Hard West

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

The measured FPS data for Hard West with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER shows a predictable, yet steep, drop as resolution climbs. At 1080p Ultra, the combo delivers 135.4 FPS. Moving to 1440p Ultra drops that to 86.9 FPS, and at 4K Ultra the average falls to 44.2 FPS. That is a 67% reduction from 1080p to 4K at the highest settings, which points squarely at the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

The scaling pattern is revealing. At Low settings, the transition from 1080p to 1440p costs 47.9 FPS (from 230.5 to 182.6), and from 1440p to 4K costs another 89.2 FPS (down to 93.4). The percentage drop from 1440p to 4K at Low is roughly 49%, which is a massive hit. This indicates that even at the lowest graphical preset, the RTX 4070 SUPER is still the limiting factor at 4K — the pixel count simply overwhelms it. At 1080p Low, the 230.5 FPS figure suggests the CPU is starting to become relevant, but even then, the GPU is not completely idle.

Contrast this with the High preset: 1080p yields 180.6 FPS, 1440p yields 116 FPS, and 4K yields 60 FPS. The 4K result is exactly 60, which is likely a V-sync cap or a coincidence, but the trend is clear — the game becomes GPU-bound quickly. The Medium preset shows a similar curve: 215.3, 149.3, and 77.2 FPS respectively. The Ultra preset is the most punishing, with the 4K average of 44.2 FPS being the only sub-60 result in the entire set.

What does this mean for the limiting component? At 1080p, the Ryzen 5 5600 with its 6 cores and 12 threads is capable of pushing frame rates well above 200 FPS at Low settings, so it is not a serious constraint. The data suggests that Hard West, being a turn-based tactics title from 2015, does not heavily tax the CPU. The GPU is the clear bottleneck at 1440p and 4K, regardless of settings. The RTX 4070 SUPER, with its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 192-bit bus, handles 1080p and 1440p with ease, but 4K Ultra is beyond its comfortable range for this title.

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

The RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the AD104 chip with the Ada Lovelace architecture, fabricated on a 5 nm process. Its base clock is 1980 MHz, boosting to 2475 MHz. The memory runs at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective) across a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. With 12 GB of GDDR6X, this card is well-equipped for a 2015 title like Hard West, which does not require massive VRAM allocations.

The benchmark results show that the GPU's raw compute is the dominant factor. At 4K Ultra, the 44.2 FPS average indicates the card is working hard, but the game's visual complexity is not the issue — it is the sheer number of pixels. The 7168 shading units and 224 texture mapping units provide plenty of fill rate, but the 80 ROPs are tasked with outputting to a 3840x2160 framebuffer. This is where the card struggles.

Compare this to the GPU's synthetic scores: it ranks in the 84th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 42576. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A6000 (0.2% slower), the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE (0.3% slower), and the AMD Radeon Pro 580X (1.4% faster). These are not gaming-focused cards, which tells you that the RTX 4070 SUPER is a strong all-around performer, but Hard West's 4K Ultra preset is a heavy load.

The VRAM situation is not a concern here. 12 GB is ample for a game released in 2015, and the data shows no indication of memory-related stutters or capacity issues. The G3D benchmark score of 29995 and the DirectX 11 score of 273 suggest the card is fully capable of handling the game's API requirements. The GPU is the clear limiting factor at 4K, but at 1080p and 1440p, it has headroom to spare.

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

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 5000 series, based on Zen 3 architecture (codenamed Vermeer). It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The cache configuration includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3. It supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel mode, with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s.

In Hard West, the CPU's role is secondary. The game is turn-based tactics, which does not require the same level of per-frame processing as a fast-paced shooter. The 1080p Low result of 230.5 FPS demonstrates that the CPU is not a bottleneck at lower resolutions. However, the single-threaded performance is important for game logic and AI calculations. The 3DMark single-thread score of 882 and the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2584 show solid performance.

The Ryzen 5 5600 ranks in the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 21765. Its nearest rivals are the Intel Xeon D-1746TER (0.6% faster), the AMD EPYC 9554P (0.6% slower), and the AMD EPYC 9534 (0.6% slower). Interestingly, the Intel Core i7-11700F is 0.9% faster, which shows that the 5600 is competitive with mainstream desktop parts from the same era.

The 3DMark 16-thread score of 5641 and max-thread score of 5659 indicate that the CPU scales well with multi-threaded workloads, but Hard West likely does not use all 12 threads. The PassMark multi-thread score of 21541 and single-thread score of 3256 are respectable, but the game's frame rates at 1080p suggest the CPU is not the limiting factor. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU takes over as the primary constraint, and the CPU has plenty of headroom to feed frames.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution to play Hard West with this combo for a consistent 60 FPS?

