Hitman 2

The combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 presents a significant generational and performance-class divide within the Hitman 2 benchmark data. The CPU, a 6-core/12-thread Comet Lake part from the 10th generation, represents a mid-range processor from 2020, while the GPU is an Ada Lovelace flagship from 2022, designed for extreme 4K performance. The measured FPS data reflects this pairing, revealing how the older CPU can become a bottleneck at lower resolutions while the GPU dominates at higher ones. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, the roles of each component, and how this specific pairing ranks among thousands of other tested configurations.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a desktop processor based on the Comet Lake architecture, built on a 14 nm process. It features 6 physical cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. The CPU has a 12 MB shared L3 cache and a dual-channel DDR4 memory interface with a bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s. In synthetic benchmarks, its performance is characterized by a single-thread score of 688 in 3dmark and a multi-thread score of 4748 in the 16-thread test. Its average benchmark score of 14168 places it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs tested, indicating it is a solid, if not top-tier, performer.

Looking at its nearest rivals, the i5-10400F's performance is tightly clustered. It sits 0.4% above the AMD EPYC 7552 in average score, while being 0.8% behind the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C and 1.1% behind the Intel Core i5-8500. This data suggests that in CPU-bound scenarios, its performance is comparable to a broad range of other processors, and it is not a clear outlier in either direction.

In the context of Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to handle game logic, AI, and physics. The data shows a clear pattern where the FPS at 1080p is substantially lower than at 4K. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 141.6. When moving to 2560x1440 Ultra, the FPS drops to 92.5, and at 3840x2160 Ultra, it falls to 48.2. The relatively small difference in FPS between 1080p and 1440p (a 49.1 FPS drop) compared to the larger drop from 1440p to 4K (a 44.3 FPS drop) suggests that the CPU is not the primary limiter at the highest resolution. However, the fact that the 1080p Ultra score of 141.6 is far below the 1080p Low score of 222.3 indicates the settings themselves, and the resulting GPU load, are the main variables. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient to feed the RTX 4090 at 4K, but at lower resolutions, the GPU's immense power is less constrained, and the CPU's limits become more apparent in the scaling of frame rates.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a flagship graphics card built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, using a 5 nm process at TSMC. It is equipped with 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a massive 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. The card's base clock is 2235 MHz, with a boost clock of 2520 MHz. Its compute capabilities are substantial, with 16384 shading units and a FP32 performance of 82.58 TFLOPS. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 38194 in PassMark's G3D test and 9223 in the 3dmark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Its average benchmark score of 66473 places it in the 91st percentile of all GPUs.

The RTX 4090's nearest rivals in the database are close in average score, including the NVIDIA Tesla T4 (-0.4%), NVIDIA Tesla P40 (+0.5%), and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 (-0.9%). This clustering is interesting, but the RTX 4090's gaming-specific architecture and driver optimizations are reflected in the measured Hitman 2 FPS. The GPU's role is clear in the data: it is the primary driver of performance at 4K. The measured FPS at 3840x2160 High is 66.5, which is 56% higher than the 48.2 FPS at Ultra. This shows the GPU is heavily taxed by the highest settings.

The data shows the RTX 4090 is capable of delivering playable frame rates at 4K, but even this flagship must make compromises. The difference between Low (117 FPS) and Ultra (48.2 FPS) at 4K is a 68.8 FPS gap, demonstrating the massive performance cost of the Ultra settings. The GPU's 24 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, as Hitman 2's requirements are far below that capacity, meaning the bottleneck is purely computational, not memory-related. The card's high boost clock and TFLOPS ratings translate directly into the high FPS numbers seen at lower resolutions, where it is less constrained by the CPU.

FAQ

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p and 4K Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 141.6 at 1920x1080 Ultra to 48.2 at 3840x2160 Ultra, a decrease of 93.4 FPS. This indicates that the RTX 4090 is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the GPU's workload increases significantly.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in average benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core i5-10400F has an average score of 14168. It is 0.4% faster than the AMD EPYC 7552 (14115) and 0.8% slower than the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (14277). The differences are minimal, showing competitive performance in its tier.

Q: Is the GPU's performance bottlenecked by the CPU at any resolution?

