Hitman 2

FAQ

Q: What is the overall ranking of this CPU and GPU combination in Hitman 2?

A: This combo ranks 68th out of 3001 tested combinations in Hitman 2, placing it in the top 2.3% of all tested systems for this title.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 compare to its nearest CPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score of 64,640 is 0.3% behind the AMD EPYC 4464P (64,823) and 0.7% behind the AMD EPYC 9124 (65,104), while edging out the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F by 0.3% (64,438) and the AMD EPYC 7343 by 0.7% (64,202).

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all graphics cards?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 sits in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 79,842. It trails the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X by 1.4% (80,959) but leads the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB by 0.3% (79,605) and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT by 1.1% (78,940).

Q: What is the best average frame rate recorded for this combination?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 342 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest average is 49 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: Does the CPU support DDR5 memory and what is its memory bandwidth?

A: Yes, the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 supports DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265?

A: The launch MSRP of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is $394.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture part built on TSMC's 5 nm process, featuring 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die. Its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory across a 512-bit bus yields a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s, which is substantial for a stealth title like Hitman 2 that loads complex environments. The GPU's base clock is 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz, and its memory operates at 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective).

In Hitman 2, the GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution scales. At 1920x1080, the RTX 5090 produces frame rates that exceed 340 FPS on Low settings, indicating that the CPU is the primary limiter at this resolution. Moving to 2560x1440, average FPS drops to 219 on Low, still extremely high. At 3840x2160, the GPU's workload intensifies significantly: Low settings yield 117 FPS, but Ultra settings drop to 49 FPS. This 68 FPS swing between Low and Ultra at 4K demonstrates how the RTX 5090's compute resources are taxed by the game's rendering features at higher presets.

The GPU's FP32 throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS and texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s are relevant to Hitman 2's crowd rendering and detailed interiors. The 176 ROPs and 680 TMUs handle pixel throughput efficiently, as shown by the pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s. The RTX 5090's 170 RT cores are present, though Hitman 2's age means ray tracing is not a major factor in these measured results. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 39,650 and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 18,355 indicate strong synthetic performance that aligns with the measured frame rates in this game. Notably, the GPU's percentileVsAllGpus ranking of 92 means it outperforms 92% of all GPUs in the database, yet its nearest rivals in the synthetic benchmarks are data-center and workstation parts, not gaming cards, which is an artifact of the benchmark suite's weighting.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread Arrow Lake-S processor with a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. It is built on TSMC's 3 nm process with 17,800 million transistors. The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 30 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration provides strong single-threaded performance, as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5,960 and a PassMark single-thread score of 4,689.

In Hitman 2, the CPU's influence is most visible at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 342 FPS, which is a CPU-bound scenario. The processor's multi-core capabilities are strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42,216 and a PassMark multi-thread score of 49,682. These scores indicate that the 20 cores can handle the game's background simulation and AI tasks without becoming a limiting factor, even at high frame rates.

The CPU's TDP of 65 W is modest for a 20-core part, and it requires an Intel Socket 1851 motherboard with PCIe Gen 5 support (20 lanes from the CPU). The processor's DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth ensures that memory throughput does not starve the GPU in texture-heavy scenes. The integrated Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 32EU is present but irrelevant for gaming with a discrete RTX 5090. The CPU's performance percentile of 93 versus all CPUs places it well above average, and its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are server-class EPYC parts, with deltas within 0.7%. This suggests that for a game like Hitman 2, which is not heavily threaded, the CPU's single-core strength is sufficient to drive the RTX 5090 to its limits at 1080p and 1440p.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 68th out of 3,001 tested combinations in Hitman 2. This places it in the top 2.3% of all systems tested for this game. The rank reflects the synergy between a high-end CPU and a flagship GPU, though it does not reach the top 50, which likely includes combinations with more aggressive CPU overclocking or different memory configurations.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 64,640 is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, with deltas of -0.3% to 0.7% against the EPYC 4464P, EPYC 9124, Core Ultra 7 265F, and EPYC 7343. This indicates that the processor is not a differentiator in this ranking; the GPU carries most of the weight. The RTX 5090's average benchmark score of 79,842 places it in the 92nd percentile, and its nearest rivals are again workstation-class parts. The GPU's performance delta against the Radeon Pro Vega 64X is -1.4%, meaning it is slightly behind in synthetic tests, yet in actual Hitman 2 gameplay, the RTX 5090's driver optimization and modern architecture clearly deliver strong results.

