Thief

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER delivers a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Thief. At 1080p, the combo is firmly CPU-bound at lower settings, with frame rates scaling dramatically as resolution increases. The 4K Ultra result of 38 FPS highlights the GPU as the primary bottleneck, while the 1080p Low result of 171.2 FPS shows the processor's strength in less demanding scenes. This pairing ranks in the 58th percentile of all tested combos for this title, indicating a balanced mid-range setup that favors high-refresh 1080p or smooth 1440p gameplay over maxed-out 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The performance curve across resolutions reveals a classic GPU-limited architecture at higher fidelity settings. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at Ultra settings drops the average frame rate from 93.2 to 67.2 FPS, a 27.9% reduction. The jump to 3840x2160 at Ultra is even more punishing, with the average falling to 38 FPS — a 59.2% loss from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline indicates that the RTX 2070 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the pixel throughput demanded at 4K with maximum quality presets.

At Low settings, the scaling pattern shifts dramatically. The RTX 2070 SUPER manages 171.2 FPS at 1080p, 119.4 FPS at 1440p, and 68.9 FPS at 4K. The proportional drops between resolutions (30.3% from 1080p to 1440p, and 42.3% from 1440p to 4K) are less severe than at Ultra, suggesting that the CPU's performance ceiling is reached first at lower graphical loads. The 10-core, 16-thread i5-12600KF with a boost clock of 4.90 GHz appears to sustain frame rates above 170 FPS at 1080p Low, after which the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

The data indicates that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combination. At Medium settings, the average FPS of 91.5 at 1440p remains well within smooth gameplay territory, while High settings at 67.5 FPS still provide a solid experience. The 4K results, however, show that even Medium settings (54 FPS) struggle to maintain 60 FPS, making 4K viable only for less demanding scenes or with further graphical compromises.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo achieves in Thief?*

A: The highest measured average is 171.2 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Thief?*

A: At 4K, the combo reaches 68.9 FPS on Low settings, but drops to 40.4 FPS on High and 38 FPS on Ultra. Medium settings produce 54 FPS, which is borderline playable but not consistently smooth.

Q: How does the i5-12600KF compare to its closest CPU rivals in raw performance?

A: The i5-12600KF has an average benchmark score of 27827, placing it virtually identical to the Intel Core i9-10900K (27829, 0% delta). It trails the Intel Core i5-12600K by 0.1% and the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H by 0.2%, while leading the Intel Core i7-13700H by 0.4%.

Q: What is the GPU's performance standing relative to similarly scored cards?

A: The RTX 2070 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 22206 and sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. It is 0.5% behind the NVIDIA RTX A400, 0.9% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, and 2.3% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile.

Q: Which settings preset offers the best balance of visual quality and frame rate at 1440p?

A: Medium settings at 1440p deliver 91.5 FPS, providing a substantial performance buffer over High (67.5 FPS) while maintaining significantly better visual fidelity than Low (119.4 FPS).

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more responsible for the frame rate drops at higher resolutions?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, as demonstrated by the steep drop from 68.9 FPS at Low to 38 FPS at Ultra. The CPU's influence is most evident at 1080p Low, where the frame rate reaches 171.2 FPS, indicating a processor-bound scenario.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that Medium settings provide the optimal experience for this hardware combination. At 1080p, Medium yields 131 FPS, a 32.7% improvement over High's 98.8 FPS, while the visual difference between Medium and High is generally less impactful than the frame rate gain. At 1440p, Medium delivers 91.5 FPS, which comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, whereas High drops to 67.5 FPS — still playable but with less headroom for demanding scenes.

For users prioritizing visual fidelity, High settings at 1080p (98.8 FPS) or 1440p (67.5 FPS) are viable options. Ultra settings, however, offer marginal benefits over High while costing 5.7% performance at 1080p (93.2 vs 98.8 FPS) and only 0.4% at 1440p (67.2 vs 67.5 FPS). The data shows that Ultra is not worth the performance penalty at any resolution, as the frame rate differences between High and Ultra are minimal.

