To The Core

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 delivers a surprisingly robust experience in To The Core, an idle game that scales well across resolutions. The data shows that this combination is capable of high frame rates even at 4K, though the performance ceiling and bottleneck characteristics shift predictably as resolution increases.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates reveal a clear and consistent scaling pattern across the three tested resolutions. At 1080p, the combo produces exceptionally high frame rates, with the Low preset hitting 241.7 FPS and the Ultra preset still achieving 144.6 FPS. This indicates that at 1080p, the system is largely CPU-bound or engine-limited, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames far beyond typical display refresh rates.

Moving to 1440p, the frame rates remain very strong but begin to show the GPU taking on more responsibility. The High preset drops from 174.7 FPS at 1080p to 120.8 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of roughly 31%. The Ultra preset sees a similar proportional decline, falling from 144.6 FPS to 96.9 FPS, a 33% reduction. This pattern suggests that while the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor, the CPU is still capable of feeding it adequately, as the frame rates remain well above 60 FPS even at the highest settings.

The most significant scaling occurs when moving from 1440p to 4K. At 3840x2160, the High preset delivers 69.6 FPS, down from 120.8 FPS at 1440p — a 42% drop. The Ultra preset falls to 57.6 FPS from 96.9 FPS, a 41% reduction. This steep decline confirms that at 4K, the RTX 2060 becomes the primary bottleneck. The GPU's 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus width are likely being taxed by the higher pixel count, though the game's idle nature means the load is relatively light compared to more demanding titles.

The Low preset at 4K still manages 94.2 FPS, which is notable. This indicates that even at 4K, if the player is willing to reduce settings, the combo can maintain a very playable frame rate. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 36.6 FPS, which is smaller in absolute terms than the 97.1 FPS gap at 1080p, further emphasizing that the GPU is the limiting component at higher resolutions.

Overall, the data shows a system that is well-balanced at 1080p and 1440p, but the RTX 2060's architectural limits become evident at 4K, particularly with higher presets. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at High settings (174.7 to 69.6 FPS) represents a 60% reduction in performance, which is a substantial but not unexpected decline for this class of GPU.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy of performance across presets, and the optimal choice depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Ultra preset at 144.6 FPS is entirely viable and offers the best visual experience without any practical performance compromise. The gap between Medium (206.3 FPS) and Ultra (144.6 FPS) is significant, but both exceed the refresh rate of most monitors, so the Ultra preset is recommended for players with 1080p displays.

At 1440p, the High preset at 120.8 FPS represents the sweet spot. It delivers a 24.7% improvement over Ultra (96.9 FPS) while still providing a high level of visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 137.9 FPS is also a strong option, but the jump from High to Medium only yields 17.1 FPS, which may not justify the visual downgrade for most users. The Ultra preset at 96.9 FPS is still playable but begins to approach the lower bound of what is considered smooth for competitive play.

At 4K, the recommendation shifts toward lower presets. The High preset at 69.6 FPS is the highest quality setting that maintains a frame rate above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 78.4 FPS offers a slight safety margin, but the visual difference between High and Medium is typically less pronounced in an idle game. The Ultra preset at 57.6 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and should be avoided unless the player prioritizes visuals over frame rate consistency. The Low preset at 94.2 FPS is the most performant option at 4K, but it sacrifices significant visual quality.

For the best overall experience, the data suggests that High settings at 1440p (120.8 FPS) provide the optimal balance of visual quality and performance. This preset offers a frame rate that is nearly double the 4K Ultra result, while still delivering a substantial improvement in detail over the Low preset. At 1080p, the Ultra preset is the clear choice, while at 4K, High is the recommended maximum.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum frame rate achieved by this combo at 1080p?

A: The highest measured frame rate at 1920x1080 is 241.7 FPS, achieved with the Low preset. The Ultra preset at 1080p still delivers 144.6 FPS.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K with any preset?

A: Yes. The Low preset at 3840x2160 achieves 94.2 FPS, and the Medium preset achieves 78.4 FPS. The High preset reaches 69.6 FPS, while the Ultra preset falls to 57.6 FPS, below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 16074. It is 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996) and 1.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15786). It trails the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and AMD Radeon Pro 5700, both at 16351, by 1.7%.

