Hitman 2

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Hitman 2 with the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and Intel Arc B580 reveals a clear pattern of scaling across the three tested resolutions. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 139.9 FPS, which drops to 90.5 FPS at 1440p and further to 47.5 FPS at 4K. This represents a 35% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K at the Low preset.

The scaling behavior changes noticeably with higher settings. At Ultra settings, the 1080p result is 56 FPS, dropping to 38.3 FPS at 1440p (a 32% reduction) and 22.9 FPS at 4K (a 59% reduction from 1080p). The relative consistency of these percentage drops across settings suggests that the GPU is the dominant limiting factor in this configuration. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see a much smaller FPS difference between 1440p and 4K, as the GPU would struggle to keep up at higher resolutions while the CPU remains underutilized.

The data indicates that the Intel Arc B580's rendering throughput becomes increasingly strained as pixel count rises. From 1080p to 1440p, the FPS loss is roughly proportional across all settings, but the gap between Low and Medium settings widens at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Medium is 33.6 FPS; at 1440p it is 25.9 FPS; at 4K it is 8.4 FPS. This narrowing gap at 4K suggests that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources are saturated, making the settings level less impactful when the resolution itself is already overwhelming the hardware.

The Ryzen 9 7900X, with its 12 cores and 24 threads, provides ample headroom for this game's engine. Hitman 2 is not particularly thread-hungry, and the CPU's strong single-thread performance, evidenced by a Geekbench single-core score of 2952, ensures that it is not the limiting component at any resolution. The benchmark results point to the GPU as the primary constraint, particularly at 4K where even Low settings only achieve 47.5 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

Examining the measured rows, the most balanced experience appears to be at 1440p with High settings, delivering 50.9 FPS. This preset offers a substantial visual upgrade over Low while maintaining playable frame rates. At 1080p, High settings produce 80.2 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay, and Ultra at 1080p drops to 56 FPS — still playable but with diminishing returns for the visual fidelity gained.

The 4K results are uniformly disappointing. Even Low settings at 4K only reach 47.5 FPS, and Ultra falls to 22.9 FPS, which is below playable standards for most users. The data suggests that 4K is not a viable resolution for this combo in Hitman 2, regardless of the settings preset selected.

For users prioritizing frame rate, the 1080p Low preset at 139.9 FPS provides the smoothest experience, though it sacrifices visual quality. The Medium preset at 1080p offers a reasonable middle ground at 106.3 FPS, which remains well above the 60 FPS threshold. At 1440p, the Medium preset at 64.6 FPS is the best option for those who want higher resolution without dropping below 60 FPS, while High at 1440p (50.9 FPS) is acceptable for users who prefer visual fidelity over raw frame rate.

The Ultra preset is difficult to recommend at any resolution. At 1080p it costs 24.2 FPS compared to High, and at 1440p it costs 12.6 FPS. The visual gains from Ultra are typically marginal in this game, and the measured data indicates that High settings provide a better experience per the frame rate trade-off.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of 60 FPS at 1440p in Hitman 2?

A: Yes, but only with the Medium preset, which achieves 64.6 FPS. The High preset at 1440p falls short at 50.9 FPS, so users targeting 60 FPS should select Medium.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gaming with this hardware?

A: The Medium preset at 106.3 FPS offers the best balance, as it remains well above 60 FPS while providing better visuals than Low. The High preset at 80.2 FPS is also viable if visual quality is prioritized.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Hitman 2?

A: The data shows 4K results are suboptimal. Even the Low preset only reaches 47.5 FPS, and Ultra drops to 22.9 FPS. The 4K resolution is not recommended for this game with this hardware.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 1440p?

A: The loss varies by settings: Low drops from 139.9 to 90.5 FPS, Medium from 106.3 to 64.6 FPS, High from 80.2 to 50.9 FPS, and Ultra from 56 to 38.3 FPS. The percentage loss is roughly 35% across all presets.

Q: What is the highest FPS measured for this combo?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 139.9 at 1080p with Low settings. The lowest is 22.9 at 4K with Ultra settings.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in this game?

A: The scaling pattern indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The Ryzen 9 7900X's strong multi-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 multicore score of 43695) and high single-thread scores mean it is unlikely to bottleneck at any resolution tested.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 9 7900X paired with the Intel Arc B580 ranks 1387 out of 1795 tested combos in Hitman 2, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database. This ranking reflects the GPU's modest standing relative to other graphics cards — the Arc B580 sits at the 66th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021. The GPU's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, is only 0.7% faster in average benchmark score, which suggests that the B580 is a competent mid-range option.

The CPU, by contrast, is a high-end part. The Ryzen 9 7900X sits at the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 50556. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235, is essentially tied at a 0.1% delta. This combination of a top-tier CPU with a mid-tier GPU means the overall combo ranking is dragged down by the graphics component.

In the context of the database, this combo's rank of 1387 out of 1795 indicates that there are 408 combos that perform worse in this specific game. The ranking is game-specific, so this placement reflects Hitman 2's particular demands on GPU throughput rather than general system capability. The CPU's performance headroom does not translate into better frame rates because the game is GPU-bound at the tested resolutions.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is the decisive component in this system's Hitman 2 performance. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming but becomes strained at 4K. The memory clock runs at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective), and the GPU's base and boost clocks are both fixed at 2670 MHz, indicating a locked frequency profile.

The B580's 2560 shading units and 80 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s. These specifications align with the measured results: the GPU can handle 1080p at high settings (80.2 FPS) but falls off sharply at 4K. The FP32 throughput of 13.67 TFLOPS is modest by current standards, and the data suggests that this limits the game's performance at higher resolutions.

The GPU's 20 ray tracing cores and support for DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) are present in the architecture, but Hitman 2 does not heavily utilize these features based on the measured FPS data. The B580's average benchmark score of 23021 places it just above the AMD Radeon 760M (0.1% delta) and just below the RTX 4060 (0.7% delta), confirming its position as a solid 1080p/1440p card that is not designed for 4K gaming.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings ladder produces a wide spread of results. Low settings yield 139.9 FPS, Medium drops to 106.3 FPS, High further reduces to 80.2 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 56 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 83.9 FPS, showing that this GPU has significant headroom at 1080p when settings are reduced.

At 2560x1440, the results are more compressed. Low achieves 90.5 FPS, Medium 64.6 FPS, High 50.9 FPS, and Ultra 38.3 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra is 52.2 FPS, narrower than at 1080p due to the increased pixel count taxing the GPU more evenly across presets.

At 3840x2160, performance is limited across the board. Low produces 47.5 FPS, Medium 39.1 FPS, High 27.7 FPS, and Ultra 22.9 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is only 24.6 FPS, indicating that the GPU's resources are nearly exhausted at this resolution, and settings changes have a diminished impact. The 4K data shows that this combo cannot sustain 60 FPS at any preset, making 4K impractical for Hitman 2 gameplay.