At 4K, Low settings (68.9 FPS) are the only practical choice for consistent gameplay. Medium (54 FPS) and High (40.4 FPS) both fall below the 60 FPS target, and Ultra (38 FPS) is unsuitable for action sequences. The recommendation is to use Medium at 1080p or 1440p for the best balance, and to reserve 4K for Low settings or less demanding environments.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-12600KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER ranks 953rd out of 1642 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all configurations. The rank reflects a system that can handle the game at high settings in 1080p and 1440p, but falls short of top-tier performance at 4K. The CPU's strong multi-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23444) pairs well with the GPU's 65th percentile standing, creating a balanced setup that avoids severe bottlenecks in either direction.

The combo's position in the rankings is influenced by the GPU's age and memory capacity. With only 8 GB of VRAM and a 256-bit memory bus, the RTX 2070 SUPER struggles with the texture and geometry demands of Thief at higher resolutions. Meanwhile, the i5-12600KF's performance relative to its rivals (within 0.4% of the i9-10900K) ensures that the processor is not the limiting factor in most scenarios. The 1642 total combos tested include both newer and more powerful hardware, explaining the 953rd rank despite the system's solid 1080p and 1440p capabilities.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF brings 10 cores and 16 threads from its Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. These specifications translate to strong single-threaded performance, as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3309 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2529. In Thief, which was released in 2014 and relies on fewer threads, the CPU's high boost clock ensures that frame rates remain high when the GPU is not the bottleneck.

The 1080p Low result of 171.2 FPS demonstrates the CPU's capability to feed the GPU with data at high rates. The 3DMark single-thread score of 1016 and the 3DMark 2-thread score of 1995 indicate that the processor excels in lightly threaded workloads. The L3 cache of 20 MB shared and L2 cache of 1.25 MB per core further enhance performance by reducing memory latency. The CPU's 84th percentile ranking among all processors confirms its position as a strong mid-range option that does not hold back the RTX 2070 SUPER in most gaming scenarios.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces the following average frame rates: 171.2 FPS on Low, 131 FPS on Medium, 98.8 FPS on High, and 93.2 FPS on Ultra. The gap between Medium and High is substantial (32.2 FPS), while the difference between High and Ultra is only 5.6 FPS. This pattern suggests diminishing returns from graphical settings beyond Medium.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 119.4 FPS on Low, 91.5 FPS on Medium, 67.5 FPS on High, and 67.2 FPS on Ultra. The near-identical High and Ultra results (0.3 FPS difference) indicate that Ultra settings at 1440p are essentially redundant, as the GPU is already maxed out. The 1440p Medium result provides a 35.6% improvement over High, making it the recommended preset.

At 3840x2160, the averages drop to 68.9 FPS on Low, 54 FPS on Medium, 40.4 FPS on High, and 38 FPS on Ultra. The progression from Low to Medium shows a 21.6% performance loss, while the jump from Medium to High costs another 25.2%. The 4K results clearly show that the RTX 2070 SUPER's 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for high-fidelity 4K rendering, as even Medium settings fail to maintain 60 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Its base clock of 1605 MHz and boost clock of 1770 MHz, combined with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, provide 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These specifications place the GPU in the 65th percentile of all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 22206.

In Thief, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution and settings increase. The 4K Ultra result of 38 FPS represents a 59.2% reduction from the 1080p Ultra score of 93.2 FPS, highlighting the GPU's inability to handle the pixel count at maximum quality. The FP32 performance of 9.062 TFLOPS and texture rate of 283.2 GTexel/s are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the memory bandwidth becomes a limiting factor at 4K. The GPU's passmark DirectX 11 score of 151 and DirectX 12 score of 67 indicate that the card performs better in older APIs, which is relevant for a 2014 game like Thief that primarily uses DirectX 11.