Hitman 2

The Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER pairing in Hitman 2 presents a classic study in component balance, where the CPU’s substantial thread count and high boost clocks provide a robust foundation, but the GPU’s capabilities ultimately dictate the experience at higher resolutions and quality presets. The data shows a 20-core, 28-thread processor with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, built on the Raptor Lake architecture. This configuration, ranking in the 91st percentile against all CPUs, ensures that the processor is rarely the primary constraint in this stealth title. The benchmark results indicate a processor that excels in multi-threaded workloads, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35122 and a single-core score of 4958, the latter being crucial for game logic and physics that Hitman 2 relies upon. The combination of high single-thread performance and a massive 33 MB of shared L3 cache means the CPU can feed the GPU with data efficiently, preventing stutter and frame-time spikes in crowded environments.

However, the GPU, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, becomes the limiting factor as graphical demands increase. Its benchmark scores, such as a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2011 and a Passmark G3D score of 16462, place it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs. This suggests a mid-range performer that can handle 1080p and 1440p gaming well but struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K. The CPU’s role is to ensure that the GPU is never waiting for data, and in this regard, the i7-14700F is more than adequate. The measured FPS data confirms this dynamic: at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 145 FPS, indicating that the CPU can push the GPU to its limits. As settings increase to Ultra at 1080p, the average drops to 60 FPS, showing that the GPU is now the bottleneck, a pattern that becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this combination balances visual fidelity with playable frame rates. For a smooth and responsive experience at 1920x1080, the High preset, delivering an average of 82 FPS, is the sweet spot. It offers a significant visual upgrade over Medium (109 FPS) while maintaining a frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold for most displays. The Ultra preset, at 60 FPS average, is playable but leaves no headroom for demanding scenes, making High the more consistent choice. For users prioritizing maximum fluidity, the Low preset at 145 FPS is an option, but it sacrifices too much visual detail for a marginal competitive advantage in a single-player stealth game. The data suggests that for 1080p, High is recommended as it provides a substantial improvement in image quality over Medium without the performance risk of Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the situation tightens. The High preset yields an average of 52 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. The Medium preset, at 69 FPS, is the recommended choice here, providing a smoother experience while still retaining a good level of detail. The Low preset, at 93 FPS, is viable for those who prioritize frame rate, but the visual compromise is significant. The Ultra preset at 39 FPS is not recommended, as it falls below the playable threshold. For 4K, the data indicates that this combo is not suited for high-quality gaming. The High preset only manages 28 FPS, and even Medium struggles at 37 FPS. Only the Low preset, at 49 FPS, approaches playability, but the visual quality is severely diminished. The best experience per the measured rows is achieved by using the High preset at 1080p or the Medium preset at 1440p, as these configurations offer the best balance of visual fidelity and frame rate stability.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data reveals a clear and expected pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At 1080p with High settings, the average frame rate is 82 FPS. This drops to 52 FPS at 1440p, a 36.6% decrease, and further to 28 FPS at 4K, a 65.9% decrease from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern is indicative of a GPU-bound system. The CPU is powerful enough to handle the game’s logic at all resolutions, but the RTX 2060 SUPER’s rendering capabilities are overwhelmed by the increasing pixel count. The 8 GB frame buffer and 448.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth become strained as the resolution increases, leading to diminishing returns in frame rate. The transition from 1080p to 1440p shows a significant drop, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is even more severe, highlighting the GPU’s inability to cope with the 4K workload.

This trend is consistent across all settings presets. At Low settings, the average FPS goes from 145 at 1080p to 93 at 1440p, a 35.9% drop, and then to 49 at 4K, a 66.2% drop from the 1080p figure. At Medium settings, the drop from 1080p (109 FPS) to 1440p (69 FPS) is 36.7%, and to 4K (37 FPS) is 66.1%. The uniformity of these percentage drops across different settings strongly suggests that the scaling is primarily a function of resolution, not the complexity of the scene or the quality presets. The limiting component is unequivocally the GPU. The CPU’s performance, as evidenced by its high single-thread scores, does not degrade with resolution, so the bottleneck shifts entirely to the GPU’s fill rate and memory subsystem. For users aiming for high frame rates, 1080p is the target resolution; 1440p is a compromise, and 4K should be avoided unless frame rate is not a priority.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all tested combinations for Hitman 2, this pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 2631st out of 3711 total combos. This places it in the 29th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that while it is not a top-tier performer, it sits above a significant portion of the database. The rank reflects the GPU’s mid-range standing; the CPU is a high-end part, but the overall combo’s performance is dragged down by the GPU’s limitations in this specific title. The data suggests that many other combinations, likely pairing the same CPU with a more powerful GPU or using a different CPU-GPU balance, achieve higher frame rates. The combo’s rank of 2631 out of 3711 is a direct consequence of the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 62nd percentile GPU ranking, which is the primary determinant of game performance in Hitman 2.

