Hitman 2

The Intel Core i5-9400 and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT pairing in Hitman 2 delivers a playable, though not flawless, experience that is heavily dictated by the graphics preset. The data shows a system that can handle the game's stealth sandboxes at 1080p with high frame rates, but struggles to maintain smooth performance at 4K with maximum settings. This combo occupies the 1314th position out of 1795 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the database, which aligns with its performance profile of strong 1080p capability and compromised 4K viability.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 reveals a steep performance cliff, particularly at higher settings. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 83 FPS at 1080p to 55.1 FPS at 2560x1440, and then plummets to 31 FPS at 4K. This represents a 37.3% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 43.7% reduction from 1440p to 4K. The scaling pattern indicates that the Radeon RX 6600 XT becomes the primary limiting factor as resolution increases.

The scaling behavior at Low settings tells a different story. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 145 FPS, dropping to 90.3 FPS at 1440p and 49.4 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 37.7% and 45.3% respectively, which are proportionally similar to the High setting drops. However, the absolute frame rates at Low settings suggest that the CPU can keep up with the GPU's demands even at 4K, as the 49.4 FPS result is still within a playable range for a stealth title.

The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic degradation. Starting at 58 FPS in 1080p, it falls to 39.4 FPS at 1440p (32.1% drop) and then to 21.6 FPS at 4K (45.2% drop). This 4K result is below the threshold for smooth gameplay, indicating that the combination of RDNA 2 architecture and the i5-9400's six cores cannot sustain the workload when every visual feature is enabled. The data suggests that 4K is only viable with Low settings, while 1440p offers reasonable performance across Medium and High presets.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal experience balances visual fidelity with frame rate stability. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 83 FPS, which is smooth for a stealth game where precision aiming and quick reactions matter. The Medium preset at 109 FPS offers a significant headroom advantage, but the visual downgrade may not be worth it when High already exceeds 60 FPS comfortably.

For 2560x1440, the High preset produces 55.1 FPS, which is borderline for competitive play but acceptable for the methodical gameplay Hitman 2 encourages. The Medium preset at 67.7 FPS provides a safer margin above 60 FPS and is the recommended choice for 1440p if frame rate consistency is prioritized over maximum detail. The Low preset at 90.3 FPS is excessive for this resolution and sacrifices too much visual quality.

At 3840x2160, the options are stark. Ultra at 21.6 FPS is unplayable, High at 31 FPS is marginal at best, and Medium at 34.7 FPS remains choppy. The Low preset at 49.4 FPS is the only 4K configuration that approaches smoothness, but even this falls short of the 60 FPS target. The data indicates that 4K should be reserved for Low settings, and even then, players may prefer to drop to 1440p High for a better overall experience.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 brings six physical cores and six threads to the pairing, with a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. This Coffee Lake architecture processor has a 65 W TDP and uses the Intel Socket 1151 platform. The CPU's benchmark scores place it at the 50th percentile among all tested processors, indicating it is an average performer in the broader market.

In the context of Hitman 2, the CPU's role becomes evident when comparing frame rates across settings at the same resolution. At 1080p, the jump from Low (145 FPS) to Ultra (58 FPS) shows a 60% reduction in frame rate, which is primarily driven by GPU workload. However, the fact that the combo achieves 145 FPS at Low settings suggests the i5-9400 is not a bottleneck at this resolution when the GPU has less work to do.

The CPU's single-core performance, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1125, is adequate for Hitman 2's AI and physics calculations. The six threads handle the game's multiple simulation systems without apparent issues, as frame rates remain consistent across the measured settings. The 9 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support at 42.7 GB/s provide sufficient bandwidth for the game's data streaming needs. The i5-9400's performance relative to rivals is tight, with a Cinebench R20 multicore score of 3346 sitting just 0.2% above the Intel Core i3-10305 and 0.4% above the Intel Xeon E-2134, while trailing the Intel Core i7-8809G by 0.6%.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the i5-9400 and RX 6600 XT ranks 1314th out of 1795 tested combos for Hitman 2, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all configurations. This ranking reflects the system's strength at 1080p and its limitations at higher resolutions. The rank suggests that while this combo is far from the top tier, it outperforms a significant portion of the database, particularly older or lower-end pairings.

The ranking aligns with the GPU's overall standing, as the RX 6600 XT sits at the 71st percentile among all GPUs. The GPU's average benchmark score of 27985 places it just 0.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti and 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M395X, while trailing the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 by 0.9% and the AMD FirePro S7150 by 1.5%. This tight grouping around the RX 6600 XT's performance level explains why the combo lands in the middle of the database for Hitman 2.

The CPU's 50th percentile ranking is notably lower than the GPU's 71st percentile, which means the i5-9400 is a relative weak link in this pairing. However, the measured FPS data shows that the CPU does not severely bottleneck the GPU at most settings, as frame rates scale predictably with resolution and quality changes. The combo's rank would likely improve with a stronger processor, but the current configuration still delivers playable performance at 1080p and 1440p.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is the dominant component in this pairing, built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture using the Navi 23 chip at a 7 nm process node. The GPU features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units, with 32 ray tracing cores. Its boost clock reaches 2589 MHz, with a game clock of 2359 MHz, and it is equipped with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

The GPU's role in Hitman 2 is clearly demonstrated by the frame rate scaling across settings. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 87 FPS (from 145 to 58), which represents a 60% performance swing. This large variance indicates that the RX 6600 XT is heavily utilized by the game's rendering features, and its 10.60 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is pushed to its limits at Ultra settings.

The GPU's memory configuration proves adequate for the game's needs. The 8 GB VRAM capacity handles Hitman 2's textures at all resolutions, as evidenced by the absence of any stutter or frame rate anomalies in the measured data. The 256.0 GB/s bandwidth supports the game's asset streaming without bottlenecking the GPU core. The GPU's overall performance, ranked at the 71st percentile, is competitive with its nearest rivals, though the RX 6600 XT's 160 W TDP and dual-slot design make it a practical choice for most systems.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce 145 FPS, Medium settings 109 FPS, High settings 83 FPS, and Ultra settings 58 FPS. The 1080p results show a clear hierarchy where each step up in quality costs approximately 20-30 FPS. This resolution is where the pairing shines, with even Ultra settings remaining above 55 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance drops noticeably. Low settings yield 90.3 FPS, Medium settings 67.7 FPS, High settings 55.1 FPS, and Ultra settings 39.4 FPS. The 1440p results show that Medium settings are the sweet spot, providing a 12.6 FPS advantage over High settings while maintaining better visual fidelity than Low. The Ultra preset at 39.4 FPS is playable but lacks the smoothness needed for precise aiming.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles to maintain playable frame rates. Low settings produce 49.4 FPS, Medium settings 34.7 FPS, High settings 31 FPS, and Ultra settings 21.6 FPS. The 4K results show that only Low settings approach playability, and even then, the frame rate is below 50 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 4K is 14.7 FPS (from 49.4 to 34.7), indicating that the GPU's rendering capabilities are severely taxed at this resolution. The data clearly shows that 4K is not a realistic target for this combo unless players are willing to accept significant compromises in visual quality.