Hard West

Hard West is a turn-based tactics title from 2015, and with this pairing of an Intel Core i7-14700F and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, the measured results show a system that is heavily influenced by resolution and graphics preset. The data indicates that at 1080p, this combo is capable of very high frame rates, but the demands of 4K Ultra will push it to the limit. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS to show exactly where the bottlenecks lie and how to get the best experience from this specific hardware configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 99 FPS at 1080p to 62 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 33 FPS at 4K. This represents a substantial 66% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the graphics card is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. The scaling is not perfectly linear; the jump from 1440p to 4K causes a 47% performance drop, while the jump from 1080p to 1440p causes a 37% drop, showing that pixel count increases disproportionately impact the GPU.

Looking at the Low preset, the trend is similar but with higher absolute numbers. The system achieves 157 FPS at 1080p, 99 FPS at 1440p, and 52 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K is 67%, which is consistent with the High preset's scaling. This consistency suggests that the resolution scaling penalty is independent of the graphics settings, which is a typical behavior for a GPU-bound scenario. The fact that even at Low settings the 4K resolution only yields 52 FPS underscores that the RTX 2060 SUPER, with its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus, is not designed for consistent 4K gaming in this title.

The Medium preset provides a middle ground, with 128 FPS at 1080p, 81 FPS at 1440p, and 43 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset, however, shows the most dramatic drop, going from 74 FPS at 1080p to 47 FPS at 1440p and only 25 FPS at 4K. The data strongly suggests that for a smooth 60 FPS experience, 1080p is the sweet spot for this combo, while 1440p is viable for High and Medium settings but struggles at Ultra. The 4K resolution is only playable at Low settings, and even then, it barely breaks the 50 FPS mark, indicating that the GPU is the definitive bottleneck at that resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture and features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. Its base clock is 1470 MHz with a boost clock of 1650 MHz, and it has 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The GPU's compute power is rated at 7.181 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. These specifications place the card in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs, with its average benchmark score of 18093 being very close to rivals like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile (18159, -0.4%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (18189, -0.5%).

In the context of Hard West, the GPU's role is the primary determinant of performance at higher resolutions. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra (25 FPS) versus 1080p Low (157 FPS) demonstrates a 6.3x performance swing, which is directly attributable to the GPU's workload. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for this game, as it is a 2015 title, but the card's raw rasterization power starts to show its age when pushing 4K pixels. The data shows that the card is capable of high frame rates at 1080p, but it struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K on anything above Low settings.

The GPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals suggests that it is a mid-range card that has been surpassed by newer generations. Its passmark G3D score of 16462 is its strongest benchmark, but the DirectX 12 score of 61 indicates that it is not optimized for modern APIs, which is less relevant for this older game. The card's 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are present but not heavily utilized in a turn-based tactics game like Hard West, which relies more on traditional rendering. The data indicates that the GPU is the clear bottleneck at 4K, but at 1080p, it has enough headroom to provide excellent performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. It has a 33 MB shared L3 cache and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory. The CPU's benchmark scores are strong, particularly in multi-core tests, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35122 and a single-core score of 4958. Its average benchmark score of 53620 places it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, and it is closely matched with rivals like the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288, 0.6%).

In Hard West, the CPU's role is less critical than the GPU, especially at higher resolutions. The data shows that frame rates drop significantly from 1080p to 4K, which is a classic sign of GPU limitation. However, at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 157 FPS, which indicates that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to hit very high frame rates. The CPU's high single-core performance is beneficial for a game like this, which likely relies on a single main thread for game logic and AI calculations.

The 20-core count and 28 threads are overkill for a turn-based tactics game, as the workload is not heavily threaded. The data suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution or setting, as the FPS scaling is consistent with GPU-bound behavior. The CPU's percentile rank of 91% and its average benchmark score, which is slightly higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288, 0.6%), indicate that it is a high-end processor that will not hold back the RTX 2060 SUPER in this game. The fact that the FPS drops from 1080p to 4K are consistent across all settings further confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 2632 out of 3722 tested combos in Hard West. This places it in the bottom 29% of all tested configurations, which reflects the fact that the RTX 2060 SUPER is an older mid-range GPU when paired with a very modern high-end CPU. The rank is a measure of the overall combination's performance, and the data shows that while the CPU is a top-tier performer (91st percentile), the GPU's lower standing (62nd percentile) drags the combo down in the rankings.

