To The Core

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 produces an extraordinary frame rate profile in To The Core, a title that clearly favors high-refresh-rate displays. The measured data reveals a system that is heavily GPU-limited at 4K but transitions to a more balanced state as resolution drops, with the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads becoming increasingly relevant at 1080p. This combination ranks 86th out of 1756 tested combos, placing it in the top 5% of all configurations tested for this game.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K in To The Core demonstrates a classic resolution scaling curve, but with unusually high absolute numbers at every step. At 1080p High settings, the system delivers 431.2 FPS, which drops to 289.9 FPS at 1440p and further to 166.5 FPS at 4K. This represents a 61.4% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the GPU is the primary scaling factor at higher resolutions.

The scaling pattern becomes more revealing when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 559.9 FPS, while 4K Low produces 226.5 FPS — a 59.5% drop. The fact that even the lowest settings at 4K cannot reach the 1080p High figure suggests that resolution, not graphical complexity, is the dominant bottleneck at higher pixel counts. The RTX 5080’s 16 GB of GDDR7 memory and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth are clearly sufficient for 4K, but the sheer pixel count limits frame rates to roughly one-third of what the system can produce at 1080p.

The data implies that at 1080p, the CPU begins to exert influence. The gap between 1080p Low (559.9 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (347.4 FPS) is 212.5 FPS, whereas the same settings gap at 4K is only 95.3 FPS (from 226.5 to 131.2). This compression of the settings delta at 4K confirms that the GPU is saturated, while at 1080p, the i5-13400F’s 4.60 GHz boost clock and 20 MB of L3 cache are better able to feed the GPU, allowing settings changes to have a larger relative impact.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest measured frame rate for this combo?

A: The maximum average FPS recorded is 559.9 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings, which is over 4.2 times the lowest measured result of 131.2 FPS at 4K Ultra.

Q: How does the RTX 5080 compare to its closest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5080’s average benchmark score of 59188 places it 1.6% ahead of the Intel Arc A570M (58239) and 2.5% ahead of the Intel Arc A580 (57756), while trailing the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60326) by 1.9%.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1440p and 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the system produces 289.9 FPS at 2560x1440 compared to 166.5 FPS at 3840x2160, a difference of 123.4 FPS or a 42.6% reduction moving to 4K.

Q: Does the CPU’s benchmark performance indicate a balanced pairing?

A: The i5-13400F scores 21279 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 3004 in single-core, with an average benchmark score of 25236, which is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-13620H (25201, +0.1%) and AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D (25365, -0.5%).

Q: What is the performance gap between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings yield 559.9 FPS while Ultra produces 347.4 FPS, meaning Ultra delivers 62.1% of the Low preset’s frame rate.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: This CPU-GPU pairing ranks 86th out of 1756 tested combos, placing it in the top 4.9% of all configurations tested for To The Core.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F brings a Raptor Lake-S architecture with 10 cores and 16 threads, operating at a base clock of 2.50 GHz and boosting to 4.60 GHz. This configuration is responsible for the exceptional 1080p results, where the measured 559.9 FPS at Low settings demonstrates that the CPU can drive frame rates well beyond typical display refresh rates. The 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 per core provide ample headroom for the game’s idle-style simulation logic.

The CPU’s synthetic benchmark scores contextualize its gaming performance. A 3DMark single-thread score of 960 and a max-threads score of 7307 indicate solid per-core performance, which is critical for a genre that often relies on a primary simulation thread. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21279 places the chip in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13620H, matches it within 0.1% (25201 vs 25236). This suggests that the i5-13400F provides sufficient processing power to avoid bottlenecking the RTX 5080 at 1080p, as evidenced by the 559.9 FPS ceiling.

However, the CPU’s role diminishes at higher resolutions. The difference between 1080p and 1440p at Low settings is 167.8 FPS (from 559.9 to 392.1), while the 1440p to 4K drop is 165.6 FPS (from 392.1 to 226.5). The near-identical absolute drops suggest that the GPU’s pixel throughput, not CPU performance, governs these transitions. The CPU’s 65 W TDP and 10 nm process node indicate an efficient design that sustains high clocks without thermal throttling, as reflected in the consistent frame rates across settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data reveals that High settings offer the most balanced experience across all resolutions. At 4K High, the system maintains 166.5 FPS, which exceeds the 144 Hz refresh rate common on high-end monitors while providing superior visual quality over Medium (192.3 FPS) and Low (226.5 FPS). The jump from High to Ultra at 4K costs 35.3 FPS (from 166.5 to 131.2), a 21.2% reduction that may not justify the additional visual fidelity for competitive play.

