Hard West

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination delivers exceptional performance in Hard West, ranking in the top 1.1% of all tested combos. The data shows a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, with the CPU's strong single-thread performance ensuring frame rates remain high even at 1080p. The measured results indicate that this pairing is overkill for the turn-based tactics title, providing smooth gameplay across all settings, though the Ultra preset at 4K pushes the GPU to its limits.

Resolution Scaling

Resolution scaling reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. Moving from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at High settings, the average frame rate drops from 239.7 FPS to 152.2 FPS, a reduction of 36.5%. This steep decline is expected as pixel count increases by 78%, demanding more from the graphics card. The trend continues when moving to 3840x2160, where the High preset yields 79.1 FPS, a further 48% drop from the 1440p result. This scaling pattern strongly indicates that the RTX 5090 is the limiting component, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth being fully utilized at higher resolutions.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The 1080p result of 287.6 FPS falls to 236.4 FPS at 1440p and then to 122.5 FPS at 4K. The 4K Low figure is less than half of the 1080p Low result, highlighting how dramatically pixel count affects performance. Interestingly, the gap between Low and Ultra settings narrows as resolution increases. At 1080p, Ultra delivers 175.2 FPS versus 287.6 FPS at Low, a 64% difference. At 4K, Ultra produces 60.7 FPS versus 122.5 FPS at Low, a 102% difference. This suggests that at higher resolutions, the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth become the primary bottleneck, making the settings overhead relatively less impactful.

The data suggests that for a 60 Hz 4K display, the High preset is the sweet spot, while for 1440p high-refresh monitors, even the Ultra preset with 111 FPS is viable. The 1080p results, exceeding 239 FPS on High, indicate the CPU is not a limiting factor at this resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the dominant component in this configuration. Its 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate provide immense raw power that Hard West's turn-based visuals cannot fully saturate. The GPU's 94th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84,306, places it well ahead of most rivals. Its nearest competitor, the RTX 5090 D, scores within 0.1% (84,241), showing near-identical performance. The RTX 5050 Mobile, despite its name, also scores 84,171 (0.2% delta), indicating that these benchmark scores reflect compute potential rather than gaming-specific performance.

The GPU's 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides a 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, which is critical for the 4K Ultra settings. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average frame rate falls to 60.7 FPS, suggesting that even this massive memory allocation is being taxed by the game's highest settings. The boost clock of 2407 MHz and base clock of 2017 MHz are modest for the architecture, but the 575 W TDP indicates the card is designed to sustain high clocks under load. The measured results show that the GPU's performance scales well with settings, from 287.6 FPS at 1080p Low to 60.7 FPS at 4K Ultra, demonstrating its dynamic range.

The GPU's passmark G3D score of 39,650 further confirms its position in the top tier. Its nearest rival in the benchmark database, the AMD Radeon PRO W6600, scores 83,209 (1.3% delta), which is surprising given the W6600's workstation focus. This suggests that benchmark scores can be misleading for gaming workloads, but in this case, the RTX 5090's gaming performance is evidently sufficient for Hard West.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 plays a supporting role in this configuration, but its performance is far from negligible. With 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 4 architecture, the CPU provides a strong foundation for the game's logic and AI calculations. Its 3.80 GHz base clock and 5.30 GHz boost clock are impressive, and the 32 MB of shared L3 cache helps reduce memory latency. The CPU's 91st percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 40,468, shows it is well above average, though its nearest rivals in the database, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7940H (40,431, 0.1% delta), are mobile processors that score similarly.

In Hard West, the CPU's single-thread performance is crucial. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4,136 and the 3DMark single-thread score of 1,049 indicate strong per-core capabilities. This is reflected in the 1080p results, where the frame rates reach as high as 287.6 FPS at Low settings. At this resolution, the CPU is not the bottleneck, as even the Ultra preset achieves 175.2 FPS. The multi-threaded scores, including the Cinebench R23 multi-core result of 29,302, show that the CPU can handle the game's background tasks without issue, but the turn-based nature of Hard West means that frame rates are primarily determined by the GPU's ability to render the static scenes.

