Hard West

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a commanding performance in Hard West, a turn-based tactics title from 2015. The data shows a combination that scales predictably with resolution and settings, offering extremely high frame rates that far exceed the demands of the genre. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS results to explain where this combo excels, how it behaves under load, and what settings provide the best experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and substantial drop as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, indicating that the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 206 FPS, which is already very high. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same settings, the frame rate drops to 131 FPS, a reduction of roughly 36%. At 3840x2160, the average falls to 69 FPS, which is about 47% lower than the 1440p result and 66% lower than the 1080p result. This pattern of diminishing returns as resolution climbs is classic GPU-bound behavior.

The scaling from Low to Ultra settings within each resolution reinforces this. At 1080p, the difference between Low (302 FPS) and Ultra (155 FPS) is nearly a 2x gap, showing the GPU is doing significant work even at the lowest settings. At 4K, the gap between Low (109 FPS) and Ultra (51 FPS) is also roughly 2x, but the absolute numbers are much lower, confirming that the RTX 4080's rendering load at 4K is the bottleneck. The CPU, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is not the constraint here; the game's turn-based nature likely doesn't stress the processor heavily, and the FPS scaling aligns with pure pixel throughput demands on the GPU.

The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the combo is heavily GPU-limited but with so much headroom that the CPU never becomes a factor. At 4K, the RTX 4080 is still delivering playable frame rates, but the drop from 109 FPS on Low to 51 FPS on Ultra shows that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute units are working at their limits. The 716.8 GB/s of memory bandwidth and 48.74 TFLOPS of FP32 performance are being fully utilized as resolution scales, leading to the observed halving of performance from Low to Ultra at every resolution.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience per the measured rows, the Medium preset offers the optimal balance between visual quality and frame rate. At 1920x1080, Medium produces 269 FPS, which is only 33 FPS less than Low but provides significantly better visuals than Low. At 2560x1440, Medium delivers 170 FPS, which is still well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most high-end monitors, and it has a measured minimum of 144 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. At 3840x2160, Medium yields 89 FPS with a minimum of 76 FPS, which is a solid experience for a turn-based strategy game where precise timing is not critical.

Ultra settings are tempting but not necessary. At 1080p, Ultra produces 155 FPS, which is still excellent, but the jump from Medium to Ultra costs 114 FPS for marginal visual improvements. At 1440p, Ultra drops to 98 FPS, which is below the 144 FPS target that many gamers prefer. At 4K, Ultra falls to 51 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a game that can run at 89 FPS on Medium. The data supports High as the second-best option: it delivers 206 FPS at 1080p, 131 FPS at 1440p, and 69 FPS at 4K, but Medium consistently outperforms it by a significant margin (30% at 1080p, 30% at 1440p, and 29% at 4K) while likely offering nearly identical visual fidelity.

Given that Hard West is a turn-based tactics game, frame rates above 60 FPS are more than sufficient. The Medium preset at 1440p is the sweet spot, delivering 170 FPS with a minimum of 144, ensuring no stutter or frame pacing issues. For users with a 4K display, Medium at 89 FPS is the recommended choice to maintain high visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. Low is only advisable for competitive play, which is not relevant in this genre.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 plays the central role in this combo's performance, and its specifications directly explain the measured results. The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus with a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. This substantial memory allocation is more than enough for Hard West, a game from 2015, but the bandwidth is crucial for the high FPS numbers observed. The card's base clock is 2205 MHz with a boost clock of 2505 MHz, and it has 9,728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output units. These specs translate to a pixel rate of 280.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 761.5 GTexel/s, which are the key metrics for pushing frame rates in a game with relatively simple 2D and 3D geometry.

The RTX 4080's performance in Hard West is consistent with its benchmark scores. It achieves a Passmark G3D score of 34,457 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6,567, placing it in the 86th percentile of all GPUs. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is not under stress at lower resolutions; at 1080p Low, the 302 FPS result indicates the card is not fully utilized, likely waiting on the CPU to issue draw calls. However, as resolution increases, the GPU's compute and memory subsystems become fully engaged, as evidenced by the 4K results where FPS scales linearly with settings.

The VRAM usage is not explicitly measured, but 16 GB is far beyond the requirements of a 2015 title, ensuring no texture pop-in or stuttering due to memory overflow. The GPU's Ada Lovelace architecture, built on a 5 nm process from TSMC, provides efficiency that allows it to maintain high clocks without hitting thermal limits, though the 320 W TDP is notable. The data shows that this GPU is overkill for Hard West at 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K it becomes the definitive bottleneck, with performance dropping by half between Low and Ultra settings, which is a direct result of the pixel and texture fill rates being taxed.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the Intel Core i7-14700F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 221st out of 3,722 tested combinations in Hard West, placing it in the top 6% of all systems. This rank is surprisingly low for such high-end hardware, but it reflects the game's age and the fact that many other combos with faster, more expensive components can achieve similar or higher frame rates in a game that is not particularly demanding. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35,122 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2,429, place it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, but these scores do not translate into a higher rank in Hard West because the game is not CPU-bound.

