Hitman 2

The Intel Core i9-14900K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 secures the 4th position out of 1,795 tested combinations in Hitman 2, placing it in the top 0.2% of all recorded systems. This ranking reflects a configuration that sits at the apex of the database, trailing only three other combos out of nearly two thousand. The data shows a system that delivers exceptional performance across the board, though the gap between this combo and the absolute top spot indicates that the game’s engine still finds headroom in even the most powerful consumer hardware available.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s 4th-place finish out of 1,795 tested configurations is a dominant result, placing it within the top percentile of all systems tested for this title. This ranking is not merely a function of one component’s strength; it is the product of a balanced pairing where both the CPU and GPU contribute meaningfully to the frame rates achieved. The data positions this duo ahead of the vast majority of alternatives, with only three other combos managing to outperform it. Given the age of Hitman 2’s engine, the fact that this modern flagship pairing reaches such a high rank underscores how demanding the game’s simulation and rendering can be at its upper limits. The benchmark results indicate that users with this configuration are experiencing near-peak performance for this title, with minimal room for improvement without moving to components that do not exist in the current database. The ranking also suggests that the combination of the i9-14900K’s high core count and the RTX 5090’s massive shading and ray-tracing resources are being utilized effectively, avoiding any significant bottleneck that would drag the score down below its current tier.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the primary driver of raw frame generation in this combo, and its specifications align with the measured results. The GPU’s 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for feeding the high-resolution textures and geometry that Hitman 2’s detailed environments demand. The boost clock of 2407 MHz allows the 21,760 shading units to operate at a high frequency, translating directly into the fill rates seen at lower resolutions. In this game, the GPU’s role becomes more pronounced as resolution scales up, as evidenced by the frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K. The RTX 5090’s 170 ray-tracing cores and 680 tensor cores are present but are not heavily taxed, as Hitman 2 does not feature the same level of ray-traced effects as more recent titles. The data shows that the GPU’s performance ceiling is high enough to push the i9-14900K to its limits at 1080p, where the CPU becomes the limiting factor, but at 4K, the GPU’s workload increases significantly. The 5 nm process node and 92,200 million transistors on the GB202 chip enable this level of performance, though the 575 W TDP indicates the power required to sustain these clocks. The benchmark scores for the GPU, such as a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 14,411 and a Passmark G3D score of 39,650, confirm its position in the 94th percentile of all GPUs.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases, with the frame rate dropping substantially from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves 194.5 FPS, which rises to 350 FPS on Low settings, indicating that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough frames to reach very high refresh rates. However, moving to 1440p High brings the average down to 123.3 FPS, and at 4K High, it falls to 69.9 FPS. This represents a drop of approximately 64% from 1080p High to 4K High, a significant reduction that highlights the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 47.1, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider playable, suggesting that even this top-tier GPU struggles with the game’s most demanding settings at maximum resolution. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is also telling: 120.5 FPS at Low versus 47.1 FPS at Ultra shows a 61% decrease, demonstrating that the game’s Ultra settings impose a heavy load on the GPU’s shading and memory subsystems. The data indicates that for competitive play at high refresh rates, 1080p is the sweet spot, while 4K is reserved for visual fidelity over frame rate. The limiting component at lower resolutions is clearly the CPU, as the 350 FPS at 1080p Low suggests the GPU has headroom that the processor cannot fully exploit, but at 4K, the GPU’s rendering workload dominates the equation.

FAQ

Q: What is the combo’s overall rank in Hitman 2?

A: The Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination ranks 4th out of 1,795 tested combos in Hitman 2.

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

A: The i9-14900K has an average benchmark score of 79,824, which is 0.7% higher than the Intel Core i9-14900KF and 0.7% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, while being 0.3% lower than the AMD EPYC 7413.

Q: What is the GPU’s memory configuration?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory with a 512-bit bus width, providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What is the best resolution for high frame rates with this combo?

A: At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves 194.5 FPS, while at Low settings it reaches 350 FPS, making 1080p the optimal choice for high refresh rate displays.

Q: How much does performance drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 194.5 at 1080p High to 69.9 at 4K High, a decrease of roughly 64%.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 47.1, which indicates the GPU’s rendering load is the primary bottleneck, as the CPU’s performance headroom is not fully utilized at this resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K plays a critical role in maintaining high frame rates, particularly at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully saturated. With 24 cores and 32 threads, the CPU’s architecture is well-suited for Hitman 2’s simulation-heavy gameplay, which includes AI routines and physics calculations that can tax multiple threads. The boost clock of 6.00 GHz is the highest in the database, and this single-thread speed is directly relevant to the game’s frame pacing and logic updates. The benchmark results show a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7,040 and a multi-core score of 49,872, which places the CPU in the 97th percentile of all CPUs. The data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo reaches 350 FPS, which is likely constrained by the CPU’s ability to issue draw calls and process game logic, rather than the GPU’s rendering capabilities. The CPU’s 36 MB of shared L3 cache provides ample storage for frequently accessed data, reducing latency for game assets. The 125 W TDP, while lower than the GPU’s 575 W, indicates the power envelope required for this level of performance. The nearest rivals, including the Intel Core i9-14900KF and Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF, score within 0.7% of the i9-14900K, but the latter’s combination of high clock speeds and core count gives it a slight edge in this title’s multi-threaded workloads. At 4K Ultra, the CPU’s role diminishes as the GPU becomes the bottleneck, but at 1080p High, the 194.5 FPS result demonstrates that the CPU is not holding back the GPU to a significant degree. The Passmark multi-thread score of 58,674 further confirms the CPU’s strong multi-core performance, which is essential for maintaining consistent frame times in crowded environments.