Hard West

Hard West is a turn-based tactics title released in 2015. The configuration under analysis pairs the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D 12-core, 24-thread processor with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080. Measured FPS data were captured at three resolutions across four settings, and the combination currently ranks 165th out of 3,722 tested combos in this game. The CPU holds the 91st percentile among all CPUs in the database, while the GPU holds the 86th percentile among all GPUs. This system is clearly a high-end pairing suited for very high resolution gaming.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rate data show a clear drop as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 to 3840x2160. At the High preset, the average FPS goes from 206 at 1080p to 131 at 1440p and finally to 69 at 4K. That is a 75 FPS loss from 1080p to 1440p, followed by a 62 FPS loss from 1440p to 4K. While the absolute numbers differ, the same overall scaling pattern appears for all four presets. The Low setting yields 328, 207, and 109 FPS respectively. Medium produces 269, 170, and 89 FPS, while Ultra gives 155, 98, and 51 FPS.

The drop becomes especially severe when moving from 1440p to 4K: at every preset the average FPS at 4K is well below half of the 1080p average. For example, the 1080p High average is 206, and the 4K High average is 69, which is about one-third of the starting value. This scaling suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K resolution; moving pixels fourfold overwhelms the RTX 4080's rendering capacity. Even at the Ultra preset, the average FPS at 4K is only 51, whereas at 1080p it is 155. The large margins between 1080p and 4K underscore that this game becomes extremely GPU bound at higher resolutions, leaving the CPU unaffected and providing headroom for fast, responsive turns.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of 3,722 tested combos for Hard West, this combination sits at rank 165. That places it comfortably within the top 5% of all combinations tested, though the exact percentile is not provided. More importantly the data is marked as measured (dataIsMeasured = true), so the rank reflects actual observed performance figures rather than estimates. In the same database, the GPU alone is at the 86th percentile, and the CPU at the 91st percentile, which is consistent with a well-rounded combination.

The GPU's closest rival in the benchmark database, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, is only 0.1% apart from the RTX 4080 in aggregate score. The other nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (-1.1%), the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (-2.6%), and the AMD Radeon 8060S (-2.7%). These small deltas indicate that within the same performance class, the RTX 4080 is anchored in a tight band; in this game, the combo's ranking of 165 suggests the specific pairing is appropriately high, leaving room for even faster configurations to take the top spots.

On the CPU side, the Ryzen 9 9900X3D's closest rivals in average benchmark score are the Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF (delta -0.6%), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K (delta +1.3%), the Intel Xeon 6505P (delta +2%), and the Intel Core i7-14700F (delta +2.1%). These gaps are tiny relative to the 7% baseline of typical CPU, which reinforces that the CPU's already at the extreme edge of compute capability. Combined with the GPU's matching class score, the rank 165 emerges as a direct consequence of both components sitting near the top percentile of their respective hardware pools.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured values alone—there is no subjective image quality data—the Medium preset stands out as the most consistent, because it is the only preset that provides minimum and maximum FPS statistics in addition to the average. At 3840x2160 Medium yields an average of 89 FPS, with a minimum of 76 and a maximum of 103. At 2560x1440 Medium averages 170 with a min of 144 and max of 195; at 1920x1080 Medium averages 269 with a min of 228 and max of 309. For a smooth experience, the 4K Medium result is particularly robust, showing a tight range and a substantial margin above the performance floor.

The Low preset delivers the highest average FPS across all resolutions—at 1080p it reaches 328—but it comes with no recorded minimum or maximum, so the average may not reflect actual frame pacing. High and Ultra both have no min/max either, so we cannot assess stability on those presets. Given the available data, the Medium visual setting offers the best measured combination of average and minimum values at every resolution. Users with a 4K display will find Medium acceptable at 89 average, while High at 4K (69 FPS) may be usable for those comfortable with lower minima. Ultimately, the data suggest that Medium is the most reliable preset for a stable gaming session, especially if the player does not want to drop below 60 (though we cannot infer a target).

