Hitman 2

The Intel Core i5-13400F and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT combination delivers a playable, though not flawless, experience in Hitman 2, with performance scaling that clearly identifies the GPU as the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The data shows a steep performance cliff as resolution increases, while the CPU provides ample headroom to keep frame rates from collapsing at lower settings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable but pronounced drop as resolution climbs, which is typical for a game of Hitman 2's era. At 1920x1080, the combo is exceedingly capable: it averages 150 FPS on Low settings, 113 FPS on Medium, and 86.4 FPS on High. Even the demanding Ultra preset holds at 64.6 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay. This indicates that at 1080p, the system has enough throughput to handle the game’s crowd simulations and complex geometry without breaking a sweat.

Moving to 2560x1440, the impact of resolution becomes clear. The average frame rate drops to 96.5 FPS on Low, 73.8 FPS on Medium, and 55.5 FPS on High. The Ultra preset falls to exactly 40 FPS, which is still technically playable but begins to feel less fluid. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p at High settings is roughly 36%, showing that the rendering load is scaling significantly with pixel count.

The 4K results are where the combination struggles. At 3840x2160, the average frame rates are 50.8 FPS on Low, 38.3 FPS on Medium, and 30.1 FPS on High. The Ultra preset dips to a marginal 21.9 FPS. This pattern shows a clear bottleneck: the GPU is simply unable to keep up with the pixel throughput demanded by 4K, regardless of the CPU’s capabilities. The fact that even Low settings at 4K only reach 50.8 FPS—while the same settings at 1080p hit 150 FPS—suggests that the limiting component is the graphics card’s memory bandwidth and shading power, not the processor. The 8 GB VRAM and 280.3 GB/s bandwidth on the RX 6650 XT are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but they become strained at 4K, where the game’s textures and post-processing effects require more data to be moved per frame.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. Its benchmark results show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21279 and a 3DMark max-threads score of 7307. In Hitman 2, which is known to utilize multiple threads for AI and physics calculations, this processor provides more than enough headroom to feed the GPU at lower resolutions.

The data supports this: the measured FPS at 1080p Low (150 FPS) is likely near the engine’s frame rate cap or the GPU’s maximum output, not a CPU limitation. The single-thread performance is also robust, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 960 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2301. This matters because Hitman 2 still relies on a few primary threads for game logic and draw call submission. The 20 MB of shared L3 cache helps keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing latency in scenarios with many NPCs or dynamic objects.

However, the CPU’s role diminishes as resolution increases. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate falls to 21.9 FPS, a clear sign that the processor is waiting on the GPU to finish rendering frames. The i5-13400F’s 65 W TDP and 10 nm process node suggest it can sustain high clocks under load, but the benchmark results indicate it is not the bottleneck in this pairing. The processor’s percentile ranking of 82 among all CPUs is high, but the combo’s overall rank in this game is lower, which points to the GPU dragging down the average.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is a RDNA 2.0 part with 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units. Its boost clock is 2635 MHz, with a game clock of 2410 MHz, and it features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 280.3 GB/s. In Hitman 2, these specifications are the deciding factor for performance at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s role is evident in the scaling from Medium to Ultra settings. At 1080p, the drop from Medium (113 FPS) to Ultra (64.6 FPS) is a 43% reduction, showing that the game’s Ultra preset adds significant shading and shadow work that taxes the 10.79 TFLOPS of FP32 compute. The same pattern appears at 1440p, where Medium (73.8 FPS) falls to Ultra (40 FPS), and at 4K, where Medium (38.3 FPS) drops to Ultra (21.9 FPS). The RX 6650 XT’s 32 ray accelerators are not heavily utilized in this game, as Hitman 2 predates widespread ray tracing adoption, so the bottleneck is raw rasterization throughput.

The GPU’s memory configuration also plays a role. The 128-bit bus and 8 GB capacity are adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the game’s higher-resolution textures and increased draw distances can exceed the available VRAM in demanding scenes. The measured data shows that even at Low settings, 4K only achieves 50.8 FPS, which suggests the memory bandwidth is a limiting factor. The GPU’s percentile ranking of 72 among all GPUs is respectable for a mid-range card, but its end-of-life production status indicates it is a last-generation part struggling with modern 4K demands.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-13400F and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT ranks 1153 out of 1795 combos for Hitman 2. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested systems, which is surprising given the CPU’s strong benchmark scores. The explanation lies in the GPU’s relative weakness compared to other cards paired with high-end processors in the database.

The CPU’s nearest rivals show that it is a solid performer: it sits within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D and 0.1% of the Intel Core i7-13620H in average benchmark score. However, the GPU’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6800M and AMD Radeon RX 470, with delta percentages near zero, indicating that the RX 6650 XT is not significantly better than these alternatives. This combination’s rank is dragged down by the fact that many other combos in the database pair stronger GPUs with similar or better CPUs, allowing them to achieve higher frame rates at 1440p and 4K.

The data shows that the combo’s rank is more indicative of the GPU’s limits than the CPU’s capabilities. At 1080p, this system performs admirably, likely ranking higher than its overall position suggests, but the inclusion of 4K results in the average pulls it down. The fact that the CPU percentile (82) is higher than the GPU percentile (72) reinforces that the graphics card is the weaker link in this pairing.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The combo achieves an average of 86.4 FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings, which is smooth for most gameplay scenarios.

Q: Does this system handle 4K gaming well?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the average frame rate is 30.1 FPS on High settings and 21.9 FPS on Ultra, both of which are below the ideal threshold for fluid action in Hitman 2.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck at higher resolutions?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU’s multi-threaded performance is strong, but the RX 6650 XT’s 8 GB VRAM and 280.3 GB/s bandwidth cannot sustain high frame rates at 4K, where even Low settings only yield 50.8 FPS.

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

A: The Intel Core i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25236, which is 0.1% higher than the Intel Core i7-13620H and 0.5% higher than the AMD EPYC 9474F, showing it is a competitive mid-range processor.

Q: What is the combo’s rank among all tested systems for this game?

A: This combination ranks 1153 out of 1795 tested combos, placing it in the lower-middle tier due to the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions.

Q: Is the GPU comparable to other cards in its class?

A: Yes, the RX 6650 XT’s average benchmark score of 29024 is within 0.1% of the AMD Radeon RX 6800M and 0.5% of the Intel Arc A370M, indicating it performs on par with its direct competitors.