Hitman 2

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 combination in Hitman 2 is a study in contrasts: a modern, high-end CPU paired with an aging mid-range GPU. The measured data shows this pairing lands at rank 1511 out of 1795 tested combos, placing it in the lower 16th percentile of system configurations. This is a GPU-bound scenario where the GTX 1070's Pascal architecture, with its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, becomes the definitive bottleneck, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. While the Ryzen 7 7700 provides ample headroom, the frame rates are dictated almost entirely by the graphics card's limits.

FAQ

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

A: The data shows 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the system consistently exceeds 60 FPS. At this resolution, the average frame rates range from 51.9 FPS on Ultra to 117.1 FPS on Low, making it the only viable option for smooth, high-refresh-rate gameplay.

Q: How does the GTX 1070's memory capacity affect performance?

A: The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. The benchmark results indicate this is sufficient for the game's demands, as performance drops are more closely tied to resolution and settings rather than a memory capacity bottleneck, with the most significant FPS gains coming from lowering settings rather than resolution.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 7700 holding back the GTX 1070 in this game?

A: No. The Ryzen 7 7700, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is a high-end processor that ranks in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. The benchmark results indicate that the frame rate limitations are almost entirely due to the GPU, as the CPU's performance headroom is far beyond what is needed for this game.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: The difference is substantial. At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 74.3 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages only 33.7 FPS. This represents a 40.6 FPS drop, or about a 55% reduction in frame rate, showing that the Ultra preset is too demanding for this GPU at this resolution.

Q: How does this combo's rank compare to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 1511 out of 1795 tested combinations. This places it in the lower portion of the rankings, indicating that while it can play the game, it is outperformed by the majority of other tested hardware pairings in the database.

Q: Does the game's release date from 2018-11-12 have any bearing on performance?

A: The game is a few years old, but the data shows it remains demanding. The GTX 1070, released in 2016, struggles to maintain high frame rates at higher settings, indicating the game's engine is still graphically intensive for this older GPU generation.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is the primary performance limiter in this configuration. Its architecture, Pascal, is built on a 16 nm process and features 1920 shading units. The card operates at a base clock of 1506 MHz and a boost clock of 1683 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory running at an effective speed of 8 Gbps. This memory configuration, with a 256-bit bus, provides a bandwidth of 256.3 GB/s. The GPU's compute power is rated at 6.463 TFLOPS for FP32 operations.

The data shows a clear correlation between the GPU's workload and frame rates. At 1080p, the GTX 1070 can deliver high frame rates, with the Low preset hitting 117.1 FPS. However, as the resolution increases to 1440p and then 4K, the average FPS drops dramatically. At 4K with Ultra settings, the system manages only 17.8 FPS, a figure that is unplayable. This is a classic sign of a GPU that is overwhelmed by the pixel count and shader complexity. The GTX 1070's performance percentile of 51 places it in the middle of all GPUs, but its age is evident in its struggle with this game's higher graphical demands.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal experience is found at 1920x1080 with the High preset, which yields an average of 66.6 FPS. This provides a smooth, playable frame rate while maintaining a good level of visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 1080p offers a higher average of 89.3 FPS, which is preferable for competitive play, but High offers a better balance of visuals and performance. The Ultra preset at 1080p, with an average of 51.9 FPS, is playable but dips below the 60 FPS threshold, making it less desirable for consistent smoothness.

At 2560x1440, the data suggests the Low preset is the only viable option for a high-refresh-rate experience, with an average of 74.3 FPS. The High preset at 1440p drops to 44.3 FPS, which is acceptable for slower-paced stealth gameplay but not ideal. The 4K resolution is not recommended, as even the Low preset only achieves an average of 42.8 FPS, and the High preset falls to 24.7 FPS. For the best balance of image quality and fluidity, the 1080p High preset is the clear winner.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing of the Ryzen 7 7700 and GTX 1070 ranks 1511 out of 1795 combos. This places it in the bottom 16% of all systems tested for Hitman 2. This low ranking is a direct result of the GPU's limitations, as the CPU is a top-tier component. The data indicates that this is not a balanced pairing for this game. The GPU is the clear bottleneck, preventing the system from achieving frame rates comparable to those of combos with more modern graphics cards.

The CPU itself is a strong performer, with a percentile rank of 91 among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score is 40468, placing it just ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940H by 0.1% and slightly behind the Intel Core i9-13905H by 0.6%. This shows the 7700 is a powerful processor that is not the limiting factor. The GPU, however, has a percentile rank of only 51, and its average benchmark score of 12331 is narrowly ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro K4200 by 0.7% and behind the GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER by 1.4%. This confirms the GPU is the weak link in the chain.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 is a modern 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Raphael. It features a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, built on a 5 nm process by TSMC. The CPU has a large 32 MB shared L3 cache, which is crucial for gaming performance. Its memory bandwidth is rated at 83.2 GB/s, and it supports PCIe Gen 5. The CPU's benchmark scores are impressive, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29302 and a single-core score of 4136.

For Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and handle game logic. The data shows that the Ryzen 7 7700 is more than capable of handling this task. The frame rates at lower resolutions and settings, such as 1080p Low with 117.1 FPS, are likely limited by the GPU, not the CPU. The CPU's high single-thread performance, as indicated by its Passmark single-thread score of 4063, ensures that the game's main thread is not a bottleneck. The 8 cores and 16 threads provide ample multi-threading capabilities for any background tasks or game engine processes.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's performance across different settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 117.1 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 89.3 FPS. The High preset averages 66.6 FPS. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with an average of 51.9 FPS. This shows a steady performance degradation as settings increase, with a total drop of 65.2 FPS from Low to Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are significantly lower. The Low preset averages 74.3 FPS. The Medium preset averages 55.2 FPS. The High preset averages 44.3 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 33.7 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 40.6 FPS. At 3840x2160, the system struggles. The Low preset averages 42.8 FPS. The Medium preset averages 27.8 FPS. The High preset averages 24.7 FPS. The Ultra preset averages just 17.8 FPS. The performance drop from Low to Ultra at 4K is 25.0 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The data reveals a significant impact from resolution scaling. Moving from 1080p to 1440p results in a noticeable FPS drop across all settings. For example, at High settings, the frame rate falls from 66.6 FPS at 1080p to 44.3 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 22.3 FPS (33.5%). When moving from 1440p to 4K at High settings, the frame rate falls further to 24.7 FPS, another reduction of 19.6 FPS (44.2%). This indicates that the GPU is the limiting component.

The trend is consistent across all settings. At Low settings, the frame rate drops from 117.1 FPS at 1080p to 74.3 FPS at 1440p, and then to 42.8 FPS at 4K. This shows that the GTX 1070's rendering capabilities are quickly saturated as pixel count increases. The percentage drops are steep, confirming that the GPU is the primary bottleneck. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the FPS would not drop so dramatically with resolution. The data clearly shows that the GTX 1070 is unable to maintain playable frame rates at 4K, and even at 1440p, only the Low preset provides a consistently high frame rate.