Hitman 2

Hitman 2 is a stealth game from 2018 that scales dramatically across resolutions, and the data for the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D shows a combo that is effectively unburdened at lower resolutions but begins to show its limitations as pixel count climbs. The measured FPS reveals a system that is extremely powerful, ranking first out of 3001 tested combos for this title, yet the performance curve indicates that the RTX 5090 D is the primary driver of frame rates at 4K, while the Ryzen 7 7700X holds the fort admirably at 1080p. This analysis breaks down the measured numbers to show exactly where this pairing excels and where it leaves performance on the table.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, pointing directly at the GPU as the limiting factor at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 207 FPS at 1920x1080 to 132 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 75 FPS, and then plummets to 71 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 65.7% drop from 1080p to 4K, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario where the RTX 5090 D's raw compute is being saturated by the increase in pixels.

Looking at the Low preset, the scaling is even more pronounced in absolute terms. The system hits 365 FPS at 1080p, drops to 234 FPS at 1440p, and then falls to 124 FPS at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K is 66.0%, nearly identical to the High preset, which suggests that even when graphics load is minimized, the pixel throughput demands of 4K still overwhelm the GPU. The fact that the percentage drop is consistent across presets indicates that resolution, not settings, is the dominant factor in performance scaling for this combo.

At Medium settings, the data includes min and max FPS figures, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 4K, the average is 93 FPS with a min of 79 and a max of 107, showing a 28 FPS spread. At 1440p, the average rises to 175 FPS with a min of 149 and max of 201, a 52 FPS spread. At 1080p, the average is 274 FPS with a min of 233 and max of 315, an 82 FPS spread. This widening gap between min and max as resolution decreases suggests that at lower resolutions, the CPU becomes more involved in frame generation, causing more variance, while at 4K, the GPU bottleneck smooths out the frame delivery.

The Ultra preset tells a similar story but with lower absolute numbers. At 1080p, the average is 153 FPS, dropping to 98 FPS at 1440p and 52 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is the only one below 60 FPS in the entire dataset, which is notable for a card with a 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs. This indicates that Hitman 2's Ultra settings are extraordinarily demanding, and even the massive 32 GB frame buffer and 1.79 TB/s memory bandwidth of the RTX 5090 D cannot maintain high refresh rates at 4K with everything maxed out.

The data shows that this combo is capable of delivering excellent performance at 1080p and 1440p across all settings, but 4K Ultra is the breaking point. The limiting component at 4K is clearly the GPU, as evidenced by the consistent FPS drops regardless of preset. At 1080p, the CPU is more likely to be the bottleneck, especially at Low settings where the 365 FPS average suggests the Ryzen 7 7700X's 8 cores and 16 threads are being pushed to their limits in game logic and draw call processing.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Hitman 2?

A: The highest recorded average is 365 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is a significant outlier compared to the next highest result, which is 274 FPS at 1080p Medium, indicating that Low settings remove most of the GPU load and expose the CPU's potential.

Q: Can this combo run Hitman 2 at 4K with a smooth 60 FPS experience?

A: Yes, but not on Ultra settings. At 4K High, the average is 71 FPS, and at 4K Medium, it is 93 FPS. However, at 4K Ultra, the average drops to 52 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, so users must dial back to High or Medium for a consistently smooth experience at that resolution.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 7700X compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 7 7700X has an average benchmark score of 35909, which places it just 0.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 and 0.5% ahead of both the Intel Core 7 250H and AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350. It is also 0.7% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H, showing that its performance is tightly clustered with these competitors.