When comparing the components to their nearest rivals, the data provides context for their individual standings. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 53620 is 0.6% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288) and 0.8% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313P (53206), showing it is a competitive high-end processor. It is also 0.2% lower than the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701) and 0.3% higher than the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469), placing it in a tight cluster of high-performance chips. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 18093 is 0.4% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile (18159) and 1.5% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 460 (18373), indicating it is slightly below the performance of these rivals. This combination of a top-tier CPU and a mid-range GPU yields a combo rank that is lower than what the CPU alone would suggest, emphasizing that in gaming, the GPU is often the deciding factor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the definitive bottleneck in this system for Hitman 2. Its specifications, including a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, along with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, are sufficient for 1080p and light 1440p gaming but are stretched thin at higher resolutions and settings. The GPU’s compute capabilities, with 2176 shading units and a FP32 performance of 7.181 TFLOPS, are modest by modern standards, and its 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are not heavily utilized in this title, which does not feature ray tracing. The memory clock of 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) is adequate, but the 8 GB frame buffer can become a limitation in scenes with high texture detail. The benchmark results show a GPU that is competent but not exceptional, with a Passmark G3D score of 16462 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 77402, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs.

The data shows that the GPU’s performance scales poorly with resolution. At 1080p, it can deliver high frame rates, but at 4K, its performance collapses. This is typical of a GPU with a 256-bit memory bus, which cannot sustain the bandwidth required for 4K textures and pixel shading. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra is only 21 FPS, which is unplayable, and even at 4K High, it only reaches 28 FPS. The GPU’s role in this combo is to provide a playable experience at 1080p and a tolerable one at 1440p, but it is not capable of delivering high-quality 4K gaming. The 8 GB of VRAM is also a potential issue for future titles, but for Hitman 2, it is sufficient at lower settings. The GPU’s performance relative to its nearest rivals is competitive but not dominant, being slightly slower than the RTX 3060 Mobile and RX 460, which indicates its mid-range positioning. Ultimately, the RTX 2060 SUPER is the component that defines the system’s gaming capabilities, and its limitations are the primary reason for the combo’s lower rank.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in Hitman 2?

A: The measured data indicates 1920x1080 is the optimal resolution, delivering an average of 82 FPS on High settings. At 2560x1440, the frame rate drops to 52 FPS on High, while 3840x2160 only manages 28 FPS on High, making 1080p the most playable option.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F has an average benchmark score of 53620, which is 0.6% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288) and 0.8% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313P (53206). It is 0.2% lower than the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701) and 0.3% higher than the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469).

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER a bottleneck for the i7-14700F in this game?

A: Yes. The GPU's performance limits the system, as evidenced by the FPS drop from 82 FPS at 1080p High to 28 FPS at 4K High. The CPU is not the limiting factor; the GPU's rendering capabilities are insufficient for higher resolutions.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the Intel Core i7-14700F?

A: The launch MSRP of the Intel Core i7-14700F is $359.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 2631st out of 3711 total combos for Hitman 2. This places it in the lower 29% of all tested systems, reflecting the GPU's mid-range performance.

Q: Which settings preset offers the highest frame rate at 1080p?

A: The Low preset offers the highest average frame rate at 1080p, achieving 145 FPS. The Medium preset achieves 109 FPS, High achieves 82 FPS, and Ultra achieves 60 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact measured average frame rates for each resolution and settings preset combination:

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|---------|---------|

| 1920x1080 | Low | 145 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 109 | 92 | 125 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 82 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 60 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 93 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 69 | 59 | 80 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 52 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 39 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 49 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 37 | 31 | 43 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 28 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 21 | - | - |

The data shows a consistent and predictable decline in performance as resolution and settings increase. At 1080p, the system is capable of high frame rates even at Ultra, but at 1440p, the Ultra preset falls below 40 FPS, and at 4K, all presets except Low fall below 40 FPS. The Medium preset is the only one that provides min and max FPS data, showing a range of 31-43 FPS at 4K, 59-80 FPS at 1440p, and 92-125 FPS at 1080p. This range indicates some frame-time variance, but the average scores are the primary indicator of performance. The system is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can achieve an average of 60 FPS or higher on all presets, and 1440p gaming with adjusted settings. The 4K results are largely unplayable, with only the Low preset approaching a playable frame rate.