Inside

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces a fascinating dataset for Inside, a puzzle platformer from 2016. The combination of a mid-range Zen 2 processor with a flagship Blackwell GPU creates a scenario where the measured frame rates reveal distinct behavioral patterns across resolutions and settings. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data, contextualizes the hardware's role, and examines how this specific pairing ranks among the 2,887 tested combinations in the database.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a clear and predictable pattern of frame rate decline as resolution increases, but the magnitude of that decline is surprisingly modest given the GPU's capabilities. At 1080p with High settings, the combo delivers 180 FPS. Moving to 1440p, the average drops to 162 FPS, a reduction of 18 FPS or exactly 10%. The jump to 4K yields 138 FPS, which is 24 FPS lower than the 1440p result and 42 FPS below the 1080p figure. This scaling suggests that the RTX 5090 D is so powerful that even at 4K, it is not being pushed to its absolute limit in this older title.

The Low settings preset tells a similar story but with higher absolute numbers. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 234 FPS. At 1440p Low, it drops to 210 FPS, and at 4K Low, it settles at 180 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is 23.1%, which is a larger relative decline than the 23.3% observed at High settings (from 180 to 138 FPS). This indicates that the Low preset is less demanding on the GPU, allowing the CPU to become a more significant factor at lower resolutions, while the GPU still scales down heavily as resolution increases.

The Medium preset, which is the only one with complete min/max data, shows a similar trajectory: 216 FPS at 1080p, 194 FPS at 1440p, and 166 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset mirrors the High preset almost exactly, with 177 FPS at 1080p, 159 FPS at 1440p, and 136 FPS at 4K. The consistency of these deltas — roughly 15-20 FPS between each resolution step — suggests that the game's rendering load scales linearly with pixel count, and the RTX 5090 D handles this scaling without any sudden bottlenecks.

What is most telling is the gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution. At 1080p, the difference is 57 FPS (234 vs 177). At 1440p, it is 51 FPS (210 vs 159). At 4K, it narrows to 44 FPS (180 vs 136). This shrinking gap at higher resolutions indicates that the Ultra preset's additional effects are more expensive per pixel, but the GPU has enough headroom to absorb them. The data strongly suggests that the limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p to the GPU at 4K, but even at 4K Ultra, the system never falls below 136 FPS average, which is exceptional for a game of this type.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is the dominant component in this pairing, and the data reflects its capabilities. The GPU's specifications include 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz. These figures are not directly comparable to any rival specs, but the benchmark results place the GPU in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 77,712.

The GPU's nearest rivals, based on average benchmark scores, offer context for its position. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT scores 76,904, which is 1.1% lower than the RTX 5090 D. On the other side, the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.6% higher, and the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605, which is 2.4% higher. These deltas are small, indicating that the RTX 5090 D sits in a tightly contested performance band despite its flagship positioning.

In the context of Inside, the GPU's 32 GB VRAM is entirely irrelevant to the game's demands, as the measured frame rates show no signs of memory capacity constraints. The High preset at 4K averages 138 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 136 FPS — a negligible 2 FPS difference. This suggests that the VRAM allocation for Ultra settings is well within the GPU's capacity, and the performance difference is driven by compute load rather than memory. The GPU's clock speeds, particularly the boost clock of 2407 MHz, are high enough to sustain these frame rates without thermal throttling evident in the data.

The GPU's role is further clarified by the Medium preset's min/max data. At 4K Medium, the minimum recorded FPS is 141 and the maximum is 191, with an average of 166. The spread of 50 FPS indicates that the GPU is capable of significant bursts of performance, but the average is held back by occasional heavier scenes. This variability is less pronounced at 1080p Medium, where the min is 184 and the max is 249, an average of 216. The GPU's raw power is evident in these numbers, but the game's engine appears to be the limiting factor in maintaining consistent frame times at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D combination ranks 1,122nd out of 2,887 tested combos in Inside. This places it in the 61st percentile of all combinations, which is a surprisingly low position for a system featuring one of the most powerful consumer GPUs available. The rank is determined by the average FPS across all measured settings and resolutions, and the data suggests that the Ryzen 5 3600 is holding back the RTX 5090 D from achieving a higher standing.

