Hard West

Resolution Scaling

Hard West is a turn-based tactics title from 2015, and the measured FPS data for the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F + Intel Arc B580 combo shows a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution climbs. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces an average of 95 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High drops that to 60 FPS, a reduction of roughly 37%. At 3840x2160 High, the average falls to 32 FPS, which is about 66% lower than the 1080p High result. This scaling curve is steep, and it points directly at the GPU as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

The low settings results reinforce this interpretation. At 1080p Low, the system hits 151 FPS average. At 1440p Low, it manages 96 FPS, and at 4K Low, it drops to 50 FPS. The percentage drops between these steps are consistent — a 36% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 48% drop from 1440p to 4K. When the graphics load is lightened, the framerate still falls significantly with resolution, which indicates that the Intel Arc B580's raw throughput is the limiting factor rather than the CPU.

Medium settings show a similar trajectory: 124 FPS at 1080p, 79 FPS at 1440p, and 41 FPS at 4K. The 4K Medium result includes a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS, showing some variance but no catastrophic stuttering. Ultra settings are the most demanding, yielding 71 FPS at 1080p, 45 FPS at 1440p, and just 24 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra figure is below the 30 FPS threshold that most players consider playable, confirming that this combo is not suited for maximum settings at 4K in this game.

What does this scaling tell us about the limiting component? The fact that 1080p Low produces 151 FPS while 1080p Ultra produces 71 FPS — a 53% gap — shows that the GPU is doing heavy lifting even at the lowest resolution. If the CPU were the constraint, we would expect the Low and Ultra scores at the same resolution to converge, since lowering settings reduces GPU load but not CPU workload. Instead, the framerate scales almost linearly with settings, which is the signature of a GPU-bound scenario. The Ryzen 5 8400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, is clearly capable of feeding this GPU enough data at 1080p, but the Arc B580 cannot maintain high framerates when pixel count and shading complexity increase.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture, codenamed Battlemage, and fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 19,600 million transistors into a 272 mm² die. The GPU operates at a fixed 2670 MHz for both base and boost clocks, which is a relatively high clock speed for a graphics card. Memory consists of 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a substantial amount of VRAM for a game from 2015, and the memory bandwidth is more than adequate for Hard West's demands — the game simply does not need that much bandwidth, which means the card is unlikely to be memory-constrained here.

In terms of raw compute, the B580 offers 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output units. The pixel rate is 213.6 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 427.2 GTexel/s. Floating point performance is rated at 13.67 TFLOPS for FP32, with FP16 at 27.34 TFLOPS via a 2:1 ratio. These numbers place the B580 in the upper-midrange tier of GPUs, and the benchmark data confirms this. The passmark G3D score is 15748, and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 3068. The GPU sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021.

Comparing to the nearest rivals, the B580 is remarkably close to several older or higher-tier cards. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP has an average score of 23061, which is just 0.2% higher than the B580's average. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895, which is 0.6% lower. The RTX 3080 scores 23172, putting it 0.7% higher, and the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 23249, which is 1% higher. These deltaPct values are all within a single percentage point, meaning the B580 performs essentially on par with that cluster of cards in synthetic benchmarks. However, in Hard West specifically, the measured FPS shows that this GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, where even Medium settings only produce 41 FPS average.

The VRAM capacity of 12 GB is worth noting for a game like Hard West, which was released in 2015 and is not known for heavy texture demands. The card's 456.0 GB/s bandwidth is far more than the game requires, so the framerate drops at high resolution are not due to memory limitations. Instead, the compute throughput and fill rate are what hold the card back. The 80 ROPs and 213.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are modest by modern standards, and at 4K the sheer number of pixels to fill overwhelms the card's capabilities, especially with Ultra settings enabled.

FAQ

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F + Intel Arc B580 combo capable of running Hard West at 1080p?

A: Yes, and quite comfortably. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo averages 95 FPS. Even at Ultra settings, it maintains 71 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. At Low settings, it reaches 151 FPS average.

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

A: The data suggests 2560x1440 is the sweet spot. At High settings, the combo produces 60 FPS average, which is exactly at the standard refresh rate. Medium settings at 1440p yield 79 FPS average, and Low settings hit 96 FPS. If you want maximum quality, Ultra at 1440p drops to 45 FPS, which is playable but not ideal.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K in Hard West?

A: Only at lower settings. At 4K Low, the average FPS is 50, which is playable. Medium drops to 41 FPS, High to 32 FPS, and Ultra falls to 24 FPS. The Ultra setting at 4K is below the 30 FPS playability threshold, so it is not recommended.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B580 compare to other GPUs in this system's performance class?

A: The B580's average benchmark score of 23021 places it at the 68th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (23061, 0.2% higher), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (22895, 0.6% lower), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (23172, 0.7% higher), and NVIDIA P106-100 (23249, 1% higher). All of these are within a 1% delta, so the B580 performs on par with that group.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 8400F a bottleneck for the Arc B580 in this game?

A: No, not at the tested settings. The 1080p Low result of 151 FPS average shows that the CPU can feed the GPU well above the 60 FPS target. The framerate drops are consistent with resolution increases, which indicates GPU-bound behavior rather than CPU limitation. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.70 GHz, are sufficient for this game.

