Hitman 2

The Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT lands at rank 1722 out of 3711 tested combos in Hitman 2, placing it in the upper-middle tier of the database. This is a solid position for a 1440p-focused stealth gaming setup, but the data reveals clear bottlenecks at higher resolutions that dictate how you should configure the game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1722 out of 3711 puts it comfortably in the top half of all tested configurations. With the CPU sitting at the 85th percentile among all processors and the GPU at the 71st percentile among all graphics cards, this pairing is balanced on paper but leans slightly toward processor headroom. The data confirms this: at 1080p, the system delivers excellent frame rates that suggest the GPU is the primary limiting factor, while at 4K, the frame rates collapse in a way that points directly at the RX 6750 XT struggling with pixel throughput.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the i7-12700KF is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-12700K (0.2% delta) and the Intel Core i5-13600T (0.2% delta), while sitting marginally behind the Intel Core i7-13700T (-0.1%) and Intel Core 5 213PE (-0.2%). These are all within noise-level differences, meaning the CPU is not a differentiator in this game. The GPU, however, sits just 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M395X and 1.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile in synthetic benchmarks—but those are mobile and older parts, so the real story is how the RX 6750 XT behaves under Hitman 2’s specific load.

The benchmark data indicates this combo is best treated as a 1080p-to-1440p machine. At 4K, it fails to maintain playable frame rates on higher presets, which is the single most important takeaway from the rank and measured FPS data.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Hitman 2 at 4K smoothly?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 26 on Ultra to 62 on Low. Only the Low preset crosses the 60 FPS threshold, and the Medium preset averages 47 FPS with a minimum of 40 FPS. High and Ultra sit at 35 and 26 FPS respectively, which are not playable for a stealth game requiring precise timing.

Q: What is the best resolution for this pairing?

A: 2560x1440 is the sweet spot. The High preset delivers 66 FPS average, Medium hits 87 FPS, and Low reaches 116 FPS. Only Ultra dips below 60 FPS at 49 FPS average. This resolution balances visual quality with the GPU’s capabilities.

Q: How does the CPU’s core count affect performance in this game?

A: The i7-12700KF has 12 cores and 20 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost of 5.00 GHz. In Hitman 2, the data shows that at 1080p Low, the system reaches 182 FPS, indicating the CPU is not a bottleneck at lower resolutions. The bottleneck shifts to the GPU as resolution increases.

Q: Is the RX 6750 XT the limiting factor at 4K?

A: Yes. The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep: High preset goes from 103 FPS to 35 FPS, a 66% reduction. This magnitude of loss is characteristic of a GPU hitting its memory bandwidth limit (432.0 GB/s) and pixel fill rate ceiling (166.4 GPixel/s) rather than a CPU limitation.

Q: What preset provides the most consistent experience at 1440p?

A: Medium at 2560x1440 offers 87 FPS average with a minimum of 74 FPS and maximum of 100 FPS. This gives the tightest frame time variance while keeping visuals above Low. High is also viable at 66 FPS average but lacks min/max data for comparison.

Q: How does this combo compare to the CPU’s nearest rivals in gaming?

A: The i7-12700KF is virtually identical to the i7-12700K (0.2% delta) and i5-13600T (0.2% delta) in synthetic benchmarks. The data shows no meaningful CPU-side difference that would alter Hitman 2 frame rates; the GPU is the deciding factor.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K tells a clear story about where the bottleneck lives. At 1920x1080 High, the system averages 103 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High drops that to 66 FPS, a 36% reduction. Jumping to 3840x2160 High yields just 35 FPS, a 66% reduction from 1080p and a 47% reduction from 1440p. This is a classic GPU-limited curve. The RX 6750 XT’s 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth simply cannot feed the pixel pipeline fast enough at 4K.

The Low preset scaling is even more telling. At 1080p Low, the system hits 182 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 116 FPS (36% loss). At 4K Low, it falls to 62 FPS (66% loss from 1080p). The consistent ~66% loss from 1080p to 4K across both Low and High presets confirms that resolution is the dominant factor, not settings. This means the CPU has ample headroom even at Low settings—the i7-12700KF’s 5.00 GHz boost clock and 25 MB of shared L3 cache are more than enough for Hitman 2’s AI and physics at any resolution.