The GPU's nearest rivals include the RTX 4080 SUPER, which scores 0.1% higher on average, and the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X, which scores 1.1% lower. In practical terms, this means the RTX 4080 is within 1% of the RTX 4080 SUPER in synthetic benchmarks, but in Hard West, the measured FPS data shows no difference that would change the rank significantly. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X, which scores 0.6% higher on average, also do not impact the game's performance. The rank of 221 suggests that there are 220 other combos that perform better, likely with higher-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 or faster CPUs, but for the vast majority of users, this combo is in the top tier of what is achievable.

The fact that this combo ranks in the top 6% despite being not the absolute fastest reflects its balance. The i7-14700F's 33 MB of L3 cache and 20 cores ensure it never bottlenecks the RTX 4080, even at 1080p where CPU load is highest. The data shows that this combo delivers over 200 FPS at 1080p on High settings, which is more than enough for any display, and the rank reflects that this performance is consistent across the board, with no single component holding the system back.

FAQ

Q: Is the RTX 4080 sufficient for 4K gaming in Hard West?

A: Yes, the data shows that at 3840x2160 with Medium settings, the combo achieves 89 FPS with a minimum of 76 FPS. At High settings, it drops to 69 FPS, and at Ultra, it falls to 51 FPS. All of these are playable for a turn-based tactics game, but Medium offers the best balance of visual quality and smoothness.

Q: What is the best resolution to use with this combo for a high-refresh-rate monitor?

A: At 2560x1440, the combo delivers 131 FPS on High settings and 170 FPS on Medium settings, with a minimum of 144 FPS on Medium. This is ideal for 144 Hz displays. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are even higher, reaching 206 FPS on High and 269 FPS on Medium.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in this game?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is not a limiting factor. The game is clearly GPU-bound, as evidenced by the FPS scaling with resolution and settings. The CPU's single-core performance, with a Geekbench score of 2,429, is more than sufficient for a turn-based tactics title.

Q: Should I use Ultra settings or stick with Medium?

A: The data suggests that Medium is the better choice. At 4K, Ultra produces 51 FPS compared to Medium's 89 FPS, a 42% performance drop. At 1440p, Ultra yields 98 FPS versus Medium's 170 FPS. The visual difference between Medium and Ultra in a 2015 game is unlikely to justify the frame rate loss.

Q: How does this combo compare to the RTX 4080 SUPER?

A: According to benchmark averages, the RTX 4080 SUPER scores 0.1% higher than the RTX 4080. In Hard West, this difference is negligible, and the measured FPS for the RTX 4080 is already so high that the SUPER would not provide a meaningful improvement.

Q: Is this combo overkill for Hard West?

A: Yes, for a turn-based tactics game from 2015, this hardware is far more powerful than necessary. The combo achieves over 300 FPS at 1080p Low, which is excessive. However, the high frame rates ensure a perfectly smooth experience at any resolution, and the hardware will easily handle future, more demanding titles.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of this combo's performance across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the results are: Low settings produce an average of 302 FPS. Medium settings produce an average of 269 FPS, with a minimum of 228 FPS and a maximum of 309 FPS. High settings produce an average of 206 FPS. Ultra settings produce an average of 155 FPS. This shows a clear hierarchy where Low is fastest, followed by Medium, High, and Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the scaling continues: Low settings deliver 207 FPS. Medium settings deliver 170 FPS, with a minimum of 144 FPS and a maximum of 195 FPS. High settings deliver 131 FPS. Ultra settings deliver 98 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 109 FPS, confirming the GPU's workload increases significantly with settings.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more moderate: Low settings produce 109 FPS. Medium settings produce 89 FPS, with a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 103 FPS. High settings produce 69 FPS. Ultra settings produce 51 FPS. The minimum FPS of 76 on Medium at 4K is still above 60, ensuring no noticeable stutter in gameplay. The maximum FPS of 103 on Medium shows that the combo has headroom even at 4K, but the average of 89 FPS is the realistic expectation for sustained performance.

Across all resolutions, Medium is the most consistent performer relative to its visual quality. At 1080p, it offers 87% of Low's performance but with better graphics. At 1440p, it offers 82% of Low's performance. At 4K, it offers 82% of Low's performance. In contrast, High offers 68% of Low's performance at 1080p, 63% at 1440p, and 63% at 4K. Ultra offers 51% of Low's performance at 1080p, 47% at 1440p, and 47% at 4K. These percentages highlight the diminishing returns of higher settings, making Medium the recommended choice for a balance of speed and visual fidelity.