Hitman 2

The Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti delivers a strong performance profile in Hitman 2, with benchmark data showing a clear hierarchy across resolutions and presets. The measured results indicate that this combination excels at high refresh rate 1080p and 1440p gaming, while still maintaining playable frame rates at 4K. The data suggests that the Ultra preset, while visually demanding, presents a significant performance cost, making High or Medium the more balanced choices for most users. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across all settings and resolutions, contextualizes the combo's rank among 3,711 tested configurations, and explains the role each component plays in the observed outcomes.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data for this specific CPU-GPU combination, the High preset provides the most balanced experience across all resolutions. At 1920x1080, High delivers an average of 176 FPS, which is more than sufficient for high-refresh-rate monitors, while at 2560x1440 it maintains a strong 122 FPS average. Even at 3840x2160, the High preset achieves 73 FPS, which remains comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The jump from High to Ultra is substantial: at 1080p, the average drops from 176 FPS to 112 FPS (a 36% reduction), and at 4K it falls from 73 FPS to 46 FPS (a 37% reduction). This indicates that the Ultra preset imposes a heavy rendering load that can push the system below ideal frame rates at higher resolutions.

The Medium preset is a viable alternative for users prioritizing frame rate stability, as it is the only settings tier that reported both minimum and maximum FPS values in the data. At 4K Medium, the average is 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS, ensuring no significant drops below 60 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average rises to 134 FPS with a minimum of 114 FPS, and at 1080p it reaches 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS. These min FPS figures suggest that Medium provides a more consistent frame pacing than High or Ultra, which lack reported minimums in the measured data. For users with 144Hz or 165Hz monitors, Medium at 1440p or 1080p offers a safer margin to prevent framerate dips from becoming noticeable.

The Low preset is only recommended for competitive or high-refresh-rate scenarios where maximum FPS is the sole priority. At 1080p Low, the combination reaches 247 FPS, and at 1440p Low it still manages 171 FPS. However, at 4K Low, the average drops to 102 FPS, which is only a modest improvement over the 80 FPS of Medium, suggesting that at this resolution, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck regardless of settings. The Ultra preset should be avoided at 4K, as the 46 FPS average is below the 60 FPS target, but it remains usable at 1080p (112 FPS) and 1440p (78 FPS) for users who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-14400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti achieves a combo rank of 425 out of 3,711 tested combinations in Hitman 2, placing it in the top 11.5% of all configurations. This rank reflects the overall performance potential of the pairing, which is driven by the GPU's strong rasterization capabilities and the CPU's solid multi-core throughput. The data indicates that this combo outperforms the vast majority of tested systems, but it does not reach the top tier, which is likely reserved for newer or higher-end components.

The CPU’s individual benchmark scores position it well among its peers. The Intel Core i5-14400F scores 21,645 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3,055 in single-core, with a Passmark multithread score of 25,470. Its nearest rivals in the CPU benchmark database include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (deltaPct 0.1%), the Intel Core i9-11900 (deltaPct 0.2%), the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (deltaPct -0.2%), and the Intel Core i7-12800H (deltaPct 0.5%). These deltas are minimal, indicating that the i5-14400F performs nearly identically to these processors in synthetic benchmarks, with no rival being more than 0.5% ahead or behind. This suggests that the CPU is not a limiting factor in the combo's rank, and the GPU is the primary driver of the observed game performance.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is the dominant component in this pairing for Hitman 2, as evidenced by the significant FPS variations across settings and resolutions. The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory with a 384-bit memory bus, providing a bandwidth of 912.4 GB/s. This high bandwidth is critical for handling the large texture datasets and environmental details typical of a stealth game like Hitman 2, especially at higher resolutions. The GPU's base clock is 1365 MHz with a boost clock of 1665 MHz, and it contains 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU scales predictably with resolution. At 1080p High, the average is 176 FPS, which drops to 122 FPS at 1440p and further to 73 FPS at 4K. This represents a 31% decrease from 1080p to 1440p and a 40% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The GPU's 12 GB VRAM is sufficient to handle Hitman 2's requirements even at 4K Ultra, as the FPS drop from High to Ultra at 4K (73 to 46 FPS) is more likely due to the increased shader and geometry complexity rather than memory capacity limitations. The RTX 3080 Ti's Passmark G3D score of 26,896 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 5,077 affirm its position as a high-end GPU, though its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (deltaPct 0.8%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 (deltaPct 2%), which are within 2% of its average benchmark score.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combination delivers high frame rates across all presets. Low settings produce an average of 247 FPS, Medium produces 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 223 FPS, High produces 176 FPS, and Ultra produces 112 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a clear performance curve: Medium is 21% lower than Low, High is 29% lower than Low, and Ultra is 55% lower than Low. This indicates that the Ultra preset's additional effects and draw distances significantly tax the GPU, but even at Ultra, the FPS remains well above the 60 FPS threshold, making 1080p Ultra a feasible option for users with standard 60Hz displays.

