Thief

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a 12-core, 20-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. In the context of Thief, a stealth title from 2014, this processor’s high single-thread performance is the most relevant asset. Its 3DMark single-thread score of 1043 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4128 indicate strong per-core capability, which is crucial for the game’s primary game logic and AI routines. The CPU’s multi-threaded strength, evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29241, is largely secondary here; Thief does not scale heavily across 20 threads. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 126 FPS, which suggests the CPU is not the limiting factor even at lower graphical loads. The processor’s 25 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample fast storage for the game’s assets, further diminishing any potential CPU bottleneck. The i7-12700K sits at the 89th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 35684, placing it slightly above the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 by 0.3% and the Intel Core i7-13700T by 0.6%, but slightly below the Intel Core i5-14500HX by 0.7% and the Intel Core i7-13800H by 0.8%. For this game, the CPU’s role is to maintain a stable frame delivery ceiling, which it does comfortably, as evidenced by the fact that frame rates scale downward more sharply with resolution than with CPU load.

Settings Recommendations

The measured frame rate data for this combo across presets reveals a clear pattern: the Low preset provides the most headroom, while Ultra offers the most demanding experience. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves an average of 126 FPS, which is 54 FPS higher than the High preset’s 71.9 FPS and 54 FPS higher than the Ultra preset’s 72 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p delivers 96 FPS, a strong middle ground. Moving to 1440p, the Low preset still yields a highly playable 86.7 FPS, while High drops to 52.7 FPS and Ultra falls to 50.9 FPS. At 4K, the gaps narrow in absolute terms but widen in percentage: Low produces 49.5 FPS, High produces 33.1 FPS, and Ultra produces 29.6 FPS. For the best experience per the measured rows, the Medium preset at 1080p appears optimal, offering 96 FPS—a 24 FPS improvement over High and a 30 FPS improvement over Ultra—while retaining visual quality above Low. At 1440p, the Medium preset’s 64.3 FPS is the recommended choice, as it stays above the 60 FPS threshold, whereas High and Ultra fall below it. At 4K, no preset reaches 60 FPS; the Low preset’s 49.5 FPS is the only option above 40 FPS, making it the sole viable choice for playable frame rates. The data indicates that the Low preset is not merely a fallback but a strategic option for higher resolutions, while Medium offers the best balance of fidelity and performance at 1080p and 1440p.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K demonstrates a significant dependency on resolution, indicating the GPU is the primary limiting component in this combo. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 71.9 at 1080p to 52.7 at 1440p, a reduction of 19.2 FPS, and then to 33.1 at 4K, a further reduction of 19.6 FPS. This represents a 54% decrease in performance from 1080p to 4K. The Low preset shows a similar pattern: 126 FPS at 1080p, 86.7 FPS at 1440p, and 49.5 FPS at 4K, a 61% drop from 1080p to 4K. The Medium preset follows suit with 96 FPS at 1080p, 64.3 FPS at 1440p, and 40 FPS at 4K, a 58% decline. The Ultra preset, which starts at 72 FPS at 1080p, falls to 50.9 FPS at 1440p and 29.6 FPS at 4K, a 59% reduction. These consistent percentage drops across presets, roughly 54-61%, strongly suggest that the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070’s rendering throughput is the bottleneck. The GTX 1070 has a texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s, which are fixed physical limits that scale inversely with the number of pixels rendered. The CPU’s performance, as measured by its high single-thread scores, does not degrade with resolution, so the frame rate drops are attributable to the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth. The 8 GB of GDDR5 memory with a 256-bit bus and 256.3 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for the game’s textures at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the increased pixel load overwhelms these resources, causing the observed halving of frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-12700K and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 1398 out of 1642 tested combos in Thief. This places it in the bottom 15% of all tested system configurations, which is a poor showing for a processor that is otherwise in the 89th percentile of all CPUs. The discrepancy highlights the GPU’s dominance in determining this game’s performance. The combo’s rank is driven almost entirely by the GTX 1070, which sits at the 51st percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 12331. The GPU’s nearest rivals in terms of average score include the NVIDIA Quadro K4200 (0.7% faster), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 880M (1.3% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER (1.4% slower), and the NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm (1.7% slower). None of these rivals offer substantially different performance, indicating the GTX 1070 is a mid-pack GPU. Given that the i7-12700K is overkill for this GPU in Thief, the combo’s rank is not a reflection of CPU inadequacy but rather of GPU limitation. The data shows that even with a top-tier CPU, the frame rates are capped by the GPU’s capabilities, as seen in the 1080p Low preset where the CPU could theoretically push higher but the GPU’s 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 1920 shading units limit the output to 126 FPS. To improve this combo’s rank, a more powerful GPU would be required, as the CPU has ample headroom.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is built on the Pascal architecture using a 16 nm process from TSMC, with a chip of GP104 and 7,200 million transistors on a 314 mm² die. Its base clock is 1506 MHz, with a boost clock of 1683 MHz, and the memory operates at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective). The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. In Thief, this GPU is the definitive performance limiter. The benchmark results show that the GPU’s 1920 shading units and 64 ROPs are taxed heavily by the game’s lighting and shadow effects. The GPU’s DirectX 11 score of 100 in Passmark, which is a normalized score, indicates that it performs at the expected level for its architecture, but its DirectX 12 score of 48 suggests that newer APIs do not benefit this older generation. The GPU’s pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s are moderate for the game’s era, and the measured FPS at 4K Ultra (29.6 FPS) versus 4K Low (49.5 FPS) shows that the GPU’s fill rate is the bottleneck at higher resolutions and settings. The GPU’s 51st percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 12331, aligns with the observed performance; it is a capable but not top-tier card. The GTX 1070’s 8 GB of VRAM is not exhausted by Thief, as the game’s textures are not exceptionally large, but the GPU’s compute throughput of 6.463 TFLOPS limits the ability to maintain high frame rates at 4K. The data confirms that the GPU, not the CPU, dictates the frame rates in this combo, as evidenced by the consistent FPS drops across all presets when resolution increases.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-12700K a bottleneck for the GTX 1070 in Thief?

A: No. The CPU’s single-thread score of 1043 in 3DMark and the fact that 1080p Low achieves 126 FPS indicate the CPU is not limiting. The GPU is the bottleneck, as frame rates drop by over 50% from 1080p to 4K across all presets.

Q: What is the best preset to use at 1440p for this combo?

A: The Medium preset, which achieves 64.3 FPS, is the only option above 60 FPS at 1440p. High and Ultra presets fall to 52.7 FPS and 50.9 FPS respectively, making them less suitable for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all tested systems?

A: It ranks 1398 out of 1642 combos in Thief, placing it in the bottom 15%. This rank is primarily due to the GPU’s mid-pack performance (51st percentile) rather than the CPU’s high-end capabilities (89th percentile).

Q: Can this combo achieve 60 FPS at 4K?

A: No. The highest average FPS at 4K is 49.5 on the Low preset. All other presets (Medium, High, Ultra) fall below 40 FPS, with Ultra at 29.6 FPS.

Q: What is the GTX 1070’s memory configuration and its impact?

A: The GTX 1070 has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with 256.3 GB/s bandwidth. This bandwidth is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the increased pixel load causes the frame rates to drop significantly, as seen in the 54-61% reduction from 1080p to 4K.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 compare to its nearest rivals in average score?

A: The GTX 1070’s average benchmark score is 12331. It is 0.7% slower than the Quadro K4200, 1.3% faster than the GTX 880M, 1.4% faster than the GTX 1650 SUPER, and 1.7% faster than the Tesla K20Xm. These small differences indicate that the GPU is in a tightly clustered performance tier.