A: The data shows that 4K High averages exactly 60 FPS, which is the only 4K setting that hits that threshold. At 1440p, all settings average above 86 FPS, and at 1080p, even Ultra averages 135.4 FPS. For a 60 FPS target, 4K High is the maximum you can achieve.

Q: How much performance do you lose going from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra settings?

A: At Ultra, 1080p averages 135.4 FPS, while 1440p averages 86.9 FPS. That is a drop of 48.5 FPS, which is a 35.8% reduction in frame rate. The GPU is the main cause, as the pixel count increases by 78%.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 SUPER enough for 4K gaming in Hard West?

A: It depends on the settings. At 4K Low, it averages 93.4 FPS, at Medium 77.2 FPS, and at High exactly 60 FPS. However, at 4K Ultra, it drops to 44.2 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target. So, the card can handle 4K, but not at the highest preset.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5600 compare to its closest rival in terms of CPU performance?

A: The Ryzen 5 5600 has an average benchmark score of 21765, which is 0.6% faster than the Intel Xeon D-1746TER (21635) and 0.9% faster than the Intel Core i7-11700F (21957, which is actually 0.9% faster). It is 0.6% slower than the AMD EPYC 9554P (21899) and AMD EPYC 9534 (21900).

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

A: At 1440p Low, the average is 182.6 FPS, while at Ultra it is 86.9 FPS. That is a difference of 95.7 FPS, meaning Ultra is roughly 52% slower than Low. The gap is significant but not as large as at 4K, where the difference is 49.2 FPS.

Q: Does the game show any signs of being CPU-limited at any resolution?

A: The 1080p Low result of 230.5 FPS suggests the CPU is still capable of pushing very high frame rates. However, the fact that 1080p Ultra drops to 135.4 FPS indicates the GPU is still the main limiter. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for this turn-based title.

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

Looking at the measured FPS rows, the data suggests a clear hierarchy of playability. For a 60 FPS target, the 4K High preset is the absolute ceiling, averaging exactly 60 FPS. If you want headroom above 60 FPS, 4K Medium averages 77.2 FPS, which is a safer choice for maintaining frame times without dipping below the threshold. 4K Low is also viable at 93.4 FPS, but you are sacrificing visual quality for performance that is likely unnecessary.

At 1440p, the situation is more comfortable. The High preset averages 116 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. Ultra averages 86.9 FPS, which is still smooth but not as fluid. For the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, 1440p High is the sweet spot — it offers nearly all the visual benefits of Ultra at a 33% higher frame rate compared to Ultra. If you have a 144 Hz monitor, 1440p Medium at 149.3 FPS is also worth considering.

At 1080p, all settings are playable, with even Ultra averaging 135.4 FPS. Low hits 230.5 FPS, Medium 215.3 FPS, and High 180.6 FPS. For a 1080p setup, the recommendation is to use High or Ultra, as the performance cost is minimal relative to the visual gains. The difference between Low and Ultra is 95.1 FPS, but you are unlikely to notice the difference beyond 144 Hz.

The key takeaway is that the RTX 4070 SUPER is powerful enough for 1440p High as the default recommendation, with 4K High as a viable option for those who prioritize resolution over frame rate. Avoid 4K Ultra, as the 44.2 FPS average is below the playable threshold for most users.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following is the complete measured FPS data for Hard West with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER.

At 1920x1080, the results are as follows:

• Low: 230.5 FPS average
• Medium: 215.3 FPS average
• High: 180.6 FPS average
• Ultra: 135.4 FPS average

At 2560x1440, the results are:

• Low: 182.6 FPS average
• Medium: 149.3 FPS average
• High: 116 FPS average
• Ultra: 86.9 FPS average

At 3840x2160, the results are:

• Low: 93.4 FPS average
• Medium: 77.2 FPS average
• High: 60 FPS average
• Ultra: 44.2 FPS average

These numbers show a consistent pattern: each step up in resolution or settings reduces the frame rate by a predictable margin. At 1080p, the gap between Low and Ultra is 95.1 FPS. At 1440p, that gap shrinks to 95.7 FPS, and at 4K it shrinks further to 49.2 FPS. This indicates that the GPU becomes increasingly strained as resolution climbs, and the settings have less relative impact at higher resolutions.

The combo ranks 323rd out of 1699 tested combos for this game, which places it in the top 19% of all configurations. This is a strong showing, but it is not the top tier. The data confirms that this pairing is well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K as a secondary option at reduced settings.