Hitman 2

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

The Intel Core i5-12400 sits in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19850. Its six physical cores and twelve threads, running from a 2.50 GHz base clock up to a 4.40 GHz boost, place it in a competitive tier where tiny margins separate near-identical performers. The closest rival, the Intel Core i7-9700, averages 19831 — a delta of just 0.1% — while the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX trails by 0.4%. The i5-11600K sits 0.4% behind the i5-12400. These sub-1% deltas indicate that in synthetic multi-threaded workloads, the i5-12400 is effectively interchangeable with its immediate rivals despite generational differences.

For a stealth title like Hitman 2, the CPU's role is largely about maintaining consistent frame pacing during crowd simulations and AI pathfinding. The 3DMark scores show a clear scaling pattern: 910 in single-thread, 1692 in 2-thread, 3012 in 4-thread, 4745 in 8-thread, and 5890 at max threads. The near-linear scaling from 2 to 8 threads suggests the architecture distributes load effectively across its physical cores. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 15935 against a single-core score of 2249 reinforces that the processor's strength is in balanced multi-threaded throughput rather than raw single-core dominance.

In the measured Hitman 2 results, the CPU's contribution becomes visible when comparing the 1080p Low preset (67.3 FPS) against the 1080p High preset (37.2 FPS). The gap between these settings is substantial, but the CPU must feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic regardless of visual fidelity. The 1080p Low result of 67.3 FPS is the highest across all tested configurations, indicating that at this resolution and preset, the processor can keep up with the rendering pipeline without becoming the primary constraint. The 12 threads are sufficient for Hitman 2's engine, which rarely utilizes more than a handful of cores for its stealth simulation systems.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 occupies the 43rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 8713. Its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus delivers 128.1 GB/s of bandwidth, while the TU117 chip runs at a 1485 MHz base and 1665 MHz boost clock. The GPU's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile, scores 8746 (0.4% higher), while the AMD Radeon 550X matches at 8749 with a 0.4% delta. The Quadro P2200 trails by 0.5% at 8671, and the Radeon Pro WX 5100 leads by 0.5% at 8761. This clustering around the 8700-8750 range indicates the GTX 1650 is positioned at a performance plateau where architectural differences yield negligible practical impact.

In Hitman 2, the GPU's limitations become apparent immediately. The 1080p Low preset achieves 67.3 FPS, but stepping to Medium drops the average to 52.4 FPS, and High falls to 37.2 FPS. The 4 GB VRAM capacity is a critical constraint: Hitman 2's larger textures and shadow maps at higher presets likely exceed this allocation, forcing memory swapping and reducing throughput. The 128.1 GB/s bandwidth, while adequate for the 128-bit bus width, becomes a bottleneck when the game demands higher texture fidelity.

The DirectX benchmark results provide context: PassMark DirectX 11 scores 58, DirectX 12 scores 35, and DirectX 10 scores 39. The drop from DX11 to DX12 suggests the GTX 1650's Turing architecture does not gain efficiency benefits from newer APIs in this title, which may explain why the High preset at 1080p (37.2 FPS) struggles relative to expectations from the GPU's raw compute capabilities. The FP32 throughput of 2.984 TFLOPS is modest, and the pixel rate of 53.28 GPixel/s limits fill-rate-bound scenes common in Hitman 2's detailed environments.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a steep resolution penalty that identifies the GPU as the dominant bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system averages 67.3 FPS; at 1440p Low, that drops to 41.7 FPS (a 38% reduction); at 4K Low, it falls to 27.1 FPS (a further 35% drop from 1440p). This scaling pattern — where each resolution doubling roughly halves frame rates — is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, since the CPU workload remains relatively constant across resolutions while pixel-count demands escalate.

The High preset tells a similar story but from a lower baseline. At 1080p High, the average is 37.2 FPS. At 1440p High, it drops to 23.1 FPS (a 38% reduction), and at 4K High, it reaches just 15.7 FPS (a 32% drop from 1440p). The proportional decreases are remarkably consistent, suggesting that neither the CPU nor memory bandwidth introduces a secondary bottleneck; the GPU's raw pixel throughput is the sole constraint.

