Hard West

Hard West, a turn-based tactics title from 2015, presents a unique scenario for modern hardware. The measured data for the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 shows a configuration that is heavily influenced by the GPU at higher resolutions, while the CPU's substantial power remains mostly untapped. The benchmark results indicate a clear hierarchy of performance across settings and resolutions, with the most balanced experience found at 1440p.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the optimal settings for this combination. At 1080p, the High preset delivers an average of 117 FPS, which is a strong baseline for smooth gameplay. However, the Medium preset at 152 FPS offers a significant 30% performance increase over High, making it the superior choice for competitive or high-refresh-rate displays. The jump from Medium to Low at 186 FPS is a further 22% improvement, but the visual fidelity trade-off is substantial for a turn-based tactical game where clarity of the battlefield is paramount. The Ultra preset at 88 FPS, while playable, represents a 42% performance drop from Medium, making it less appealing given the genre's non-twitch nature.

Moving to 1440p, the High preset holds up admirably with an average of 74 FPS. This is a 37% reduction from the 1080p High figure, but it remains comfortably within the range for a smooth experience. The Medium preset at 96 FPS is again the standout performer, providing a 30% uplift over High. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 55 FPS, which is a noticeable step down and begins to feel less fluid. For the best balance of visual quality and performance at this resolution, Medium is the recommended starting point, with High being a viable alternative for those prioritizing image fidelity over frame rate headroom.

At 4K, the situation changes dramatically. The Low preset is the only option that achieves an average above 60 FPS, hitting 62 FPS. The Medium preset manages 51 FPS, which is playable but not ideal, while High and Ultra fall to 39 FPS and 29 FPS respectively, making them less suitable for consistent gameplay. The data strongly suggests that for a 4K experience, users must accept Low settings to maintain a playable frame rate, or alternatively, drop to 1440p to use higher quality presets. The overall recommendation is that the Medium preset at 1440p provides the most efficient use of the hardware's capabilities, offering a high frame rate with a good balance of visual detail.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, with its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivers a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is a critical factor in the performance scaling observed in Hard West. The GPU's boost clock of 2460 MHz and base clock of 1830 MHz are key to its processing capabilities. The data shows that as resolution increases, the frame rates drop significantly, which is a classic sign of the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck. For instance, the average FPS at High settings falls from 117 at 1080p to 74 at 1440p, a 37% reduction, and then to 39 at 4K, a further 47% reduction from the 1440p figure.

This performance pattern is directly tied to the GPU's fillrate and memory bandwidth. The RTX 4060's 48 ROPs and 128-bit memory interface are not designed for heavy 4K workloads, particularly in a game that may not be fully optimized for modern hardware. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the textures and assets in a 2015 title, but the sheer number of pixels at 4K (3840x2160) overwhelms the GPU's throughput. The benchmark results indicate that the GPU's capabilities are most effectively utilized at 1080p and 1440p, where the pixel count is more manageable. The GPU's passmark G3D score of 19545 positions it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, which, combined with its nearest rival data showing a performance parity with the AMD Radeon HD 7790, underscores that it is a mid-range part that struggles with the extreme demands of 4K gaming in this specific title.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling across resolutions is stark and reveals the system's limiting component. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 186 FPS at 1080p to 118 FPS at 1440p (a 37% decrease), and then to 62 FPS at 4K (a 47% decrease from 1440p). This near-linear drop with pixel count indicates a pure GPU-bound scenario. The GPU is working at its maximum capacity, and increasing the resolution directly increases the workload, leading to proportional frame rate reductions.

At Medium settings, the pattern is similar but slightly more pronounced. The 152 FPS at 1080p falls to 96 FPS at 1440p (a 37% reduction) and then to 51 FPS at 4K (a 47% reduction). The High preset shows a slightly larger drop from 1080p to 1440p, going from 117 FPS to 74 FPS (a 37% reduction), and then to 39 FPS at 4K (a 47% reduction). The consistency of these percentage drops across different settings confirms that the GPU is the sole limiting factor; the CPU is not impeding performance at any resolution. The Ultra preset, while starting at a lower 88 FPS at 1080p, follows the same trend with a 37% drop to 55 FPS at 1440p and a further 47% drop to 29 FPS at 4K.