A: The data suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at 4K. The FPS scaling from 1440p to 4K shows a large drop (e.g., from 92.5 to 48.2 on Ultra), indicating the GPU is the limiting factor. At 1080p, the CPU may have more influence, but the GPU's high frame output still dominates.

Q: What is the percentile ranking of the GPU compared to all tested GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is in the 91st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 66473. This places it among the top-tier graphics cards in the database.

Q: How much of a performance hit does the Ultra setting cause at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the average FPS drops from 159.5 on Medium to 92.5 on Ultra, a decrease of 67 FPS. This shows that the Ultra preset is significantly more demanding than Medium, even at a mid-range resolution.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between Low and High settings at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS goes from 117 on Low to 66.5 on High, a difference of 50.5 FPS. This indicates that the High preset nearly halves the frame rate compared to Low, emphasizing the GPU's workload.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 127th out of 1795 tested combos in Hitman 2. This places it in the top 7.1% of all configurations, which is a strong result given the CPU is not a top-tier processor. The high rank is almost entirely attributable to the RTX 4090, whose raw power ensures high frame rates even when paired with a more modest CPU.

The data shows that this combo outperforms the vast majority of systems in the database. The top 126 combos likely feature more recent, higher-end CPUs that can better keep up with the RTX 4090 at lower resolutions. However, the 127th rank is still an excellent position, demonstrating that the GPU can carry the overall system performance in this game. The ranking suggests that for users with this specific CPU, the RTX 4090 is a substantial upgrade that yields near-flagship results, even though the CPU is not able to fully unlock the GPU's potential at 1080p.

The ranking also highlights the imbalance of the pairing. While the GPU is in the 91st percentile, the CPU is in the 73rd percentile. This gap is reflected in the FPS scaling, where the gains from lowering resolution are not as linear as they would be with a more balanced CPU. In short, this combo ranks highly because the GPU is so powerful, but it is not the absolute top rank because the CPU prevents it from reaching its full capability at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern of performance scaling across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 222.3 on Low to 141.6 on Ultra. Moving to 2560x1440, the FPS drops to a range of 192 on Low to 92.5 on Ultra. At 3840x2160, the range is 117 on Low to 48.2 on Ultra.

The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is significant. For Ultra settings, the FPS falls from 141.6 to 48.2, a 66% reduction. This large drop indicates that the GPU is heavily constrained by the increased pixel count at 4K. The scaling is less severe for Low settings, where FPS drops from 222.3 to 117, a 47% reduction. This suggests that at Low settings, the CPU may be playing a more significant role, as the GPU is less stressed.

The data indicates that the limiting component shifts with resolution. At 1080p, the CPU is more likely to be a bottleneck, as the GPU can render frames faster than the CPU can issue draw calls. This is evident in the 1080p High FPS of 182.2, which is lower than the 1440p High FPS of 122.5, showing a 59.7 FPS drop. At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, as the massive pixel workload overwhelms the CPU's capabilities. The fact that 4K Low (117 FPS) is still higher than 1440p Ultra (92.5 FPS) shows that the GPU's raw power is still able to produce high frame rates, but the settings have a greater impact than resolution alone.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following is the complete breakdown of measured average FPS for this combo in Hitman 2.

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 222.3 FPS
• Medium: 205 FPS
• High: 182.2 FPS
• Ultra: 141.6 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 192 FPS
• Medium: 159.5 FPS
• High: 122.5 FPS
• Ultra: 92.5 FPS

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 117 FPS
• Medium: 84.9 FPS
• High: 66.5 FPS
• Ultra: 48.2 FPS

The data shows that at 1080p, the RTX 4090 is able to maintain frame rates well above 140 FPS even on Ultra, indicating that the CPU is the limiting factor. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 80.7 FPS, which is smaller than the 144.1 FPS difference at 4K. This reinforces the idea that the GPU's performance is more affected by settings at higher resolutions. The 4K Ultra score of 48.2 FPS is the lowest in the dataset, showing that even the most powerful consumer GPU must compromise on settings to achieve high refresh rates at this resolution. The 1440p High score of 122.5 FPS is a sweet spot, offering a balance between visual quality and performance, while 1080p Low at 222.3 FPS shows the absolute peak of this combo's capability, likely limited by the CPU's single-thread performance.