The Medium preset shows 52.4 FPS at 1080p, 35.1 FPS at 1440p, and 19.6 FPS at 4K — again, roughly a 33% drop per resolution step. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 28.2 FPS at 1080p, 17.2 FPS at 1440p, and 7.5 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 7.5 FPS is effectively unplayable, confirming that this combination of CPU and GPU cannot handle high resolutions with maximum settings.

The consistency of the percentage drops across all settings — approximately 35-40% from 1080p to 1440p, and another 30-35% from 1440p to 4K — indicates that the GTX 1650's memory bandwidth of 128.1 GB/s is the limiting factor. The 4 GB frame buffer is insufficient for 4K texture sets, and the 128-bit bus cannot feed the shading units fast enough at higher pixel counts. The CPU's 3DMark max-thread score of 5890 suggests it has headroom that the GPU cannot exploit.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Examining the measured FPS data, the 1080p Low preset delivers 67.3 FPS, which is the only configuration in the entire dataset that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold commonly associated with smooth gameplay. This is the optimal choice for players prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity. The 1080p Medium preset drops to 52.4 FPS — still playable but noticeably less fluid, and the 1080p High preset at 37.2 FPS introduces visible stutter in fast-paced stealth sequences.

At 1440p, no preset achieves 60 FPS. The Low preset at 41.7 FPS is the only option that maintains playable frame rates, while Medium (35.1 FPS) and High (23.1 FPS) become increasingly compromised. The 1440p Ultra preset at 17.2 FPS is not viable for actual gameplay. At 4K, all presets are below 30 FPS — Low at 27.1 FPS is borderline, Medium at 19.6 FPS is poor, High at 15.7 FPS is severely limited, and Ultra at 7.5 FPS is effectively a slideshow.

For a balanced experience, the 1080p Medium preset at 52.4 FPS offers a reasonable compromise: it retains moderate visual detail while keeping frame rates within a range where Hitman 2's stealth mechanics remain responsive. However, the data clearly shows that the GTX 1650's performance ceiling is at 1080p Low (67.3 FPS) if the user demands smoothness. The 4 GB VRAM limitation becomes apparent at Medium settings and above, where texture streaming overhead likely contributes to the frame rate drops. Users with 1440p displays should accept the Low preset as the practical maximum, and 4K gaming is not a realistic option with this hardware configuration.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows 1080p Low at 67.3 FPS is the only configuration exceeding 60 FPS. For a visual quality compromise, 1080p Medium at 52.4 FPS is the next best option, while 1440p Low at 41.7 FPS is the highest resolution that remains playable.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-12400 averages 19850 in benchmarks, placing it 0.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-9700 (19831) and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i5-11600K (19771). It trails the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5995WX (19928) by 0.4% and the Intel Core i7-8700 (19894) by 0.2%.

Q: Why does the frame rate drop so significantly from 1080p to 4K?

A: The GTX 1650's 4 GB VRAM and 128.1 GB/s bandwidth cannot sustain higher pixel counts. At 1080p Low, the system averages 67.3 FPS, but 4K Low drops to 27.1 FPS — a 60% reduction. The proportional drops across all settings indicate the GPU is the limiting component.

Q: Is the Ultra preset ever playable with this setup?

A: No. The Ultra preset achieves 28.2 FPS at 1080p, 17.2 FPS at 1440p, and 7.5 FPS at 4K. Even at the lowest tested resolution, Ultra settings fall below the 30 FPS minimum for acceptable gameplay.

Q: How does the GPU rank among all GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 sits in the 43rd percentile, with an average benchmark score of 8713. Its closest rival, the AMD Radeon 550X, scores 8749 (0.4% higher), while the NVIDIA Quadro P2200 trails at 8671 (0.5% lower).

Q: Can this CPU handle more demanding GPUs in this game?

A: The processor's 3DMark max-thread score of 5890 and Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 15935 indicate strong multi-threaded capability. The measured FPS data shows consistent GPU-limited scaling, suggesting the CPU would not bottleneck a more powerful graphics card in Hitman 2.