The data clearly shows a pattern: moving from 1080p to 1440p incurs roughly a 37% performance penalty, and moving from 1440p to 4K incurs a further 47% penalty. This scaling is consistent with the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources being saturated. The CPU, with its 12 cores and 24 threads, is clearly not the bottleneck in this scenario, as the frame rate is entirely dependent on the resolution-driven GPU workload.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 in Hard West is as follows:

• 1080p (1920x1080) :
• Low: Average 186 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Medium: Average 152 FPS, with a minimum of 129 FPS and a maximum of 175 FPS
• High: Average 117 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Ultra: Average 88 FPS (min/max not measured)

• 1440p (2560x1440) :
• Low: Average 118 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Medium: Average 96 FPS, with a minimum of 82 FPS and a maximum of 111 FPS
• High: Average 74 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Ultra: Average 55 FPS (min/max not measured)

• 4K (3840x2160) :
• Low: Average 62 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Medium: Average 51 FPS, with a minimum of 43 FPS and a maximum of 58 FPS
• High: Average 39 FPS (min/max not measured)
• Ultra: Average 29 FPS (min/max not measured)

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, which show a variance of about 30% between the lowest and highest frames. This suggests some degree of frame time inconsistency, likely due to scene complexity changes in the turn-based gameplay. The High and Ultra presets at 4K, with averages of 39 and 29 FPS respectively, are below the threshold for a consistently smooth experience, indicating that these settings are not recommended for this resolution. The 1080p results are all highly playable, with even the Ultra preset maintaining an 88 FPS average.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested hardware combinations for Hard West, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 holds a rank of 1574 out of 2949 total combos. This places it in the 47th percentile of all tested systems, meaning that more than half of the tested configurations deliver better performance in this game. This ranking is a direct reflection of the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions, as the CPU is a top-tier part.

The combo's rank is notable because the CPU's individual standing is significantly higher. The Ryzen 9 9900X3D has an average benchmark score of 54762, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF, has an average score of 55093, which is a delta of -0.6%, meaning the AMD part is slightly ahead. This shows the CPU is a high-end performer. In contrast, the RTX 4060's average benchmark score is 17639, placing it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, with its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon HD 7790, having a score of 17666, a delta of -0.2%, indicating they are statistically equivalent.

The middling combo rank of 1574 is therefore a direct consequence of pairing a top-tier CPU with a mid-range GPU. The game's performance is heavily skewed by the GPU, and the CPU's power is left largely unused. This combination would likely rank much higher in a CPU-intensive strategy game, but in Hard West, the GPU bottleneck pulls the overall rank down. The data suggests that for this specific title, the GPU is the determining factor in the overall performance tier.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows that 1440p offers the best balance. At 1440p with Medium settings, the combo achieves 96 FPS, which is high and smooth, while 1080p is also excellent but leaves more performance on the table. 4K is only playable at Low settings with 62 FPS.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D a bottleneck for the RTX 4060 in this game?

A: No. The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K is consistent and directly proportional to the GPU's workload, indicating a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU's high core count and clock speeds are not limiting performance at any tested resolution.

Q: How does the RTX 4060's performance compare to its closest rivals in this context?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 17639, which is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon HD 7790, which has a score of 17666, a delta of only -0.2%. This indicates they are direct performance peers in general benchmarks.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 186 FPS, while the Ultra preset delivers 88 FPS. This represents a 53% reduction in frame rate when moving to the highest quality preset.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this hardware for Hard West?

A: It is only viable at the Low preset, which achieves an average of 62 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 51 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets are not recommended due to averages of 39 FPS and 29 FPS respectively.

Q: Does the CPU's high core count benefit performance in Hard West?

A: The benchmark results do not show a specific benefit from the CPU's 12 cores and 24 threads. The performance is clearly limited by the GPU, and the CPU's benchmark percentile of 91% is not reflected in the game's results, which are more dependent on the GPU's 61st percentile standing.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor from the 9000 series, based on the Zen 5 architecture. It has a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its 128 MB of L3 cache is a defining feature, designed to boost gaming performance. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU is a powerhouse, achieving a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 47737 and a single-core score of 6739. Its Passmark multithread score is 56154, and its single-thread score is 4646. These figures place it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 54762. Its closest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF, scores 55093, a delta of -0.6%, meaning the AMD chip is slightly faster.

Despite this processing power, the measured FPS data for Hard West shows that the CPU's capabilities are not the limiting factor. The consistent frame rate drops across resolutions, regardless of settings, point to a GPU bottleneck. For example, the average FPS at High settings is 117 at 1080p, 74 at 1440p, and 39 at 4K. If the CPU were the bottleneck, these numbers would be much closer together, as the CPU workload would remain constant while the GPU workload increased. Instead, the linear drop indicates that the RTX 4060 is fully saturated. The CPU's high single-thread performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R15 single-core score of 679 and Geekbench single-core score of 3041, is more than sufficient for the game's logic and AI, which are not particularly demanding for a 2015 turn-based tactics title. The data suggests that this CPU is vastly overqualified for the task in this specific game, and its potential is untapped due to the GPU's limitations. The processor's 120W TDP and support for DDR5 memory are further indicators of its modern, high-end nature, but these features do not translate to better in-game performance when the GPU is the constraining factor.