Hitman 2

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 delivers playable performance in Hitman 2, though the experience is highly dependent on your resolution and quality expectations. This combination occupies the 3072nd spot out of 3711 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower tier of systems, but the data shows it can still provide a smooth experience at 1080p with adjusted settings. This pairing leverages a modern 10-core CPU with a capable 8 GB graphics card from the Pascal generation, creating a system that is often limited by the GPU at higher resolutions.

FAQ

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

A: The data indicates that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where this combo consistently achieves high frame rates. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 119, while at 1440p Low, it drops to 76 FPS. At 4K, even Low settings only produce an average of 40 FPS, making 1080p the most practical choice for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the CPU's core count affect performance in this game?

A: The Intel Core i5-13400F has 10 cores and 16 threads, which is a substantial amount of processing power. While Hitman 2 is not the most demanding CPU title, this configuration ensures that the CPU is unlikely to be a bottleneck, especially when compared to the GPU's performance limits at higher resolutions.

Q: Is 8 GB of VRAM on the GTX 1070 enough for Hitman 2?

A: The GPU's memory includes 8 GB of GDDR5 with a 256-bit bus, and the data suggests this is sufficient for the tested settings. While the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K, the frame rate drops are due to overall GPU compute limits rather than a specific VRAM capacity issue, as even Medium settings at 4K yields playable average FPS with minimums above 25.

Q: How does this combo compare to the GTX 1070's nearest rivals?

A: The GTX 1070's average benchmark score is 9780. Its closest rivals include the AMD FirePro W5000, which scores 9803 (0.2% higher), and the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M, which scores 9832 (0.5% higher). The differences are marginal, indicating that the GTX 1070's raw GPU performance is on par with these professional-grade cards.

Q: What is the average FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 119 on Low settings to 50 on Ultra settings. This represents a 58% reduction in frame rate, showcasing the significant performance cost of the highest quality presets in Hitman 2.

Q: Does the game run better on Medium or High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium settings produce an average of 57 FPS, while High settings produce an average of 43 FPS. The Medium preset provides a 32.5% improvement in average frame rate and is the better choice for maintaining playable performance at this resolution.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of how this combo handles different presets. For players targeting a consistent 60 FPS or higher, the 1920x1080 resolution is the only viable option. At this resolution, the Low preset averages 119 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate displays, while the Medium preset averages 89 FPS, offering a good balance between visual fidelity and smoothness. The High preset at 67 FPS is also acceptable for most players, but it sacrifices some headroom for demanding scenes. The Ultra preset drops to 50 FPS, which can feel less fluid in a stealth game where precise timing is key.

At 2560x1440, the experience becomes more constrained. The Low preset achieves an average of 76 FPS, which is playable, but the Medium preset drops to 57 FPS. Given that the Medium preset has a minimum FPS of 48, it is still a viable option for those who prioritize visual quality over a locked 60 FPS. The High preset at 43 FPS is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 32 FPS is not recommended for a smooth experience.

At 3840x2160, this combo is not suitable for demanding play. The Low preset averages 40 FPS, which is below the ideal threshold, and the Medium preset averages 30 FPS with a minimum of 26 FPS. For the best experience, the data suggests using the Medium preset at 1080p. This setting provides an average of 89 FPS and a minimum of 76 FPS, ensuring that the game remains fluid even during complex crowd or particle effects, while still delivering a significant visual upgrade over the Low preset.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is the primary determinant of performance at higher resolutions. With a base clock of 1506 MHz and a boost clock of 1683 MHz, the GPU's compute power is substantial for its generation. The data shows that the GPU's 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth, is not the limiting factor in most scenarios. Instead, the raw throughput of the GP104 chip, which offers 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, dictates the frame rates.