The Medium preset provides the only complete data set with min and max FPS. At 1080p, it averages 136 FPS with a range of 116-157. At 1440p, it averages 87 FPS with a range of 74-100. At 4K, it averages 47 FPS with a range of 40-53. The frame time consistency degrades as resolution climbs, with the 4K minimum of 40 FPS being only 15 FPS below the average, indicating the GPU is consistently maxed out rather than spiking.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers high frame rates across all presets. Low averages 182 FPS, Medium averages 136 FPS with a minimum of 116 and maximum of 157, High averages 103 FPS, and Ultra averages 76 FPS. Every preset clears the 60 FPS threshold, and even Ultra maintains a comfortable margin above it.

At 2560x1440, the performance drops but remains playable on most presets. Low averages 116 FPS, Medium averages 87 FPS with a range of 74-100, High averages 66 FPS, and Ultra falls to 49 FPS. This is the first resolution where Ultra dips below 60 FPS, making it the boundary for maximum settings.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear limiting factor. Low averages 62 FPS, just above the 60 FPS line. Medium averages 47 FPS with a minimum of 40 and maximum of 53. High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. None of the higher presets are suitable for consistent stealth gameplay at this resolution.

The data shows a linear relationship between settings and FPS at each resolution. At 1080p, the spread from Low (182 FPS) to Ultra (76 FPS) is 106 FPS. At 1440p, the spread narrows to 67 FPS (116 to 49). At 4K, the spread is just 36 FPS (62 to 26). This narrowing indicates that at higher resolutions, the GPU’s fixed costs (pixel shading, memory access) dominate, and the settings adjustments have diminishing returns.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p, the Ultra preset at 76 FPS average is the best choice. It provides the highest visual fidelity while maintaining a frame rate well above the 60 FPS target for smooth stealth gameplay. The High preset at 103 FPS is also viable if you prefer extra headroom for recording or streaming, but Ultra’s visual benefits are worth the 27 FPS trade-off.

For 1440p, the High preset at 66 FPS average is the recommended starting point. It keeps the experience smooth and looks significantly better than Medium. If you prioritize frame rate consistency, Medium at 87 FPS with a minimum of 74 FPS offers the tightest range of any 1440p preset, ensuring no drops below 70 FPS. Avoid Ultra at 49 FPS—the data shows it is not worth the visual gain for the performance loss.

For 4K, the only viable option is Low at 62 FPS average. Medium at 47 FPS is borderline but will suffer during busy scenes (minimum 40 FPS), which is risky in a stealth game where reaction time matters. High and Ultra are unplayable at 35 and 26 FPS respectively. If 4K is your target, you need to accept Low settings or consider a stronger GPU.

The overall best experience for this combo is 1440p High. It delivers 66 FPS average, which is smooth, and the visual quality is a major step up from Low or Medium. The CPU has enough headroom to handle any background tasks, and the GPU is not overstressed enough to cause frame time spikes.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is a 12-core, 20-thread processor based on Alder Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, with 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 25 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus, with 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes.

In Hitman 2, the CPU’s role is primarily handling game logic, NPC AI, and scene management. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system reaches 182 FPS, which is far beyond the GPU’s ability to render at higher settings. This indicates the CPU is not a limiting factor at any resolution tested. The single-thread performance (3dmark single-thread score of 1043) is strong, and the multi-thread capabilities (3dmark max-threads score of 9983) provide ample headroom for background tasks.

The CPU’s 85th percentile ranking among all processors reinforces its capability. It is essentially tied with the i7-12700K (0.2% delta) and i5-13600T (0.2% delta), and only marginally behind the i7-13700T (-0.1%). These differences are negligible in gaming, and the data confirms that swapping to any of these rivals would not change Hitman 2 frame rates.

The 125W TDP and Intel Socket 1700 mounting make it a standard high-end desktop part. For Hitman 2 specifically, the CPU’s boost clock of 5.00 GHz is more relevant than core count, as the game’s stealth mechanics rely on consistent single-thread responsiveness. The 20 threads ensure that even with multiple NPCs and complex scene scripts running, there is no contention for resources that would cause stutters. In short, the i7-12700KF is more than sufficient for this game, and the GPU is the component that dictates performance at 1440p and above.