Hitman 2

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER presents a compelling mid-to-high-range combination for Hitman 2, a stealth title that rewards both CPU-driven simulation and GPU throughput. The data reveals a system that can handle high refresh rates at 1080p but begins to strain under the combined load of 4K resolution and maximum settings. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across resolutions and presets, interpreting what the numbers mean for the component roles and overall ranking.

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X is a desktop processor built on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer, and manufactured on a 7 nm process by TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. The CPU’s cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and a substantial 32 MB of L3 cache. These specifications place it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs, indicating strong general performance. Its average benchmark score is 27,606, which is remarkably close to its nearest rivals; for instance, it is only 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 and 0.4% behind the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE and Intel Core i7-13700H.

In Hitman 2, the CPU’s role is crucial for managing the game’s AI, physics, and complex crowd simulations. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low, the system achieves 157.4 FPS, which is a high ceiling that points to the processor’s ability to feed frames quickly. However, the more telling statistic is the scaling across settings at a fixed resolution. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium reduces the average FPS from 157.4 to 117.6, and then to 90.2 at High, and finally 70.0 at Ultra. This scaling pattern suggests that while the CPU is not the primary limiter, the game’s engine does demand more from the processor as visual complexity increases, likely due to more dynamic objects and shadows. The 8-core, 16-thread configuration appears well-suited for this, as the game can utilize the multi-threading capabilities to maintain playable FPS even when the GPU is stressed.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Given the measured data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers an average of 90.2 FPS, which is smooth for most players, but the Ultra preset at 70.0 FPS is still playable and offers the full visual experience. For those with high refresh rate monitors, the Low preset at 157.4 FPS is the only option that pushes beyond 144 Hz, but it sacrifices significant visual fidelity. A balanced choice would be High, as it keeps frame rates above 90 while retaining most graphical features. At 2560x1440, the High preset yields 58.8 FPS, which is near the 60 FPS target, but the Medium preset at 78.0 FPS provides a more comfortable margin for smoother gameplay, suggesting that Medium is the sweet spot at this resolution to avoid dips below 60. For 3840x2160, the data shows that High only reaches 29.2 FPS, making it a poor choice for playable performance; the Medium preset at 40.6 FPS is borderline, while Low at 55.5 FPS is the only preset that approaches a consistent 60 FPS experience. Thus, the best experience at 4K requires dropping to Low settings, which still looks acceptable but misses the high-detail assets.

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

The FPS drop across resolutions is dramatic and reveals the GPU as the primary bottleneck in this configuration. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 157.4 at 1080p to 102.6 at 1440p, a 34.8% decrease, and then to 55.5 at 4K, a further 45.9% drop from 1440p. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, as the rendering load increases exponentially with pixel count. Similarly, at Medium settings, the FPS drops from 117.6 at 1080p to 78.0 at 1440p (a 33.7% decrease) and then to 40.6 at 4K (a 47.9% decrease). The pattern holds at High settings, with a drop from 90.2 to 58.8 (34.8%) and then to 29.2 (50.3%). The consistency of these percentage drops across presets indicates that the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, not the CPU. The RTX 2070 SUPER’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is being saturated at higher resolutions, which is a common limitation for cards of this class. The CPU, with its high single-thread performance (3,327 in Cinebench R23 single-core), is clearly not the issue, as it can maintain high FPS at lower resolutions where the GPU is less taxed.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 70.0. This is lower than the High preset’s 90.2 FPS, indicating a significant performance cost for the highest visual quality.

Q: Is the RTX 2070 SUPER or the Ryzen 7 5800X the limiting factor at 4K?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. At 3840x2160, the FPS drops to 29.2 at High and 23.7 at Ultra, while the CPU’s high benchmark scores suggest it has headroom. The steep FPS declines from 1440p to 4K across all settings point to GPU memory and bandwidth constraints.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 5800X compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 5800X has an average benchmark score of 27,606, which is 0.3% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 5800 (27,535) and 0.8% higher than the Intel Core i5-12600KF (27,827). It is, however, 0.4% lower than the AMD Ryzen 5 8500GE (27,708).