The benchmark results show a clear scaling pattern. At 1080p, the GTX 1070 has enough headroom to push high frame rates, with a 119 FPS average on Low. However, when moving to 1440p, the pixel count increases by 78%, and the frame rate drops by 36% on Low settings, indicating that the GPU is becoming a bottleneck. At 4K, this bottleneck is severe, with the GPU only managing 40 FPS on Low and 17 FPS on Ultra. This is a classic sign of a GPU being overwhelmed by fill-rate and shading demands. The 64 ROPs and 120 TMUs are sufficient for 1080p gaming but struggle to maintain pace with 4K's pixel throughput requirements.

The GTX 1070's standing among its rivals is tight. Its average benchmark score of 9780 puts it within 0.7% of the NVIDIA Tesla C2070 (9716) and 0.2% of the AMD FirePro W5000 (9803). This indicates that the GTX 1070's performance in synthetic tests is consistent with its peers, meaning that the differences in Hitman 2 are likely not due to a defective or underperforming unit but rather the fundamental limits of the architecture.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of hardware ranks 3072nd out of 3711 tested combos in Hitman 2. This puts it in the bottom 17% of all systems, which is a direct consequence of the GTX 1070's age relative to modern GPUs. The Intel Core i5-13400F is a modern, high-performance CPU, but it is paired with a GPU from 2016. The data shows that this pairing is not balanced for high-resolution gaming.

The ranking suggests that while the CPU has plenty of headroom, the GPU is the limiting factor. The i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25292, placing it in the 77th percentile of all CPUs, which is a strong showing. In contrast, the GTX 1070's average score of 9780 places it in the 47th percentile of all GPUs, making it a below-average component in the current market. The mismatch is clear: the CPU is a top-tier performer, but the GPU is a mid-range part from several generations ago. This results in a system that is held back by its graphics card in most gaming scenarios.

Given the rank, users should understand that this combo is not designed for maximum fidelity at 4K. It is a system that can handle esports titles at high frame rates and older AAA games at medium settings on 1080p. The combo rank is a warning that this is a baseline configuration, and users aiming for higher performance would need to prioritize a GPU upgrade.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture. Its base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.60 GHz provide strong single-threaded performance, which is crucial for game logic and physics. In Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage the game's simulation. With a passmark single-thread score of 3634, this CPU is more than capable of handling the game's AI and scripting.

The 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core provide a large data pool for the game to access, reducing latency. The benchmark results for the CPU, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22604, show that it has massive multi-threaded headroom that Hitman 2 likely does not fully utilize. This means that in this configuration, the CPU is rarely the bottleneck. The evidence for this is in the frame rate scaling with resolution: as the resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, the average FPS drops drastically, which is a GPU-bound behavior.

The CPU's performance relative to its rivals is competitive. It scores similarly to the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS (25284 vs 25292, a 0% delta) and is only 0.3% slower than the Intel Core 5 120 (25362). This demonstrates that the i5-13400F is a current-generation performer that won't hold back modern games. In this pairing, the CPU is the component that will outlast the GPU in terms of relevance, and users could potentially upgrade the graphics card in the future without needing to replace the processor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a consistent pattern of performance scaling across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers strong results. The Low preset achieves an average of 119 FPS, while Medium drops to 89 FPS with a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 102 FPS. The High preset averages 67 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 50 FPS. This shows a clear trade-off between visual quality and frame rate, with a 69 FPS difference between the lowest and highest presets.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 76 FPS, which is a 36% decrease from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 57 FPS, with a minimum of 48 FPS and a maximum of 65 FPS. The High preset drops to 43 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 32 FPS. At this resolution, only the Low and Medium presets offer acceptable performance for most players, with the Medium preset being the highest quality option that stays above the 50 FPS threshold on average.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed. The Low preset averages 40 FPS, which is below the standard for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset averages 30 FPS, with a minimum of 26 FPS and a maximum of 35 FPS, which is playable but not ideal. The High preset drops to 23 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 17 FPS. These numbers indicate that 4K gaming is not feasible with this combo, even on the lowest settings. The data suggests that users with a 4K monitor should stick to 1080p or 1440p with this hardware to ensure a playable experience.