To The Core

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

The Intel Core i5-12400 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process node. It operates with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, drawing a 65 W TDP. This CPU sits in the 77th percentile of all processors tested in the database, with an average benchmark score of 19,850. Its 18 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5 provide a solid foundation for gaming workloads.

In synthetic benchmarks, the i5-12400 demonstrates balanced scaling from 2 threads to 16 threads. The 3DMark results show a single-thread score of 910, which climbs to 1,692 for 2 threads, 3,012 for 4 threads, 4,745 for 8 threads, and 5,873 for 16 threads. The max-threads score of 5,890 is only marginally higher than the 16-thread result, indicating that the processor's 12 threads are fully utilized by that point. Cinebench R23 results reinforce this picture: a single-core score of 2,249 and a multi-core score of 15,935. The multi-core advantage of roughly 7x over single-core performance reflects the efficiency of the 6-core/12-thread configuration.

Relative to its nearest rivals in the database, the i5-12400's average score of 19,850 places it within a narrow band. It trails the Intel Core i7-8700 by 0.2% (which scores 19,894) and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX by 0.4% (19,928), while edging out the Intel Core i7-9700 by 0.1% (19,831) and the Intel Core i5-11600K by 0.4% (19,771). This clustering suggests that for this game's CPU demands, the i5-12400 is performance-competitive with processors from both older and newer generations.

For an idle game like To The Core, the CPU workload is typically modest, but the measured frame rates at 1080p — reaching 529.3 FPS on Low settings — demonstrate that the i5-12400 is not a bottleneck even at extreme frame rates. The 12-thread configuration ensures that background tasks and game logic threads have ample resources, while the strong single-thread performance (3DMark single-thread score of 910) handles the primary game loop efficiently. The processor's PassMark single-thread score of 3,456 further confirms its capability in lightly threaded scenarios.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process from TSMC. It packs 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2295 MHz with a boost clock of 2550 MHz, and its memory runs at 1438 MHz (23 Gbps effective). With 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs, this card is positioned in the 88th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53,610.

The RTX 4080 SUPER's raw compute capabilities are substantial: 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, a pixel rate of 285.6 GPixel/s, and a texture rate of 816.0 GTexel/s. In the PassMark G3D benchmark, it scores 34,245, while its compute score reaches 19,822. The GPU's nearest rivals in the database show a tight competition: it leads the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT by 0.2% (which scores 53,489), the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M by 0.4% (53,414), the AMD Radeon RX 7700S by 2.1% (52,505), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti by 2.9% (52,086). These deltas indicate that the RTX 4080 SUPER is at the top of its performance tier, though the margins over its closest competitors are slim.

In To The Core, the GPU's role is primarily to render the idle game's visuals at high frame rates. The measured FPS data shows that even at 4K Ultra, the combination sustains 126.1 FPS, which is far beyond what an idle game requires for smooth gameplay. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for the game's graphical demands, even at 4K resolution. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 736.3 GB/s ensures that texture streaming and asset loading never become a limiting factor, allowing the card to maintain consistent frame delivery across all tested resolutions.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 529.3 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 367 FPS, a reduction of 30.7%. At 4K Low, the frame rate falls to 210.2 FPS, which is 60.3% lower than the 1080p result. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is becoming progressively more burdened as pixel count increases, though the absolute FPS values remain exceptionally high.

For High settings, the scaling is similar but less dramatic in percentage terms: 400.5 FPS at 1080p, 271.2 FPS at 1440p (a 32.3% drop), and 155.9 FPS at 4K (a 61.1% drop from 1080p). The Medium preset shows 464.7 FPS at 1080p, 311.6 FPS at 1440p (a 32.9% reduction), and 180.2 FPS at 4K (a 61.2% reduction). Ultra settings exhibit the largest relative drop: 325.7 FPS at 1080p, 215.9 FPS at 1440p (a 33.7% reduction), and 126.1 FPS at 4K (a 61.3% reduction from 1080p).