At 1440p, High settings deliver 289.9 FPS, which is more than sufficient for any current display technology. The Ultra preset at 230.1 FPS still comfortably exceeds 200 FPS, making it a viable option for users prioritizing image quality. The 1080p data shows that even Ultra settings (347.4 FPS) are far beyond what most monitors can display, so users at this resolution can freely select Ultra without concern for frame rate drops.

The most compelling recommendation is Medium at 4K, which at 192.3 FPS offers a 15.5% improvement over High (166.5 FPS) while likely maintaining acceptable visual fidelity for the idle genre. For users with 240 Hz displays at 1080p, Low settings (559.9 FPS) provide headroom for frame pacing, while High (431.2 FPS) remains above 400 FPS. The data suggests that High is the default sweet spot, with Ultra reserved for users who prioritize visuals over the already-excessive frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-13400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 achieves a rank of 86 out of 1756 tested combos in To The Core, placing it in the top 4.9% of all configurations. This ranking is particularly notable given the CPU’s mid-range positioning — the i5-13400F sits in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs, while the RTX 5080 ranks in the 89th percentile of GPUs. The combination outperforms what either component’s individual percentile might suggest, indicating excellent synergy for this specific game.

The GPU’s synthetic average benchmark score of 59188 is 1.6% higher than the Intel Arc A570M and 2.5% higher than the Intel Arc A580, yet the CPU’s nearest rivals — the Intel Core i7-13620H and AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D — are within 0.5% of its average score of 25236. This balance means the combo’s high rank stems from the GPU’s strong performance at 4K, where it delivers 166.5 FPS at High settings, combined with the CPU’s ability to push beyond 500 FPS at 1080p Low. The 86th rank out of 1756 suggests that only 85 other combinations (likely featuring higher-end CPUs or GPUs) produce better results, making this a top-tier configuration for To The Core.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the system delivers 166.5 FPS on High, 226.5 FPS on Low, 192.3 FPS on Medium, and 131.2 FPS on Ultra. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a 95.3 FPS drop, with Medium providing a 14.2% improvement over High and Ultra costing 21.2% relative to High.

At 2560x1440, the results are 289.9 FPS (High), 392.1 FPS (Low), 332.1 FPS (Medium), and 230.1 FPS (Ultra). The Low-to-Ultra gap widens to 162.0 FPS, and Medium outperforms High by 42.2 FPS (14.6% faster). The 1440p High result is 74.1% faster than the same settings at 4K.

At 1920x1080, the system achieves 431.2 FPS (High), 559.9 FPS (Low), 497.3 FPS (Medium), and 347.4 FPS (Ultra). The Low preset delivers 61.2% more FPS than Ultra, and High produces 24.1% more than Ultra. The 1080p High figure is 48.7% higher than the 1440p High result, demonstrating the GPU’s headroom at lower resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process, provides the computational muscle for To The Core’s high frame rates. Its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus delivers 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is more than sufficient for the game’s asset streaming at 4K. The GPU’s boost clock of 2617 MHz and 10752 shading units contribute to its strong 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637.

The GPU’s average benchmark score of 59188 places it in the 89th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival, the Intel Arc Pro A60, is 1.9% faster (60326 vs 59188). However, the RTX 5080’s measured gaming performance shows it is the limiting factor at 4K Ultra, where 131.2 FPS represents the lowest result in the dataset. The GPU’s 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 879.3 GTexel/s texture rate are clearly being utilized to their fullest at 4K, as evidenced by the 42.6% frame rate drop from 1440p High to 4K High.

At 1080p, the GPU’s role shifts from bottleneck to beneficiary. The 559.9 FPS at Low settings suggests the RTX 5080 is capable of even higher frame rates if the CPU could feed it faster. The GPU’s 360 W TDP and 750 W suggested PSU indicate a power-hungry design, but the benchmark results show this investment pays off in To The Core, where even the most demanding Ultra preset at 1080p exceeds 340 FPS. The GPU’s 89th percentile ranking, combined with its 45,600 million transistors, makes it a top-tier choice for this idle game, where its raw compute power translates directly into buttery-smooth frame delivery across all tested configurations.