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 60 FPS target at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 2560x1440 achieves an average of 78.0 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target. The High preset at 58.8 FPS is just below 60, making Medium the safer choice for consistent frame times.

Q: Can this combo achieve 4K 60 FPS in Hitman 2?

A: No, based on the measured rows. The highest average FPS at 3840x2160 is 55.5 at Low settings, which is below 60. All other presets at 4K are significantly lower, with Ultra at 23.7 FPS.

Q: What does the GPU’s percentile rank indicate?

A: The RTX 2070 SUPER is in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 22,206. This places it above the AMD Radeon RX 5700 (21,670) by 2.5% but below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile (22,729) by 2.3%.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU on a 12 nm process, featuring 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus. Its memory clock is 1750 MHz, with an effective data rate of 14 Gbps, yielding a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The GPU’s base clock is 1605 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz. It has 2,560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, along with 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores. The card’s FP32 performance is 9.062 TFLOPS, and it supports DirectX 12 Ultimate. These specs place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 22,206. This is 0.5% below the NVIDIA RTX A400 and 0.9% above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, showing it sits in a competitive mid-range bracket.

In Hitman 2, the GPU’s role is dominant, as evidenced by the resolution scaling. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p at all presets, but at 4K, the high-resolution textures and effects likely push the memory usage to its limits, contributing to the low FPS figures. The boost clock of 1770 MHz helps maintain performance at lower resolutions, but the card’s fill rate (113.3 GPixel/s) and texture rate (283.2 GTexel/s) are the main constraints at 4K. The data shows that the GPU is the clear performance bottleneck, as the CPU is capable of much higher frame rates, which is a typical imbalance for this generation of hardware when paired with a high-end CPU from a later release.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The complete measured FPS dataset provides a clear picture of performance. At 1920x1080, the results are: Low at 157.4 FPS, Medium at 117.6 FPS, High at 90.2 FPS, and Ultra at 70.0 FPS. This shows a 55.4% drop from Low to Ultra, indicating a significant cost for the highest settings. At 2560x1440, the numbers are: Low at 102.6 FPS, Medium at 78.0 FPS, High at 58.8 FPS, and Ultra at 42.2 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 58.9% reduction, which is even steeper, highlighting the increased pixel pressure. Finally, at 3840x2160: Low at 55.5 FPS, Medium at 40.6 FPS, High at 29.2 FPS, and Ultra at 23.7 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra here is 57.3%, and notably, the High preset at 4K is below 30 FPS, making it nearly unplayable for a smooth experience. The data reveals that the step from Medium to High at 4K is particularly punishing, with a 28.1% FPS loss, while the step from Low to Medium is a 26.8% loss. This suggests that the High preset introduces effects that disproportionately tax the GPU at 4K, likely related to shadow quality or ambient occlusion.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the database of tested combos for Hitman 2, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER ranks 1111 out of 1795 total combinations. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested systems, which is surprising given the individual component scores. The CPU’s 84th percentile and GPU’s 65th percentile suggest a capable system, yet the in-game rank of 1111 indicates that many other combinations, likely with more powerful GPUs, outperform it significantly. The rank implies that in a game like Hitman 2, the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions drag the overall experience down, even though the CPU is strong. The 584 combos ranked below this pairing likely feature weaker GPUs, but the 1110 above it probably include higher-tier graphics cards like the RTX 2080 SUPER or better, which can handle 4K Ultra more effectively. This ranking underscores that while the Ryzen 7 5800X is a future-proof processor for many titles, the RTX 2070 SUPER is the weak link for 4K gaming in Hitman 2, capping the potential of the system. The data suggests that for this specific game, the combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can deliver high frame rates, but it falls behind at 4K, which is reflected in its mid-pack ranking.