Q: What are the minimum FPS values for Medium settings?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the minimum FPS is 105 and the average is 124, with a maximum of 143. At 2560x1440 Medium, the minimum is 67, average 79, maximum 90. At 3840x2160 Medium, the minimum is 35, average 41, maximum 47. These minimums are all within reasonable range of the averages, indicating stable performance without major stuttering.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings levels, providing a complete picture of this combo's performance in Hard West. Starting at 1920x1080, the Low setting produces an average of 151 FPS, which is the highest framerate recorded across all tests. Medium settings yield 124 FPS average, with a minimum of 105 and maximum of 143 FPS. High settings drop to 95 FPS average. Ultra settings produce 71 FPS average. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is substantial — 80 FPS — which shows how much GPU load increases with each settings tier.

Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers scale down proportionally. Low settings average 96 FPS, which is still smooth for most displays. Medium settings average 79 FPS, with a minimum of 67 and maximum of 90. High settings produce 60 FPS average, which is the baseline for 60 Hz monitors. Ultra settings drop to 45 FPS average. The 1440p results are generally playable, though Ultra requires a willingness to accept sub-60 FPS framerates.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes marginal. Low settings average 50 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. Medium settings average 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 and maximum of 47. High settings drop to 32 FPS average. Ultra settings produce just 24 FPS average, which is below the threshold for acceptable playability. The 4K results show a clear trend: this combo is not designed for 4K gaming in Hard West, especially at higher settings.

The settings progression at each resolution shows consistent behavior. At 1080p, going from Low to Medium reduces FPS by 27, from Medium to High by 29, and from High to Ultra by 24. At 1440p, the reductions are 17, 19, and 15 respectively. At 4K, the reductions are 9, 9, and 8. The diminishing absolute differences at higher resolutions suggest that the GPU is becoming increasingly saturated, and the settings changes have less impact because the pixel fill rate is already the limiting factor.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested hardware combinations for Hard West, the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F + Intel Arc B580 combo ranks 2817 out of 3722 total combos. This places it in the 75th percentile of all tested combinations, meaning roughly three-quarters of the combos tested perform better in this game. This ranking is notable because it is lower than what the individual component benchmarks might suggest.

The CPU itself sits at the 77th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 25005. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F (24964, 0.2% higher), Intel Core i7-11850H (24935, 0.3% higher), Intel Core i7-13620H (24911, 0.4% higher), and AMD EPYC 9474F (25103, 0.4% lower). The GPU sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021. Both components are solidly mid-range to upper-mid-range in their respective categories.

The combo's rank of 2817 out of 3722 suggests that while each component is individually capable, their combination does not excel in Hard West specifically. This is likely due to the GPU being the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as discussed earlier. The B580's performance in synthetic benchmarks is competitive with cards like the RTX 2080 and RTX 3080, but in this particular game, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU struggles to maintain high framerates at 4K. The ranking reflects this reality: the combo is capable but not exceptional in this title.

For context, the rank of 2817 means there are 905 combos that perform worse. This places the combo in the middle-to-lower range of tested configurations. Given that the CPU is above average and the GPU is around average, the combination lands where expected — slightly below the 50th percentile of all combos. This is not a poor result, but it is not a standout one either. Players seeking higher framerates in Hard West would need a more powerful GPU, as the CPU is clearly not the bottleneck.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Phoenix. It is manufactured on a 4 nm process at TSMC, with 25,000 million transistors on a 178 mm² die. The base clock is 4.20 GHz, and the boost clock reaches 4.70 GHz. The CPU has a 65 W TDP, which is efficient for a desktop processor. Cache configuration includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 16 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, with a memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s. This is a modern, capable processor that should have no trouble keeping up with a 2015 turn-based tactics game.

In terms of benchmark performance, the Ryzen 5 8400F scores 20851 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2943 in single-core. The 3DMark scores are 6165 for max threads, 5275 for 8 threads, 3563 for 4 threads, and 1874 for 2 threads. PassMark multithread score is 24389, and single-thread is 3685. These scores place the CPU at the 77th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 25005. The nearest rivals are all within 0.4% of this score, indicating that the 8400F is right in the middle of a tightly clustered group of processors.

For Hard West, the CPU role is relatively minor because the game is turn-based and does not require high frame rates for competitive play. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 151 FPS average, which indicates that the CPU can feed the GPU well above typical display refresh rates. Even at 4K Low, the 50 FPS average is not CPU-limited; the drop from 151 to 50 FPS is primarily due to the GPU's inability to process the higher pixel count.

The CPU's 12 threads are more than sufficient for a game from 2015, which likely uses only a handful of threads. The boost clock of 4.70 GHz provides strong single-thread performance, which is typically what older games rely on. The 16 MB of L3 cache is ample for the game's data set. In short, the Ryzen 5 8400F is overqualified for Hard West, and the measured FPS data confirms that it is not the limiting component in this combo. The GPU is the bottleneck, especially at 1440p and 4K resolutions.