Hard West

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Hard West with the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 shows a clear and predictable pattern: performance degrades steadily as resolution climbs, but the rate of that degradation reveals where the bottleneck sits. At 1080p with High settings, the combo delivers 90 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 57 FPS, a 37% reduction. Pushing to 4K further reduces it to 30 FPS, which is 47% lower than the 1440p result and 67% lower than the 1080p baseline.

This scaling curve is steep, indicating that the RTX 2060 is the limiting component at higher resolutions. The GPU’s 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus width, paired with 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are being saturated as pixel count increases. The jump from 1080p to 1440p is particularly punishing — a 57% drop in frame rate — which suggests that the GPU’s fillrate and memory bandwidth are stretched thin at 1440p. The 4K result of 30 FPS at High settings is technically playable but sits right at the edge of smoothness, and it shows that this combination is not designed for 4K gaming.

The pattern holds across all settings. At Low settings, the 1080p score is 143 FPS, dropping to 90 FPS at 1440p and 47 FPS at 4K. The percentage losses are consistent: 37% from 1080p to 1440p, and 48% from 1440p to 4K. This consistency across settings confirms that the scaling is resolution-driven rather than settings-driven. The CPU, with 8 cores and 16 threads, is not the constraint here; its single-thread performance of 4190 in Passmark and multi-thread score of 35686 are more than sufficient for a turn-based tactics game that does not demand high thread counts.

The Ultra preset tells a similar story but with lower absolute numbers. At 1080p Ultra, the combo manages 67 FPS; at 1440p Ultra, it falls to 43 FPS; at 4K Ultra, it bottoms out at 22 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only one that dips below 30 FPS, making it the only unplayable configuration in the measured set. This reinforces the conclusion that the RTX 2060, a GPU that sits at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming in Hard West, with 4K reserved for lower presets.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data offers a clear verdict on which preset provides the best experience for this hardware combination. The Medium preset is the sweet spot across all three resolutions. At 1080p, Medium delivers 117 FPS with a minimum of 99 FPS and a maximum of 135 FPS. At 1440p, it produces 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS. At 4K, it still manages 39 FPS with a minimum of 33 FPS. These numbers show that Medium maintains playable frame rates at every resolution while providing a balance between visual quality and performance.

High settings are viable at 1080p and 1440p but fall short at 4K. The 1080p High result of 90 FPS is excellent, and the 1440p High result of 57 FPS is still smooth. However, the 4K High result of 30 FPS is marginal, offering no headroom for demanding scenes. For players who prioritize visual fidelity and play at 1080p, High is a reasonable choice, but it does not offer the same consistency as Medium.

Ultra settings are only recommended for 1080p displays. The 1080p Ultra result of 67 FPS is playable, but the 1440p Ultra result of 43 FPS starts to feel less fluid, and the 4K Ultra result of 22 FPS is below the threshold for acceptable gameplay. Given that Medium at 1440p achieves 74 FPS — which is 72% higher than Ultra at the same resolution — the visual gains from Ultra are not worth the performance cost.

Low settings are available for maximum frame rates, but they are unnecessary for this game. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 143 FPS, which is beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. At 1440p Low, the 90 FPS result is still excellent. The data indicates that Medium provides the best overall experience, offering a 30% improvement over High at 1080p and a 30% improvement over High at 1440p, while keeping the minimum frame rates above 60 FPS at both resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the primary driver of the performance differences observed in Hard West. With 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, the GPU has a memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. This bandwidth is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at those resolutions, but it becomes a limiting factor at 4K. The 4K results across all settings — 47 FPS at Low, 39 FPS at Medium, 30 FPS at High, and 22 FPS at Ultra — show a consistent degradation that aligns with the GPU’s memory constraints.

The GPU’s clock speeds also play a role. The base clock of 1365 MHz and boost clock of 1680 MHz are modest by modern standards, and the TU106 chip’s 1920 shading units are tasked with rendering each frame. The FP32 performance of 6.451 TFLOPS is adequate for a turn-based tactics game, which does not require the same level of raw compute as fast-paced shooters or simulations. The GPU’s Passmark G3D score of 14111 places it at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals — the GTX 580, Radeon 680M, RTX 3050 OEM, and RX 7600 — are all within 0.8% of its average benchmark score of 15290. This indicates that the RTX 2060 is a mid-range performer, and the measured FPS data confirms that it handles Hard West well at 1080p and 1440p but struggles at 4K.

