Hitman 2

The Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT delivers a wide spread of frame rates in Hitman 2, ranging from 37.2 FPS at 4K Ultra to 258.1 FPS at 1080p Low. This massive performance envelope indicates a system that is highly responsive to both resolution and graphical preset changes, making it critical to understand where the bottleneck shifts. The data shows a clear pattern: at higher resolutions and settings, the GPU becomes the primary constraint, while at lower resolutions, the CPU’s capabilities are more fully exposed.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K reveals a steep performance curve that highlights the GPU’s workload. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 145.5 FPS at 1920x1080 to 95.6 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 51.1 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 34% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 47% reduction from 1440p to 4K, showing that the RX 7900 XT is being taxed heavily by the increased pixel count.

The scaling pattern becomes more pronounced when examining the Ultra preset. Here, the frame rate falls from 106.5 FPS at 1080p to 70.4 FPS at 1440p, and then to 37.2 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is particularly telling—it sits below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the combination of high resolution and maximum settings overwhelms the GPU’s capabilities. The data suggests that at 4K, the RX 7900 XT is the limiting component, as the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads are unlikely to be the constraint at such high pixel counts.

Interestingly, the Low preset shows the least severe scaling, moving from 258.1 FPS at 1080p to 160.8 FPS at 1440p and 86.7 FPS at 4K. This flatter curve implies that when graphical load is minimized, the system can maintain higher frame rates across resolutions, but the GPU still remains the dominant factor. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 49.5 FPS, while at 1080p that gap widens to 151.6 FPS, suggesting that at lower resolutions, the CPU has more headroom to push frame rates higher.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Core i5-12600KF and Radeon RX 7900 XT ranks 370th out of 1795 tested combos for Hitman 2. This places it in the top 21% of all configurations tested, indicating a strong performance tier that should satisfy most gamers seeking high frame rates at mainstream resolutions.

The CPU’s overall percentile is 84, meaning it outperforms 84% of all tested processors, while the GPU’s percentile is 82, outperforming 82% of all graphics cards. These individual rankings suggest balanced components, but the in-game rank of 370 out of 1795 combos reflects how they work together specifically in Hitman 2. The rank implies that while this is a capable pairing, there are 369 other combinations that achieve higher average frame rates in this title, likely featuring more powerful GPUs or CPUs that scale better with this game’s engine.

The CPU’s nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-10900K with an average score of 27829 and a deltaPct of 0, meaning they perform identically in synthetic benchmarks. The Core i5-12600K is 0.1% behind, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H is 0.2% behind. This tight grouping indicates that the i5-12600KF is well-positioned among its peers, and the 0.4% advantage over the Intel Core i7-13700H suggests strong multi-threaded performance for a mid-range chip.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 31 chip, featuring 5376 shading units and 192 ROPs. Its memory configuration includes 20 GB of GDDR6 on a 320-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 800.0 GB/s. The boost clock of 2394 MHz, combined with a base clock of 1387 MHz and a game clock of 2025 MHz, gives the GPU substantial compute power, with an FP32 rating of 51.48 TFLOPS.

In Hitman 2, the GPU’s role is clearly defined by the resolution scaling data. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate of 37.2 FPS suggests the GPU is fully saturated, as the pixel rate of 459.6 GPixel/s is being pushed to its limits. The 20 GB VRAM capacity is more than sufficient for this game, which was released in 2018, meaning memory capacity is unlikely to be a constraint at any setting. Instead, the raw compute throughput is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s benchmark scores reinforce its position: a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5623 and a Passmark G3D score of 29009 place it in the 82nd percentile. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile with a deltaPct of 0, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile at 0.6% behind. This suggests the RX 7900 XT competes favorably with high-end mobile GPUs, though desktop-class performance may differ in this specific game.

FAQ

Q: Does the RX 7900 XT provide playable frame rates at 4K Ultra in Hitman 2?

A: No. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 37.2 FPS, which falls below the commonly accepted 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How much faster is the system at 1080p compared to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average frame rate at 1920x1080 is 145.5 FPS, which is 2.85 times higher than the 51.1 FPS achieved at 3840x2160.

Q: What is the best performance tier for this combo in Hitman 2?

A: The combo ranks 370th out of 1795 tested combinations, placing it in the top 21% of all configurations for this game.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to bottleneck at 1440p Medium?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the system achieves 119.8 FPS. Given that the GPU has significant headroom at this resolution compared to 4K, the CPU with its 10 cores and 16 threads is more likely to become the limiting factor at this setting.

Q: How does the i5-12600KF compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i9-10900K has an average benchmark score of 27829, which is identical to the i5-12600KF’s 27827, resulting in a deltaPct of 0.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves 258.1 FPS, while Ultra achieves 106.5 FPS, a difference of 151.6 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest performance across all settings. The Low preset produces an average of 258.1 FPS, which drops to 193.9 FPS at Medium, 145.5 FPS at High, and 106.5 FPS at Ultra. This represents a 59% reduction from Low to Ultra, showing that graphical settings have a substantial impact on frame rates at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low averages 160.8 FPS, Medium achieves 119.8 FPS, High reaches 95.6 FPS, and Ultra drops to 70.4 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 90.4 FPS, indicating that the GPU is beginning to take on more of the workload.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more constrained. Low still manages 86.7 FPS, but Medium falls to 64.1 FPS, High to 51.1 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 37.2 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 49.5 FPS, which is the smallest gap across all resolutions, confirming that 4K places the heaviest burden on the GPU.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF features 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. This Alder Lake architecture uses a 10 nm process and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory, with a 20 MB shared L3 cache. The CPU’s benchmark results show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23444 and a single-core score of 3309.

In Hitman 2, the CPU’s role becomes more apparent at lower resolutions and settings. At 1080p Low, the frame rate of 258.1 FPS suggests the CPU is keeping up with the GPU’s output, as the GPU is not yet saturated. The Passmark multithread score of 27575 and the 3DMark 16-thread score of 7956 indicate that the CPU can handle the game’s AI and physics calculations without becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios.

However, at 4K Ultra, the CPU’s influence diminishes, as the GPU’s workload dominates. The CPU’s single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1016 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2529, is sufficient for this game’s engine, which likely relies on fewer threads. The CPU’s 84th percentile ranking places it ahead of most processors, but the in-game rank of 370 suggests that other CPU-GPU pairings may extract more performance from this title.

Settings Recommendations

For players prioritizing frame rate, the Low preset at 1080p is the clear winner, delivering 258.1 FPS. This is ideal for competitive play or high-refresh-rate monitors, though visual fidelity is sacrificed. At 1440p, Low still provides 160.8 FPS, which is suitable for most gaming scenarios.

For a balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1080p offers 193.9 FPS, while at 1440p it drops to 119.8 FPS. These settings provide a good compromise without the heavy performance penalty of Ultra. At 4K, Medium achieves 64.1 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold, making it the most viable option for 4K gaming with this combo.

The High preset is a solid choice for 1440p, maintaining 95.6 FPS, but at 4K it falls to 51.1 FPS, which may feel less smooth. The Ultra preset should only be considered at 1080p, where it reaches 106.5 FPS, or at 1440p with 70.4 FPS for those who prioritize maximum visual detail. At 4K, Ultra’s 37.2 FPS is likely too low for most players, making Medium the recommended setting for 4K users.