Hard West

Hard West is a turn-based tactics title from 2015, and the benchmark data for the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination shows a system that is decisively overqualified for the game's demands. This pairing delivers high frame rates even at 4K, but the performance scaling across settings reveals where the hardware is being held back by the game's engine rather than pushed by its own limits. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data, the role of each component, and what settings provide the best experience for this specific title.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the Ryzen 5 5600 compared to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 5 5600 has an average benchmark score of 21765. Its closest rival, the Intel Xeon D-1746TER, scores 21635, which puts the Ryzen 5 5600 just 0.6% ahead. This places the CPU in the 79th percentile of all tested processors.

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

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset delivers an average of 161.4 FPS, while the Ultra preset delivers 77.5 FPS. This represents a performance drop of over 50% when moving from the lowest to the highest visual quality settings.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Hard West?

A: Yes, but with caveats. The data shows that at 3840x2160, the system achieves an average of 55.4 FPS on High settings. Dropping to Medium settings improves this to 69.9 FPS, while the Ultra preset falls to 39 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the RTX 4070's benchmark performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The RTX 4070 has an average benchmark score of 37283, placing it in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. It is 2.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5300M, which scores 36371, and 0.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, which scores 37507.

Q: What is the best resolution for achieving 100+ FPS in this game?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 102.4 FPS. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 163.5 FPS, and the Medium preset delivers 210.7 FPS. The 1080p resolution is the only one where all presets exceed 120 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data suggests the CPU is not a bottleneck. The Ryzen 5 5600's single-thread score in Cinebench R23 is 2584, and its multi-thread score is 18309. Given the game's age and the high FPS counts even at 4K, the RTX 4070 is the primary driver of performance, with the CPU having ample headroom.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination ranks 465th out of 1699 tested combos for Hard West. This places it in the top 27% of all tested systems, a strong showing that reflects the hardware's capability. The rank is likely held back by the game's age, as modern components can easily exceed the engine's limits. The data shows that the system is not struggling to run the game; rather, it is being limited by the title's optimization. The 465th rank suggests that while many other combos score higher, this pairing is far more than sufficient for a smooth experience. The CPU's 79th percentile and GPU's 81st percentile rankings in their respective synthetic tests support this, indicating a balanced system where neither component is dramatically outclassing the other. The practical result is a system that can run Hard West at high frame rates across all resolutions, with the rank reflecting a position among many other capable setups rather than a sign of weakness.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, code-named Vermeer. It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 65W TDP. For a game like Hard West, which is a turn-based tactics title from 2015, the CPU's role is less about raw multi-threaded performance and more about strong single-thread efficiency. The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2584 and multi-core score of 18309 indicate it has significant horsepower. The 3DMark single-thread score of 882 and the Passmark single-thread score of 3256 further confirm its capability in lightly-threaded workloads. In this game, the CPU is not a bottleneck; the measured FPS at 1080p Low (231.7 FPS) shows that the processor can feed the GPU with data at very high rates. The 32 MB of shared L3 cache is ample for the game's logic and AI calculations. The CPU's performance percentile of 79% versus all other CPUs shows it is a solid mid-range performer, but its age (released in 2022) means it is well ahead of the hardware that was typical when Hard West launched. The data suggests that the Ryzen 5 5600 provides a stable foundation, ensuring that the GPU is the limiting factor in most scenarios.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a clear performance hierarchy based on resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the system is overwhelmingly powerful. The Low preset yields an average of 231.7 FPS, while the Medium preset delivers 210.7 FPS. High settings produce 163.5 FPS, and Ultra settings still manage a very high 121.1 FPS. No preset at this resolution dips below 120 FPS, indicating that the system is fully capable of driving high-refresh-rate monitors. Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong. The Low preset averages 161.4 FPS, Medium at 130.9 FPS, and High at 102.4 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 77.5 FPS, which is still smooth but shows a significant hit from the highest settings. At 3840x2160, the system begins to show strain. The Low preset averages 84 FPS, which is playable. Medium settings drop to 69.9 FPS, and High settings average 55.4 FPS. The Ultra preset falls to 39 FPS, which is below the standard for smooth gameplay. The scaling between presets is consistent: moving from Low to Ultra at any resolution results in a substantial FPS loss, but the absolute numbers at 1080p and 1440p are high enough that even the most demanding preset remains playable. The 4K Ultra setting is the only configuration that fails to provide a comfortable experience, highlighting the game's high-end demands at that resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is a powerful graphics card built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus with a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. Its core clocks are 1920 MHz base and 2475 MHz boost. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 26927 and its 81st percentile ranking against all GPUs confirm its high-end status. In Hard West, the GPU is the primary driver of performance, especially at higher resolutions. The data shows that at 4K, the difference between Low (84 FPS) and Ultra (39 FPS) is over 50%, demonstrating that the GPU is being pushed to its limits with the more demanding settings. The 12 GB of VRAM is ample for this game, which is not VRAM-intensive, so capacity is not a limiting factor. The GPU's compute performance, evidenced by its Passmark GPU Compute score of 14720, is more than sufficient for the game's rendering tasks. The RTX 4070's performance is consistent with its synthetic benchmarks, and it is clear that the card is the bottleneck at 4K Ultra, as the CPU has plenty of headroom. The GPU's ability to maintain high frame rates at 1440p High (102.4 FPS) shows it is a capable card for modern resolutions, but the game's engine and settings at 4K Ultra are simply too demanding for a stable 60 FPS experience.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p users, the Ultra preset is the best choice, as it still delivers an average of 121.1 FPS, which is sufficient for high-refresh-rate displays. The High preset at 163.5 FPS is also excellent, but the visual fidelity increase from Ultra is worth the performance cost when the frame rate remains this high. For 1440p, the High preset is the sweet spot. It delivers 102.4 FPS, which is above the 100 FPS mark and provides a smooth experience. The Medium preset at 130.9 FPS is also viable if higher frame rates are preferred, but the jump to High is recommended for better visuals. The Ultra preset at 77.5 FPS is still playable, but the drop below 100 FPS may be noticeable on high-refresh-rate monitors. For 4K users, the Medium preset is the recommended choice. It provides an average of 69.9 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The High preset at 55.4 FPS is a compromise, but it falls short of the 60 FPS target. The Low preset at 84 FPS is the only other option that exceeds 60 FPS, but the visual quality loss is significant. The Ultra preset at 39 FPS is not recommended for a playable experience. In summary, the best experience is to use Ultra at 1080p, High at 1440p, and Medium at 4K to balance visual quality and frame rate.