Hard West

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and Intel Arc B570 combination delivers a mixed but ultimately playable experience in the turn-based tactics game Hard West, with performance scaling clearly dictated by resolution and the game’s modest graphical demands. Benchmark results place this combo at rank 2998 out of 3722 tested system configurations, meaning it sits in the lower half of the database’s hardware rankings for this title. While the CPU’s high benchmark percentile suggests it is not the limiting factor, the GPU’s mid-range standing at the 65th percentile aligns with the measured frame rates, which range from a playable 63 FPS at 1080p Ultra to a stuttering 21 FPS at 4K Ultra.

FAQ

Q: What average framerate does this system achieve at 1080p with "High" settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with "High" settings, the system produces an average of 84 FPS, making it a smooth experience for the game’s turn-based combat.

Q: Is this CPU, the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, a strong performer relative to other processors?

A: The Ryzen 5 5500X3D has a PassMark average benchmark score of 37018 and sits in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. The data shows it is clearly a capable processor, and its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, is only 0.2% behind in average score.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B570 compare to other GPUs in the database?

A: The Arc B570 has an average benchmark score of 20556 and is in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. Its closest competitor in the data is the Intel Arc A750, which scores 20582, a difference of just 0.1%.

Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU+GPU combo in the database for Hard West?

A: The combo ranks 2998 out of 3722 tested system configurations for this game.

Q: Which resolution and settings produce the best experience according to the benchmark data?

A: For a balance of visual fidelity and smoothness, 1080p at "High" settings is the recommended experience, providing 84 FPS. Raising to "Ultra" drops the framerate to 63 FPS.

Q: At what resolution does the system fail to maintain a playable framerate?

A: At 4K (3840x2160) with "Ultra" settings, the average FPS drops to 21, and even at "High" it only reaches 28 FPS, making 4K resolutions generally unplayable with this configuration.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570, based on the Xe2-HPG architecture, is the primary factor determining the system’s performance in Hard West. The GPU’s specifications place it as a mid-range offering: it has 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, delivering 380.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. Its rendering capabilities include 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 80 raster operations pipelines (ROPs), which drive its 360.0 GTexel/s texture fill rate and 200.0 GPixel/s pixel rate. The card is built on a 5 nm process with 19,600 million transistors, and its boost clock is fixed at 2500 MHz.

The data shows that the Arc B570’s average benchmark score of 20556 places it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. This is a modest standing, and it aligns with the measured results in a game like Hard West, which relies more on raw rasterization power than advanced features. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, but the game’s 2015 release date means it is likely using older DX11 or similar API paths, making the GPU’s more modern features less relevant. The Arc B570 is a capable GPU for 1080p gaming, but the 4K results suggest its memory bandwidth and raw compute power are not sufficient for the highest resolutions in this title.

The GPU’s memory configuration is also a factor. With 10 GB of VRAM, it is not starved for capacity at 4K, but the 380.0 GB/s bandwidth is entry-level for high-resolution gaming. In Hard West, the framerate drop from 1080p to 4K is a clear sign of the GPU’s limitations, as the game’s static, turn-based scenes still require significant pixel-pushing capabilities. The Arc B570’s FP32 performance of 11.52 TFLOPS is the primary driver of its compute, and that figure is modest by modern standards, which is reflected in the 4K results. The card’s score in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, a modern benchmark, is 2649, which is a low score when considering how that benchmark demands GPU compute and bandwidth.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Hard West reveals a stark scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the system is capable of high framerates across all settings. For instance, at "Low" settings, it achieves 134 FPS, and even at the demanding "Ultra" preset it still averages 63 FPS. This shows that at 1080p, the GPU is the primary factor, but it has enough headroom to push the game’s visuals without substantial performance.

When moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS drops noticeably. At "High" settings, the framerate falls from 84 FPS at 1080p to 53 FPS, a reduction of 31 FPS across the resolution increase. The "Ultra" preset at 1440p sees a similar decline, dropping from 63 FPS to 40 FPS. At this resolution, the system is still in a playable range, but the gap between the settings narrows, indicating that the GPU is starting to become a bottleneck. The "Medium" preset at 1440p has an average of 69 FPS, which is still comfortable, but the data clearly shows that 1440p is the practical limit for smooth performance, especially when considering the "Ultra" preset.

The 4K results are the most telling. At 3840x2160, the average framerates fall into the 21-44 FPS range. The "Low" setting at 4K produces an average of 44 FPS, which is technically above the 30 FPS minimum for a playable experience, but it is not a smooth experience. The "High" setting at 4K drops to 28 FPS, and the "Ultra" setting falls to 21 FPS, which is a severe and slideshow-like performance. The data shows that the leap from 1440p to 4K is a major hurdle for this system, as the pixel count doubles, placing a heavy load on the GPU’s fillrate and memory bandwidth. The 10 GB VRAM is not the limiting factor, but the 380.0 GB/s bandwidth is not sufficient for 4K texture-heavy scenes.

