Hard West

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 delivers a strong showing in Hard West, a turn-based tactics title from 2015. The benchmark data indicates that this combination places in the 1066th position out of 3722 tested combos, putting it comfortably in the top third of all systems evaluated. The game itself is not particularly demanding by modern standards, which means the results highlight how this specific hardware pairing behaves across resolutions and settings.

Resolution Scaling

Resolution scaling in Hard West shows a predictable pattern, but the magnitude of the performance drop between 1080p and 4K is revealing. At the Low preset, the average frame rate falls from 229 FPS at 1920x1080 to 155 FPS at 2560x1440, then further to 82 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 32% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 47% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The total drop from 1080p to 4K is 64%, which is substantial but not as severe as what a fully GPU-bound modern title would show.

The Medium preset tells a similar story. At 1080p, the average is 201 FPS, falling to 127 FPS at 1440p and 67 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 37% and 47% respectively. The High preset sees 155 FPS at 1080p, 98 FPS at 1440p, and 51 FPS at 4K, with drops of 37% and 48%. The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling: 116 FPS at 1080p, 73 FPS at 1440p, and 38 FPS at 4K, with drops of 37% and 48%.

What this data suggests is that Hard West is still largely CPU-bound at 1080p, even with the powerful 5800X3D, because the frame rates are so high that the GPU is not the limiting factor. The fact that the 1080p Low preset reaches 229 FPS means the CPU is delivering frames faster than most displays can even show. As resolution increases, the GPU workload scales, and the frame rates drop proportionally. At 4K Ultra, the 38 FPS average shows a clear GPU bottleneck, but even this is playable for a turn-based tactics game where reaction time is not critical.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on which preset offers the best experience. The Medium preset at 2560x1440 is notable because it is the only entry with both min and max FPS values recorded: 108 FPS minimum, 146 FPS maximum, and 127 FPS average. The presence of a 108 FPS floor suggests that even in the most demanding moments, the game remains fluid, which is particularly important for a turn-based title where camera movements and unit animations might cause brief frame dips.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset shows a 57 FPS minimum and 77 FPS maximum, with a 67 FPS average. This is still above the 60 FPS target, making it the recommended choice for 4K play. The High preset at 4K averages 51 FPS, which is playable but might feel slightly less smooth. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 38 FPS average, which is noticeably less fluid.

For 1440p, the High preset at 98 FPS average is a solid choice, but the Medium preset at 127 FPS average provides a 30% increase in smoothness. The Ultra preset at 73 FPS is also viable if visual fidelity matters more than raw frame rate. The data indicates that the Medium preset provides the best balance between visual quality and performance across all resolutions, with only a small drop from High in average FPS (51 to 67 at 4K, 98 to 127 at 1440p, and 155 to 201 at 1080p).

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, built on the 7 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 4.50 GHz, with 96 MB of shared L3 cache. The 3D V-Cache technology is the distinguishing feature, though the fact pack does not list a separate vCache3d field, the 96 MB L3 is the key specification. This CPU is in the 80th percentile among all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 27896.

In the context of Hard West, the CPU's role is primarily to maintain high frame rates at lower resolutions. The fact that the 1080p Low preset reaches 229 FPS and the 1080p Medium preset reaches 201 FPS suggests that the CPU is more than capable of feeding the GPU with frames in this title. The game is turn-based, meaning the CPU workload is likely concentrated on AI calculations, pathfinding, and game state updates rather than continuous rendering. The 8 cores and 16 threads provide ample parallel processing for whatever background tasks exist, while the boost clock of 4.50 GHz ensures that single-threaded tasks are handled quickly.

The benchmark results show the CPU scores in various tests: 2413 in Cinebench R15 multi-core, 241 in single-core, 14317 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, and 1452 in single-core. It also scores 11765 in Geekbench multi-core and 2017 in single-core. These numbers indicate a processor that is strong in both multi-threaded and single-threaded workloads, which is exactly what a turn-based tactics game might require for smooth AI turns and instant UI responses.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the 5800X3D is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 6800U (0% delta), the Intel Core i9-10900K (0.1% delta), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 (-0.1% delta). It is 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i5-12600KF. These small differences in synthetic benchmarks suggest that the 5800X3D is not alone at the top of the CPU performance chart, but its unique 96 MB L3 cache might give it an edge in specific game workloads, although the measured FPS data does not show any differences that would be directly attributable to the cache.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 5800X3D and the RTX 3080 ranks 1066 out of 3722 tested combos in Hard West. This position places it in the top 28.6% of all tested systems, which is a strong showing for a game of this age. The combo's ranking is influenced by both the CPU and GPU, but since Hard West is not very demanding, the high frame rates are likely more dependent on the CPU's ability to feed the GPU. The RTX 3080's percentile among all GPUs is 68%, while the CPU's percentile is 80%, which might explain why the combo ranks where it does. The GPU is slightly above average, but the CPU is well above average, and together they produce frame rates that are well beyond what is required for a smooth experience.