To understand this rank, it is essential to consider the CPU's benchmark position. The Ryzen 5 3600 has an average benchmark score of 17,035 and sits in the 71st percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals are tightly clustered: the Intel Core i7-1260P scores 17,007 (0.2% lower), the Intel Core i5-11400 scores 17,067 (0.2% higher), the AMD EPYC 7573X scores 17,070 (0.2% higher), and the AMD EPYC 7742 scores 16,998 (0.2% lower). This clustering indicates that the Ryzen 5 3600's CPU performance is average for its class, but it is not a top-tier processor.

The GPU, by contrast, ranks in the 92nd percentile, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. The combination of a 71st percentile CPU with a 92nd percentile GPU should theoretically produce a high rank, but the 1,122nd position out of 2,887 suggests that many other tested combos feature higher-end CPUs that can better feed the RTX 5090 D in this game. The fact that the combo achieves 180 FPS at 1080p High but only 138 FPS at 4K High indicates that the CPU is not a bottleneck at higher resolutions, but it may be limiting the maximum frame rates at lower resolutions where the GPU has more headroom.

The rank also reflects the game's age and optimization. Inside is a puzzle platformer with a 2016 release date, and its engine may not be optimized for the multi-threaded capabilities of modern processors. The Ryzen 5 3600 has 6 cores and 12 threads, with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.20 GHz, but the game may only utilize a fraction of these resources. This would explain why the combo's rank is lower than the GPU's percentile would suggest, as the CPU's single-threaded performance (a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,124) may be the limiting factor in achieving higher frame rates at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the system's performance across all combinations of resolution and settings. The dataset includes 12 distinct scenarios, with the Medium preset being the only one that includes minimum and maximum frame rates.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. The Low preset averages 234 FPS, which is the highest recorded value in the entire dataset. The Medium preset averages 216 FPS, with a minimum of 184 FPS and a maximum of 249 FPS. The High preset averages 180 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 177 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 1080p is only 3 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional visual effects have a minimal performance cost at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop across all settings. The Low preset averages 210 FPS, which is 24 FPS lower than at 1080p. The Medium preset averages 194 FPS, with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 223 FPS. The High preset averages 162 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 159 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra remains at 3 FPS, consistent with the 1080p results.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are still very high but show the most significant scaling. The Low preset averages 180 FPS, which is identical to the 1080p High result. The Medium preset averages 166 FPS, with a minimum of 141 FPS and a maximum of 191 FPS. The High preset averages 138 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 136 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra narrows to 2 FPS at 4K, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor at this resolution.

The Medium preset's min/max data is particularly revealing. At 1080p, the spread between min and max is 65 FPS (184 to 249). At 1440p, the spread is 58 FPS (165 to 223). At 4K, the spread is 50 FPS (141 to 191). This decreasing spread at higher resolutions indicates that the frame times become more consistent as the GPU becomes more fully utilized. The average FPS for Medium settings drops from 216 at 1080p to 166 at 4K, a total reduction of 50 FPS or 23.1%.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 234, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The next highest is 216 FPS at 1080p Medium, followed by 210 FPS at 1440p Low.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 180 at 1080p High to 138 at 4K High, representing a 42 FPS reduction. This is a 23.3% decrease in performance.

Q: Does the Ultra preset offer a significant performance penalty over High?

A: The data shows a minimal penalty. At 1080p, Ultra averages 177 FPS compared to 180 FPS for High, a 3 FPS difference. At 1440p, the difference is also 3 FPS (159 vs 162). At 4K, Ultra averages 136 FPS compared to 138 FPS for High, a 2 FPS difference.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 1,122nd out of 2,887 tested combinations in Inside. This places it in the 61st percentile of all tested systems.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 D compare to its nearest rival based on benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, scores 76,904, which is 1.1% lower. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.6% higher.

Q: What is the difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 4K?

