Hitman 2

Hitman 2, a stealth title from 2018, shows a wide performance envelope when paired with the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090. The measured data indicates that this combination is capable of extreme frame rates at lower resolutions, but the demands of 4K Ultra settings pull the experience down to a level where the GPU is clearly the limiting factor. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS rows to explain how the components interact at each resolution and setting level.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and reveals the shifting bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 349.9 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 224.4 FPS, a reduction of 125.5 FPS. At 4K Low, the average falls to 119.9 FPS. This steep scaling curve indicates that at lower resolutions, the CPU is doing most of the heavy lifting, keeping frame rates high, while the GPU has headroom to spare.

The pattern shifts as settings increase. At Ultra settings, the 1080p average is 146.3 FPS, which is 203.6 FPS lower than the Low preset at the same resolution. This suggests that even at 1080p, the Ultra preset introduces enough graphical load to start engaging the GPU more heavily. However, the real constraint appears at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS drops to 50.2. This is a 96.1 FPS drop from the 1440p Ultra result of 93.8 FPS. The data suggests that at 4K, the RTX 5090 is working at its limit, and the CPU's high core count and clock speeds are no longer the primary factor.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is particularly telling. At High settings, the 1440p average of 124.1 FPS falls to 64.5 FPS at 4K, a 48% reduction. For Medium settings, the drop is from 164.8 FPS to 91.2 FPS. This consistent halving of performance when quadrupling the pixel count points directly to the GPU as the limiting component at 4K. The RTX 5090's 32 GB of VRAM and 512-bit memory bus are substantial, but the raw pixel throughput required at 3840x2160 is simply enormous for this title's engine.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The highest recorded average is 349.9 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra experience compare to 1080p Ultra?

A: The 4K Ultra average is 50.2 FPS, while 1080p Ultra produces 146.3 FPS. This represents a 96.1 FPS difference, showing that 4K Ultra is far more demanding on the GPU.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 1080p Low settings?

A: The data indicates the CPU is the primary limiter at 1080p Low. The average of 349.9 FPS suggests the RTX 5090 is capable of far more, but the Intel Core i5-14600K with its 14 cores and 20 threads can only feed it so many frames.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings yield 224.4 FPS, while Ultra settings drop to 93.8 FPS. This is a difference of 130.6 FPS, showing the significant impact of graphical presets.

Q: Does the combo rank well among other tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 12th out of 1795 tested combinations, placing it in the top 1% of all tested pairings.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded in the data?

A: The lowest average is 50.2 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings. This is the only measured configuration that dips below 60 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

For a balance of visual fidelity and performance, the High preset at 1440p appears to be the sweet spot. The data shows an average of 124.1 FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold and offers a significant visual upgrade over Medium. At 1080p, High settings produce 194.3 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate displays, but the jump to Ultra only costs 48 FPS and may be worth it for those seeking maximum detail.

At 4K, the choices are more constrained. The High preset delivers 64.5 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive play. The Ultra preset drops to 50.2 FPS, which may cause noticeable stutter on some displays. For 4K, the Medium preset at 91.2 FPS provides a smoother experience, but the visual compromise from High is minimal. The data suggests that High settings at 4K is the best balance, as it stays above 60 FPS while retaining most of the visual features. For players prioritizing frame rate over fidelity, the Low preset at 1440p offers 224.4 FPS, but this comes at a significant visual cost for a stealth game where detail matters.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination ranks 12th out of 1795 tested combos in Hitman 2. This places it in the 99.3rd percentile of all tested pairings, indicating exceptional performance. The CPU itself holds a 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 49166. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, scores 49062, a delta of just 0.2%, making them effectively equivalent in synthetic benchmarks.

The GPU ranks in the 94th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84306. Its closest competitor, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D, scores 84241, a 0.1% delta. This near-identical performance suggests that the specific card model has minimal impact on results. The combo's 12th place ranking out of 1795 is impressive, but the measured FPS data shows that even this top-tier pairing cannot maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra, highlighting the extreme demands of the game's highest settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K features 14 cores and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This configuration is well-suited for Hitman 2, which is a stealth game that benefits from high single-thread performance but also scales with multiple cores. The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache help maintain responsive frame pacing, which is critical in a game where timing is essential.

In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 32881 and a single-core score of 4642. These results indicate strong multi-threaded and single-threaded capabilities. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the CPU is the limiting factor, as the 349.9 FPS average is likely near the engine's CPU-bound ceiling. At higher resolutions, the GPU takes over as the primary constraint, but the CPU's consistent performance ensures that frame times remain stable, avoiding the stutters that can plague less capable processors.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the data shows a clear progression across settings. Low settings produce an average of 349.9 FPS, Medium drops to 259.4 FPS, High yields 194.3 FPS, and Ultra falls to 146.3 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is 203.6 FPS, indicating that the GPU is being progressively taxed as settings increase, but even at Ultra, the frame rate remains well above 144 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are 224.4 FPS for Low, 164.8 FPS for Medium, 124.1 FPS for High, and 93.8 FPS for Ultra. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is roughly a 35-40% reduction in performance across all settings, which aligns with the increased pixel count. The 1440p Ultra result of 93.8 FPS is still smooth for most displays, but it marks the point where the GPU's workload becomes significant.

At 3840x2160, the averages drop considerably. Low settings produce 119.9 FPS, Medium yields 91.2 FPS, High delivers 64.5 FPS, and Ultra falls to 50.2 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only configuration that drops below 60 FPS, making it the most demanding setting in the data. The gap between 1440p Ultra and 4K Ultra is 43.6 FPS, which is the largest single-resolution drop in the dataset, reinforcing that 4K is the definitive GPU bottleneck for this combo.