Hitman 2

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D presents a striking imbalance in Hitman 2, where a top-tier graphics card meets a mid-range processor. The measured results show that the RTX 5090 D is capable of producing extremely high frame rates, but the Ryzen 5 5600’s Zen 3 architecture with 6 cores and 12 threads often restricts the system's peak performance, especially at lower resolutions. This analysis walks through the data to show how this pairing scales, ranks, and ultimately delivers playable experiences across various settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling across resolutions in Hitman 2 reveals a classic CPU bottleneck at 1080p and a transition to GPU-bound performance at 4K. At the High preset, the average FPS drops from 207 at 1920x1080 to 132 at 2560x1440, a 36% reduction, and then to 71 at 3840x2160, a further 46% reduction from 1440p. This curve is steep, indicating that the graphics card is underutilized at lower resolutions where the CPU is the limiting factor.

The Low preset demonstrates this even more clearly. At 1920x1080 Low, the system reaches 288 FPS, but at 2560x1440 Low it drops to 234 FPS, and at 4K Low it sits at 124 FPS. The massive gap between 1080p and 1440p (54 FPS) suggests that the CPU cannot feed the GPU enough data to maintain the same performance headroom, while the drop to 4K shows the GPU finally becoming the primary bottleneck as pixel count increases.

The Medium preset, which includes min and max FPS data, shows similar behavior. At 1080p, the average is 259 FPS with a minimum of 220 FPS, while at 1440p it falls to 175 FPS (min 149) and at 4K it is 93 FPS (min 79). The minimum FPS values at 4K (79) and 1440p (149) are notably close, suggesting that while the average drops, the frame pacing consistency might be influenced by CPU limitations in certain scenes.

The fact that the 4K High score (71 FPS) is higher than the 4K Ultra score (52 FPS) but lower than the 4K Medium score (93 FPS) indicates a typical scaling pattern: as settings increase, the GPU workload rises, and the frame rate drops. However, the 4K Low result of 124 FPS shows that even with minimal GPU load, the system cannot exceed this threshold in this scenario, cementing the CPU's role as a hard cap on performance at higher frame rates.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combination achieves in Hitman 2?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 288 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This drops to 234 at 2560x1440 and 124 at 3840x2160 under the same Low preset.

Q: How does the combo rank among other tested combinations in this game?

A: The combo ranks 50th out of 3,001 tested combinations, placing it in the top 2% of all pairings tested for Hitman 2.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data indicates a CPU bottleneck at 1080p. The Ryzen 5 5600 has a boost clock of 4.40 GHz and 6 cores, but the FPS difference between Low (288) and High (207) at 1080p is relatively small compared to the GPU's capability, suggesting the processor is holding back the system.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate observed in the measured data?

A: The lowest average FPS is 52, recorded at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. This is the only measured scenario that drops below 60 FPS.

Q: Does the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB of VRAM have any impact on these results?

A: The measured data does not show VRAM capacity as a limiting factor. Hitman 2's requirements are well below the 32 GB available, so the GPU's memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s is more relevant to performance scaling than the total capacity.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 5600's multi-threaded performance compare to its single-threaded performance?

A: In Cinebench R23, the CPU scores 18,309 in multicore and 2,584 in single-core. The multi-thread score suggests good scaling across its 12 threads, but Hitman 2's engine appears to benefit more from the single-core performance, as evidenced by the FPS limitations at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 50th out of 3,001 combos tested in Hitman 2, which places it in the 98.3rd percentile of all tested pairings. This is a strong ranking, but it is not at the very top, indicating that while the system performs exceptionally well, there are other combinations that achieve higher frame rates.

The CPU itself holds a percentile rank of 74 against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 20,468. Its nearest rivals are the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V (delta 0.1%), AMD Ryzen 5 8500G (delta 0.2%), AMD EPYC 9454P (delta 0.2%), and AMD EPYC 7713 (delta 0.5%). These rivals are all within a fraction of a percent of the Ryzen 5 5600's average score, showing that this CPU sits in a very tightly contested performance band.