The GPU's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA P106-100 with a delta of -0.3%, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 with -0.3%, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M with -0.4%, and the AMD Radeon R9 M290X with -0.4%. These are all within a small percentage of the RTX 3080's average score, but the 3080 is clearly the fastest of the group. The CPU's nearest rivals are the 6800U (0%), i9-10900K (0.1%), Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 (-0.1%), and i5-12600KF (0.3%), all of which are essentially equal in average score.

Given that the game is from 2015, the combo rank suggests that this system is overkill for Hard West, but the data shows that the game still demands a certain amount of hardware to run at high frame rates, especially at 4K Ultra where the 38 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target. The combo's ranking of 1066 out of 3722 means there are many other systems that achieve similar performance, but it also indicates that this specific combination is within the top third of all tested configurations.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and setting combination for smooth gameplay in Hard West?

A: At 1920x1080, the Medium preset provides 201 FPS average with a 171 FPS minimum, which is extremely smooth. For 2560x1440, the Medium preset gives 127 FPS average with a 108 FPS minimum. At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the only one that stays above 60 FPS, with a 67 FPS average and 57 FPS minimum.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in Hard West?

A: The Ryzen 7 5800X3D's 8 cores, 16 threads, and 4.50 GHz boost clock keep the game running at high frame rates, especially at 1080p where the Low preset hits 229 FPS. The CPU's single-thread performance is also strong, as shown by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1452, which helps with the game's simulation and UI tasks.

Q: Is the 4K Ultra preset playable with this hardware?

A: The 4K Ultra preset yields an average of 38 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play. However, for a turn-based tactics game, this might still be acceptable. The 4K Medium preset at 67 FPS is a much better option for 4K.

Q: What is the GPU's role in this game?

A: The RTX 3080 has 10 GB of GDDR6X memory and 8704 shading units, with a boost clock of 1710 MHz. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as the frame rate drops from 82 FPS at Low to 38 FPS at Ultra, showing a clear GPU bottleneck.

Q: How does this combo compare to other systems?

A: It ranks 1066 out of 3722 tested combos, placing it in the top 28.6%. The CPU is in the 80th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 68th percentile among all GPUs, indicating that the CPU contributes more to the overall ranking.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Medium settings?

A: At 1080p, Low is 229 FPS and Medium is 201 FPS, a difference of 28 FPS. At 1440p, Low is 155 FPS and Medium is 127 FPS, a difference of 28 FPS. At 4K, Low is 82 FPS and Medium is 67 FPS, a difference of 15 FPS. The Medium setting provides better visuals for a modest frame rate hit.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings for each resolution. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 229 FPS, with no min or max recorded. The Medium preset has an average of 201 FPS, a minimum of 171 FPS, and a maximum of 231 FPS. The High preset shows 155 FPS average, and the Ultra preset shows 116 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 155 FPS. The Medium preset averages 127 FPS, with a minimum of 108 FPS and a maximum of 146 FPS. The High preset averages 98 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 73 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 82 FPS. The Medium preset averages 67 FPS, with a minimum of 57 FPS and a maximum of 77 FPS. The High preset averages 51 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 38 FPS.

Not all presets have min and max data points; only the Medium settings at each resolution include these values. The absence of min/max data for other settings means those runs were likely not recorded with frame time logging. The Medium preset's data shows that the frame pacing is consistent, with the minimum and maximum values being within a reasonable range of the average. For instance, at 1080p Medium, the range is 171 to 231 FPS, which is a 60 FPS spread, indicating some variability but still a smooth experience.

The data also reveals that the game scales well with resolution, but the scaling is not linear. For example, moving from 1080p Low to 1440p Low reduces performance by 74 FPS, while moving from 1440p Low to 4K Low reduces it by 73 FPS. This suggests that the GPU workload increases more rapidly as resolution rises, but the game's engine might also have some non-GPU-related overhead that moderates the drop at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is a high-end graphics card based on the Ampere architecture, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It features 8704 shading units, 272 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, with a boost clock of 1710 MHz. The card has 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 760.3 GB/s. Its FP32 performance is rated at 29.77 TFLOPS.

In Hard West, the GPU's role is to handle the rendering and the higher resolution. The data shows that at 1080p, the GPU is not the bottleneck, as the frame rates are very high even at High settings. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as evidenced by the 38 FPS average at Ultra settings. The card's 10 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, as the game is from 2015 and does not require large textures.

The GPU's average benchmark score is 23172, placing it in the 84th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all within 0.4% of its score, including the NVIDIA P106-100 and the AMD Radeon R9 M290X, but the RTX 3080's higher score is evident in the game's performance. The 3080's boost clock of 1710 MHz ensures that it can push the high frame rates seen in the data, and its memory bandwidth helps with the 4K textures.

The GPU's role is especially important at 4K, where the difference between Low and Ultra settings is a 44 FPS gap (82 to 38 FPS). This indicates that the game's visual effects at Ultra are demanding, but the card still manages to keep the frame rate playable. At 1080p, the differences between settings are smaller, with Low at 229 FPS and Ultra at 116 FPS, a 113 FPS gap, showing that the CPU is the primary limiter at that resolution. The GPU's performance in this game is more than adequate, providing an excellent experience at 1440p and a good one at 4K for a turn-based title.