Hitman 2

Resolution Scaling

The measured frames per second for this Hitman 2 configuration show a classic scaling curve as resolution climbs, but the shape of that curve reveals which component is doing the heavy lifting. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo delivers 134 FPS average. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset drops that to 86 FPS, a 35.8% reduction in frame rate. Pushing further to 3840x2160 at High yields just 46 FPS, which is 65.7% below the 1080p result. The progression from 1080p to 1440p to 4K is steep, and the gap between each step widens considerably at the top end.

Looking at the Low preset tells a similar story about the system's headroom. At 1080p Low, the average reaches 236 FPS, which is an extremely high ceiling for this game. Dropping to 1440p Low still holds 151 FPS, and even 4K Low manages 81 FPS. The scaling from 1080p Low to 4K Low is a 65.7% loss, identical in percentage terms to the High preset drop. This consistency across presets indicates that the resolution scaling penalty is largely independent of the quality settings, pointing to a rendering pipeline where pixel count dominates the cost.

The Medium preset provides the only complete min/max data in the measured set. At 1080p Medium, the average is 177 FPS with a minimum of 151 and maximum of 204. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 113 FPS with min/max of 96/130. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 60 FPS with min/max of 51/69. The minimum framerate at 4K Medium of 51 FPS is notably close to the average of 60, suggesting that the frame pacing remains stable even when the GPU is heavily loaded. The delta between 1080p and 1440p Medium is 36.2%, nearly identical to the High preset's 35.8% drop between those resolutions.

Ultra settings show the most dramatic scaling. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 99 FPS. At 1440p Ultra, it falls to 63 FPS, a 36.4% reduction. At 4K Ultra, the average plummets to 34 FPS, which is 65.7% below the 1080p Ultra result. The fact that all four presets lose almost exactly 65.7% of their 1080p performance when moving to 4K strongly suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU has ample headroom to feed frames at 1080p.

The data indicates that 1440p is the practical ceiling for smooth gameplay at High settings, as the 86 FPS average there is still fluid, while 4K High at 46 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold that most users consider the baseline for a good experience. The 4K Ultra result of 34 FPS is the weakest measured performance, showing that this combination cannot handle maxed settings at native 4K without compromises.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 brings 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's base clock runs at 1920 MHz with a boost clock of 2475 MHz. In Hitman 2, the memory configuration proves adequate across all tested resolutions, as the frame rate scaling follows a consistent pattern that aligns with compute throughput rather than memory capacity limits. The 12 GB frame buffer is not exhausted at 4K Ultra in this title, evidenced by the fact that the game still runs at 34 FPS rather than crashing or stuttering from memory pressure.

The RTX 4070's architectural features include 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units. The GPU also carries 46 ray tracing cores and 184 tensor cores, though Hitman 2's benchmark results do not specifically isolate ray tracing performance. The pixel rate of 158.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 455.4 GTexel/s provide context for how the card handles the game's rendering workload. At 4K, the pixel throughput requirement becomes substantial, and the measured 46 FPS at High settings aligns with the card's rasterization capabilities.

Comparing the RTX 4070 to its nearest rivals in the benchmark database, the average scores are tightly clustered. The NVIDIA Tesla P4 scores 37628, a 0.1% delta from the RTX 4070's 37648. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507, a 0.4% delta. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, a -1.3% delta, meaning it slightly outperforms the desktop RTX 4070 in the aggregate benchmark. The AMD Radeon PRO W6400 scores 37157, a 1.3% delta. These narrow margins indicate that the RTX 4070 sits in a competitive performance band, and its percentile ranking of 81 among all GPUs confirms it is a solidly upper-midrange part.

The GPU's memory clock of 1313 MHz with 21 Gbps effective speed, combined with the 192-bit bus width, yields the 504.2 GB/s bandwidth figure. This bandwidth is sufficient for Hitman 2's asset streaming at 4K, as the frame rates do not show signs of bandwidth starvation. The transition from High to Ultra at 4K costs 12 FPS (from 46 to 34), which is a 26.1% drop that likely reflects increased shader complexity and texture filtering demands rather than memory limitations.