The CPU's 65 W TDP and 5 nm process node from TSMC contribute to its efficiency, but more importantly, its 8 cores and 16 threads ensure that no single-thread bottleneck occurs. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 8,484 is nearly identical to the max-thread score of 8,479, indicating that the CPU scales well with all threads, which is beneficial for the game's potential use of multiple cores for pathfinding and AI. However, the data clearly shows that the GPU is the primary driver of frame rate differences across resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured results provide a comprehensive picture of this combo's performance. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are exceptionally high: 287.6 FPS at Low, 266 FPS at Medium, 239.7 FPS at High, and 175.2 FPS at Ultra. These numbers indicate that the system can easily drive a 240 Hz monitor at 1080p with High settings, and even Ultra settings remain well above 144 Hz.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but shows the expected drop. The Low preset delivers 236.4 FPS, Medium 192.9 FPS, High 152.2 FPS, and Ultra 111 FPS. The Ultra result of 111 FPS is notable, as it remains above the 100 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay on high-refresh displays. The gap between Medium and High is 40.7 FPS, which is significant and suggests that the High preset offers a balanced trade-off between visual quality and frame rate.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more moderate. Low delivers 122.5 FPS, Medium 103.4 FPS, High 79.1 FPS, and Ultra 60.7 FPS. The Ultra result is just above the 60 FPS standard, making it playable but not ideal for high-refresh 4K monitors. The High preset at 79.1 FPS provides a more comfortable margin for 4K gaming, while Medium at 103.4 FPS offers the best balance for those seeking higher refresh rates at 4K. The data shows that the Low preset at 4K still delivers 122.5 FPS, which is surprising for such a demanding resolution, but it demonstrates the GPU's raw power.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 19th out of 1,699 tested combos in Hard West. This places it in the top 1.1% of all configurations tested, indicating that it is among the most powerful systems in the database. The rank of 19 is significant because it shows that while the combo is extremely fast, there are 18 other combinations that achieve higher average frame rates, likely featuring higher-end CPUs or more optimized pairings.

The ranking is influenced by the CPU's 91st percentile and the GPU's 94th percentile standings. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i9-13905H (40,712, -0.6% delta), show that the 7700 is competitive with mobile parts but not the absolute top-tier desktop CPUs. The GPU's nearest rivals, including the RTX 5090 D (84,241, 0.1% delta) and RTX 5050 Mobile (84,171, 0.2% delta), are essentially ties in benchmark scores. This suggests that the combo's rank of 19 is driven more by the CPU's position than the GPU, as the RTX 5090 is near the top of the GPU hierarchy. The data indicates that for Hard West, this combo is overkill, but the rank reflects its capability to handle any settings at any resolution.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1920x1080 with a 240 Hz monitor, the High preset at 239.7 FPS is the best choice, as it provides near-maximum frame rates while retaining visual fidelity. The Ultra preset at 175.2 FPS is also viable for 144 Hz monitors, but the 64.5 FPS difference between High and Ultra suggests that High is the more efficient choice.

For 2560x1440, the High preset at 152.2 FPS is recommended for 144 Hz displays, as it is well above the refresh rate threshold. The Ultra preset at 111 FPS is a solid alternative for those prioritizing visual quality, as it remains above 100 FPS. The Medium preset at 192.9 FPS is the best option for 240 Hz 1440p monitors, providing a high frame rate with moderate settings.

For 3840x2160, the Medium preset at 103.4 FPS offers the best balance, exceeding 100 FPS for smooth gameplay on 120 Hz 4K displays. The High preset at 79.1 FPS is ideal for 60 Hz 4K monitors, providing a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 60.7 FPS is playable but leaves little headroom, making it less recommended. The Low preset at 122.5 FPS is suitable for competitive play or for users with 144 Hz 4K monitors, but it sacrifices visual quality.

FAQ

*Q: What is the maximum average FPS achieved by this combo in Hard West?*

A: The maximum average FPS is 287.6, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

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

A: Yes, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 delivers an average of 60.7 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS standard for smooth gameplay.

*Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Hard West?*

A: It ranks 19th out of 1,699 combos, placing it in the top 1.1% of all tested systems.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 152.2 FPS, while Ultra averages 111 FPS, a difference of 41.2 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 1080p?

A: No, the data shows 1080p High results of 239.7 FPS, indicating the CPU is not a limiting factor at this resolution.

Q: What is the GPU's benchmark percentile ranking?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks in the 94th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84,306.