Q: What is the combo's ranking among all tested combinations for this game?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 combination is ranked 1391 out of 1756 tested combos in To The Core. This places it in the lower-mid range of all combinations tested.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves 160.2 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves 96.9 FPS. This represents a 63.3 FPS difference, or approximately 39% lower performance at Ultra compared to Low.

Q: Does the CPU show any signs of bottlenecking at lower resolutions?

A: The data suggests some CPU limitation at 1080p, as the frame rates for the Low preset (241.7 FPS) and Medium preset (206.3 FPS) are exceptionally high. The CPU's single-threaded performance, evidenced by its 3dmark single-thread score of 910, appears sufficient to drive these frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all tested combinations for To The Core, the i5-12400 and RTX 2060 pairing sits at rank 1391 out of 1756, placing it in the 79th percentile of all combos. This ranking indicates that while the combo is not near the top of the leaderboard, it is also far from the bottom, suggesting that it outperforms a majority of tested systems.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 58 (percentileVsAllGpus) and the CPU's percentile ranking of 77 (percentileVsAllCpus) provide context for this position. The CPU is notably stronger relative to its peers than the GPU, which aligns with the observed bottleneck behavior at higher resolutions. The combo's overall rank of 1391 is lower than what the CPU's percentile alone would suggest, confirming that the RTX 2060 is the limiting factor in this pairing.

Looking at the GPU's nearest rivals, the RX 7600S has an average score of 15996, which is 0.5% lower than the RTX 2060's 16074. This marginal difference suggests that the RTX 2060 is competitive with contemporary mid-range GPUs in synthetic benchmarks. However, in actual game performance, the ranking of 1391 out of 1756 suggests that many other combinations, likely featuring more powerful GPUs or newer architectures, achieve better results in To The Core.

The i5-12400's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-9700 (19831, 0.1% lower), the Intel Core i7-8700 (19894, 0.2% higher), and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX (19928, 0.4% higher). These very small deltas indicate that the CPU's performance is tightly clustered with several older high-end processors, reinforcing its position as a solid mid-range option that does not significantly drag down the combo's ranking.

Overall, the rank of 1391 suggests that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where its performance is strong, rather than 4K, where the GPU's limitations become more apparent.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU features 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. Its 3dmark scores show a progression from 910 in single-threaded tests to 5890 in max-threaded tests, indicating that scaling is present but not linear, with the 16-thread score of 5873 being nearly identical to the max-threaded result.

In To The Core, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The measured frame rates at 1080p, particularly the Low preset at 241.7 FPS, suggest that the i5-12400 is capable of driving very high frame rates without becoming a severe bottleneck. The single-threaded performance, as measured by the 3dmark single-thread score of 910 and the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2249, is strong enough to handle the game's simulation and update loops.

However, the CPU's multithreaded performance also plays a role. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 15935 and the Passmark multithread score of 18747 indicate that the 6-core/12-thread configuration provides solid parallel processing capability. In an idle game like To The Core, which may have background simulations or resource management systems, these additional threads can help maintain consistent frame pacing.

The CPU's 18 MB of L3 cache is shared across all cores, which can benefit game workloads that require frequent access to shared data structures. The L2 cache of 1.25 MB per core is generous for a mid-range processor and helps reduce memory latency. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory, though the measured performance in this game does not explicitly differentiate between memory types.

The benchmark data shows that the CPU's performance is well-matched to the RTX 2060 at 1080p and 1440p, as evidenced by the strong frame rates at those resolutions. At 4K, the CPU's role diminishes, and the GPU becomes the dominant factor. The i5-12400's percentile rank of 77 versus the RTX 2060's percentile rank of 58 further supports this interpretation, indicating that the CPU has more headroom relative to its peers than the GPU. This makes the combo well-balanced for mainstream gaming resolutions, with the CPU capable of supporting a future GPU upgrade without becoming a significant limitation.