The RTX 4070's 200 W TDP and dual-slot design suggest it is a power-efficient card for its performance class, though the benchmark data does not include power consumption measurements. The 16-pin power connector and suggested 550 W PSU specification are worth noting for system builders. The GPU's production status is end-of-life, which may impact availability considerations.

Settings Recommendations

The measured framerate data provides clear guidance on which preset delivers the best experience for this hardware combination. At 1920x1080, all four presets exceed 60 FPS, with Low at 236, Medium at 177, High at 134, and Ultra at 99. Even the most demanding preset at 1080p clears the 60 FPS bar comfortably, so users at this resolution can select Ultra without concern. The 99 FPS average at 1080p Ultra leaves enough headroom for dips without falling below playable thresholds.

At 2560x1440, the picture becomes more nuanced. Ultra averages 63 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS target but leaves little margin for demanding scenes. High averages 86 FPS, providing a more comfortable buffer while still offering excellent visual quality. Medium averages 113 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays. Low at 151 FPS is the choice for competitive play, though it sacrifices visual fidelity. The data suggests that High is the sweet spot at 1440p, balancing the 86 FPS average against the visual improvements over Medium.

At 3840x2160, the choices narrow significantly. Ultra averages 34 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target and likely to feel sluggish in a stealth game where precise timing matters. High averages 46 FPS, still below 60 but more playable if the user accepts the compromise. Medium averages 60 FPS exactly, which meets the baseline threshold. Low averages 81 FPS, providing smooth gameplay at the cost of visual quality. For 4K, Medium is the recommended preset, as it hits the 60 FPS average while maintaining reasonable visual fidelity. The min framerate of 51 FPS at 4K Medium shows that dips do occur, but they stay within a tolerable range.

The Ultra preset at 1080p offers a 99 FPS average, which is 26.1% below High's 134 FPS. The visual difference between High and Ultra in Hitman 2 typically involves shadow quality and ambient occlusion details, but the benchmark data cannot quantify the visual improvement. Given that 1080p Ultra still clears 60 FPS by a wide margin, users with 1080p displays should use Ultra. At 1440p, the 63 FPS Ultra result is borderline, so High at 86 FPS is the safer recommendation. At 4K, Medium at 60 FPS is the only preset that hits the baseline, making it the default choice for 4K displays.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Hitman 2 at 4K with playable framerates?

A: Yes, but only on Medium or Low presets. The 4K Medium preset averages 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 FPS, while 4K Low averages 81 FPS. The 4K High preset drops to 46 FPS, and 4K Ultra falls to 34 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS baseline.

Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming?

A: The High preset at 2560x1440 delivers 86 FPS average, which provides a solid balance of visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 63 FPS is playable but leaves little headroom, while Medium at 113 FPS is better suited for high-refresh-rate displays that need frames above 100 FPS.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K?

A: Across all four presets, the loss from 1080p to 4K is approximately 65.7%. For example, High drops from 134 FPS to 46 FPS, Low from 236 FPS to 81 FPS, Medium from 177 FPS to 60 FPS, and Ultra from 99 FPS to 34 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The consistent 65.7% performance loss from 1080p to 4K across all presets indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The CPU has enough headroom to maintain high framerates at 1080p, as evidenced by the 236 FPS result at Low settings.

Q: What framerate can I expect at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The 1080p Ultra preset averages 99 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. This makes Ultra settings viable for 1080p displays without compromising smoothness.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 4070's average benchmark score of 37648 is within 1.3% of its nearest rivals. The RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135 (1.3% higher), the Tesla P4 scores 37628 (0.1% lower), the RX Vega 56 scores 37507 (0.4% lower), and the Radeon PRO W6400 scores 37157 (1.3% lower).

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database, this combination of AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 916 out of 3711 tested combos for Hitman 2. This places the system in the top 24.7% of all tested configurations, which is a strong showing for a mid-to-high-end pairing. The rank of 916 out of 3711 means that 2795 combos perform worse in this game, while 915 perform better.