At 2560x1440, the FPS values remain high but show a more pronounced drop. Low settings average 171 FPS, Medium averages 134 FPS with a minimum of 114 FPS and a maximum of 155 FPS, High averages 122 FPS, and Ultra averages 78 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra widens at this resolution, with Ultra being 36% lower than High. This suggests that the GPU is beginning to feel the pressure of higher pixel counts, but the i5-14400F still provides enough headroom to maintain playable frame rates. The Medium preset's minimum of 114 FPS is particularly notable, as it ensures that even during complex scenes, the frame rate stays above 100 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the system's performance becomes more constrained. Low settings average 102 FPS, Medium averages 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 92 FPS, High averages 73 FPS, and Ultra drops to 46 FPS. The 4K results show that only Low, Medium, and High are capable of maintaining 60+ FPS averages, while Ultra falls below this threshold. The Medium preset's minimum of 68 FPS is the only reported minimum at 4K, indicating that it can maintain a consistent experience without dropping below 60 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 4K is 22%, while the gap between High and Ultra is 37%, reinforcing that Ultra is disproportionately demanding at this resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the limiting component in this system. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 176 at 1080p to 122 at 1440p (a 31% reduction) and then to 73 at 4K (a 40% reduction from 1440p, or a 59% reduction from 1080p). This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the RTX 3080 Ti's rendering throughput is the primary constraint. The pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p, and the FPS drops by 31%, which is less than the pixel increase, suggesting some CPU headroom remains. However, from 1440p to 4K, the pixel count increases by 125%, and the FPS drops by 40%, again indicating that the GPU is becoming increasingly saturated.

At Low settings, the scaling is slightly different: 247 FPS at 1080p drops to 171 FPS at 1440p (a 31% reduction) and then to 102 FPS at 4K (a 40% reduction from 1440p, or a 59% reduction from 1080p). This similarity in scaling percentages across High and Low suggests that the GPU's workload scales consistently with resolution, regardless of settings. The fact that the FPS drops by roughly 60% from 1080p to 4K at both High and Low settings indicates that the RTX 3080 Ti is the bottleneck, as a CPU-bound scenario would show a more pronounced FPS drop at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed. The i5-14400F, with its 10 cores and 16 threads, provides ample processing power for Hitman 2's AI and physics, but the data shows that the GPU's pixel and texture throughput is what determines the final frame rate.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F plays a supporting role in this combination, as the benchmark data shows that the GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions and settings. The CPU features 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its L3 cache is 20 MB shared, and it supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU achieves a single-core score of 3,055 in Cinebench R23 and 2,058 in Geekbench, indicating strong per-core performance that is sufficient for Hitman 2's game logic and AI processing.

The CPU's multi-core performance is robust, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21,645 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 11,268. This level of performance ensures that the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU in most scenarios. However, the measured FPS data reveals that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 247 FPS, which is extremely high and suggests that the CPU can keep up with the GPU's rendering output. The fact that the FPS scales down proportionally with resolution across all settings indicates that the CPU is not the primary constraint; if it were, we would expect to see a plateau or limited FPS increase at lower resolutions. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (deltaPct -0.2%) and the Intel Core i7-12800H (deltaPct 0.5%), show that it performs within a narrow band of comparable processors, making it a reliable partner for the RTX 3080 Ti in this game.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming with this combo?

A: The High preset offers the best balance at 2560x1440, delivering an average of 122 FPS. Medium provides a more stable experience with a minimum of 114 FPS and an average of 134 FPS, while Ultra drops to 78 FPS, making High the recommended choice for visual quality and performance.

Q: Can this system run Hitman 2 at 4K with high settings?

A: Yes, at 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 73, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Medium settings provide an even higher average of 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS, ensuring no drops below 60 FPS.

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

A: The Intel Core i5-14400F has an average benchmark score of 32,279. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 8840U (32,233, deltaPct 0.1%), the Intel Core i9-11900 (32,226, deltaPct 0.2%), and the AMD Ryzen 7 6800HS (32,354, deltaPct -0.2%). All differences are within 0.5%, indicating near-identical performance.

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

A: At 1920x1080, High settings produce an average of 176 FPS, while Ultra settings produce an average of 112 FPS. This represents a 36% reduction in performance when switching to Ultra, making High a more sensible choice for high-refresh-rate displays.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The FPS drops by approximately 59% from 1080p to 4K at both High and Low settings, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU's strong multi-core performance (21,645 in Cinebench R23) suggests it is not the bottleneck.

Q: What is the minimum FPS reported for Medium settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the minimum FPS is 114, with an average of 134 FPS and a maximum of 155 FPS. This is the only settings tier at this resolution with reported minimum and maximum values in the data.