Hard West

Hard West is a turn-based tactics title from 2015, and this particular CPU and GPU pairing produces frame rates that range from highly playable to absurdly high. The data shows a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-limited at higher resolutions, but which still delivers excellent performance even at 4K with maximum settings. The measured results indicate that this combo is far more powerful than the game's age would suggest, offering headroom for high-refresh-rate monitors at 1440p and smooth 60 FPS gameplay at 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial, but the pattern reveals a clear shift in the bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo hits an average of 262.1 FPS. Moving to 1440p at the same settings drops that to 228.3 FPS, a reduction of about 13%. Going from 1440p to 4K at Low settings brings the average down to 121.9 FPS, which is a much steeper 47% decline. This non-linear scaling is classic behavior for a GPU-bound scenario; at 1080p, the CPU is likely still providing enough headroom, but as pixel count rises, the GPU's workload becomes the dominant factor.

The trend continues across all settings presets. With High settings, the frame rate drops from 220.1 FPS at 1080p to 143.2 FPS at 1440p (a 35% reduction), and then to 76.7 FPS at 4K (a further 46% cut). At Ultra settings, the progression is 173.7 FPS at 1080p, 106.2 FPS at 1440p, and finally 60.1 FPS at 4K. The consistent ~45-50% drop from 1440p to 4K across all presets confirms that the rendering resolution is the primary constraint. The CPU is not the limiting factor here; if it were, the 1080p to 1440p gap would be much smaller than the 1440p to 4K gap. Instead, the data shows that the GPU is being pushed harder at every step up in resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is the star of this show, and its specifications explain why it can push such high frame rates. It comes with 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. Hard West is not a graphically demanding game by modern standards, but this memory capacity and bandwidth ensure that texture streaming and asset loading are never a concern. The GPU's base clock is 2235 MHz with a boost clock of 2520 MHz, and this high clock speed is largely responsible for the strong performance at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully saturated.

The RTX 4090 scores 38,194 in the Passmark G3D benchmark and 26,613 in the Passmark GPU Compute test, placing it in the 91st percentile of all GPUs. In terms of raw compute, it offers 82.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which is overkill for a turn-based tactics game. The 128 RT cores and 512 tensor cores are also present but largely irrelevant for this title. The data shows that the GPU is rarely the limiting factor even at 1440p, and only at 4K with Ultra settings does it finally get pushed to a point where it delivers a 60.1 FPS average. This is a GPU that is not just capable but massively over-provisioned for the task at hand.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F plays a supporting role, but it is a strong one. With 10 cores and 16 threads, it is a modern processor that can handle game logic and AI calculations without breaking a sweat. Its base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.70 GHz are ample for a game like Hard West, which is not known for heavy multi-threaded workloads. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21,914 and single-core score of 3,093 indicate strong overall performance, placing it in the 88th percentile of all CPUs.

However, the benchmark results show that the CPU is not the bottleneck in this configuration. At 1080p with Low settings, the frame rate is 262.1 FPS, which is likely approaching the point where CPU thread scheduling could become a factor, but it is still delivering an extremely high number. The CPU's nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the Intel Core i7-13705H and AMD Ryzen 7 250, with a delta of -0.2% in both cases, showing it is a solid mid-range performer. The 20 MB of shared L3 cache is sufficient for this game's data set. In short, the CPU provides enough headroom to keep the GPU fed at all resolutions, and its performance is a non-issue in this pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

Looking at the overall picture, this specific CPU and GPU combination ranks 43rd out of 1,699 tested combos in Hard West. That places it in the top 2.5% of all configurations tested, which is an excellent result. The data suggests that this pairing is among the most capable available for this title. The RTX 4090 is a top-tier GPU, and the i5-14400F is a strong modern CPU, so it is no surprise that it ranks so high.

This ranking confirms the fact that Hard West is an older title that does not require the absolute fastest hardware to run well. Many of the combos ranked above this one likely feature even more powerful CPUs, but the frame rate differences would be marginal at best. The fact that this combo achieves 60.1 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is the most demanding scenario measured, shows that it is well within the top tier of performance. For a game that is turn-based, the difference between 60 FPS and 120 FPS is not as impactful as in a fast-paced shooter, but the headroom is still there for those who want it.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data offers a clear picture of what settings to use based on your display. For a 4K display, the Ultra preset is the only option that delivers a true 60 FPS experience, averaging 60.1 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for a turn-based tactics game, and the visual quality jump from High to Ultra is often noticeable. If you prefer a higher frame rate at 4K, dropping to High gives you 76.7 FPS, which is a significant improvement over 60 FPS and still looks great. The Medium preset at 4K provides 102.1 FPS, but the visual compromise may not be worth it.

For 1440p, the High preset is the sweet spot, delivering 143.2 FPS, which is well above the 120 FPS threshold for high-refresh-rate monitors. Ultra at 1440p gives you 106.2 FPS, which is still excellent and offers the best visual fidelity. At 1080p, you have the luxury of choice; Ultra runs at 173.7 FPS, and even Low runs at 262.1 FPS, meaning you can max out settings without any concern. In general, the data suggests that this combo is powerful enough to run the game at Ultra settings at any resolution, but for 4K, you should be prepared to accept a 60 FPS cap.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured results shows a clear hierarchy. At 3840x2160 (4K), the average frame rates are 60.1 FPS for Ultra, 76.7 FPS for High, 102.1 FPS for Medium, and 121.9 FPS for Low. At 2560x1440 (1440p), the numbers jump to 106.2 FPS for Ultra, 143.2 FPS for High, 189.3 FPS for Medium, and 228.3 FPS for Low. Finally, at 1920x1080 (1080p), the averages are 173.7 FPS for Ultra, 220.1 FPS for High, 245 FPS for Medium, and 262.1 FPS for Low.

The pattern is consistent: each step up in resolution cuts the frame rate by a significant margin, and each step up in settings also reduces performance. The difference between Low and Ultra at the same resolution is substantial; at 4K, it is a 61.8 FPS gap, and at 1080p, it is an 88.4 FPS gap. This indicates that the visual settings have a major impact on GPU load. The data shows no anomalies or unexpected dips, confirming that the system is stable and well-balanced. For a game from 2015, these numbers are exceptionally high, proving that this combo has no trouble handling Hard West at any configuration.