Hitman 2

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 paired with the Intel Arc B390 integrated graphics produces a combination that is fundamentally constrained by its GPU in Hitman 2. The data shows a system that can achieve playable frame rates only at the lowest settings and resolution, with performance degrading rapidly as graphical demands increase. This analysis breaks down the measured results, contextualizes them against the hardware's broader capabilities, and provides clear guidance based on the benchmark data.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance rank of this CPU and GPU combo in Hitman 2?

A: The combination ranks 2662 out of 3001 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This indicates that the system is among the weaker performers for this specific title, primarily due to the integrated graphics solution.

Q: What is the best average frame rate achieved in the benchmark data?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 80, which occurs at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the only configuration in the dataset that achieves a frame rate typically considered excellent for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the system capable of maintaining 60 FPS at 1080p?

A: Yes, but only at Medium settings, where the average FPS is exactly 60. At High settings, the average drops to 46 FPS, and at Ultra it falls to 34 FPS, indicating that Medium is the threshold for the 60 FPS target at this resolution.

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

A: The Intel Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482, which is 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, 1.5% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce 800M, and 2.5% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM. Its percentile ranking is 9, meaning it outperforms only 9% of all GPUs.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At 1920x1080 with High settings, the average FPS is 46. At 3840x2160 with the same settings, the average FPS drops to 16. This represents a 65% reduction in performance when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Does the CPU have enough processing power to avoid being a bottleneck?

A: Yes. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 has 20 cores and 20 threads, with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 places it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, indicating that its processing capabilities far exceed what the GPU can utilize in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame of 2662 out of 3001 places this system in the lowest 11.3% of all tested combinations for Hitman 2. This is a poor result that aligns with expectations for a system relying on an integrated GPU. The CPU, however, is a top-tier component; its percentileVsAllCpus score of 93 indicates it outperforms 93% of all CPUs in general benchmarks. The disparity between the CPU's high ranking and the combo's low ranking clearly identifies the GPU as the limiting factor.

The GPU's own percentileVsAllGpus score of 9 is even more telling, as it means the Intel Arc B390 performs better than only 9% of all GPUs. This places it in a category with entry-level discrete graphics from over a decade ago. The nearest rival data shows the Arc B390 is only marginally faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, with a deltaPct of 1.3%. This context is crucial: the system is not just weak for modern standards; it is competing with legacy hardware from the early 2010s. Consequently, the 2662 rank is not a surprise but a direct consequence of the GPU's position in the performance hierarchy.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is the primary determinant of this system's gaming performance. It operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, featuring 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster output units. The GPU includes 12 ray tracing cores, though their impact on a 2018 title like Hitman 2 is likely minimal. Its compute capabilities are rated at 7.680 TFLOPS for FP32 operations.

The most critical specification is the memory configuration: the GPU uses "System Shared" memory, meaning it has no dedicated VRAM. It relies on the system's DDR5 RAM, with bandwidth described as "System Dependent." This is a significant bottleneck for gaming, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth and latency is inherently higher than dedicated VRAM. The measured FPS data starkly illustrates this limitation. At 4K Ultra, the system manages only 11 FPS, while even at 1080p Ultra, it only reaches 34 FPS. These numbers are characteristic of an integrated solution struggling to fill large frame buffers and process complex shaders without dedicated high-speed memory. The GPU's TDP is just 80 W, and it is an IGP (Integrated Graphics Processor), confirming that this is not a high-performance part but a convenience feature of the CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the system's capabilities across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system shows its best performance. With Low settings, it achieves an average of 80 FPS. Medium settings reduce this to an average of 60 FPS, with minimums of 51 and maximums of 69 FPS. High settings drop the average to 46 FPS, and Ultra brings it down to 34 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440 reveals a significant performance penalty. The Low preset yields an average of 51 FPS, which is a 36% decrease from the 1080p Low result. Medium averages 39 FPS (range: 33-44 FPS), High averages 29 FPS, and Ultra drops to 21 FPS. None of these 1440p settings achieve the 60 FPS target, and only the Low preset can be considered playable for most users.

