Hitman 2

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the Intel Arc B370 produces a playable but heavily constrained experience in Hitman 2. The data shows that this combination is fundamentally limited by the graphics processor, with performance collapsing at higher resolutions and settings. Across the twelve measured configurations, the combo never achieves a 60 FPS average, and only becomes fluid at 1080p on Low settings. The numbers indicate a system best suited for 1080p gaming at modest presets, with any attempt to push visual fidelity or resolution resulting in severe frame rate penalties.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling behavior is stark and revealing. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 73 FPS, which is the only measured configuration that clears the 60 FPS threshold. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same Low preset drops the average to 46 FPS, a 37% reduction. At 3840x2160 Low, the average falls further to 25 FPS, representing a 66% loss from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern indicates that the Arc B370's rendering throughput is the dominant constraint, as the frame rate drops nearly linearly with the pixel count increase.

The Medium preset tells a similar story. At 1080p Medium, the average is 54 FPS with a minimum of 46 FPS and a maximum of 63 FPS. Stepping up to 1440p Medium yields 35 FPS (35% lower), while 4K Medium produces just 19 FPS (65% lower than 1080p). The High preset follows the same trajectory: 41 FPS at 1080p, 26 FPS at 1440p, and 14 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 30 FPS at 1080p, 19 FPS at 1440p, and a nearly unplayable 10 FPS at 4K.

The data suggests that the limiting component is overwhelmingly the GPU. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see smaller frame rate gaps between resolutions, particularly at lower settings where the GPU has less work to do. Instead, the consistent 60-70% performance drop from 1080p to 4K across all presets points to a graphics processor that simply cannot feed enough pixels. The Intel Core i3-12100F, with its 4 cores and 8 threads, is not the primary constraint here; the Arc B370's 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 48.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are the hard limits.

Interestingly, the gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 73 FPS versus 30 FPS, a 59% penalty for maxing out settings. At 1440p, that same gap is 46 FPS versus 19 FPS (59% penalty), and at 4K it is 25 FPS versus 10 FPS (60% penalty). The consistency of this penalty across resolutions confirms that the GPU is saturated at every quality level, with no resolution at which the CPU begins to take over as the limiting factor.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal settings for this combo depend entirely on the target display resolution. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers the only truly smooth experience, with an average of 73 FPS. However, the Medium preset at 54 FPS is still within the range of acceptable playability for a stealth title like Hitman 2, and the data shows a minimum of 46 FPS, meaning occasional dips below 50 FPS but no catastrophic stuttering. The Medium preset provides a 26% frame rate reduction from Low but presumably offers substantially better visual quality, making it the best balance for most players at 1080p.

The High preset at 1080p drops to 41 FPS, which is noticeably less fluid and begins to compromise the responsiveness required for stealth gameplay. The Ultra preset at 30 FPS is borderline unplayable for a game that rewards precise timing and observation. For players who prioritize smoothness above all else, Low at 1080p is the clear choice; for those who want a compromise between visuals and performance, Medium is the sweet spot.

At 2560x1440, the situation becomes more difficult. The Low preset averages 46 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a stealth game where quick reactions matter. Medium drops to 35 FPS, and High falls to 26 FPS. The data shows that 1440p gaming with this combo requires accepting either Low settings for a semi-fluid experience or Medium for a more visually rich but less responsive one. The 1440p Medium minimum of 30 FPS and maximum of 40 FPS indicates significant frame time variance, which can feel inconsistent during gameplay.

At 3840x2160, none of the presets are recommended for actual play. The best result is Low at 25 FPS, which is below the threshold for acceptable smoothness in an action-oriented stealth game. The Ultra preset at 10 FPS is effectively a slideshow. The data strongly suggests that 4K is out of reach for this hardware combination in Hitman 2, regardless of settings.

The measured rows indicate that the Medium preset at 1080p offers the best overall experience, balancing the 54 FPS average with presumably moderate visual enhancements over Low. The minimum of 46 FPS ensures that the game rarely stutters, and the maximum of 63 FPS shows there is headroom in less demanding scenes. For players with 1440p displays, Low at 46 FPS is the only reasonable choice, though they should be prepared for occasional dips below 40 FPS.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is a low-power integrated graphics solution, and the benchmark data reflects its modest capabilities. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, 0.2% faster), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, 0.5% faster), and AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, 0.7% faster). These are all legacy parts from over a decade ago, underscoring that the Arc B370 is positioned at the very entry level of graphics performance.

The GPU's memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning it relies on the host system's RAM rather than dedicated VRAM. This has direct implications for Hitman 2, a game that can be memory-hungry at higher resolutions and texture settings. The shared memory architecture, combined with a system-dependent bandwidth, means that texture streaming and frame buffer operations compete with the CPU for memory access. This likely contributes to the severe frame rate drops at 4K, where the memory bandwidth requirements overwhelm the shared pool.

