Hard West

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For Hard West, the measured data across four presets and three resolutions reveals a clear performance hierarchy. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 129 FPS, which is entirely playable for a turn-based tactics title, while the High preset reaches 172 FPS and Medium achieves 224 FPS. The Low preset peaks at 274 FPS, but given the genre's non-reflexive nature, the visual fidelity gains from higher settings outweigh the frame-rate headroom.

The most balanced experience appears at 2560x1440 with the High preset, producing an average of 109 FPS. This is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and represents a substantial visual upgrade over 1080p. The Medium preset at this resolution yields 142 FPS, but the jump to High only costs roughly 23% of the frame rate while offering meaningful graphical improvements. At 4K, the situation changes; the High preset manages just 57 FPS, which is below the ideal smoothness target for many users, though still functional for a turn-based game where input latency is less critical.

Benchmark results indicate the sweet spot is 1440p High. It provides a 109 FPS average, which is 52 FPS higher than the 4K High result, while still delivering a resolution that showcases the game's art style. The 1080p Ultra preset at 129 FPS is also viable for users prioritizing visual quality over resolution, but the 1440p High preset offers a better balance of sharpness and fluidity. For users with high-refresh-rate displays at 1080p, the Medium preset at 224 FPS is ample, and the Low preset's 274 FPS is unnecessary for this genre. The data suggests that pushing beyond High settings at any resolution yields diminishing returns relative to the frame-rate cost, particularly at 4K where Ultra drops to 43 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 7600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 achieves a combo rank of 667 out of 3,722 tested combinations in Hard West. This places the pairing in the top percentile of systems, indicating that this hardware configuration is well above average for this game. The rank reflects the synergy between a modern 6-core processor and a current-generation graphics card, which together deliver the frame rates observed in the measured data.

The CPU itself sits in the 78th percentile versus all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 26,324. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX (0.2% higher score), Intel Core i9-11900KF (0.4% higher), and AMD Ryzen 5 8540U (0.5% higher), while the AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS trails by 0.3%. These are all extremely close margins, indicating that the Ryzen 5 7600's processing power is highly competitive with a broad range of other chips, including mobile parts and older desktop flagships.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5070 ranks in the 82nd percentile versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 40,377. Its nearest rivals are professional and mobile workstation cards: the AMD Radeon Pro 580 (0.1% higher), AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (0.8% higher), and NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile (2% higher), while the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 trails by 1.2%. This is an unusual competitive set, highlighting that the RTX 5070's raw compute performance aligns closely with these specialized cards, though its gaming-focused architecture and driver support are distinct advantages in a title like Hard West.

The overall combo rank of 667 out of 3,722 suggests that this pairing is in roughly the 82nd percentile of all tested systems for this specific game. This is a strong result, indicating that users with this hardware can expect a smooth experience at high settings, as corroborated by the measured FPS data. The rank is a holistic measure that accounts for both CPU and GPU contributions, and the data shows neither component is a significant bottleneck in Hard West.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Hard West with this hardware?

A: The 2560x1440 High preset offers the best balance, achieving 109 FPS average. This is well above smoothness thresholds while providing a substantial resolution upgrade over 1080p, where High reaches 172 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 5070's performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The RTX 5070's average benchmark score is 40,377, placing it within 2% of the AMD Radeon Pro 580, AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100, AMD Radeon Pro 5300, and NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile. It is 0.1% slower than the Radeon Pro 580 and 2% faster than the RTX A500 Mobile.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 7600 bottleneck the RTX 5070 in Hard West?

A: The data shows no significant bottleneck. The CPU ranks in the 78th percentile and the GPU in the 82nd percentile, and the measured FPS scales predictably with resolution, indicating a balanced pairing for this turn-based tactics game.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The 4K Ultra preset delivers an average of 43 FPS. This is the most demanding configuration tested and is below the 60 FPS threshold, though it may still be acceptable for a turn-based game where frame timing is less critical.

Q: Is the Low preset ever necessary for playable performance?

A: No. Even at 4K, the Low preset achieves 91 FPS average, and at 1080p it reaches 274 FPS. The High or Medium presets are always preferable for visual quality, as the frame rates remain high across all tested resolutions.

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

A: The combo ranks 667th out of 3,722 tested combinations for Hard West, placing it in the top 18% of all systems in the database for this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for Hard West with the AMD Ryzen 5 7600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 shows a consistent pattern across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset produces an average of 274 FPS, Medium hits 224 FPS, High reaches 172 FPS, and Ultra settles at 129 FPS. The Medium preset also recorded minimum and maximum values of 191 and 258 FPS respectively, indicating a stable frame delivery with no significant dips.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down proportionally. The Low preset averages 173 FPS, Medium achieves 142 FPS with a minimum of 121 and maximum of 163 FPS, High delivers 109 FPS, and Ultra drops to 82 FPS. The gap between Medium and High at this resolution is 33 FPS, while the jump from High to Ultra costs 27 FPS, showing that the Ultra preset is particularly demanding.

At 3840x2160, the performance envelope tightens considerably. The Low preset still manages an average of 91 FPS, Medium achieves 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 and maximum of 86 FPS, High falls to 57 FPS, and Ultra drops to 43 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 63 FPS is notable as it remains above the 60 FPS threshold, whereas the High preset's average of 57 FPS falls below it Math.round. The progression from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a reduction from 91 to 43 FPS, a 48 FPS spread, whereas the same settings spread at 1080p is 145 FPS, illustrating how resolution amplifies the cost of higher settings.

