Inside

The Intel Core i5-14600K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers overwhelming performance in Inside, a 2016 puzzle-platformer. Measured data shows this combination produces triple-digit average frame rates at every tested preset and resolution, with the lowest recorded average being 140 FPS at 4K Ultra. This leaves the 60 FPS playability threshold far behind across the board, making the hardware's role purely about headroom rather than survival.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which runs at an average of 140 FPS. The other 4K settings also clear the threshold comfortably: High averages 147 FPS, Medium averages 235 FPS with a minimum of 200 FPS and a maximum of 270 FPS, and Low averages 293 FPS. Because every option exceeds 60 FPS, the best visual fidelity is achievable at the top preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, Ultra remains the highest preset that holds above 60 FPS, with an average of 222 FPS. High runs at 234 FPS average, Medium at 323 FPS (min 275, max 372), and Low at 350 FPS. The gap between Ultra and the next step down is modest—only 12 FPS separate Ultra from High—but both are far beyond the threshold.

At 1920x1080, Ultra again is the most demanding playable preset, averaging 296 FPS. High averages 301 FPS, Medium averages 361 FPS (min 307, max 415), and Low averages 391 FPS. Notably, the difference between High and Ultra at 1080p is just 5 FPS, suggesting the visual uplift from Ultra comes at negligible cost here. In all three resolutions, the data indicates that no setting drops below 60 FPS, so the "best" choice is always the maximum preset available.

CPU and GPU Roles

Benchmark results indicate that the GPU is the dominant factor at 4K, while the CPU becomes more relevant at lower resolutions, though even then the RTX 4090 remains the primary limiter. Scaling from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 at Ultra, the average FPS drops from 296 to 222—a reduction of 74 FPS, or about 25%. From 2560x1440 to 3840x2160 at Ultra, the average falls from 222 to 140, another 82 FPS drop, or roughly 37%. This steeper decline at higher resolutions points to the GPU's rendering load growing faster than the CPU's ability to feed it.

The CPU's influence is visible when comparing presets at a fixed resolution. At 1080p, moving from Low (391 FPS) to Ultra (296 FPS) costs 95 FPS, while at 4K, the same preset shift from Low (293 FPS) to Ultra (140 FPS) costs 153 FPS. Since the CPU handles game logic and draw calls, the i5-14600K with its 14 cores and 20 threads is never the bottleneck—the frame rate differences across presets track GPU workload changes, not CPU stalls. The 4K Ultra result of 140 FPS versus the 1080p Ultra result of 296 FPS shows that resolution scaling is the primary lever, meaning the RTX 4090's fill rate and bandwidth (1.01 TB/s) are what define performance here.

At 1440p, the pattern holds: Low runs at 350 FPS and Ultra at 222 FPS, a 128 FPS spread. The CPU's 24 MB of shared L3 cache and boost clock of 5.30 GHz ensure that even at 391 FPS (1080p Low), the processor keeps up without imposing a ceiling. The data shows no resolution or preset where the CPU limits frame rates, so the i5-14600K is effectively a silent partner—its role is to avoid becoming the constraint, which it does with room to spare.

Measured FPS Breakdown

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 293 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Medium: 235 FPS average, 200 FPS minimum, 270 FPS maximum
• High: 147 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Ultra: 140 FPS average (no min/max recorded)

The Medium preset is the only 4K setting with full min/max data, showing a 70 FPS swing between its lowest and highest frames. The spread between Low and Ultra is 153 FPS, which is substantial but still leaves every setting far above 60 FPS.

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 350 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Medium: 323 FPS average, 275 FPS minimum, 372 FPS maximum
• High: 234 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Ultra: 222 FPS average (no min/max recorded)

At 1440p, Medium provides the only min/max data, with a 97 FPS range. The step from Low to Medium is just 27 FPS, while Medium to High costs 89 FPS—a larger jump that suggests High introduces significant rendering effects. Ultra is only 12 FPS behind High, making the top preset nearly free in performance terms.

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 391 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Medium: 361 FPS average, 307 FPS minimum, 415 FPS maximum
• High: 301 FPS average (no min/max recorded)
• Ultra: 296 FPS average (no min/max recorded)

The 1080p Medium preset shows a 108 FPS spread between minimum and maximum. Low to Medium drops 30 FPS, Medium to High drops 60 FPS, and High to Ultra drops only 5 FPS. This diminishing cost at the top end means Ultra is the logical choice for 1080p, as the visual gain from High to Ultra requires almost no additional performance.

