nearest rival CPUs, the i5-12400's average benchmark score of 18683 is within 0.9% of the AMD EPYC 7643, Intel Core i7-1355U, AMD Ryzen AI 5 330, and Intel Core i3-14100F. This means that swapping the CPU for any of these parts would produce nearly identical frame rates in Thief. Similarly, the RTX 5050's average benchmark score of 21035 is within 1.6% of its nearest rivals, including the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT and NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile. The GPU choice has a more significant impact on Thief's performance than the CPU choice.

The measured FPS data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming. At 1080p, all presets exceed 90 FPS, making it an excellent configuration for high-refresh-rate monitors. At 1440p, all presets exceed 62 FPS, which is adequate for 60 Hz displays. At 4K, only the Low preset achieves playable frame rates, and even then, it barely exceeds 60 FPS. The combo's rank of 1710 reflects this reality: it is a capable mid-range setup that excels at mainstream resolutions but struggles at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and refresh rate.

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset at 90 FPS average is the recommended choice. The visual quality improvement from High to Ultra costs only 5 FPS, while the jump from Medium to Ultra costs 34 FPS but provides the best image quality. For players with 144 Hz monitors, the Medium preset at 124 FPS average is the best option, as it stays above 120 FPS while still offering improved visuals over Low. The Low preset at 164 FPS is only useful for competitive play where maximum frame rate is prioritized over visuals.

For 2560x1440, the High preset at 65 FPS average is the recommended choice for 60 Hz displays, as it offers strong visuals while staying above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset at 62 FPS is also viable if the player prioritizes maximum quality and can tolerate occasional drops below 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 85 FPS average is the best option for 75 Hz or 100 Hz monitors, providing a balance of quality and frame rate. The Low preset at 112 FPS is unnecessary unless the player has a 120 Hz or higher refresh rate display.

For 3840x2160, the Low preset at 66 FPS average is the only option that maintains playable frame rates. The Medium preset at 50 FPS average may be acceptable for players who prefer visual quality over smoothness, but the data shows that High and Ultra presets fall below 40 FPS, which is not recommended for a stealth game requiring precise movement. Players with 4K displays should consider lowering the resolution to 2560x1440 and using High or Ultra settings for a better experience.

Overall, the data indicates that the High preset at 2560x1440 provides the best balance of performance and visual quality for this combo. It delivers 65 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold, while the visuals are significantly better than Medium or Low. For players who prioritize frame rate, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 with 124 FPS average is the best choice. The Ultra preset at 1920x1080 also delivers 90 FPS and is recommended for players with high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors who want maximum visual fidelity.