Hitman 2

Hitman 2 is a stealth game from 2018 that places a premium on CPU performance for its complex AI and simulation systems, but this particular pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700F with the AMD Radeon RX 570 tells a story of stark GPU limitation. The benchmark data shows a combo that is firmly anchored by its graphics card, with the powerful processor unable to lift frame rates past what the aging Polaris GPU can deliver. Across all resolutions and settings, the measured FPS reveals a system that is playable only at its most modest configurations, making it a clear case of a processor vastly outclassing its graphics counterpart.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K produces a predictable but severe collapse in performance, clearly indicting the AMD Radeon RX 570 as the primary bottleneck. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 39 FPS at 1920x1080 to 25 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to a nearly unplayable 13 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 67% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, a scaling pattern that is characteristic of a graphics card that is overwhelmed by pixel count rather than a CPU struggling with game logic.

The Low preset shows the same trend in absolute terms, though the percentages are slightly less punishing. Starting at 70 FPS at 1920x1080, the frame rate falls to 45 FPS at 2560x1440 and then to 24 FPS at 4K. This is a 66% drop from the lowest to the highest resolution, which suggests that even when graphical fidelity is minimized, the RX 570's 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are simply insufficient for the data throughput required at higher resolutions. The frame rate at 4K Low is still below the 30 FPS threshold often considered the minimum for acceptable gameplay.

The data indicates that the limiting component in this combo is unambiguously the GPU. The Intel Core i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is not the constraint here; if it were, the frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions. Instead, the measured FPS shows a classic GPU-bound scenario where each increase in pixel count directly taxes the Radeon RX 570's 2048 shading units and 32 ROPs. The 4K numbers are particularly telling, with the Ultra preset managing just 10 FPS, which is a slide show by any standard and demonstrates that this configuration is not viable for high-resolution gaming in Hitman 2.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and AMD Radeon RX 570 ranks 3544 out of 3711 tested combos for Hitman 2. This places it in the bottom 5% of all tested systems, a position that reflects the profound mismatch between the CPU's capabilities and the GPU's limitations. The combo rank is a holistic measure of the system's performance in this specific game, and the data shows that the pairing is severely hamstrung by the graphics card.

To contextualize this rank, consider the individual components' standings in their respective fields. The CPU, the Intel Core i7-14700F, sits in the 91st percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X, which scores 53288, a delta of 0.6%, and the Intel Xeon 6505P, which scores 53701, a delta of -0.2%. This is a high-end processor that is performing at the top of its class. In contrast, the GPU, the AMD Radeon RX 570, sits in the 74th percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 28766. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, scores 28874, a delta of -0.4%.

The discrepancy in percentile placement between the CPU and GPU is stark. A 91st percentile processor paired with a 74th percentile graphics card should not, on paper, produce a combo that ranks in the 5th percentile for a specific game. This indicates that Hitman 2's particular engine is exceptionally sensitive to the GPU's weaknesses, likely due to its rendering techniques and memory requirements. The data suggests that this combo is a poor match for Hitman 2, and that the GPU is the definitive anchor dragging the entire system down to the bottom of the rankings.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of running Hitman 2 at 4K?

A: While technically it can run, the measured FPS shows it is not a viable experience. At 4K with High settings, the average frame rate is 13 FPS, and with Low settings, it only reaches 24 FPS. The Ultra preset yields an average of just 10 FPS. These numbers are far below playable thresholds, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: What is the best resolution to play this game with this hardware?

A: The only resolution where the frame rates approach acceptable levels is 1920x1080. The data shows an average of 70 FPS at Low settings and 52 FPS at Medium settings at this resolution. Higher resolutions like 2560x1440 and 3840x2160 result in average frame rates that are too low for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the Intel Core i7-14700F perform relative to its rivals?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score is 53620, which places it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X, has a score of 53288, making the i7-14700F 0.6% faster. It is also 0.2% faster than the Intel Xeon 6505P, which scores 53701.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this configuration?

A: The data clearly points to the GPU as the bottleneck. The frame rates drop precipitously as resolution increases, which is a signature of a GPU-bound system. The CPU, which ranks in the 91st percentile, has ample headroom, but the AMD Radeon RX 570's performance characteristics prevent it from being utilized effectively.

Q: What is the highest playable settings preset at 1080p?

