Hitman 2

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 lands at rank 91 out of 1795 tested combos in Hitman 2. That places this pairing in the top 5% of all configurations measured, a strong result for a system built around a quad-core processor. The data shows that despite the CPU's modest core count, the combination achieves a ranking that outperforms the vast majority of tested hardware pairings in this specific title.

The CPU itself sits at the 72nd percentile among all processors in the database, which contextualizes its role. Its average benchmark score of 13516 places it in close competition with the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX (13534, a 0.1% difference) and the Intel Core i7-1250U (13462, a 0.4% gap). The i3-12100F edges ahead of the Intel Core i3-10105 by 0.6% and leads the Intel Core i7-7700K by 1.8% in average score. For a 4-core, 8-thread part, this level of performance consistency against higher-tier chips is notable.

The GPU side of the equation is where this combo gains its rank. The RTX 5080 sits at the 89th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 59188. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Arc A570M (58239, a 1.6% deficit) and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (57661, a 2.6% gap), while it trails the Intel Arc Pro A60 by 1.9%. The disparity between the CPU's 72nd percentile and the GPU's 89th percentile suggests the processor is the limiting factor in this pairing, a conclusion reinforced by the measured frame rates across resolutions.

GPU Role

The RTX 5080 brings substantial memory resources to Hitman 2, with 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus. Memory bandwidth is listed at 960.0 GB/s, which provides ample headroom for the game's asset streaming at high resolutions. The GPU's clock behavior shows a base clock of 2295 MHz and a boost clock of 2617 MHz, with memory clocked at 1875 MHz (30 Gbps effective). These specifications translate into a pixel rate of 293.1 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 879.3 GTexel/s.

In Hitman 2 specifically, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced at higher settings. The measured frame rates show that the RTX 5080 can push the game well past 200 FPS at 1080p on Low settings, reaching 302.8 FPS. At 4K Ultra, however, the frame rate drops to 44.3 FPS, indicating that the GPU is being stressed by the combination of high resolution and maximum graphical fidelity. The GPU's 10752 shading units and 112 ROPs are clearly sufficient to drive high frame rates, but the Ultra preset at 4K demands more than the card can deliver consistently.

The GPU's architecture, Blackwell 2.0, built on a 5 nm process with 45,600 million transistors, contributes to its efficiency. The 336 tensor cores and 84 RT cores provide additional processing capability that Hitman 2 may not fully utilize, given the game's 2018 release date. The data suggests the GPU is capable of far more than the CPU can feed it at lower resolutions, as evidenced by the massive frame rate differences between 1080p and 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 302.8 FPS, which drops to 206 FPS at 1440p and further to 109.3 FPS at 4K. This represents a 32% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 64% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The frame rate drops are consistent across all settings presets, suggesting a uniform scaling behavior.

This scaling pattern indicates that the CPU is the limiting factor at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the i3-12100F's 4 cores and 8 threads are being pushed to their limits, as evidenced by the 3DMark scores: 4026 in 8-thread testing versus 4023 in max-thread testing, showing minimal scaling beyond 8 threads. The single-thread score of 893 in 3DMark and 1681 in Cinebench R23 single-core indicate decent per-core performance, but the quad-core design caps overall throughput.

At 4K, the scaling shifts toward the GPU becoming more relevant. The 4K High setting produces 61.6 FPS, while 4K Ultra produces 44.3 FPS, a difference of 28%. This narrowing gap between settings at higher resolutions confirms that the GPU is being tasked more heavily, though the CPU still provides enough performance to keep frame rates above 44 FPS even at maximum settings. The 4K Low result of 109.3 FPS shows that when the GPU load is reduced, the CPU can still drive respectable frame rates, but the ceiling is clearly lower than at 1080p.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on the optimal settings preset for this combination. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 182.7 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay. The Ultra preset at 1080p produces 134.6 FPS, a 26% reduction from High, but still well above playable thresholds. The Medium preset at 1080p yields 240.4 FPS, and Low reaches 302.8 FPS, though these lower presets sacrifice visual fidelity for frame rates that exceed what most displays can show.

At 1440p, the High preset produces 119.4 FPS, which is the sweet spot for this resolution. The Medium preset reaches 152.3 FPS, while Ultra drops to 88.3 FPS. The 4K results show that High is the highest playable setting, with 61.6 FPS, while Ultra falls to 44.3 FPS, which may be acceptable for some players but is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider ideal. Low at 4K produces 109.3 FPS, but this setting sacrifices significant visual quality.

The data supports selecting High settings as the best balance across all resolutions. At 1080p, High delivers 182.7 FPS, at 1440p it provides 119.4 FPS, and at 4K it maintains 61.6 FPS. This consistency across resolutions makes High the recommended preset for this combo. The Ultra preset is only viable at 1080p, where it produces 134.6 FPS, but the visual improvements over High may not justify the 26% performance cost.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its highest frame rates. The Low preset reaches 302.8 FPS, while Medium delivers 240.4 FPS. The High preset produces 182.7 FPS, and Ultra drops to 134.6 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary bottleneck, as the RTX 5080 is capable of far higher frame rates than the i3-12100F can feed it.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show the expected reduction. Low produces 206 FPS, Medium delivers 152.3 FPS, and High reaches 119.4 FPS. Ultra drops to 88.3 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a consistent reduction of approximately 32% across all settings, confirming that the CPU still plays a significant role at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the more dominant factor. Low produces 109.3 FPS, Medium delivers 81 FPS, and High reaches 61.6 FPS. Ultra drops to 44.3 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K shows a more pronounced reduction at higher settings: High drops by 48% from 1440p to 4K, while Low drops by 47%. This consistent scaling suggests that both components are being stressed at 4K, with the GPU handling the increased pixel count and the CPU maintaining enough throughput to keep frame rates above 44 FPS even at maximum settings.

The frame rate distribution across all 12 measured configurations shows a clear hierarchy: 1080p Low is the fastest at 302.8 FPS, and 4K Ultra is the slowest at 44.3 FPS. The gap between these extremes is 258.5 FPS, representing a 7x difference in performance. The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can maintain high frame rates across all settings, with 4K High being the only 4K preset that consistently exceeds 60 FPS.