Hitman 2

# CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 brings a 6-core, 12-thread configuration based on the Zen 2 architecture, built on a 7 nm process at TSMC. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.20 GHz place it as a mid-range desktop part from the 3000 series, and the data shows it holds up reasonably well in multi-threaded workloads. The CPU's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 51.2 GB/s dual-channel DDR4 memory bandwidth are notable for a game like Hitman 2, which can be sensitive to memory latency and cache behavior.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Ryzen 5 3600 scores 6,318 in Cinebench R20 multi-core and 15,045 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, while single-thread scores reach 892 and 2,124 respectively. The 3DMark results reveal scaling from 1,361 in the 2-thread test to 4,605 in the 16-thread test, indicating decent thread scaling that plateaus near the max-thread score of 4,603. This matters for Hitman 2 because the game's engine does spread work across multiple cores, though it rarely saturates all 12 threads. The PassMark multi-thread score of 17,700 and single-thread score of 2,562 suggest the CPU is balanced—not a bottleneck at 1080p, but also not a dominant force.

The CPU's percentile ranking at 71st among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 17,035, places it in a competitive zone. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-1260P (avg score 17,007, deltaPct 0.2%), the Intel Core i5-11400 (avg score 17,067, deltaPct -0.2%), and the AMD EPYC 7573X (avg score 17,070, deltaPct -0.2%). These deltas are negligible, meaning the Ryzen 5 3600 effectively trades blows with these parts in raw compute. For Hitman 2, this implies that the CPU is unlikely to be the primary constraint at lower resolutions; instead, the measured FPS differences across settings will illuminate where the GPU takes over.

The CPU's 65W TDP and unlocked multiplier suggest it can sustain boost clocks under gaming loads without thermal throttling, though the data cannot confirm sustained clock behavior in Hitman 2 specifically. The architecture's 7 nm process and 3,800 million transistors on a 74 mm² die are efficiency-focused, which aligns with the moderate power draw. In the context of Hitman 2, the 6-core/12-thread design is more than adequate for the game's AI and physics calculations, but the benchmark results will show whether the CPU becomes a limiting factor at high frame rates.

# GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B570 is a Battlemage-generation GPU built on TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring the BMG-G21 chip with 19,600 million transistors on a 272 mm² die. It ships with 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, delivering 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's base and boost clocks are both 2500 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). These specs are modest by 2025 standards, but the architecture's efficiency—11.52 TFLOPS FP32 and 23.04 TFLOPS FP16—suggests it competes with mid-range offerings.

The B570's 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, paired with 18 ray tracing cores, give it a solid feature set for DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4. Its pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s indicate it can handle Hitman 2's environments, which feature dense geometry and complex lighting. The GPU's 150W TDP and dual-slot design with a single 8-pin connector are typical for this class, but the data does not include power draw measurements during gaming.

In synthetic benchmarks, the B570 scores 14,195 in PassMark G3D and 72 in PassMark DirectX 12, with a Geekbench OpenCL score of 83,514 and Vulkan score of 96,844. Its average benchmark score of 20,556 places it at the 65th percentile among all GPUs. Nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (avg score 20,534, deltaPct 0.1%), the Intel Arc A750 (avg score 20,582, deltaPct -0.1%), and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X (avg score 20,662, deltaPct -0.5%). These tiny deltas mean the B570 is statistically tied with these parts in overall compute, though Hitman 2's specific rendering paths may favor one over another.

For Hitman 2, the GPU's 10 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p at most settings, but the measured FPS data suggests it struggles at 4K Ultra—dropping to 18 FPS average. The memory bandwidth of 380 GB/s becomes a constraint at higher resolutions, where texture streaming and buffer sizes increase. The GPU's boost clock of 2500 MHz is fixed, so there's no dynamic frequency variation to consider; performance scales purely with load and resolution. The architecture's Xe2-HPG design is optimized for modern APIs, which benefits Hitman 2's DirectX 12 mode, but the game's age (released in 2018) means some legacy rendering paths may not fully exploit the GPU's capabilities.

# Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of resolution scaling. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 123 at 1920x1080 to 79 at 2560x1440, then to 42 at 3840x2160. That's a 36% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 47% drop from 1440p to 4K. At High settings, the FPS goes from 70 at 1080p to 45 at 1440p (a 36% drop) and then to 24 at 4K (a 47% drop). The consistency of these percentage drops across settings is striking—it suggests the scaling is resolution-bound rather than settings-bound.

At Medium settings, the 1080p average is 93 FPS, dropping to 59 at 1440p and 32 at 4K. The min FPS at 1080p Medium is 79, while at 1440p Medium it's 50 and at 4K Medium it's 27—showing a similar proportional decline. Ultra settings tell the same story: 52 FPS at 1080p, 33 at 1440p, and 18 at 4K. The halving of FPS from 1080p to 4K at every settings tier is a strong indicator that the GPU is the limiting component at higher resolutions, while the CPU's role diminishes as pixel count increases.

This pattern implies that at 1080p, the Ryzen 5 3600 is capable of feeding the Arc B570 enough frames—even at Low settings where 123 FPS is achieved. The CPU's 12 threads and boost clock of 4.2 GHz are sufficient to avoid bottlenecking at these frame rates. However, at 4K, the GPU's 10 GB VRAM and 380 GB/s bandwidth become the primary constraints, as evidenced by the dramatic FPS collapse. The data suggests that for 4K gaming, the B570 is simply not powerful enough, regardless of settings—even Low settings only yield 42 FPS.

The 1440p results are more nuanced. At Medium settings, 59 FPS average with a 50 FPS minimum suggests a playable experience, but the drop from 93 FPS at 1080p Medium indicates the GPU is already struggling to maintain high frame rates at this resolution. The B570's 160-bit memory bus and 10 GB VRAM are likely the culprits, as Hitman 2's levels with multiple NPCs and dynamic shadows require significant memory bandwidth. Overall, the resolution scaling data points to a GPU-bound scenario at 1440p and above, with the CPU comfortably keeping pace.

# FAQ

Q: Does the AMD Ryzen 5 3600 bottleneck the Intel Arc B570 in Hitman 2?

A: At 1080p, the CPU appears sufficient—Low settings reach 123 FPS average, indicating no significant bottleneck. At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as FPS drops are proportional to pixel count increases.

Q: Is 10 GB of VRAM on the Arc B570 enough for Hitman 2 at 4K?

A: The data shows 4K performance is poor regardless of settings, with Ultra averaging only 18 FPS and Low averaging 42 FPS. The 10 GB VRAM and 380 GB/s bandwidth appear insufficient for smooth 4K gameplay.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Hitman 2?

A: 1920x1080 offers the most balanced experience, with Medium settings at 93 FPS average and 79 FPS minimum. 1440p is playable at Medium (59 FPS average) but requires compromises, while 4K is not recommended given the sub-60 FPS results at all settings.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Arc A750?

A: The B570's average benchmark score is 20,556 versus the A750's 20,582, a deltaPct of -0.1%. In Hitman 2, this translates to nearly identical performance, though the B570's newer architecture may offer better driver optimizations.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 3600's 6-core/12-thread design matter for this game?

A: The CPU's 12 threads handle Hitman 2's multi-threaded workload well, as evidenced by the 1080p Low result of 123 FPS. The 32 MB L3 cache and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth help maintain consistent frame pacing in busy scenes.

Q: Is there a noticeable difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: Yes—High averages 45 FPS while Ultra averages 33 FPS, a 12 FPS drop. The Ultra preset's additional effects (likely shadow quality and ambient occlusion) tax the GPU significantly more, making High the better choice for smoother gameplay.

# How This Combo Ranks

This combo ranks 2,399th out of 3,001 tested combinations in Hitman 2, placing it in the bottom 20% of all possible CPU/GPU pairings. This low ranking is primarily driven by the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions, despite the CPU's respectable performance. The Ryzen 5 3600 alone ranks in the 71st percentile among CPUs, but the Arc B570's 65th percentile GPU ranking drags the combined score down.

The ranking suggests that in Hitman 2, this pairing is better suited for 1080p gaming than for higher resolutions. With 2,399th out of 3,001, there are 602 combos that perform worse—likely those with older or weaker GPUs paired with similar CPUs. The combo's position implies that while the CPU is not a weak link, the GPU's 10 GB VRAM and 160-bit bus limit the overall experience in a game that can be demanding on memory bandwidth.