The ranking indicates that there are many other combinations that can achieve higher frame rates in this game, likely those with more powerful GPUs. However, the data also shows that this combo is not a poor performer; it is simply outclassed by newer hardware. The combo's rank is more a reflection of the GPU's age than the CPU's capability. The CPU is powerful enough to handle any modern game, but the GPU limits the overall system's performance, especially at higher resolutions.

The data reveals that the combo's performance is sufficient for 1080p gaming, where it can hit 99 FPS on High settings and 157 FPS on Low. For a turn-based tactics game, these frame rates are more than adequate, as the genre does not require the same level of responsiveness as a fast-paced shooter. The rank of 2632 out of 3722 suggests that while this combo is not at the top of the charts, it is still capable of delivering a smooth experience at 1080p and even 1440p on medium settings, which is the practical takeaway for a user with this hardware.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset offers a very smooth 99 FPS, which is the best balance of visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset drops to 74 FPS, which is still playable, but the 25% performance hit may not be worth the marginal visual improvement in a turn-based game. For players who prioritize maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 157 FPS is an option, but the visual sacrifice is significant. The Medium preset at 128 FPS provides a good middle ground, but High is recommended for the best overall experience.

At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 62 FPS, which is right at the edge of smooth playability for most users. The Medium preset at 81 FPS offers a more comfortable margin, and it is the recommended setting for a consistent 1440p experience. The Low preset at 99 FPS is also viable, but the Ultra preset at 47 FPS is too inconsistent for a smooth experience. For 4K (3840x2160), the data clearly shows that only the Low preset at 52 FPS is acceptable, while Medium at 43 FPS and High at 33 FPS are below the threshold for smooth gameplay.

The measured data for the Medium preset includes minimum and maximum FPS values, which provide additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the FPS ranges from 109 to 148, with an average of 128, indicating a stable frame time. At 1440p Medium, the range is 69 to 93 FPS, with an average of 81, showing more variance but still playable. At 4K Medium, the range is 36 to 49 FPS, with an average of 43, which is playable but not ideal. For the best experience, users should target 1080p High or 1440p Medium, as these settings provide the best combination of frame rate and visual fidelity that the hardware can deliver without significant compromises.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive look at performance across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 157 on Low, 128 on Medium (with a range of 109-148), 99 on High, and 74 on Ultra. This shows a clear progression, with Low being nearly 2x faster than Ultra. The data indicates that at 1080p, the system has ample performance headroom, and even the most demanding settings are playable. The difference between Low and Ultra is 83 FPS, which is substantial, but the high absolute numbers mean that all settings are viable for a smooth experience.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops to 99 on Low, 81 on Medium (with a range of 69-93), 62 on High, and 47 on Ultra. The performance scaling is consistent with 1080p, but the absolute numbers are lower. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 37-38% across all settings, confirming that the GPU is handling a significantly higher pixel workload. At this resolution, Low and Medium presets are the most playable, while High is borderline and Ultra is not recommended for a consistent experience.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS is 52 on Low, 43 on Medium (with a range of 36-49), 33 on High, and 25 on Ultra. This is the resolution where the RTX 2060 SUPER clearly becomes the bottleneck. The Low preset is the only setting that provides an average FPS above 50, and even that is not a solid 60 FPS. The Ultra preset at 25 FPS is nearly unplayable, and the High preset at 33 FPS is also too slow for a smooth experience. The data shows that 4K is only viable with the lowest settings, and even then, the frame rate is inconsistent, as evidenced by the Medium preset's minimum of 36 FPS. For any user with a 4K monitor, the recommendation is to either lower the resolution to 1440p or accept the visual compromises of the Low preset.