Hard West

FAQ

Q: What is the combined performance rank of the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 in Hard West?

A: The combo ranks 793rd out of 1,699 tested combinations in this game, placing it in the middle of the pack among all tested hardware pairings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The i5-14400F scores 32,508 on average, which is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-12800H (32,513, deltaPct 0%). It is 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (32,446) and 0.2% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 250 (32,584).

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

A: The RTX 3070 sits in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 28,238. Its closest rival, the AMD FirePro S7150, scores 28,409, which is 0.6% higher.

Q: What is the best average FPS recorded at 1920x1080?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 210.3 FPS average, which is the highest measured result across all resolutions and settings in the data.

Q: What is the lowest average FPS recorded in the measured data?

A: The lowest average is 31.4 FPS, recorded at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. This is the only measured configuration that dips below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the GPU's compute performance compare to its direct rivals?

A: The RTX 3070 scores 11,195 in Passmark GPU Compute. The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT (avgScore 27,985, deltaPct 0.9%) and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (avgScore 27,956, deltaPct 1%) are the nearest competitors in overall GPU score.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is built on the Ampere architecture with the GA104 chip, manufactured on Samsung's 8 nm process. It carries 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 1750 MHz, which translates to 14 Gbps effective. The GPU's base clock is 1500 MHz with a boost clock of 1725 MHz, and it houses 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Ray tracing is handled by 46 dedicated RT cores, while 184 tensor cores support AI workloads.

In Hard West, the GPU's role is heavily tied to resolution scaling. At 3840x2160, the RTX 3070 delivers 46.3 FPS on High settings, but this drops to 31.4 FPS on Ultra — a 32% reduction in performance. The data shows that the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the difference between Low (210.3 FPS) and Ultra (102.5 FPS) is roughly a factor of two. At 4K, the same settings span from 67.7 FPS to 31.4 FPS. This pattern indicates that the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, particularly when geometric complexity and shader work increase with Ultra presets.

The GPU's 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for this turn-based tactics title across all measured settings, as no data points suggest memory-related stutters or dropped frames. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth appears adequate for the game's textures and geometry at each resolution tested. The GPU's 20.31 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power provides ample headroom for the game's rendering demands, but the measured FPS values show that Ultra settings at 4K still overwhelm the card. The RTX 3070's percentile ranking of 72 places it above most GPUs, yet the 4K Ultra result of 31.4 FPS demonstrates the limits of this hardware configuration in demanding scenarios.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor from the Raptor Lake-R architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel mode, with ECC memory support as an option. Its 65 W TDP indicates a power-efficient design for a desktop part.

In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 21,914 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3,093 in single-core. It achieves 11,209 in Geekbench multi-core and 2,333 in single-core. Passmark multithread results show 25,783, with single-thread performance at 3,723. The CPU's percentile ranking among all CPUs is 88, indicating strong overall performance. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-12800H, scores 32,513 on average — a deltaPct of 0% — meaning the two are effectively identical in aggregate benchmarks.

For Hard West, the CPU's role is less critical than the GPU, given the game's turn-based nature. However, the high single-thread score of 3,093 in Cinebench R23 suggests that AI pathfinding, turn resolution, and game logic benefit from the fast 4.70 GHz boost clock. The 16 threads provide headroom for background tasks and engine overhead. At 1920x1080 Low settings, the combo reaches 210.3 FPS, which indicates that the CPU can feed frames well above typical display refresh rates. The 20 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel memory support reduce latency for game data access. Overall, the CPU's 88th percentile ranking and near-identical performance to the i7-12800H confirm it is not a limiting factor in this configuration.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data reveals a clear hierarchy across resolutions and settings presets. At 1920x1080, all settings produce playable results: Low yields 210.3 FPS, Medium 173.1 FPS, High 130.3 FPS, and Ultra 102.5 FPS. The step from High to Ultra costs 27.8 FPS, a 21% reduction, for presumably marginal visual gains. For most players, High at 1080p offers the best balance, delivering 130.3 FPS while maintaining substantial visual fidelity over Low and Medium.

At 2560x1440, the pattern shifts. Low produces 135.6 FPS, Medium 106.5 FPS, High 81.4 FPS, and Ultra drops to 62.6 FPS. The Ultra preset still clears 60 FPS, but the margin is thin. Medium at 106.5 FPS provides a more comfortable buffer while retaining decent quality. For 1440p, Medium is the recommended preset based on the measured data, as it keeps frame rates above 100 FPS while offering better visuals than Low.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. Low runs at 67.7 FPS, Medium at 58.5 FPS, High at 46.3 FPS, and Ultra at 31.4 FPS. Only Low achieves a smooth 60+ FPS experience. Medium dips below 60 FPS, and High and Ultra are noticeably choppy. For 4K, the data supports using Low settings to maintain acceptable frame rates. The 67.7 FPS result at 4K Low is the only measured configuration at this resolution that hits the 60 FPS threshold, making it the clear choice for players prioritizing smoothness over visual detail.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested combinations for Hard West, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-14400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 ranks 793rd out of 1,699 total combos. This puts it in the 47th percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly half of all configurations perform better and half perform worse. The rank reflects the middle-of-the-road nature of this hardware pairing: the CPU is strong (88th percentile among CPUs) but the GPU is more modest (72nd percentile among GPUs), creating a balanced but not elite combination.

The CPU's near-identical performance to the Intel Core i7-12800H (deltaPct 0%) and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 7645 (deltaPct 0.2%) indicates that the processor is not the differentiator in this rank. The GPU's position relative to the AMD FirePro S7150 (0.6% higher), AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT (0.9% higher), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (1% higher) shows that the RTX 3070 sits in a competitive but not dominant GPU tier. The combo's rank of 793 out of 1,699 suggests that other pairings with stronger GPUs or more balanced configurations achieve higher FPS in Hard West, particularly at higher resolutions where the GPU bottleneck is more pronounced.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 210.3 FPS average, the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium follows at 173.1 FPS, High at 130.3 FPS, and Ultra at 102.5 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra represents a 51% performance reduction, but even the lowest 1080p result remains well above 100 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance drops across all presets. Low achieves 135.6 FPS, Medium 106.5 FPS, High 81.4 FPS, and Ultra 62.6 FPS. The Ultra result at 1440p is the closest any preset comes to the 60 FPS threshold at this resolution, and it just barely clears it. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 73 FPS, a 54% reduction.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. Low runs at 67.7 FPS, Medium at 58.5 FPS, High at 46.3 FPS, and Ultra at 31.4 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K produces the worst result in the dataset, falling below 32 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is a 54% performance drop, similar to the 1440p pattern, but the absolute values are much lower. The measured data shows that the RTX 3070 can handle 4K only at Low settings without dropping below 60 FPS. Across all resolutions, the FPS values decrease monotonically as settings increase, confirming consistent performance scaling with no anomalies in the data.