A: At 4K, the Low preset averages 180 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 136 FPS. This is a 44 FPS difference, which is the largest absolute gap between presets at any resolution.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 plays a crucial role in this combo, but the data suggests it is not the primary limiting factor at most resolutions. The CPU has 6 cores and 12 threads, based on the Zen 2 architecture (codename Matisse) manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process. Its base clock is 3.60 GHz, and its boost clock is 4.20 GHz. The CPU's L3 cache is 32 MB shared, and it supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus providing 51.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

The CPU's benchmark scores reveal its strengths and weaknesses. In Cinebench R23, it scores 15,045 in multi-core and 2,124 in single-core. In Geekbench, it scores 7,372 in multi-core and 1,536 in single-core. These scores place it in the 71st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17,035. The nearest rivals are all within 0.2% of this score, indicating a highly competitive mid-range segment.

In the context of Inside, the CPU's role is best understood by examining the frame rates at 1080p Low, where the CPU is most likely to be the bottleneck. The system achieves 234 FPS at this setting, which is a very high frame rate but may not fully utilize the RTX 5090 D's potential. The GPU's benchmark score of 77,712 suggests it is capable of higher frame rates in less CPU-limited scenarios. However, the game's age and engine design may prevent the CPU from being fully utilized, as Inside was released in 2016, three years before the Ryzen 5 3600's release in July 2019.

The CPU's 12 threads are more than sufficient for a puzzle platformer, but the game may not be optimized for multi-threading. The single-core performance of 2,124 in Cinebench R23 is adequate but not exceptional, and this could limit the maximum frame rates at 1080p. At 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, and the CPU's role diminishes, as evidenced by the smaller frame rate gaps between presets at higher resolutions.

The CPU's TDP of 65 W and its Socket AM4 compatibility make it a power-efficient choice, but its performance in this game is average. The data shows that the combo's rank of 1,122 out of 2,887 is driven by the CPU's mid-range positioning, as the GPU is in the top 8% of all GPUs. The CPU's nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i5-11400 and the Intel Core i7-1260P, would likely produce similar results in this game, given their benchmark scores are within 0.2% of the Ryzen 5 3600.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the user's target resolution and frame rate preference. The data shows that the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions, as it is the only preset with complete min/max data and demonstrates consistent frame times.

At 1080p, the Medium preset averages 216 FPS with a minimum of 184 FPS. This is a high enough frame rate for any display, and the min FPS is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate common in gaming monitors. The Ultra preset averages 177 FPS, which is 39 FPS lower than Medium, but the visual difference between Medium and Ultra in a puzzle platformer is likely minimal. The Low preset at 234 FPS offers the highest frame rates, but the visual quality reduction may not be worth the 18 FPS gain over Medium.

At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS. This is still exceptionally high and provides a smooth experience on 144 Hz or 165 Hz monitors. The High preset at 162 FPS is also viable, but the 32 FPS difference between Medium and High suggests that Medium is the better choice for maintaining high frame rates. The Ultra preset at 159 FPS is only 3 FPS lower than High, indicating that Ultra is a viable option if the user prioritizes visual quality over frame rate.

At 4K, the Medium preset averages 166 FPS with a minimum of 141 FPS. This is the recommended choice for 4K gaming, as it provides a high average frame rate and a minimum that stays above 140 FPS. The High preset at 138 FPS is also playable, but the 28 FPS difference between Medium and High is significant. The Ultra preset at 136 FPS is nearly identical to High, so there is little reason to choose Ultra over High unless the user wants the absolute highest visual quality. The Low preset at 180 FPS is the best choice for competitive play or for users with high refresh rate 4K displays, but the visual quality reduction is substantial.

The data clearly indicates that the Medium preset provides the best overall experience across all resolutions. It offers the highest average FPS at 4K (166 FPS) while maintaining a minimum above 140 FPS, and at 1080p and 1440p, it delivers frame rates that exceed the refresh rates of most monitors. The Ultra preset offers only marginal visual improvements over High, with a 2-3 FPS performance penalty, making it a poor choice for this system. The Low preset is only recommended for users who prioritize frame rates above all else, as the visual quality reduction is significant.