Hitman 2

The benchmark data for Hitman 2 with the Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti reveals a configuration that is heavily balanced toward GPU performance at high resolutions, but which shows clear signs of CPU limitation at lower resolutions. The combination ranks in the 1341st position out of 3711 tested configurations, placing it in the upper-middle tier of systems for this title. This analysis breaks down the measured performance across three resolutions and four quality presets, interpreting what the frame rates indicate about the role of each component in this specific game.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly demonstrates that the RTX 3070 Ti becomes the primary limiting factor as resolution increases, while the i5-9400 holds the system back at lower resolutions. At 1080p with High settings, the configuration produces 116 FPS average, which drops to 74 FPS at 1440p and further to 39 FPS at 4K. This represents a 36% performance reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The scaling pattern suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is constraining the GPU's output, as the jump to 1440p does not halve performance as it would if purely GPU-bound.

The Low preset data confirms this interpretation. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 204 FPS average, which is extraordinarily high and indicates the i5-9400's six cores are being pushed near their limits. Moving to 1440p Low yields 131 FPS, a 36% drop, while 4K Low produces 70 FPS, a 66% drop from 1080p. The consistent percentage drops across settings suggest that the resolution scaling is primarily a GPU workload phenomenon, but the absolute values at 1080p — where even Low preset exceeds 200 FPS — indicate the CPU can deliver high frame rates when the GPU has lighter work.

Ultra settings tell the most interesting story. At 1080p Ultra, the system manages 85 FPS average, which is still highly playable. Dropping to 1440p Ultra reduces this to 55 FPS, a 35% decline, and 4K Ultra falls to 29 FPS, a 66% decline from the 1080p figure. These consistent percentage drops across all settings — roughly 35% for 1440p and 66% for 4K — strongly suggest that the RTX 3070 Ti's rendering pipeline is the dominant constraint at higher resolutions, while the CPU provides enough headroom to maintain playable frame rates at 1080p even with Ultra settings.

The data indicates that this combination is best suited for 1440p gaming, where it delivers playable frame rates across all presets, from 55 FPS at Ultra to 131 FPS at Low. At 4K, the configuration struggles with anything above Medium settings, as the 39 FPS average at High and 29 FPS at Ultra fall below smooth gameplay thresholds. The resolution scaling analysis reveals a system that is well-matched for 1440p, slightly CPU-limited at 1080p, and GPU-limited at 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti plays the dominant role in determining Hitman 2 performance at higher resolutions, and its specifications explain the measured frame rates. The GPU features 8 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 608.3 GB/s of memory bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for Hitman 2's environments at 1440p, but the data suggests it becomes a constraint at 4K Ultra, where the 29 FPS average indicates the GPU is overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and maximum settings.

The RTX 3070 Ti's clock speeds — 1575 MHz base and 1770 MHz boost — represent the Ampere architecture's capabilities on an 8 nm Samsung process. The GPU's 6144 shading units and 192 texture mapping units provide substantial compute resources, as reflected in its benchmark scores. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3478 and Passmark G3D score of 23356 place this GPU in the 75th percentile of all GPUs, indicating strong performance relative to the broader market. Its average benchmark score of 29945 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile (29928, 0.1% delta) and slightly below the AMD Radeon RX 6800 (30095, -0.5% delta).

The GPU's role in Hitman 2 is most evident in the 4K results. The difference between 4K Low at 70 FPS and 4K High at 39 FPS — a 44% reduction — demonstrates how much the GPU's shading and texture resources are taxed by higher quality settings. The 4K Medium result of 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS and maximum of 60 FPS shows frame time consistency that is acceptable for slower-paced stealth gameplay, but the Ultra preset at 29 FPS falls below the threshold for comfortable play. The RTX 3070 Ti's 21.75 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 339.8 GTexel/s texture rate are the specifications that drive these results, and they are clearly insufficient for 4K Ultra in this title.

At 1080p, the GPU is not the limiting factor. The 204 FPS Low preset result and 116 FPS High result suggest that the i5-9400 is preventing the RTX 3070 Ti from reaching even higher frame rates. The GPU's Passmark DirectX 11 score of 192 and DirectX 12 score of 91 indicate that while the card is capable of high throughput, the CPU cannot feed it fast enough at lower resolutions. The 8 GB VRAM capacity appears adequate for Hitman 2, as no stuttering or frame time anomalies are evident in the measured data at any resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-9400 serves as the bottleneck at 1080p but provides adequate support for the RTX 3070 Ti at higher resolutions. This six-core, six-thread processor from the Coffee Lake architecture operates at a 2.90 GHz base clock and 4.10 GHz boost clock, with 9 MB of shared L3 cache. Its benchmark scores — 6629 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 935 in single-core — place it in the 47th percentile of all CPUs, indicating mid-range performance. The average benchmark score of 2254 is virtually tied with the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 (2259, -0.2% delta) and Intel Core i3-10305 (2264, -0.4% delta), confirming its position in the competitive landscape.

The CPU's impact on Hitman 2 performance is most visible in the 1080p results. At 1920x1080 Low, the system achieves 204 FPS, which is a remarkable figure but likely represents the ceiling of what the i5-9400 can feed to the GPU. The fact that 1080p Ultra produces 85 FPS while 1440p Ultra produces 55 FPS — a smaller percentage drop than the resolution change alone would suggest — indicates that the CPU is still contributing to overall performance at 1080p. The six cores and six threads are sufficient for Hitman 2's AI and simulation workloads, but the lack of hyper-threading means the CPU cannot fully saturate the RTX 3070 Ti at lower resolutions.

