Hard West

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

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread desktop processor built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using a 4 nm process from TSMC. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The chip carries 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. For a turn-based tactics title like Hard West, the CPU’s job is primarily to handle game logic, AI pathfinding, and turn resolution—tasks that benefit from strong single-thread performance but rarely stress multi-core scaling.

The benchmark data supports this interpretation. In synthetic tests, the 9600X scores 1253 in 3dmark single-thread and 2183.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core, while its multi-thread scores reach 7590 in 3dmark max threads and 17528.5 in Cinebench R23 multicore. The gap between single- and multi-thread scaling (roughly 6x in Cinebench R23, despite 6 cores) suggests that the processor has ample headroom for lightly threaded workloads. Hard West, released in 2015, was designed for CPUs of that era; the 9600X’s modern architecture and high boost clock mean it is unlikely to be the limiting factor in most scenarios.

The CPU’s 81st percentile ranking among all tested CPUs reinforces this—it sits well above average. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE (avg score 29656, deltaPct 0.2), AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (29868, -0.5), AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT (29879, -0.6), and AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (29955, -0.8). The 9600X’s average benchmark score is 29713, meaning it trades blows with these chips within a single percentage point. For Hard West, where frame pacing in turn-based combat is more about consistent single-thread responsiveness than raw core counts, the 9600X delivers that in spades.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific pairing—AMD Ryzen 5 9600X with Intel Arc B570—ranks 2360 out of 2949 tested combos in Hard West. That places it in the bottom 20 percent of all configurations, which is striking given the individual component strengths. The combo rank suggests that the GPU is the primary constraint in this title, not the CPU. The Ryzen 5 9600X, as noted, is a high-percentile processor, but the Arc B570’s 65th percentile among all GPUs indicates a more mid-pack performer.

The rank of 2360/2949 means roughly 80 percent of tested combos outperform this pairing in Hard West. That is a sobering statistic, but it aligns with the game’s age and the GPU’s driver maturity at this resolution. Turn-based tactics games often have modest GPU demands, yet Hard West’s measured frame rates (detailed in the next section) show this combo struggles at higher resolutions and settings.

To contextualize the GPU’s role in this rank, consider its nearest rivals: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (avg score 20534, deltaPct 0.1), Intel Arc A750 (20582, -0.1), NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (20480, 0.4), and AMD Radeon R9 M390X (20662, -0.5). The Arc B570’s average benchmark score is 20556, putting it right in the middle of that pack. But in Hard West, the combo rank indicates that the GPU’s real-world performance lags behind what those synthetic scores suggest, likely due to the game’s older DirectX 11-era rendering pipeline and the Arc B570’s driver overhead in such titles.

The data shows a clear mismatch: a top-tier CPU paired with a mid-range GPU results in a bottom-quintile combo ranking. For players prioritizing Hard West specifically, this pairing is suboptimal; the CPU’s headroom is wasted because the GPU cannot keep up at demanding settings.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance cliff as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 84 FPS. At 1440p High, that drops to 53 FPS (a 37 percent reduction). At 4K High, it falls to 28 FPS (a 67 percent reduction from 1080p High). This pattern—where FPS halves or nearly halves with each resolution step—is a classic sign of GPU limitation. The CPU is not the bottleneck here; if it were, we would see similar FPS across resolutions at the same settings.

Looking at Low settings, the trend is even more pronounced: 134 FPS at 1080p, 85 FPS at 1440p, and 44 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 36.6 percent, and from 1440p to 4K is 48.2 percent. These are large, consistent declines that track with the increase in pixel count, confirming the GPU is the limiting component at all resolutions.

Medium settings show a similar story: 110 FPS at 1080p (with min 93, max 126), 69 FPS at 1440p (min 59, max 80), and 36 FPS at 4K (min 31, max 42). The frame time consistency at Medium is worth noting—the min-to-max ranges are tight at each resolution, suggesting stable performance without major stutters, but the average FPS is still low at 4K.

Ultra settings are the most demanding: 63 FPS at 1080p, 40 FPS at 1440p, and 21 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is essentially unplayable for smooth gameplay. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is a 36.5 percent drop, and from 1440p to 4K is a 47.5 percent drop—again consistent with pixel-count scaling.

The resolution scaling data indicates that the Intel Arc B570’s 10 GB of GDDR6 memory and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for 4K in Hard West, even at Medium settings. The 160-bit memory bus and 80 ROPs likely contribute to the steep decline at higher resolutions. The CPU’s role is minor here; the Ryzen 5 9600X’s 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth and high clock speeds are more than adequate for the game’s logic, but the GPU’s pixel throughput (200.0 GPixel/s) and texture rate (360.0 GTexel/s) cannot keep up with 4K’s demands.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Hard West?

A: At 1080p, the combo delivers playable frame rates across all settings, ranging from 63 FPS at Ultra to 134 FPS at Low. At 1440p, it remains playable but drops to 40-85 FPS depending on settings. At 4K, average FPS falls below 44 FPS even at Low settings, making it a poor choice for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. FPS scales consistently with resolution (e.g., High settings drop from 84 FPS at 1080p to 28 FPS at 4K), which is a hallmark of GPU-bound performance. The CPU’s high percentile ranking (81st) and strong single-thread scores (1253 in 3dmark single-thread) suggest it is not the constraint.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B570’s average benchmark score is 20556. It is 0.1 percent above the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (20534), 0.1 percent below the Intel Arc A750 (20582), 0.4 percent above the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (20480), and 0.5 percent below the AMD Radeon R9 M390X (20662). This places it in a tight mid-range cluster.

