Hitman 2

# Hitman 2 with Intel Core i5-10400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D

This combo configuration places 229th out of 3,711 tested combinations for Hitman 2, putting it in the top 6.2% of all tested systems. The pairing of a 6-core, 12-thread Comet Lake CPU from 2020 with NVIDIA's flagship Blackwell 2.0 GPU from 2025 creates an interesting bottleneck dynamic that becomes evident when examining frame rates across resolutions and settings. The data shows a system that delivers playable to excellent performance at every tested resolution, though the CPU's age limits the GPU's potential at lower resolutions where the graphics card is not the primary constraint.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's 229th position out of 3,711 tested configurations represents a strong overall result for Hitman 2, a stealth game that rewards consistent frame pacing and responsiveness. This ranking places the system well within the top percentile of tested combos, reflecting the GPU's massive compute resources compensating for the CPU's modest standing. The RTX 5090 D sits at the 92nd percentile among all GPUs, while the i5-10400F ranks at the 68th percentile among all CPUs — the substantial gap between these two percentiles explains why this combo does not rank higher than 229th.

Comparing to the CPU's nearest rivals, the i5-10400F's average benchmark score of 14,185 is nearly identical to the Intel Xeon 6756E (14,163, a 0.2% difference) and the AMD EPYC 7552 (14,115, a 0.5% difference). The Intel Core 7 160UL scores slightly higher at 14,232, representing a 0.3% delta, while the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C leads the group at 14,277 with a 0.6% advantage. These tight margins indicate the i5-10400F is positioned in a crowded performance tier, though none of these rivals are gaming-focused processors.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5090 D's average benchmark score of 77,712 places it just ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76,904, a 1.1% delta) but behind the Radeon RX 6850M XT (78,940, a 1.6% deficit). The NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants score 79,396 and 79,605, representing 2.1% and 2.4% advantages respectively. These rivals are workstation or mobile parts, underscoring that the 5090 D's nearest competitors in raw compute are not typical gaming GPUs.

GPU Role

The RTX 5090 D brings 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, delivering 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. This memory configuration is dramatically overprovisioned for Hitman 2, a game from 2018 that does not demand large frame buffers. The GPU's 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 ROPs provide raw throughput that far exceeds what this title requires at any tested setting.

Clock speeds show a base of 2017 MHz and a boost of 2407 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective). The GPU's pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s are exceptional figures that allow the card to maintain high frame rates even at Ultra settings in 4K. The 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the primary reason this combo achieves 52 FPS at 4K Ultra — a demanding preset that stresses fill-rate and shading throughput.

The 5090 D's 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs reflects its position as one of the fastest cards ever tested in this database. Its nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all non-gaming parts, which suggests the GPU's architecture is heavily optimized for parallel compute workloads that translate well to Hitman 2's rendering demands. The card's 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores are present but largely irrelevant for this title, which predates widespread RT implementation in the franchise.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of running Hitman 2 at 4K?

A: Yes, the data shows playable performance at 4K across all settings. Average FPS ranges from 52 at Ultra to 124 at Low, with Medium achieving 93 FPS and High reaching 71 FPS. The 4K Medium preset maintains a minimum of 79 FPS, indicating smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU's age affect performance in Hitman 2?

A: The i5-10400F's 68th percentile CPU ranking and 6-core/12-thread configuration likely limit frame rates at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 224 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's maximum frame delivery capability, whereas the GPU could theoretically push higher if unconstrained.

Q: What is the best resolution for competitive play?

A: At 1080p, all settings deliver above 150 FPS, with Low hitting 224 FPS and High reaching 182 FPS. The 1440p Low preset also exceeds 190 FPS. These frame rates provide excellent responsiveness for stealth gameplay that requires quick reactions.

Q: Does the RTX 5090 D's 32 GB VRAM matter for Hitman 2?

A: The 32 GB GDDR7 frame buffer is far beyond what Hitman 2 requires. The game's memory footprint is modest even at 4K Ultra, so the 1.79 TB/s bandwidth and 32 GB capacity are not limiting factors in any tested configuration.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 229th out of 3,711 configurations, placing it in the top 6.2% of all tested systems for Hitman 2. This ranking reflects the GPU's dominance compensating for the CPU's mid-tier standing.

Q: What settings show the most significant FPS drop?

A: Moving from High to Ultra at any resolution causes a substantial performance penalty. At 4K, the drop is from 71 FPS to 52 FPS (a 26.8% decrease), while at 1080p it falls from 182 FPS to 153 FPS (a 15.9% decrease), suggesting Ultra settings impose heavy rendering costs.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its highest frame rates across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 224 FPS, Medium achieves 202 FPS with a minimum of 172 and maximum of 232, High reaches 182 FPS, and Ultra drops to 153 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 31.7% reduction in average FPS, from 224 down to 153, which is a moderate penalty for the visual quality increase that Ultra provides.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but shows the expected resolution scaling impact. Low settings yield 193 FPS, Medium averages 174 FPS (minimum 148, maximum 200), High delivers 132 FPS, and Ultra maintains 98 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 95 FPS, representing a 49.2% drop. This larger percentage decrease compared to 1080p suggests the GPU is becoming more significant as a limiting factor at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the data reveals where the RTX 5090 D starts to feel the pressure of pixel throughput demands. Low settings still manage 124 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS (minimum 79, maximum 107), High drops to 71 FPS, and Ultra falls to 52 FPS. The 4K Low-to-Ultra spread of 72 FPS represents a 58.1% reduction, indicating that Ultra settings at 4K more than double the rendering cost compared to Low.