At 1440p and 4K, the CPU's role diminishes as the GPU becomes the primary constraint. The smooth scaling from 1440p to 4K across all settings — roughly 47% reductions in frame rate — suggests that the i5-9400 is not introducing additional bottlenecks at these resolutions. The processor's 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth and dual-channel DDR4 support provide adequate data throughput for the GPU, and the 65 W TDP indicates that thermal throttling is unlikely to be a factor in sustained gaming sessions.

The CPU benchmark data reinforces that this processor is a mid-range part that can handle Hitman 2's demands but should not be expected to drive extreme frame rates. The Cinebench R20 multi-core score of 2784 and Geekbench multi-core score of 5141 are consistent with other six-core parts from the same era. The nearest rivals — the Intel Core i7-10710U (2248, 0.3% delta) and AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2246, 0.4% delta) — show that the i5-9400 sits in a crowded field of similar performers, and none of these CPUs would meaningfully change the Hitman 2 results presented here.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU and GPU combination in Hitman 2?

A: The data shows 2560x1440 provides the best balance of performance and visual quality. At 1440p High, the system achieves 74 FPS average, which is smooth for stealth gameplay, while even Ultra settings deliver 55 FPS. At 4K, only Low (70 FPS) and Medium (52 FPS) are playable, while 1080p at High (116 FPS) exceeds what the display can likely show for most users.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in overall GPU performance?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 29945, which is 0.1% below the RTX 5070 Mobile (29928) and 0.5% below the RX 6800 (30095). It outperforms the RTX 2080 Ti by 0.5% (29783) and the RX 6700 by 1.6% (30433). These differences are negligible in real-world gaming.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-9400 a bottleneck for the RTX 3070 Ti in this game?

A: At 1080p, yes. The 204 FPS Low preset result suggests the CPU is limiting the GPU's output, as the RTX 3070 Ti is capable of higher frame rates. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the primary constraint, and the i5-9400 provides adequate support.

Q: What is the highest playable setting at 4K resolution for this configuration?

A: Medium settings at 3840x2160 provide an average of 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS and maximum of 60 FPS. This is the only 4K preset that maintains frame rates above 50 FPS average. High at 39 FPS and Ultra at 29 FPS are generally too low for comfortable gameplay.

Q: How does the i5-9400's performance compare to its closest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-9400's average benchmark score of 2254 is 0.2% below the i7-1068NG7 (2259) and 0.4% below the i3-10305 (2264). It is 0.3% above the i7-10710U (2248) and 0.4% above the Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 (2246). These differences are within measurement error.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM on the RTX 3070 Ti cause any issues in Hitman 2?

A: The measured data shows no frame time anomalies or stuttering that would indicate VRAM limitations. The 4K Medium result with a minimum of 44 FPS and maximum of 60 FPS suggests consistent performance, and the GPU's 608.3 GB/s memory bandwidth is sufficient for this game's textures at all tested settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimal settings at each resolution. At 1920x1080, Ultra settings are the best choice, as the 85 FPS average is well above playable thresholds, and the GPU has substantial headroom even with the CPU bottleneck. The 1080p High preset at 116 FPS is also excellent, but Ultra offers a better visual experience at only a 27% frame rate cost, which is worthwhile for a stealth game where detail matters.

At 2560x1440, High settings at 74 FPS represent the sweet spot. This preset provides 74 FPS average, which is smooth and responsive, while Ultra at 55 FPS is also playable but offers diminishing returns for the 26% performance reduction. Medium at 98 FPS is excessively fast for the visual quality it provides, and Low at 131 FPS is only useful for competitive play, which is not typical for Hitman 2. The 1440p High preset balances visual fidelity with the frame rate needed for precise aiming and stealth mechanics.

At 3840x2160, Medium settings are the only reasonable choice for playable performance. The 52 FPS average with a 44-60 FPS range is acceptable for Hitman 2's methodical gameplay, though players who prioritize frame rate may prefer Low at 70 FPS. High at 39 FPS and Ultra at 29 FPS are below the threshold for comfortable gameplay, and the visual improvements do not justify the significant frame rate penalties. For the best experience at 4K, Medium settings provide a playable frame rate while retaining enough visual quality to appreciate the game's environments.

The overall recommendation is to play at 1440p with High settings for the best balance of visual quality and performance. This configuration achieves 74 FPS average, which is smooth for the genre, and the RTX 3070 Ti has sufficient headroom to maintain consistent frame times. Players who prefer maximum visual fidelity can use Ultra at 1440p, but the 55 FPS average may be noticeable during fast camera movements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for Hitman 2 with the Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is as follows:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 204 FPS average
• Medium: 153 FPS average, with a minimum of 130 FPS and maximum of 176 FPS
• High: 116 FPS average
• Ultra: 85 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 131 FPS average
• Medium: 98 FPS average, with a minimum of 83 FPS and maximum of 113 FPS
• High: 74 FPS average
• Ultra: 55 FPS average

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 70 FPS average
• Medium: 52 FPS average, with a minimum of 44 FPS and maximum of 60 FPS
• High: 39 FPS average
• Ultra: 29 FPS average

The Medium preset results at each resolution include frame time data, showing that the configuration maintains consistent performance without major stutters. At 1080p Medium, the 130-176 FPS range indicates excellent frame pacing. At 1440p Medium, the 83-113 FPS range shows similar consistency. At 4K Medium, the 44-60 FPS range, while lower in absolute terms, still demonstrates stable frame times that are suitable for Hitman 2's slower gameplay pace.

The scaling from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows a consistent pattern: Low to Medium costs roughly 25% of frame rate, Medium to High costs an additional 24%, and High to Ultra costs another 27%. This consistent scaling suggests that each preset tier adds a similar computational load, making the settings hierarchy predictable for players. The 204 FPS at 1080p Low represents the absolute ceiling of this configuration's performance, while the 29 FPS at 4K Ultra represents the floor, and both extremes are useful reference points for understanding the system's capabilities in this game.