The ranking context suggests that the RTX 4070, despite being a capable GPU in its own right, is not at the very top tier for Hitman 2. The game's rendering engine appears to favor GPUs with higher raw compute throughput, and the RTX 4070's position in the upper quartile reflects its solid but not flagship-level performance. The CPU's contribution to this rank is likely positive, as the Ryzen 9 5900X's strong single-threaded performance helps maintain high framerates at lower resolutions where CPU overhead matters more.

The 3711 total combos in the database represent a wide range of hardware configurations, from budget systems to extreme enthusiast builds. Ranking in the top quarter indicates that this combo would handle Hitman 2 comfortably at most settings and resolutions, with the caveat that 4K Ultra remains challenging. The gap between this combo and the top-ranked systems likely reflects the difference between the RTX 4070 and higher-tier GPUs like the RTX 4080 or 4090, which would push the 4K Ultra framerate above the 60 FPS threshold.

For users considering this combination, the rank of 916 suggests that it is a well-balanced pairing for Hitman 2, with no obvious bottleneck that would cause one component to severely limit the other. The GPU's 81st percentile ranking among all GPUs and the CPU's 87th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicate that both components are above average, and the combo's overall rank in the top quarter of tested systems aligns with those individual percentiles.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X brings 12 cores and 24 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer, manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process. The CPU's base clock of 3.70 GHz boosts up to 4.80 GHz, and it carries 64 MB of L3 cache. In Hitman 2, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic updates, and the benchmark data indicates that it does so without becoming a bottleneck at any tested resolution.

The measured framerates show that at 1080p Low, the system reaches 236 FPS, which is an exceptionally high frame rate that would strain most CPUs. The fact that the CPU can sustain this level of output demonstrates its capability in this game. The 3DMark scores provide additional context: single-thread performance is 941, while 16-thread performance reaches 9075. The Cinebench R23 scores of 1527 single-core and 16262 multi-core further confirm the CPU's strength in both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads.

The CPU's single-thread performance is particularly relevant for Hitman 2, which is a game that typically relies on a few primary threads for simulation and AI. The 5900X's boost clock of 4.80 GHz and Zen 3 architecture's improved IPC over previous generations ensure that these primary threads receive adequate processing power. The Geekbench scores of 2083 single-core and 14118 multi-core reinforce this assessment.

At higher resolutions, the CPU's workload does not increase proportionally with pixel count, which is why the framerates drop consistently by about 65.7% from 1080p to 4K regardless of preset. This consistency indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K, while the CPU has spare capacity. The 1080p Low result of 236 FPS shows that even at maximum frame output, the CPU is not the constraint, as the GPU is still able to render frames at that rate.

The CPU's memory support of DDR4 with dual-channel configuration and 51.2 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for this game, as Hitman 2 does not exhibit extreme memory bandwidth sensitivity. The 64 MB L3 cache helps with game data locality, reducing the need to access system memory frequently. The CPU's 105 W TDP is moderate for a 12-core part, and its socket AM4 compatibility means it can be paired with a wide range of motherboards.

Comparing the Ryzen 9 5900X to its nearest rivals in the benchmark database, the average scores are very close. The Intel Core Ultra 7 366H scores 41263, a 0.3% delta from the 5900X's 41376. The Intel Core Ultra 7 356H scores 41215, a 0.4% delta. The AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 440 scores 41208, a 0.4% delta. The Intel Core i7-14650HX scores 41576, a -0.5% delta, meaning it slightly outperforms the 5900X. These tight margins show that the 5900X remains competitive with newer mobile and desktop parts despite being from an earlier generation.

In Hitman 2 specifically, the CPU's performance is more than sufficient for the game's requirements. The 87th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates that it outperforms the majority of processors in general benchmarks, and the measured game framerates confirm that it does not hold back the RTX 4070 at any resolution. Users who already own this CPU and are considering a GPU upgrade would find that the 5900X has headroom to support faster GPUs than the RTX 4070 in this game.