The Medium preset consistently shows the tightest FPS ranges with measured minimums and maximums across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the 172-232 FPS range shows a 60 FPS spread, while 1440p Medium spans 148-200 FPS (52 FPS range), and 4K Medium spans 79-107 FPS (28 FPS range). This narrowing range at higher resolutions indicates reduced CPU-side frame time variance as the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F provides 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Comet Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 14 nm process. Its base clock of 2.90 GHz boosts to 4.30 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 64 KB L1 and 256 KB L2 per core, plus 12 MB of shared L3 cache. Memory support is dual-channel DDR4 with 42.7 GB/s bandwidth, and the chip connects via PCIe Gen 3 with 16 CPU lanes.

Benchmark data shows the CPU's single-thread performance at 688 in 3DMark single-thread and 1,451 in Cinebench R23 single-core. Multi-threaded results include 4,748 in 3DMark 16-thread, 4,318 in Cinebench R20 multi-core, and 10,283 in Cinebench R23 multi-core. PassMark multi-thread score is 12,115 with a single-thread score of 2,541. These figures place the CPU at the 68th percentile, with an average benchmark score of 14,185.

In Hitman 2, the CPU's role becomes evident when examining FPS across resolutions. At 1080p, the combo achieves 224 FPS at Low settings — a figure likely constrained by the CPU's ability to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic updates. The modest 31.7% performance drop from Low to Ultra at 1080p suggests the CPU maintains frame delivery even as GPU load increases. However, at 4K, the 58.1% drop from Low to Ultra indicates the GPU becomes the dominant limiting factor, as pixel throughput demands exceed what the CPU can influence.

The CPU's 6-core, 12-thread configuration is adequate for Hitman 2's threading model, which benefits from multiple cores for AI, physics, and world simulation. The 12 MB L3 cache and 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth provide sufficient data throughput for the game's level streaming, though the PCIe Gen 3 interface (versus Gen 4 or 5 on newer platforms) could theoretically limit GPU communication, though the benchmark data does not show this as a practical constraint.

Settings Recommendations

For players seeking the best combination of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1440p offers the most balanced experience. The data shows 174 FPS average with a 148 FPS minimum and 200 FPS maximum, providing smooth gameplay with a 52 FPS range that indicates consistent frame delivery. This configuration delivers high frame rates while maintaining visual fidelity that represents a meaningful step up from Low settings.

At 1080p, the High preset at 182 FPS is the recommended choice for competitive play, as it provides excellent responsiveness while retaining more visual detail than Medium's 202 FPS. The 30 FPS difference between High and Medium at 1080p is noticeable but may not justify the visual downgrade for players who prioritize image quality. The Ultra preset at 153 FPS is still playable but offers diminishing returns for the 19% FPS cost over High.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset at 93 FPS is the sweet spot, as it maintains above-60 FPS performance with a minimum of 79 FPS that prevents noticeable drops. High at 71 FPS is usable but approaches the threshold where frame pacing becomes perceptible, while Ultra at 52 FPS falls below the 60 FPS standard that most players consider the minimum for smooth gameplay. The Low preset at 124 FPS is unnecessarily conservative for 4K, as Medium provides superior visuals at a still-excellent frame rate.

The data suggests that Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution for this combo, as the visual improvement over High does not justify the substantial FPS penalty. The 4K Ultra-to-High drop of 19 FPS (26.8%) and the 1440p Ultra-to-High drop of 34 FPS (25.8%) represent significant performance costs that most players would find difficult to justify in a stealth game where consistent frame delivery is crucial for precise aiming and movement.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1080p to 4K reveals the bottleneck characteristics of this combo. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 224 at 1080p to 193 at 1440p (a 13.8% decrease) and then to 124 at 4K (a 35.8% decrease from 1440p). This pattern shows that even at Low settings, the GPU's pixel throughput becomes a limiting factor as resolution increases, though the 1080p figure of 224 FPS may represent a CPU ceiling.

At Medium settings, the scaling shows 202 FPS at 1080p, 174 FPS at 1440p (a 13.9% drop), and 93 FPS at 4K (a 46.6% drop from 1440p). The larger percentage decrease at the 4K step indicates the GPU is increasingly constrained by fill-rate and memory bandwidth demands as pixel count quadruples from 1440p to 4K, while the 1080p to 1440p step shows more moderate scaling typical of a system transitioning from CPU-bound to GPU-bound behavior.

High settings follow a similar pattern: 182 FPS at 1080p, 132 FPS at 1440p (a 27.5% drop), and 71 FPS at 4K (a 46.2% drop from 1440p). The steeper 1080p-to-1440p decline compared to Medium suggests that High settings impose additional GPU load that becomes more apparent as resolution increases. Ultra settings show the most dramatic scaling: 153 FPS at 1080p, 98 FPS at 1440p (a 35.9% drop), and 52 FPS at 4K (a 46.9% drop from 1440p).

The consistent 46-47% performance decreases from 1440p to 4K across Medium, High, and Ultra settings indicate that the GPU is the limiting component at 4K for all but the lowest settings. Conversely, the relatively modest 1080p-to-1440p drops at Low (13.8%) and Medium (13.9%) compared to High (27.5%) and Ultra (35.9%) suggest the CPU is more relevant at lower resolutions and settings, where the GPU can process frames faster than the CPU can deliver them. This analysis confirms that the RTX 5090 D is the dominant performance driver in most tested configurations, with the i5-10400F only becoming a meaningful constraint at 1080p with lower graphical presets.