The scaling pattern indicates that the Arc B570 is a 1080p and 1440p-class GPU for this game. The framerate total drop from 134 FPS at 1080p Low to 44 FPS at 4K Low represents a 67% reduction in performance. This is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario, as the CPU is not the limiting factor in this title. The 5500X3D’s high single-thread performance, as shown by its PassMark single-thread score of 2941, means it can easily feed the GPU with draw calls, even at 4K. Therefore, the data strongly suggests that the GPU is the component that is holding back the higher resolution performance.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured FPS data, the most balanced experience for this system is at 1920x1080 with the "Medium" preset. This setting delivers an average of 110 FPS, with a minimum of 93 and a maximum of 126, which is a smooth and consistent framerate, even during the turn-based game’s occasional visual effects. For a game that is turn-based, the framerate is less critical for gameplay mechanics, but a high refresh rate is still beneficial for visual fluidity. The "High" preset at 1080p also performs well at 84 FPS, but "Medium" offers a higher margin of safety for any potential stress.

For a more visually detailed, the "High" preset at 1080p is the best choice. It provides 84 FPS, which is still well above the 60 FPS target, and it brings the visual quality up to a level that is more representative of the game’s intended look. The "Ultra" preset at 1080p is also playable at 63 FPS, but the performance gap between "High" and "Ultra" is not worth the 21 FPS difference, suggesting that "Ultra" is an unnecessary tax on the GPU for this game.

At 1440p, the "Medium" preset is the recommended setting, as it delivers 69 FPS, with a minimum of 59 FPS. This is a playable experience, but the "High" preset at 1440p at 53 FPS is still acceptable for a turn-based game. The "Ultra" preset at 1440p should be avoided since it drops to 40 FPS, which is below the ideal range. For 4K, the data does not support a recommendation for this system. Even the "Low" preset at 4K only offers 44 FPS, and the "High" preset drops to 28 FPS, which is unplayable. The system is not capable of a smooth 4K experience, and therefore the advice is to stick with 1080p or 1440p for this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data is organized by resolution and settings, providing a full picture of the system’s performance in Hard West. All results are from the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D + Intel Arc B580 combo.

At 1920x1080:

• Low: Average FPS of 134.
• Medium: Average FPS of 110, with a minimum of 93 and a maximum of 126.
• High: Average FPS of 84.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 63.

At 2560x1440:

• Low: Average FPS of 85.
• Medium: Average FPS of 69, with a minimum of 59 and a maximum of 80.
• High: Average FPS of 53.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 40.

At 3840x2160:

• Low: Average FPS of 44.
• Medium: Average FPS of 36, with a minimum of 31 and a maximum of 42.
• High: Average FPS of 28.
• Ultra: Average FPS of 21.

The data shows a clear linear scaling pattern. At 1080p, the system is capable of high FPS across all settings, with the "Ultra" preset still at 63 FPS. At 1440p, the "High" and "Ultra" presets drop below 60 FPS, but the "Medium" and "Low" presets remain playable. At 4K, all presets are below 60 FPS, with the "Ultra" preset hitting a low of 21 FPS. The gameplay of Hard West is turn-based, so framerate dips are less disruptive than in an action game, but the 4K "Ultra" result is still a very poor experience.

The data is measured, not estimated, which makes it reliable. The min and max FPS values are only provided for the "Medium" preset at each resolution, indicating that the average FPS is the primary measure for the other presets. The "Medium" preset shows a small variance, which indicates that the game is well-optimized for this system, but the average FPS drops significantly at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, built on a 7nm process. It has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz, with 96 MB of shared L3 cache and 64 KB of L1 and 512 KB of L2 per core. The CPU’s data shows it is a strong performer, with a PassMark multi-thread score of 20363 and a single-thread score of 2941. Its 85th percentile standing among all CPUs and a nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, which is 0.2% behind, confirms that this is a powerful processor.

In a game like Hard West, which is turn-based and therefore not heavily dependent on high frame-rate CPU work, the 5500X3D’s six cores are more than sufficient. The game’s AI and turn resolution will use some CPU resources, but the framerate is not likely to be CPU-bound at any resolution. The data confirms this, as the framerate drops consistently with resolution, indicating a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p, the system is likely to be GPU-bound in the "High" and "Ultra" presets, but even at "Low" settings, the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the 134 FPS result is well above the typical CPU limit for a game of this era.

The CPU’s large L3 cache of 96 MB is a notable feature of the 5500X3D, and it likely helps with the game’s asset streaming and AI calculations. However, the data does not indicate that the CPU is a factor in the game’s performance, as the resolution scaling is entirely GPU-dependent. The CPU’s PassMark scores are high, but the game’s performance is clearly defined by the Arc B580’s limits. The CPU is not a factor in the 4K performance drop; the GPU is the sole reason for the 21 FPS result at 4K Ultra.

The CPU’s 105W TDP is relatively high, but it is not a factor in this game's performance. The 5500X3D is also unlocked multiplier, but that is not relevant to the data. The CPU’s benchmark data indicates that it is a capable processor, but it is not the dominant component in this benchmark. The data shows that for Hard West at 1080p, the system can achieve high framerates, but the CPU is not the limiting factor. The GPU is the primary driver of the framerate, and the CPU role is to feed the GPU without becoming a bottleneck, which it does effectively, even at the high FPS.