The GPU’s 6 GB of VRAM is another consideration. Hard West is a game from 2015, and its texture requirements are not extreme, but the 6 GB capacity is sufficient for the measured settings. The fact that the 4K Ultra preset drops to 22 FPS suggests that the GPU’s memory bandwidth, rather than capacity, is the limiting factor. The 336.0 GB/s bandwidth is shared across the 192-bit bus, and at 4K, the pixel throughput demands exceed what this configuration can provide. The GPU’s pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s is the theoretical ceiling, and the measured 4K results show that this ceiling is reached at High and Ultra settings.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows that 1080p is the most comfortable resolution, with all presets delivering at least 67 FPS. At 1440p, Medium and Low settings remain smooth at 74 FPS and 90 FPS, respectively. 4K is only playable at Low and Medium settings, with 47 FPS and 39 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 15290. Its nearest rivals are the GTX 580 at 15283 (0% delta), the Radeon 680M at 15270 (0.1% delta), the RTX 3050 OEM at 15199 (0.6% delta), and the RX 7600 at 15171 (0.8% delta). All are within 1% of each other.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 7700X a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 143 FPS, and at 1080p Medium, it hits 117 FPS. The CPU’s single-thread score of 4190 and multi-thread score of 35686 in Passmark are more than adequate for a turn-based tactics game.

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

A: At 1440p, Medium delivers 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS, while Ultra delivers 43 FPS. The difference is 31 FPS, representing a 72% improvement in favor of Medium. This makes Medium the better choice for smooth gameplay.

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

A: Yes, but only at lower presets. At 4K Low, the combo achieves 47 FPS; at 4K Medium, it achieves 39 FPS. The 4K High result of 30 FPS is marginal, and the 4K Ultra result of 22 FPS is below acceptable playability.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 2950 out of 3722 possible combinations. This places it in the lower half of the rankings, reflecting the RTX 2060’s mid-range status in the GPU hierarchy.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X plays a supporting role in Hard West, and the benchmark results indicate that it is not the limiting factor in any of the measured configurations. The CPU has 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its Passmark single-thread score of 4190 and multi-thread score of 35686 are strong, and its Cinebench R23 scores of 1987 (single-core) and 19088 (multi-core) confirm its capability. For a turn-based tactics game like Hard West, which does not require high thread counts or extreme single-thread performance, the 7700X is more than sufficient.

The CPU’s 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 83.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth provide ample data throughput for game logic and AI calculations. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 143 FPS, which is close to the refresh rate limit of most monitors and far above what a CPU-bound scenario would produce. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would plateau at a lower value regardless of resolution. Instead, the FPS drops consistently as resolution increases, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation.

The 7700X’s benchmark scores relative to its nearest rivals further contextualize its performance. Its average benchmark score is 35909, with the nearest rivals being the Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 at 35802 (0.3% delta), the Core 7 250H at 35728 (0.5% delta), the Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 at 35719 (0.5% delta), and the Core Ultra 9 185H at 35670 (0.7% delta). All are within 0.7% of each other, indicating that the 7700X is a solid mid-to-high-end processor that does not hold back the RTX 2060 in this game.

In practical terms, the CPU’s 5.40 GHz boost clock and 16 threads ensure that even the most complex turn-based scenarios — such as calculating line-of-sight, pathfinding, and enemy AI — are handled without frame drops. The 4K Ultra result of 22 FPS is not caused by the CPU; it is the GPU that cannot keep up with the pixel demands. Players with this combo should focus on GPU settings rather than CPU settings when optimizing performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for Hard West with the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is as follows:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 143 FPS average
• Medium: 117 FPS average, with a minimum of 99 FPS and a maximum of 135 FPS
• High: 90 FPS average
• Ultra: 67 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 90 FPS average
• Medium: 74 FPS average, with a minimum of 63 FPS and a maximum of 85 FPS
• High: 57 FPS average
• Ultra: 43 FPS average

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 47 FPS average
• Medium: 39 FPS average, with a minimum of 33 FPS and a maximum of 45 FPS
• High: 30 FPS average
• Ultra: 22 FPS average

The Medium preset is the only one that provides minimum FPS data at each resolution, which allows for a more complete assessment of frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 99 FPS ensures smooth gameplay with no perceptible stutter. At 1440p Medium, the minimum of 63 FPS remains above the 60 FPS threshold. At 4K Medium, the minimum of 33 FPS is below 60 FPS but still playable for a turn-based game.

The Low preset offers the highest frame rates, with 143 FPS at 1080p and 90 FPS at 1440p. The 4K Low result of 47 FPS is the highest 4K score in the measured set. High settings are a middle ground, with 90 FPS at 1080p, 57 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings are the most demanding, with 67 FPS at 1080p, 43 FPS at 1440p, and 22 FPS at 4K.

The data shows a consistent pattern: each resolution step down from 1080p to 1440p to 4K results in an approximate 35-50% reduction in frame rate, regardless of settings. The only exception is the 4K Ultra result, which drops to 22 FPS — a 49% reduction from the 1440p Ultra result. This suggests that the RTX 2060’s compute and memory resources are fully saturated at 4K Ultra, and no further optimization is possible without lowering settings.