The GPU ranks much higher, at the 92nd percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (1.1% slower), AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (1.6% faster), and two NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants (2.1% and 2.4% faster). Despite the GPU's high ranking, the combo's overall rank of 50 suggests that the CPU's lower percentile (74) is pulling the system down from what could be a top-10 position if paired with a more powerful processor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers consistently high frame rates across all settings. The Low preset averages 288 FPS, Medium 259 FPS (with a min of 220 and max of 298), High 207 FPS, and Ultra 153 FPS. Even at Ultra settings, the system maintains an average above 144 FPS, making it suitable for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages drop but remain very playable. Low averages 234 FPS, Medium 175 FPS (min 149, max 201), High 132 FPS, and Ultra 98 FPS. The Ultra setting at 1440p provides a smooth experience above 90 FPS, while the High preset still clears the 120 FPS threshold.

At 3840x2160, the system begins to show its limits. Low averages 124 FPS, Medium 93 FPS (min 79, max 107), High 71 FPS, and Ultra 52 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only measured scenario that dips below 60 FPS, making it the most demanding configuration. The 4K Medium setting offers a good balance, staying above 90 FPS, while 4K High remains above 70 FPS.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a flagship GPU with 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. Its boost clock is 2407 MHz with a base clock of 2017 MHz, and it features 21,760 shading units. In Hitman 2, the GPU's role is to render the game's detailed environments and effects, and the data shows it is more than capable of doing so at high frame rates.

The GPU's performance in synthetic benchmarks is strong, with a Passmark G3D score of 44,065 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14,326. Its percentile rank of 92 indicates that it outperforms the vast majority of GPUs. However, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU is often not the primary limiter in this pairing. At 1080p, the frame rates are capped by the CPU, as evidenced by the relatively small difference between Low (288) and Ultra (153) settings compared to what the GPU could theoretically achieve.

At 4K, the GPU's workload increases, and the frame rates scale more predictably with settings. The 4K results (124 FPS Low, 93 FPS Medium, 71 FPS High, 52 FPS Ultra) show a clear GPU-bound scenario where the pixel count and shading complexity determine the output. The GPU's 176 ROPs and 1,636.8 GTexel/s texture rate are sufficient to handle Hitman 2's geometry and textures, but the CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions prevents the system from fully utilizing the RTX 5090 D's potential.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture (Vermeer), with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It has 32 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus. Its synthetic benchmarks show a solid mid-range performer: Cinebench R23 multicore of 18,309, single-core of 2,584, and Geekbench multicore of 9,158.

In Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to handle game logic, AI, and scene management. The measured data strongly suggests that the Ryzen 5 5600 becomes the bottleneck at 1080p and 1440p, where the frame rates are limited by the processor's ability to feed the GPU. The fact that 1080p Low (288 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (153 FPS) differ by only 135 FPS, while the GPU is capable of much higher output, points to CPU limitations.

The CPU's single-thread performance (Cinebench R20 single-core 1,085, 3DMark single-thread 882) is decent but not exceptional. Hitman 2 appears to be sensitive to single-thread performance, and the 4.40 GHz boost clock may not be sufficient to unlock the RTX 5090 D's full potential. The multi-thread scores (Cinebench R23 18,309) show the CPU can handle multiple threads, but the game likely does not scale perfectly across 12 threads, leaving the system CPU-bound in less demanding scenes.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate, the 2560x1440 High preset is the standout choice, delivering an average of 132 FPS while maintaining high graphical quality. This configuration avoids the CPU bottleneck seen at 1080p and keeps the GPU engaged enough to produce a smooth, responsive experience.

If targeting 4K, the Medium preset at 3840x2160 is the recommended setting, with an average of 93 FPS and a minimum of 79 FPS. This provides a solid experience above 60 FPS without the significant performance hit of the High preset (71 FPS) or the unplayable average of Ultra (52 FPS).

At 1080p, the data suggests that the Ultra preset (153 FPS) is the best choice for maximizing visual quality without sacrificing playability, as the system still maintains a high frame rate. The Low preset (288 FPS) offers no practical benefit for most users, as the CPU bottleneck means the extra frames do not translate to a smoother experience beyond what a 144Hz or 165Hz monitor can display.

For users prioritizing frame rate stability, the Medium preset at 1440p (min 149 FPS) offers the best combination of high minimum FPS and reasonable visual quality. The 4K Low preset (124 FPS) is also viable for those who want high frame rates at 4K, though it sacrifices significant visual detail. Overall, the data indicates that this combo excels at 1440p and can handle 4K with adjusted settings, but the CPU's limitations prevent it from being a pure high-refresh-rate 1080p machine.