The consistency of these percentage drops across all four settings presets is notable. The roughly 30% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and the additional 30% reduction from 1440p to 4K follow a predictable pattern that suggests the GPU is the primary scaling factor. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller FPS differences between resolutions, especially at 1080p where the processor would struggle to feed the GPU. Instead, the data shows that even at 1080p Low, the combination delivers 529.3 FPS — a rate that would stress most CPUs — yet the i5-12400 manages to keep pace.

The fact that the RTX 4080 SUPER can push frame rates from 126.1 FPS at 4K Ultra to 529.3 FPS at 1080p Low demonstrates that the GPU has ample headroom. This is an idle game, and such high frame rates are not necessary for a satisfying experience, but they indicate that the system is heavily GPU-bound at lower resolutions. At 4K, the GPU's workload increases substantially, yet it still maintains frame rates above 120 FPS even at Ultra settings. This suggests that for this specific game, the RTX 4080 SUPER is overkill at 1080p and 1440p, while at 4K it provides a comfortable margin above typical display refresh rates.

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

Examining the measured FPS across all four settings presets reveals that the Ultra preset offers the most balanced experience relative to the GPU's capabilities. At 4K Ultra, the combo produces 126.1 FPS, which is above the 120 FPS threshold that many high-refresh-rate displays support. The drop from High to Ultra at 4K is 29.8 FPS (from 155.9 to 126.1), a 19.1% reduction that brings the visual quality improvements of Ultra settings while still maintaining very high frame rates.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset delivers 215.9 FPS, which is 55.3 FPS lower than High (271.2 FPS) but still far above any display refresh rate currently available. The Medium preset at 1440p yields 311.6 FPS, while Low reaches 367 FPS. The difference between Medium and Ultra at 1440p is 95.7 FPS, yet both are well beyond what the human eye can perceive in terms of smoothness. For players with 144Hz or 165Hz monitors, even the 4K Ultra setting at 126.1 FPS provides a nearly perfect experience.

The 1080p data shows that all settings presets exceed 325 FPS, with Ultra at 325.7 FPS and Low at 529.3 FPS. This is a case where the GPU is so powerful that even the most demanding settings produce frame rates that are effectively indistinguishable in practice. The recommendation based on the measured data is to select the Ultra preset at any resolution, as the FPS penalty from High to Ultra is modest (19.1% at 4K, 20.4% at 1440p, and 18.7% at 1080p) while providing the highest visual fidelity. The Medium preset offers a middle ground, but given the high frame rates already achieved, the visual quality improvement from Medium to Ultra is worth the FPS cost.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Intel Core i5-12400 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER holds a combo rank of 131 out of 1,756 tested combinations in To The Core. This places the pairing in the top 7.5% of all systems tested, a strong showing for a mid-range CPU paired with a high-end GPU. The rank reflects the combination's ability to deliver exceptional frame rates across all resolutions and settings, as evidenced by the measured FPS data.

Given that the CPU sits in the 77th percentile of all processors and the GPU in the 88th percentile, the combo's rank of 131 out of 1,756 is consistent with expectations. The GPU's higher percentile ranking suggests that it contributes more to the overall performance in this game than the CPU, which aligns with the resolution scaling analysis showing a GPU-bound workload. The i5-12400's position among its nearest rivals — within 0.4% of the Intel Core i7-8700, AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX, Intel Core i7-9700, and Intel Core i5-11600K — indicates that swapping to any of these CPUs would produce negligible changes in game performance.

The RTX 4080 SUPER's nearest rivals also show minimal performance deltas, with the closest competitor (AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT) trailing by just 0.2%. This suggests that the combo's rank of 131 is driven more by the GPU's high placement in the overall GPU hierarchy than by any specific synergy between the CPU and GPU. The measured FPS values — from 126.1 FPS at 4K Ultra to 529.3 FPS at 1080p Low — place this system well above the requirements for smooth gameplay in To The Core, making it a top-tier configuration for this title despite the CPU not being the absolute fastest available.