The clocks are modest: a base of 300 MHz and a boost of 2400 MHz. The boost clock is respectable for an integrated part, but the 1280 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 20 ROPs are simply too few to handle Hitman 2's rendering load at high resolutions. The 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 96.00 GTexel/s texture rate are the raw throughput numbers, and the measured FPS shows that these specifications translate to roughly 73 FPS at 1080p Low and 10 FPS at 4K Ultra.

The GPU's 25 W TDP and IGP slot width indicate that this is a power-efficient part designed for portable devices, not desktop gaming. The DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) support is a positive, and the Vulkan 1.4 and OpenGL 4.6 APIs are modern, but API support cannot compensate for the fundamental lack of rendering horsepower. The data shows that the Arc B370 is the primary bottleneck in this combo, and no amount of CPU headroom can overcome its pixel throughput limitations.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware in Hitman 2?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings produces the only 60+ FPS result, averaging 73 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p offers a more balanced experience at 54 FPS average, with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 63 FPS.

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

A: No. The best 4K result is 25 FPS on Low settings, which drops to 10 FPS on Ultra. The 4K Medium preset averages 19 FPS with a minimum of 16 FPS, indicating that 4K is not viable for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 0.2% slower than the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), 0.5% slower than the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), and 0.7% slower than the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192). It sits in the 5th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this pairing?

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck. The frame rate drops by roughly 60-70% from 1080p to 4K across all settings, indicating that pixel throughput, not CPU processing, is the limiting factor. The i3-12100F's 4 cores and 8 threads are sufficient to feed the Arc B370 in this game.

Q: What is the frame rate consistency like on Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the measured average is 54 FPS with a minimum of 46 FPS and maximum of 63 FPS, showing a 17 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the average is 35 FPS with a minimum of 30 and maximum of 40, a 10 FPS spread. At 4K Medium, the average is 19 FPS with a minimum of 16 and maximum of 21.

Q: How does the i3-12100F's benchmark performance compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13494, placing it in the 68th percentile of all CPUs. It is essentially tied with the Intel Core 3 N355 (13492, 0% delta) and Intel Core i5-9500 (13452, 0.3% slower), while being 0.7% slower than the Intel Core 5 120UL (13594) and 1.1% faster than the Intel Core i7-1250U (13351).

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of Intel Core i3-12100F and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2768 out of 3001 tested combos in Hitman 2, placing it in the bottom 8% of all hardware pairings. The rank reflects the severe GPU limitation, as the combo's measured performance is dominated by the Arc B370's 5th percentile standing among GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, is a mid-range part at the 68th percentile, but its relative strength cannot compensate for the weak graphics solution.

The rank of 2768 out of 3001 means that roughly 233 combos are slower, while 2767 are faster. This places the combo in the company of legacy integrated graphics solutions and low-end laptops, which aligns with the GPU's nearest rivals being ATI parts from the early 2010s. The data suggests that this pairing is only suitable for 1080p gaming at low to medium settings, and even then, it cannot maintain 60 FPS on anything above the Low preset.

The combination's ranking is not surprising given the GPU's 3DMark score of 1184, which is comparable to a discrete GPU from 2009. The i3-12100F's strong single-threaded performance, evidenced by its 3DMark single-thread score of 893 and Geekbench single-core score of 1932, is wasted in this pairing because the GPU cannot render frames fast enough to utilize the CPU's processing capacity. The combo rank of 2768 reflects a fundamental imbalance where the graphics processor severely limits the overall experience.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, built on a 10 nm process. Its base clock is 3.30 GHz with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, and it has 12 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU demonstrates respectable performance: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 11860 and a single-core score of 1674, along with a Geekbench multicore score of 7252 and single-core score of 1932. These numbers place it in the 68th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13494.

In the context of Hitman 2, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K shows that the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the performance drops consistently with resolution regardless of settings. However, the CPU's 4 cores and 8 threads are sufficient for Hitman 2's workload, which is a stealth game that does not require excessive multi-threading. The CPU's PassMark multithread score of 14015 and single-thread score of 3444 indicate it can handle the game's AI and physics calculations without becoming a limiting factor.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core 3 N355 (13492, 0% delta) and Intel Core i5-9500 (13452, 0.3% slower), both of which have similar average benchmark scores. The i3-12100F is 0.7% slower than the Intel Core 5 120UL (13594) and 1.1% faster than the Intel Core i7-1250U (13351). The fact that the CPU ranks at the 68th percentile while the GPU ranks at the 5th percentile highlights the stark imbalance in this pairing.

The CPU's 58 W TDP and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory, with dual-channel memory bus, mean it is a capable modern processor. However, in this combo, its capabilities are largely untapped. The measured FPS at 1080p Low (73 FPS) is the only configuration that approaches the CPU's potential, and even that is likely GPU-limited rather than CPU-limited. The data shows that upgrading the GPU would yield significant performance gains in Hitman 2, while the CPU would remain adequate for the game's demands.