Hitman 2

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is a 12-core, 20-thread processor from the Alder Lake generation, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This hybrid architecture combines performance and efficiency cores to handle both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads, which is reflected in its benchmark scores. In the 3DMark suite, the CPU scores 1,043 in the single-thread test and 9,983 in the max-thread test, indicating strong scaling across cores. The Cinebench R23 results reinforce this picture, with a single-core score of 4,071 and a multi-core score of 28,838. These metrics place the processor in the 85th percentile among all CPUs in the database.

The data suggests that the i7-12700KF is well-suited to Hitman 2's engine, which tends to favor strong single-thread performance for game logic while also utilizing multiple cores for AI and physics. The 3DMark 8-thread score of 7,211 is notably close to the max-thread score of 9,983, implying that the processor's performance does not degrade significantly when moving from 8 to 20 threads. This matters for Hitman 2, as the game's crowd simulations and complex level interactions can benefit from additional thread headroom without bottlenecking the primary game thread. Compared to its nearest rivals, the i7-12700KF is essentially tied with the Intel Core i7-13700T (deltaPct -0.1) and the Intel Core i5-13600T (deltaPct 0.2), while also matching the i7-12700K (deltaPct 0.2). This means that among these comparable processors, the i7-12700KF is neither ahead nor behind by any meaningful margin, making its overall compute capability a stable foundation for the GPU to build upon.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-12700KF's core configuration and clock speeds directly influence the frame rates observed in Hitman 2. With a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, the processor can deliver high single-thread throughput, which is crucial for the game's main simulation loop. The measured results show that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 314 FPS, a figure that is likely constrained by the CPU rather than the GPU. This high frame rate indicates that the i7-12700KF can feed the RTX 5080 with enough data to saturate even the fastest rendering pipelines at lower resolutions.

The processor's 25 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core help reduce memory latency, which is beneficial for Hitman 2's open-ended levels where many objects and NPCs are tracked simultaneously. The 20 threads allow for parallel processing of the game's background tasks, such as pathfinding and audio, without stealing cycles from the main render thread. The benchmark data for the CPU shows a passmark multithread score of 34,092 and a single-thread score of 3,984, which positions it as a high-end desktop part. The fact that the combo ranks 212 out of 3711 total combinations in this game suggests that the CPU is not a limiting factor; rather, it provides ample headroom for the GPU to operate at its full potential.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on a 5 nm process, with 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s. The GPU's boost clock is 2617 MHz, and it features 10,752 shading units and 112 ROPs. These specifications are critical for Hitman 2, which features large, detailed environments with complex lighting and shadow effects. The 16 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for the game's highest texture settings at 4K, ensuring that the GPU does not have to swap assets out to system memory, which would cause stuttering.

The GPU's pixel rate of 293.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 879.3 GTexel/s are directly relevant to the frame rates seen at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra settings, the combo drops to 45 FPS average, which is a significant reduction from the 61 FPS at 4K High. This indicates that the Ultra preset imposes a heavy rendering burden that stresses the GPU's compute and memory subsystems. The RTX 5080's 56.28 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is substantial, but Hitman 2's Ultra settings include high levels of ambient occlusion, shadows, and reflections that require significant shader work. The GPU's benchmark scores, such as a passmark G3D score of 36,565, place it in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, showing that it is a top-tier part. However, the data shows that even a GPU of this caliber is challenged by the most demanding settings in this game at 4K.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

Examining the measured FPS across resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. At 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 314 FPS, which drops to 201 FPS at 1440p Low, and further to 107 FPS at 4K Low. This represents a 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K, which is a larger drop than the 4x increase in pixel count would suggest if the workload scaled purely linearly. This indicates that the game becomes increasingly GPU-limited as resolution rises, with the CPU overhead becoming a smaller fraction of the total frame time.