Measured FPS Breakdown

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|---|---|---|---|---|

| 1920x1080 | Low | 328 | – | – |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 269 | 228 | 309 |

| 1920x1080 | High | | – | – |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 155 | – | – |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 207 | – | – |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 170 | 144 | 195 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 131 | – | – |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 98 | – | – |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 109 | – | – |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 89 | 76 | 103 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 69 | – | – |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 51 | – | – |

The table reveals a clear ladder: at the same resolution, the average FPS always declines from Low > Medium > High > Ultra. For instance, at 1440p the Low hits 207, Medium gets 170, High 131, and Ultra sinks to 98. The Ultra setting at 4K is the only measurement that brings the average under 60, sitting at 51 FPS. Because the only presets with frame bound data are Medium, that gives us insight into the consistency of this configuration; the margin between min and max over three resolutions is 103-76=27 at 4K, 195-144=51 at 1440p, and 309-228=81 at 1080p. These numbers provide a good sense of the frame-time spread for the Series 9900X3D and RTX 4080 pairing on a medium detail.

GPU Role

The RTX 4080 carries 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 716.8 GB/s of bandwidth. Its core runs at a base clock of 2205 MHz, boosting to 2505 MHz, with memory speed at 1400 MHz (22.4 Gbps effective). This hardware load is physical: the measured FPS at various settings reflect the GPU's workload, as memory capacity is more than sufficient for the game's assets and legacy engine. At 1080p High, the RTX 4080 sustains 206 FPS on average, indicating the GPU has headroom at this resolution.

The GPU's overall footprint in the database is high: the aggregate benchmark score is 54,247, placing it at the 86th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the RTX 4080 SUPER, is only 0.1% faster in that benchmark, meaning the 4080 is at the edge of its performance tier. In this specific game, the measured FPS values show that even Ultra at 1080p returns 155, and tapping into 4K causes the frame rate to halve it to 51. This indicates the game's compute is heavily dependent on pixel throughput and geometry, a role the 4080 handles until the resolution scaling lights up. The launch MSRP of the RTX 4080 is 1,199 USD, a number that reflects its high-end position in the market.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on Zen 5 architecture with base 4.40 GHz and boost up to 5.50 GHz. It features 128 MB of L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory at a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. In the benchmark suites for CPUs, it scores 6,739 in Cinebench R20 single-core, 47,737 in Cinebench R20 multi-core, and 3,041 in Geekbench single-core (yes, the data has conflicting reports; but the dominant figures are present). The CPU sits at the 91st percentile, just above three main Intel competitors in its nearest-rival cluster, with deltas ranging from -0.6% to +2.1%.

In the context of Hard West, a turn-based tactics title, the CPU does not directly drive the frequency of frame output; the measured FPS changes almost solely with resolution, indicating that the game is GPU-bounded at high resolution. The CPU must still feed GPU draw calls and game logic, and its robust single-thread score (Cinebench single 679 in one run, Geekbench 3,041) suggests it can handle the real-time overhead without introducing physics. The data do not show a CPU bottleneck at any setting; the 1080p Low average of 328 FPS and 1440p Low average of 207 demonstrate that the CPU can sustain a very high instruction rate when the GPU is not pushed. The CPU's traditional advantage—12 cores with 24 threads—may not be fully utilized by a turn-based engine, but it provides a versatile foundation for any future workloads. The launch MSRP for this CPU is $599, although we note the pricing once only.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest measured average FPS in this combination?

A: The highest average FPS occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings, reaching 328 FPS.

Q: Which preset provides the only min and max data at all tested resolutions?

A: Only the Medium preset has recorded min and max values. At 1080p the min is 228 and max 309; at 1440p min 144 and max 195; at 4K min 76 and max 103.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 rank compared to its nearest rival in aggregate benchmark score?

A: The RTX 4080's average benchmark score of 54,247 is nearly identical to the RTX 4080 SUPER's 54,209, a delta of +0.1%.

Q: What is the chip's memory bandwidth?

A: The GPU has a 256-bit bus and a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s.

Q: In the database, what is the configuration's rank among all tested combinations?

A: It ranks 165th out of 3,722 combinations.

Q: At 4K, what are the average FPS values for each preset?

A: At 3840x2160, the measured averages are: Low 109, Medium 89 (min 76, max 103), High 69, and Ultra 51.