The data reveals that the Medium preset consistently provides the most stable frame pacing, as it is the only setting with recorded minimum values across all resolutions, and those minimums are within a reasonable margin of the averages. At 1080p, the Medium minimum of 191 FPS is only 33 FPS below the average; at 1440p, the minimum of 121 FPS is 21 FPS below the average; and at 4K, the minimum of 63 FPS is 11 FPS below the average. This suggests the Medium preset avoids the severe frame drops that can occur at higher settings, making it a safe choice for users sensitive to stutter.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling behavior of Hard West with this hardware combination reveals important insights into the limiting component. From 1920x1080 to 2560x1440, the average FPS across all settings drops by an average of 37.5%. For instance, the High preset falls from 172 FPS to 109 FPS, a 36.6% reduction, while the Low preset drops from 274 to 173 FPS, a 36.9% reduction. This near-uniform scaling across settings indicates that the GPU is becoming progressively more stressed as pixel count increases, but the CPU still has ample headroom.

From 2560x1440 to 3840x2160, the scaling becomes more pronounced. The High preset drops from 109 to 57 FPS, a 47.7% reduction, while the Low preset falls from 173 to 91 FPS, a 47.4% reduction. The Ultra preset shows the most significant relative drop, going from 82 to 43 FPS, a 47.6% reduction. This steeper decline at higher resolutions is a classic sign of the GPU becoming the primary limiting factor, as the rendering workload increases exponentially with pixel count while CPU load remains relatively constant.

The overall scaling from 1080p to 4K is substantial. The High preset loses 115 FPS (from 172 to 57), a 66.9% reduction, and the Low preset loses 183 FPS (from 274 to 91), a 66.8% reduction. This consistent percentage loss across settings suggests that the GPU is the dominant constraint at 4K, as the RTX 5070's compute capabilities are being fully utilized. The CPU, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, is unlikely to be a limiting factor even at 1080p, given that the Low preset exceeds 270 FPS.

The data indicates that the transition from 1440p to 4K is where the GPU's memory bandwidth and processing power start to show their limits. The RTX 5070's 12 GB of GDDR7 memory and 672.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 4K, but the frame rates show that Hard West's rendering demands at this resolution push the GPU to its limits. The scaling behavior is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario at 4K, while the more moderate scaling from 1080p to 1440p suggests a more balanced load between CPU and GPU.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7600 plays a supporting but essential role in this configuration. With 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Zen 4 architecture, it provides a solid foundation for Hard West's turn-based tactics engine. The CPU's base clock of 3.80 GHz and boost clock of 5.10 GHz ensure responsive single-threaded performance, which is typical for game logic and AI calculations in this genre)Skip. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB per-core L2 cache help reduce memory latency for frequently accessed game data.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Ryzen 5 7600 demonstrates strong multi-threaded capabilities, scoring 12,735 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1,852 in single-core. The Geekbench scores of 13,413 multi-core and 2,521 single-core further corroborate its balanced performance profile. The 3DMark scores show scaling from 1,938 with 2 threads to 6,503 with max threads, indicating good thread scaling up to the full 12-thread count, which is beneficial for games that utilize multiple cores for background tasks.

The CPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals shows it is competitively positioned. Its average benchmark score of 26,324 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX (26,274, +0.2%), Intel Core i9-11900KF (26,212, +0.4%), and AMD Ryzen 5 8540U (26,187, +0.5%), while slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS (26,402, -0.3%). This clustering suggests that in Hard West, where the CPU load is moderate due to the turn-based nature, the Ryzen 5 7600 provides more than enough processing power to keep up with the RTX 5070.

The measured FPS data supports this. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 274 FPS, which is far beyond what the GPU alone could deliver if the CPU were a bottleneck. The fact that frame rates scale so predictably with resolution and settings indicates the CPU is not constraining performance, even at the highest frame rates. The CPU's 65W TDP and 5 nm process node also mean it operates efficiently, though these thermal characteristics are not directly measured in the FPS data.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is the primary driver of frame rates in this configuration. With 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus and 672.0 GB/s bandwidth, it has ample resources for Hard West at all tested resolutions. The GPU's base clock of 2325 MHz and boost clock of 2512 MHz provide the raw compute throughput, which is quantified by its 30.87 TFLOPS FP32 performance. The 6,144 shading units and 192 texture mapping units handle the game's rendering workload efficiently.

The GPU's benchmark results show it is a strong performer, ranking in the 82nd percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score of 40,377 is closely matched by its nearest rivals, with the AMD Radeon Pro 580 scoring 40,318 (+0.1%), AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 at 40,063 (+0.8%), and NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile at 39,568 (+2%), while the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 scores 40,870 (-1.2%). In PassMark, the GPU achieves a G3D score of 29,137 and a GPU compute score of 15,787, indicating solid DirectX performance across various versions (DirectX 9: 320, DirectX 10: 180, DirectX 11: 277, DirectX 12: 108).

The GPU's role in Hard West is clearly dominant, as evidenced by the resolution scaling data. The pronounced frame rate drops at 4K, where the High preset averages only 57 FPS, indicate the GPU is working near its limits. The 12 GB VRAM capacity is not exceeded at any tested setting, as the game is from 2015 and likely has modest texture requirements, but the compute load at 4K Ultra is substantial. The transition from Medium to High at 4K costs 17 FPS (from 74 to 57), and from High to Ultra costs 14 FPS (from 57 to 43), showing that each settings tier has a significant GPU cost.

The GPU's memory bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s becomes increasingly important at higher resolutions, as the pixel fill rate requirement grows. The RTX 5070's 201.0 GPixel/s pixel rate and 482.3 GTexel/s texture rate are sufficient for the game's visual effects, but the data shows that the Ultra preset at 4K is only 43 FPS, which is below the ideal smoothness threshold. This suggests that for Hard West, the RTX 5070 is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p with High or Medium settings, where it can deliver frame rates well above 100 FPS.