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

A: The jump from Low to Ultra at 2560x1440 results in a drop from 234 FPS to 98 FPS, a reduction of 136 FPS or roughly 58.1% of the Low preset's performance. This shows that Ultra settings nearly halve the frame rate compared to Low, making the preset choice critical for high-refresh-rate monitors.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D significantly faster than its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77712, which is 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT but 1.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT. It also trails the NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants, being 2.1% behind the 12 GB model and 2.4% behind the 16 GB model, indicating that its synthetic benchmark position is not as dominant as its 92nd percentile ranking might suggest.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded in the entire dataset?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 79 FPS at 4K Medium settings. This is a positive indicator for frame pacing, as it shows the combo rarely dips below playable thresholds even under load, with no other min FPS data points falling below this value in the provided measurements.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D achieves a combo rank of 1 out of 3001 tested combinations in Hitman 2. This top-tier ranking is a strong statement about the pairing's overall capability, but it must be interpreted with nuance given the resolution scaling data. The rank indicates that, on average, this combination outperforms nearly all other tested hardware in this game, which is expected given the high percentile scores of both components.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 85 places it in the upper echelon of all processors, while the GPU's percentile of 92 is even higher. However, the nearest rival data for the GPU shows that the RTX 5090 D is not overwhelmingly faster than some mobile and workstation parts in synthetic tests, with deltas of just 1.1% to 2.4%. This suggests that the combo's rank of 1 is more attributable to the balanced pairing of a strong CPU and GPU rather than a singular component dominating the field.

In practical terms, the rank of 1 means that users with this specific configuration are getting the best possible performance in Hitman 2 among the 3001 combos tested. The measured FPS data supports this, as even the lowest average FPS of 52 at 4K Ultra is still playable for many users, and the highest of 365 FPS at 1080p Low is beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. The combo's performance is so high that it effectively removes hardware as a barrier to enjoying the game at any resolution below 4K Ultra.

The gap between this combo and the rest of the field is not explicitly quantified in the data, but the rank of 1, combined with the GPU's 92nd percentile and CPU's 85th percentile, suggests that it is a top-tier pairing. The nearest CPU rivals are within 0.7% of the 7700X's average score, but the GPU's rivals are similarly close, indicating that the combo's dominance is not due to a massive single-component lead but rather a synergistic match that favors Hitman 2's specific workload.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p and 1440p gaming, the Ultra preset is viable if high frame rates are the priority, with averages of 153 FPS and 98 FPS respectively. However, the data shows that dropping to High provides a significant boost: 207 FPS at 1080p and 132 FPS at 1440p, which are 35.3% and 34.7% higher than Ultra respectively. This makes High the recommended setting for most users with high-refresh-rate monitors, as the visual difference between High and Ultra is typically less impactful than the frame rate gain.

At 4K, the choice is more constrained. Ultra is not recommended due to the 52 FPS average, which can feel stuttery on standard 60 Hz displays. High is the best option for a smooth experience, delivering 71 FPS, which is comfortably above 60 FPS. Medium is an alternative for those who want extra headroom, offering 93 FPS, but the visual degradation from High to Medium may be noticeable in a stealth game where detail matters for spotting enemies.

For competitive play or maximum frame rates, Low settings are the clear winner at all resolutions. At 1080p, the 365 FPS average is more than enough for 360 Hz monitors, while 1440p at 234 FPS and 4K at 124 FPS are also excellent. The trade-off is visual fidelity, but in a game like Hitman 2 where performance can be critical for smooth aiming and movement, Low settings might be preferred by some players.

The Medium preset offers a balanced middle ground, with min FPS data showing it is the most stable option. At 1080p, the 82 FPS spread between min and max is the largest, but the 233 FPS minimum is still high. At 4K, the 28 FPS spread is the tightest, making Medium the most consistent choice at that resolution. For users who want a mix of visual quality and performance, Medium is a solid recommendation, especially at 4K where it avoids the Ultra penalty.

