Hitman 2

The Intel Core i7-12700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 lands in the 1433rd position out of 1795 tested combos for Hitman 2. This places the configuration in the lower-mid tier of the database, indicating that while it can run the game, it is far from a top-tier performer. The data shows that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it achieves playable frame rates at most settings, but struggles significantly at higher resolutions like 1440p and 4K, particularly with demanding presets.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1433 out of 1795 places it in the 20th percentile of all tested configurations for Hitman 2. This is a modest standing, reflecting the GPU’s mid-range status (58th percentile among all GPUs) rather than the CPU’s strength (89th percentile among all CPUs). The data clearly indicates that the RTX 2060 is the limiting factor, as the i7-12700K offers substantial headroom that the GPU cannot utilize in this title.

Benchmark results show that the RTX 2060 is virtually tied with its nearest rivals, with only a 0.5% deltaPct separating it from the AMD Radeon RX 7600S, and a 1.8% advantage over the AMD Radeon Pro W5500. This tight grouping suggests that in Hitman 2, the GPU’s performance is typical for its class, and the 1433rd ranking is not an outlier but rather a reflection of the hardware’s inherent capabilities. The CPU, by contrast, sits within 0.8% of its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13800H, confirming that the processor is not the bottleneck in this pairing.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the data points decisively to 1080p with Medium settings, which delivers an average of 101.7 FPS. This combination offers a smooth, responsive frame rate while still providing a visual quality upgrade over Low settings. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 134.7 FPS, which is excellent for competitive play but sacrifices visual fidelity. High settings at 1080p still hold up well at 74.9 FPS, making it a viable alternative for those prioritizing image quality over maximum frame rates.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more constrained. Medium settings produce 65.9 FPS, which is playable, while High drops to 48.6 FPS, and Ultra falls to 32.7 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay. The data suggests that 1440p users should stick to Medium or Low settings, with Low providing 83.7 FPS. At 4K, the combo is not recommended for any preset, as even Low settings only yield 43.8 FPS, and High dips to 26.5 FPS, making the game feel sluggish and unresponsive.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware?

A: The data shows that 1080p with Medium settings provides the best balance, achieving an average of 101.7 FPS. This delivers a smooth experience without the visual penalties of Low settings.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Hitman 2?

A: No. The measured FPS at 3840x2160 are all below 44 FPS, with Ultra at just 21.9 FPS. Even Low settings at 4K fail to reach 60 FPS, making this resolution impractical for this configuration.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its closest rivals in this game?

A: The RTX 2060’s average benchmark score of 16074 is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996, deltaPct 0.5%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M (16351, deltaPct -1.7%). This indicates that performance in Hitman 2 is consistent with its peers.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-12700K a bottleneck at 1080p?

A: No. The CPU’s benchmark scores (e.g., 29241 in Cinebench R23 multicore) far exceed what Hitman 2 requires. The frame rate limitations at 1080p, such as 74.9 FPS on High, are clearly GPU-bound, as the RTX 2060’s performance is the constraining factor.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average is 48.6 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS target, so users should consider dropping to Medium (65.9 FPS) or Low (83.7 FPS) for a smoother experience.

Q: Does the game run better at Low settings than at Ultra?

A: Yes, significantly. At 1080p, Low achieves 134.7 FPS compared to 54.6 FPS on Ultra. The gap widens at higher resolutions, with Low at 4K hitting 43.8 FPS versus 21.9 FPS on Ultra.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest performance. Low settings yield an average of 134.7 FPS, while Medium provides 101.7 FPS and High reaches 74.9 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 54.6 FPS, which is still playable but shows the GPU’s strain with maximum details. The progression from Low to Ultra represents a 60% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the significant cost of visual enhancements.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down predictably. Low settings maintain a smooth 83.7 FPS, while Medium drops to 65.9 FPS. High settings fall to 48.6 FPS, and Ultra becomes marginal at 32.7 FPS. The data shows that 1440p is only viable for Low or Medium presets if the user seeks frame rates above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 2060 is clearly out of its depth. Low settings manage 43.8 FPS, but Medium drops to 34.4 FPS, High to 26.5 FPS, and Ultra to 21.9 FPS. All 4K results are below the 60 FPS threshold, and even the lowest preset fails to provide a consistently smooth experience. The performance cliff between 1440p and 4K is steep, with the average FPS dropping by roughly half across all settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the primary driver of the combo’s in-game ranking, and its specifications explain the observed results. With 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, the GPU has a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s, which is adequate for 1080p but becomes a limiting factor at higher resolutions. The 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s, which are mid-range figures for the GeForce 20-series.

The GPU’s boost clock of 1680 MHz and base clock of 1365 MHz are typical for the Turing architecture, and its FP32 performance of 6.451 TFLOPS places it in the same league as its nearest rivals. The benchmark data confirms this: the GPU’s PassMark G3D score of 14111 and average benchmark score of 16074 are within 2% of the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M and RX 7600S. In Hitman 2, this translates to the GPU being the bottleneck at all resolutions above 1080p, as evidenced by the steep FPS drops when resolution increases.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a high-end desktop processor with 12 cores and 20 threads, based on the Alder Lake architecture. Its boost clock of 5.00 GHz and base clock of 3.60 GHz provide substantial single-thread performance, as shown by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1043 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4128. The processor’s multi-threaded capabilities are equally strong, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 29241 and a PassMark multithread score of 34404.

In the context of Hitman 2, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with data without becoming a bottleneck. The data shows that this is not a concern: even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is least stressed, the combo achieves 134.7 FPS, which is far below the CPU’s theoretical limits. The processor’s 25 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory ensure that game logic and physics calculations are handled efficiently. The CPU’s 89th percentile ranking among all processors confirms that it is not the limiting component in this pairing.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, with the GPU becoming the dominant limiting factor. From 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS across all settings drops by approximately 35-40%. For example, High settings fall from 74.9 FPS at 1080p to 48.6 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 35%. This is consistent with the GPU needing to render 78% more pixels, and the RTX 2060’s bandwidth and shading units being insufficient to maintain frame rates.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is even more severe, with average FPS dropping by another 45-50%. At High settings, the frame rate goes from 48.6 FPS at 1440p to 26.5 FPS at 4K, a 45% decline. This steep drop indicates that the GPU is entirely overwhelmed at 4K, as the pixel count doubles from 1440p. The data suggests that the CPU’s performance is flat across resolutions, as the i7-12700K can easily handle the game’s processing demands. The limiting component is unequivocally the RTX 2060, whose 6 GB VRAM and 192-bit memory bus are insufficient for the higher resolutions, leading to the sub-60 FPS results observed at 4K and the marginal performance at 1440p Ultra.