Across all resolutions, the min FPS values—where recorded—stay well above 200 FPS, confirming that frame pacing is stable even in demanding scenes. The lack of min/max data for most presets limits deeper analysis, but the available numbers from Medium settings at each resolution show no dips below 200 FPS.

The Verdict

This PC can run Inside at every resolution and preset tested, and it does so with massive headroom. The verdict by resolution is unambiguous:

• 3840x2160: All four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable. The best preset is Ultra, which averages 140 FPS—more than double the 60 FPS threshold.
• 2560x1440: Every setting is playable. Ultra is the best choice, averaging 222 FPS, which is 162 FPS above the threshold.
• 1920x1080: All settings are playable. Ultra averages 296 FPS, nearly five times the required frame rate.

The data shows no configuration where this combo fails to clear 60 FPS, even at the most demanding 4K Ultra setting. The lowest average recorded across the entire dataset is 140 FPS, which occurs at 4K Ultra, and that still leaves 80 FPS of headroom. For a puzzle-platformer with simple geometry and limited draw calls, this hardware is extreme overkill, but the measured results confirm that users can max out every visual option without concern.

The RTX 4090's 24 GB of GDDR6X memory and 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 compute are far beyond what Inside requires, and the i5-14600K's single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2064) ensures no CPU-induced stutters. If the goal is locked 60 FPS, even 4K Low at 293 FPS average provides massive margin. For competitive or high-refresh gameplay, the 1080p Medium preset's 361 FPS average (min 307) would satisfy a 300 Hz display, while 4K Ultra still drives a 140 Hz monitor to its limit.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest preset that stays above 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Ultra is the most demanding preset that stays above 60 FPS at 3840x2160, with an average of 140 FPS. All lower presets (High, Medium, Low) also exceed 60 FPS.

Q: How does the 1440p Ultra performance compare to 4K Ultra?

A: At 2560x1440 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 222, which is 82 FPS higher than the 4K Ultra average of 140 FPS. This represents a 37% drop when moving from 1440p to 4K.

Q: Does the frame rate ever drop below 60 FPS at any tested setting?

A: No. The lowest minimum FPS recorded in the entire dataset is 200 FPS, which occurs at 4K Medium. All other presets with min/max data show minimums above 275 FPS, and presets without min/max data still have averages above 140 FPS.

Q: Which resolution offers the smallest performance gap between High and Ultra?

A: At 1920x1080, the gap is just 5 FPS—High averages 301 FPS while Ultra averages 296 FPS. At 1440p the gap is 12 FPS, and at 4K it is 7 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game at 1080p?

A: The GPU is the primary factor even at 1080p. The data shows resolution scaling affects FPS more than preset changes—1080p Ultra (296 FPS) is far higher than 4K Ultra (140 FPS), while the CPU's 14 cores and 20 threads never limit performance, as evidenced by the 391 FPS average at 1080p Low.

Q: What is the best setting for a 144 Hz monitor at 4K?

A: Ultra at 3840x2160 averages 140 FPS, which is slightly below a 144 Hz refresh rate. High averages 147 FPS, which would match a 144 Hz display, and Medium at 235 FPS provides even more headroom if higher refresh rates are targeted.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination ranks 91st out of 3716 tested combos for Inside, placing it in the top 2.5% of all configurations in the database. This high rank reflects the absolute performance ceiling this pairing achieves—the RTX 4090's average benchmark score of 60347 and the i5-14600K's average of 48618 both sit far above typical hardware. The GPU's percentile of 88 among all GPUs and the CPU's percentile of 90 among all CPUs indicate that both components are near the top of their respective charts, and their combination for a lightweight title like Inside yields frame rates that most systems cannot approach.

Relative to its nearest rivals, the CPU's average benchmark score of 48618 is nearly identical to the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (48698, -0.2%), the AMD EPYC 4345P (48470, +0.3%), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX (48287, +0.7%). The GPU's average score of 60347 matches the Intel Arc Pro A60 (60326, 0%), sits just ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (60140, +0.3%), and trails the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (61896, -2.5%). These near-ties in synthetic benchmarks do not translate to Inside, where the measured FPS data shows this combo's real-world dominance—the 4K Ultra average of 140 FPS is the result of the RTX 4090's raw compute and the i5-14600K's strong single-thread performance, both of which are overkill for a 2016 puzzle-platformer. The rank of 91 out of 3716 confirms that only a handful of more exotic or newer configurations produce higher frame rates in this specific game.