The data shows that the combo's ranking would improve significantly at 1080p, where the FPS numbers are competitive with mid-range systems. However, the ranking is computed across all resolutions and settings, so the poor 4K performance heavily penalizes the combo. For context, the CPU's nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-11400, has nearly identical compute scores (17,067 vs 17,035), meaning the combo's ranking would be similar with either CPU—confirming that the GPU is the determining factor here.

The Arc B570's nearest rival, the Intel Arc A750, has a deltaPct of -0.1%, suggesting the combo would rank almost identically with either GPU. This reinforces that this pairing sits in a narrow performance band, where small changes in CPU or GPU choice do not dramatically alter Hitman 2's playability. The 2,399th rank is a reminder that this is a budget-oriented combo, not a high-end one, and users should set expectations accordingly.

# Settings Recommendations

For the best experience with this combo in Hitman 2, the measured data points to 1920x1080 with Medium settings as the sweet spot. The 93 FPS average with a 79 FPS minimum ensures smooth gameplay with headroom for dips in busy scenes. High settings at 1080p (70 FPS average) are also viable, but the 23 FPS penalty from Medium to High may not justify the visual improvement for all players.

At 2560x1440, Medium settings (59 FPS average, 50 FPS minimum) are the highest acceptable option. High settings at 1440p drop to 45 FPS average, which is borderline for a stealth game where smooth camera movement matters. Ultra settings at any resolution above 1080p are not recommended—33 FPS at 1440p and 18 FPS at 4K make the game feel sluggish. Low settings at 1440p (79 FPS) are an option for players prioritizing frame rate over visuals, but the Medium preset offers a better balance of quality and performance.

For 4K gaming, the data suggests avoiding this resolution entirely. Even Low settings only achieve 42 FPS average, which is below the 60 FPS target most players expect. The 4K Medium result of 32 FPS (with 27 FPS minimum) is playable in a pinch, but the visual fidelity gains over 1440p are not worth the performance sacrifice. The 10 GB VRAM is likely being maxed out at 4K Ultra (18 FPS), causing severe frame rate drops.

Ultimately, the recommendation is to play at 1080p Medium for the best combination of visual quality and performance. Players with 1440p monitors should accept Medium settings as the ceiling, while those with 4K displays should consider downscaling to 1440p or lowering resolution scale in-game. The data does not include any upscaling technology measurements, so users must rely on native resolution performance.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings achieve 123 FPS average, which is exceptional for this pairing. Medium settings drop to 93 FPS average with a 79 FPS minimum and 106 FPS maximum, providing a wide performance envelope. High settings yield 70 FPS average, while Ultra falls to 52 FPS average. The step from Medium to High (23 FPS) is larger than from High to Ultra (18 FPS), suggesting diminishing returns at the top end.

At 2560x1440, performance takes a significant hit. Low settings still manage 79 FPS average, which is respectable. Medium settings average 59 FPS with a 50 FPS minimum and 68 FPS maximum, making it the only playable preset at this resolution. High settings drop to 45 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 33 FPS. The 1440p results show a 36% average FPS reduction from 1080p across all settings, consistent with the pixel count increase.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles. Low settings average 42 FPS, which is barely playable. Medium settings average 32 FPS with a 27 FPS minimum and 36 FPS maximum—the only 4K preset with min/max data, indicating the others were too unstable to record. High settings drop to 24 FPS, and Ultra falls to 18 FPS. The 4K results represent a 47% drop from 1440p, confirming the GPU's bandwidth limitations.

The data shows that min FPS values are only recorded for Medium settings at each resolution, which suggests that this preset is the most stable across the board. At 1080p Medium, the 27 FPS range (79 to 106) indicates consistent frame pacing. At 1440p Medium, the 18 FPS range (50 to 68) shows more variance. At 4K Medium, the 9 FPS range (27 to 36) is tight but at a low absolute level. This consistency makes Medium the most reliable preset for competitive or stealth gameplay where frame time consistency matters more than peak FPS.