Given the measured data, the optimal settings are High for 1080p and 1440p, and High for 4K as well. This provides the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, with all three resolutions exceeding 70 FPS average. Users with G-Sync or FreeSync displays can also consider Ultra at 1440p, where the 98 FPS average is within the VRR range of most monitors, but High offers more headroom for demanding scenes.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance scales predictably with settings. Low delivers 365 FPS average, Medium drops to 274 FPS with a range of 233 to 315 FPS, High comes in at 207 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 153 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 212 FPS, representing a 58.1% reduction in performance when maxing out all settings. The Medium preset's min FPS of 233 is still higher than the Ultra average, showing that even the lowest dips at Medium are faster than sustained Ultra performance.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same pattern holds but with lower absolute numbers. Low averages 234 FPS, Medium averages 175 FPS with a range of 149 to 201 FPS, High averages 132 FPS, and Ultra averages 98 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 136 FPS, a 58.1% reduction that mirrors the 1080p result. The Medium preset's min FPS of 149 is notably higher than the Ultra average of 98, reinforcing that Medium is a better choice for consistent frame delivery than Ultra.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes more demanding. Low averages 124 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS with a range of 79 to 107 FPS, High averages 71 FPS, and Ultra averages 52 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 72 FPS, a 58.1% reduction that is consistent with the other resolutions. The 4K Medium min FPS of 79 is the lowest recorded in the entire dataset, but it still exceeds the Ultra average of 52, making Medium the recommended preset for 4K gaming.

Comparing across resolutions, the scaling factor from 1080p to 4K is approximately 2.94x for each preset. For Low, 365 FPS at 1080p drops to 124 FPS at 4K, which is 34.0% of the original. For Medium, 274 FPS drops to 93 FPS, also 34.0%. For High, 207 FPS drops to 71 FPS, 34.3%. For Ultra, 153 FPS drops to 52 FPS, 34.0%. This consistent scaling ratio indicates that the GPU is the bottleneck at all settings, as the frame rate reduction is proportional to the pixel count increase.

The max FPS data is only available for Medium settings, but it shows the potential headroom. At 1080p, the max of 315 FPS is close to the Low preset's average, suggesting that Medium can occasionally hit very high frame rates in less demanding scenes. At 1440p, the max of 201 FPS is still high, and at 4K, the max of 107 FPS shows that even at the most demanding resolution, the combo can burst above the average. This data points to a well-behaved system that maintains high performance without severe frame time spikes.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X is a Zen 4 architecture processor codenamed Raphael, featuring 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 4.50 GHz with a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, which is relatively high for a desktop CPU. The benchmark results show strong single-thread performance, with a 3dmark single-thread score of 1090 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1987, which is critical for a game like Hitman 2 that relies on a single main thread for game logic.

The CPU's multi-threaded performance is also robust, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 19088 and a Passmark multithread score of 35686. However, the game's reliance on single-thread performance is evident in the FPS data at low resolutions. At 1080p Low, the 365 FPS average suggests that the CPU is being pushed to its limits, as the GPU is not fully utilized at such a high frame rate. The 3dmark 2-thread score of 2112 and 4-thread score of 4074 indicate that the CPU scales well with additional threads, which helps in handling the game's background tasks.

The 32 MB of shared L3 cache is a significant asset for gaming, as it reduces memory latency and improves data access for the CPU. The memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s, while not the highest available, is sufficient to feed the 8 cores at high clock speeds. The combination of a high boost clock and ample cache allows the 7700X to maintain high IPC in lightly-threaded workloads, which is exactly what Hitman 2 needs to avoid CPU bottlenecks at 1080p.

The CPU's 85th percentile ranking against all CPUs places it in the top tier, but its nearest rivals are extremely close, with deltas of just 0.3% to 0.7%. This means that in synthetic benchmarks, the 7700X is essentially tied with several other processors, but its real-world gaming performance may differ due to factors like cache size and clock speed. The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor at 4K, where the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, but at 1080p, it is the component that determines whether the system can hit 365 FPS or falls short.

The CPU's 105 W TDP and 5 nm process node contribute to its efficiency, allowing it to sustain high clocks without excessive power draw. The 4.50 GHz base clock is higher than many competing CPUs, which helps in games that are sensitive to clock speed. In Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to keep up with the GPU's output at lower resolutions, and the data shows that it does so admirably, with no signs of severe bottlenecking until the GPU is fully saturated at 4K.