A: Based on the measured FPS, the Medium preset at 1920x1080, with an average of 52 FPS and a minimum of 44 FPS, is the highest playable option. The High preset drops to 39 FPS, and the Ultra preset falls to 29 FPS, which may be inconsistent for some players.

Q: How does the Radeon RX 570's performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GPU has an average benchmark score of 28766. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, scores 28874, which is 0.4% higher. It also sits close to the AMD Radeon R9 M295X, which scores 28580, making the RX 570 0.7% faster than that model.

Settings Recommendations

For this combination in Hitman 2, the data points to a single viable path for a playable experience. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset offers the best balance, delivering an average of 52 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 60 FPS. This is the only settings and resolution pairing that maintains an average above 50 FPS, which is a common target for smooth gameplay. The low preset at the same resolution is faster, hitting 70 FPS on average, but the medium preset provides a significant visual upgrade for a 26% reduction in average frame rate, a trade-off that is often worth it.

Pushing to the High preset at 1080p drops the average to 39 FPS, which is a 25% reduction from Medium and begins to introduce noticeable stutter in a game that requires precision. The Ultra preset, with an average of 29 FPS, is not recommended for anything other than static screenshots, as it falls below the threshold for fluid motion. At higher resolutions, the situation deteriorates quickly. At 2560x1440, even the Low preset only manages an average of 45 FPS, and the Medium preset falls to 33 FPS with a minimum of 28 FPS. This makes 1440p gaming a marginal prospect at best.

The data suggests that players should not consider 4K at all. The best-case scenario at 4K is the Low preset, which achieves 24 FPS, a figure that is still below acceptable playability. The conclusion is straightforward: stick to 1920x1080 and use the Medium preset for the best experience. If higher frame rates are a priority, the Low preset at 1080p is the only other playable option, but the jump in visual fidelity from Low to Medium at the same resolution is substantial enough that most users will prefer the latter. The High and Ultra presets should be avoided at all resolutions, as they tax the GPU beyond its limits.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's performance envelope across all tested configurations. Starting at 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 70 FPS, which is the highest frame rate recorded for this combo. The Medium preset follows at 52 FPS average, with a minimum of 44 and a maximum of 60. The High preset drops to 39 FPS, and the Ultra preset bottoms out at 29 FPS. This shows a consistent degradation of performance as visual fidelity increases, with a 59% performance loss from Low to Ultra.

Moving to 2560x1440, the impact of the resolution increase is immediately apparent. The Low preset averages 45 FPS, a 36% reduction from the same settings at 1080p. The Medium preset averages 33 FPS, with a minimum of 28 FPS and a maximum of 38 FPS. The High preset falls to 25 FPS, and the Ultra preset manages only 19 FPS. None of these averages are high enough to guarantee a smooth experience, and the minimum FPS figures for Medium suggest that there will be noticeable hitches during intense scenes.

At 3840x2160, the performance collapses to the point of being non-functional for gameplay. The Low preset averages 24 FPS, which is below the standard for playability. The Medium preset averages 18 FPS, with a minimum of 15 and a maximum of 20. The High preset averages 13 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 10 FPS. The data for 4K is consistent in showing that this GPU cannot handle the pixel throughput required, regardless of the settings preset chosen. The frame rates at this resolution are uniformly poor, confirming that the AMD Radeon RX 570 is the definitive limiting factor in this configuration.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. It features a substantial 33 MB of shared L3 cache and supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 35122 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 4958 in single-core, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. These figures indicate an extremely capable processor that can handle any modern game's CPU demands with significant headroom.

In the context of Hitman 2, the CPU's role is to manage the game's AI routines, physics calculations, and draw calls. The high core count and boost clock of the i7-14700F are more than sufficient for this task. The benchmark data confirms this, as the frame rates do not improve when resolution is lowered; they instead scale directly with the GPU's load. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see frame rates plateau at a certain point regardless of resolution, but the data shows a continuous decline from 1080p to 4K, which is the signature of a GPU bottleneck.

The processor's performance relative to its rivals reinforces its strength. It outperforms the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X by 0.6% and the Intel Xeon 6505P by 0.2% in average benchmark scores. The single-core performance, which is often critical for games, is also strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4958. However, in this specific combo, the CPU's power is largely untapped. The AMD Radeon RX 570, with its 5.095 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, is unable to feed frames to the CPU fast enough to utilize its processing power. The result is that the i7-14700F sits largely idle, waiting on the GPU to deliver data, making it a poor pairing for a game that is so graphically demanding.