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

A: At 4K, the best measured result is 44 FPS at Low settings. Medium settings yield 36 FPS, High yields 28 FPS, and Ultra yields 21 FPS. For 4K playability, only Low settings approach acceptable frame rates, and even then, 44 FPS is marginal for many players.

Q: What is the frame time consistency like at Medium settings?

A: At Medium settings, the min and max FPS are recorded for all three resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 93-126 FPS (average 110). At 1440p, it is 59-80 FPS (average 69). At 4K, it is 31-42 FPS (average 36). The tight ranges suggest stable performance without major frame time spikes.

Q: How does the CPU’s multi-thread performance affect this game?

A: Hard West is a turn-based tactics game that likely does not scale well beyond a few threads. The Ryzen 5 9600X’s multi-thread scores (e.g., 17528.5 in Cinebench R23 multicore) are strong, but the game’s performance is not limited by CPU multi-threading. The single-thread score (2183.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core) is more relevant, and it is more than sufficient for the game’s logic.

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

The Intel Arc B570 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage generation) using a 5 nm TSMC process. It features 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, with 18 ray tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base and boost clock of 2500 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective) across a 160-bit bus. It has 10 GB of GDDR6 memory providing 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The card’s pixel rate is 200.0 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 360.0 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance of 11.52 TFLOPS.

In Hard West, the GPU’s role is clearly the dominant factor in determining frame rates. The measured data shows that at 1080p, the Arc B570 can achieve 134 FPS at Low settings, which suggests the GPU has enough raw throughput for lower-resolution rendering. However, as resolution increases, the GPU’s limitations become apparent. At 4K, even Low settings only muster 44 FPS, indicating that the 10 GB VRAM and 160-bit memory bus are insufficient for the memory bandwidth demands of 4K rendering in this title.

The GPU’s 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 20556, places it in the mid-range tier. Its nearest rivals—the RTX 3070 Mobile, Arc A750, Quadro M4000M, and R9 M390X—all score within 0.5 percent, showing this is a competitive segment. However, in Hard West, the Arc B570’s performance at 4K (21-44 FPS across settings) is far below what a high-end GPU would deliver, and the combo rank of 2360/2949 reflects that.

The VRAM capacity of 10 GB is not necessarily the issue at 4K for a 2015 game, but the 380.0 GB/s bandwidth is. For context, the GPU’s texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s are mid-pack, and these figures directly impact fill-rate-bound scenarios like 4K rendering. The 80 ROPs are also modest for 4K workloads. The data suggests that the Arc B570 is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it delivers playable frame rates across most settings, but it struggles to maintain playability at 4K in Hard West.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings balance for this combo depends on the target resolution. At 1080p, all settings are playable: Low averages 134 FPS, Medium 110 FPS (min 93, max 126), High 84 FPS, and Ultra 63 FPS. For the smoothest experience at 1080p, Medium settings offer a strong balance—110 FPS average with tight frame times (93-126 FPS range) and a significant visual upgrade over Low. High settings at 84 FPS are also viable for players who prioritize visual fidelity over raw frame rate, but Ultra’s 63 FPS is the threshold where smoothness begins to degrade.

At 1440p, the choices narrow. Low settings average 85 FPS, which is excellent for this resolution. Medium settings average 69 FPS (min 59, max 80), which is still playable but shows the GPU starting to strain. High settings drop to 53 FPS, and Ultra falls to 40 FPS. For 1440p, the data recommends Medium as the best experience—69 FPS is above the 60 FPS target, and the min of 59 FPS indicates it stays playable even in demanding scenes. Low settings at 85 FPS are preferable for competitive or fast-paced play, but for a turn-based tactics game, the visual upgrade to Medium is worthwhile.

At 4K, the options are severely limited. Low settings average 44 FPS, which is the only preset that approaches playability. Medium averages 36 FPS, High 28 FPS, and Ultra 21 FPS—all below the 30 FPS threshold for acceptable play. For 4K, the data clearly indicates Low settings as the only reasonable choice, and even then, 44 FPS may not be smooth enough for some players. The frame time data for Medium at 4K (min 31, max 42, average 36) shows that the GPU is consistently delivering sub-60 FPS performance, which is not ideal for a turn-based game that benefits from responsive camera movement and smooth transitions.

In summary, the best experience per the measured rows is: 1080p Medium (110 FPS) for the best balance of visuals and performance; 1440p Medium (69 FPS) for a high-quality experience that remains playable; and 4K Low (44 FPS) as the only viable option at that resolution. The combo’s strengths are clearly in the 1080p and 1440p range, where the Ryzen 5 9600X’s CPU headroom and the Arc B570’s mid-range GPU power combine to deliver solid performance. At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, and players should either reduce resolution or accept lower settings to maintain playability.