At 3840x2160, the system is essentially overwhelmed. The Low preset averages just 27 FPS, Medium averages 21 FPS (range: 17-24 FPS), High averages 16 FPS, and Ultra averages 11 FPS. These frame rates are not playable for a stealth action game that requires precision and timing. The data shows a clear pattern: the system is only capable of delivering a smooth experience at 1080p with Low or Medium settings. Every other configuration either sacrifices visual fidelity for marginal playability or maintains visual settings at the cost of frame rate.

Settings Recommendations

Based strictly on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combination are 1920x1080 with the Medium preset. This configuration delivers an average of 60 FPS, which is the standard target for smooth gameplay. The minimum frame rate of 51 FPS indicates that there will be occasional dips, but the overall experience should remain fluid in most scenes. This is the only settings/resolution combination that achieves both an average of 60 FPS and a minimum above 50 FPS.

Alternatively, 1080p Low offers a higher average of 80 FPS, which provides more headroom for demanding scenes. However, the jump from Low to Medium typically represents a significant visual improvement in texture quality and shadow detail, making the 60 FPS Medium setting a better balance of performance and aesthetics based on the data.

At 1440p, the best option is Low settings, which produces an average of 51 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS target but could be acceptable for players who prioritize resolution over frame rate. However, the 1080p Medium option is a superior choice, as it offers both a higher frame rate and likely better visual quality than 1440p Low. The 4K resolutions are not recommended for any settings preset, as even Low settings only produce 27 FPS, which is below the threshold for a consistently playable experience. The data strongly suggests that users should stick to 1080p for any serious gameplay.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is an exceptionally powerful processor that is entirely underutilized in this configuration. It features 20 cores and 20 threads, a base clock of 2.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. Its architecture is Arrow Lake-S, built on a 3 nm process node with 17,800 million transistors. The CPU has a substantial cache hierarchy, including 30 MB of shared L3 cache. Its memory support is DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

The CPU's benchmark scores are outstanding. It achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and a single-core score of 5960. In PassMark tests, it scores 49682 for multithreaded performance and 4689 for single-threaded performance. Its percentileVsAllCpus of 93 confirms its position as a high-end desktop processor. The nearest rival data shows it is closely matched with the AMD EPYC 4464P, with a deltaPct of only -0.3%, indicating the Ultra 7 265 is slightly slower than that server chip but faster than the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F by 0.3%.

In Hitman 2, this CPU is not the bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 80 FPS, but this is limited by the GPU, not the CPU. The CPU can likely compute game logic and AI far faster than the GPU can render frames. Evidence of this is the performance drop when increasing resolution: at 4K Low, the FPS falls to 27, a 66% decrease from 1080p Low. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rate would remain relatively constant regardless of resolution. The fact that it drops significantly proves that the GPU is saturated, while the CPU has ample headroom. The 20-core processor is massive overkill for this game, which is a single-threaded or lightly threaded title, but its high single-core performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5960) ensures it will not hinder the GPU.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates the GPU bottleneck. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 80 at 1920x1080 to 51 at 2560x1440 and finally to 27 at 3840x2160. This represents a 36% decrease from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 47% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The overall drop from 1080p to 4K is 66%.

At High settings, the pattern is similar but with lower absolute numbers: 46 FPS at 1080p, 29 FPS at 1440p, and 16 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K is again 65%. This consistent percentage decrease across different settings presets is a hallmark of a GPU-limited scenario. When the GPU is the bottleneck, increasing the resolution (which increases the pixel count and thus the rendering load) directly and proportionally reduces the frame rate.

If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect the FPS to remain flat or decrease only slightly as resolution increases, because the CPU's workload (game logic, physics, AI) does not scale with resolution. The dramatic FPS drops observed here are conclusive evidence that the Intel Arc B390 is the sole performance limiter. The CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls, and at 20 cores and 5.30 GHz boost, it is doing so without breaking a sweat. The data suggests that even at 1080p Low, the GPU is working at its maximum capacity, and any increase in rendering load directly translates to fewer frames per second. For users seeking higher resolutions, a discrete GPU with dedicated VRAM would be necessary, as the shared memory architecture of this integrated solution cannot handle the bandwidth demands of 1440p or 4K gaming.