The situation is similar at High settings, where the combo delivers 178 FPS at 1080p, 114 FPS at 1440p, and 61 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is 66% again, but the absolute numbers are lower because the High preset places more load on the GPU. At Ultra settings, the scaling is more extreme: 131 FPS at 1080p, 84 FPS at 1440p, and 45 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra score is only 34% of the 1080p Ultra score, which suggests that the GPU is hitting a performance wall due to memory bandwidth or shader complexity. The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU has more influence, as evidenced by the large gap between Low (314 FPS) and Ultra (131 FPS) settings. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, and the difference between Low and Ultra narrows in percentage terms, though the absolute FPS drops significantly.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 achieves a rank of 212 out of 3,711 tested combos in Hitman 2. This places the setup in the top 5.7% of all configurations in the database, which is a strong showing for a modern CPU and GPU pairing. The rank is influenced by the measured FPS across all resolutions and settings, with the system's ability to maintain high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p contributing significantly to its position. The data indicates that this combo outperforms the vast majority of alternatives, including those with older or lower-tier components.

The nearest rival data for the CPU shows that the i7-12700KF is nearly identical in average benchmark score to the i7-13700T and i5-13600T, with deltas of -0.1% and 0.2%, respectively. For the GPU, the RTX 5080 is 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon 8060S and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, while being 2.2% behind the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE. These small percentage differences in synthetic benchmarks do not translate into large FPS variations in Hitman 2, as the game's engine is well-optimized for a wide range of hardware. The combo's high rank confirms the balanced nature of the CPU and GPU, rather than one component carrying the other.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the combo achieves 235 FPS average with a minimum of 200 FPS and a maximum of 270 FPS, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 150 FPS with a minimum of 128 FPS, still providing a fluid experience for most displays. Even at 4K Medium, the combo maintains an average of 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS, which is playable and significantly better than the 45 FPS average at Ultra.

The High preset is also viable, offering 178 FPS at 1080p and 114 FPS at 1440p, but the jump to 4K High results in 61 FPS, which may be borderline for some users. The Ultra preset is not recommended for high-refresh-rate play, as it only achieves 131 FPS at 1080p and 45 FPS at 4K, with no minimum FPS data provided to assess frame time consistency. The Low preset delivers the highest frame rates, with 314 FPS at 1080p, but it sacrifices too much visual detail to be a practical choice for most players. Therefore, the Medium preset represents the sweet spot, providing a 60+ FPS experience at 4K and 100+ FPS at lower resolutions, while retaining enough graphical fidelity to appreciate the game's detailed environments.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The combo achieves an average of 114 FPS at 2560x1440 with High settings.

Q: How much faster is Low settings compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 314 FPS, which is 183 FPS higher than the Ultra preset's 131 FPS.

Q: Does the combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K with any preset?

A: Yes, the Medium preset at 3840x2160 averages 80 FPS, and the High preset averages 61 FPS. The Ultra preset falls below 60 FPS with an average of 45 FPS.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: The minimum FPS for 3840x2160 Medium is 68 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to the Intel Core i7-13700T in average benchmark score?

A: The i7-12700KF has an average score of 35,365, which is 0.1% lower than the i7-13700T's 35,403.

Q: What is the GPU's memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5080 has a memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080 resolution, the measured average FPS varies significantly by preset. The Low settings deliver the highest performance, with an average of 314 FPS. The Medium preset yields an average of 235 FPS, with a recorded minimum of 200 FPS and a maximum of 270 FPS. The High preset averages 178 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 131 FPS. This shows a clear performance degradation of 183 FPS from Low to Ultra at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is capable of handling the game's load at this resolution, but the higher presets introduce more demanding effects that reduce frame rates.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop across all settings. Low averages 201 FPS, Medium averages 150 FPS with a minimum of 128 FPS and a maximum of 173 FPS, High averages 114 FPS, and Ultra averages 84 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 117 FPS, showing that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as pixel count increases. At 3840x2160, the performance is further reduced. Low averages 107 FPS, Medium averages 80 FPS with a minimum of 68 FPS and a maximum of 92 FPS, High averages 61 FPS, and Ultra averages 45 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 62 FPS, which is less than half the gap seen at 1080p, confirming that the GPU is the dominant bottleneck at this resolution. The data shows a consistent trend where each step up in resolution reduces FPS, but the rate of reduction is steeper at higher settings, highlighting the GPU's workload scaling with both resolution and graphical complexity.