The gap between this combo's rank (68th) and the top combinations likely stems from the CPU's 65 W TDP and non-unlockable multiplier. While the boost clock of 5.30 GHz is high, the lack of overclocking headroom may limit peak frame rates in CPU-bound scenarios at 1080p, where the combo still achieves 342 FPS on Low. The data shows that as resolution increases, the combo's relative standing improves because the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, and the RTX 5090's raw power is unmatched. At 4K Ultra, the 49 FPS average is respectable for a 2018 title, but it suggests that Hitman 2's Ultra preset is exceptionally demanding even for a flagship GPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) and four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra). At 1080p, the combo delivers 342 FPS on Low, 257 FPS on Medium (with a min of 218 and max of 295), 194 FPS on High, and 143 FPS on Ultra. The 199 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p highlights the scaling of the game's rendering features.

At 1440p, the results are: 219 FPS on Low, 164 FPS on Medium (min 140, max 189), 124 FPS on High, and 91 FPS on Ultra. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 36% across all presets, which is consistent with the increase in pixel count. The 1440p Ultra average of 91 FPS remains highly playable, and the Medium preset's minimum of 140 FPS ensures smooth frame pacing.

At 4K, the performance envelope compresses significantly: 117 FPS on Low, 87 FPS on Medium (min 74, max 101), 66 FPS on High, and 49 FPS on Ultra. The transition from Low to Ultra at 4K costs 68 FPS, which is a larger absolute drop than at lower resolutions, indicating that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources are saturated. The 4K Medium preset's minimum of 74 FPS is notable because it stays above the 60 FPS threshold, whereas the High preset's average of 66 FPS leaves less headroom for dips. The Ultra preset at 4K, with an average of 49 FPS, is below the 60 FPS target, making it a demanding configuration for this combination.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and frame rate preference. For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset at 143 FPS is fully playable and provides the best visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The High preset at 194 FPS offers a 35% performance uplift over Ultra, which may be preferable for competitive play, but the Ultra preset's 143 FPS is already well above the 120 Hz refresh rate common on 1080p monitors. The Medium preset at 257 FPS is unnecessary unless targeting 240 Hz displays, but it does provide a minimum of 218 FPS, ensuring no frame drops.

For 2560x1440, the Ultra preset at 91 FPS is the recommended choice for visual fidelity, as it remains above 90 FPS on average. The High preset at 124 FPS provides a 36% improvement over Ultra and is ideal for 120 Hz displays, with no reported minimums below the average. The Medium preset at 164 FPS is overkill for most 1440p monitors but offers a high minimum of 140 FPS, which is useful for variable refresh rate displays with higher refresh ceilings.

For 3840x2160, the data suggests that the High preset at 66 FPS is the most balanced option, as it stays above 60 FPS on average while delivering strong visual quality. The Medium preset at 87 FPS is the safest choice for maintaining a locked 60 FPS experience, given its minimum of 74 FPS provides a 14 FPS buffer. The Ultra preset at 49 FPS is not recommended for serious play, as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold; however, it remains playable for slower-paced stealth sections. The Low preset at 117 FPS offers the highest frame rate at 4K but sacrifices significant visual detail, which is counterproductive for a game that relies on environmental storytelling. Overall, the Medium preset at 4K appears to be the sweet spot, offering 87 FPS average with a minimum of 74 FPS, ensuring a consistent experience without the visual compromises of Low settings.