Inside

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and Intel Arc B580 pairing delivers a remarkably consistent experience in Inside, with the data showing that the game is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher settings, while the CPU’s strong multi-threaded capabilities ensure no bottleneck at lower presets. Benchmark results indicate that the combination ranks 2152 out of 2887 tested combos for this game, placing it in the 74th percentile of all possible pairings. The measured frame rates demonstrate that this system can handle the game at 4K with High settings, averaging 61 FPS, which is exactly at the threshold of smooth 60 Hz gameplay, while dropping settings to Medium at the same resolution yields a comfortable 98 FPS average. This analysis breaks down the specific roles of the processor and graphics card, answers common questions about the data, and provides a detailed FPS breakdown across resolutions and settings.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture (Vermeer codename), built on TSMC's 7 nm process node. It operates with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz, with a 105 W TDP. The CPU features a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a defining characteristic of the X3D series, alongside 64 KB of L1 cache per core and 512 KB of L2 cache per core. This cache configuration is particularly relevant for gaming workloads, as it reduces memory latency and improves performance in scenarios where data is reused frequently.

In the context of Inside, a puzzle platformer with relatively modest CPU demands, the 5500X3D is more than sufficient. The CPU's PassMark multi-thread score is 20363, and its single-thread score is 2941, placing it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. When compared to its nearest rivals, the data shows a tight cluster: the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F scores 36945 (0.2% higher), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 scores 37093 (0.2% lower), the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 scores 36938 (0.2% higher), and the Intel Core i9-12900T scores 37112 (0.3% lower). This indicates that the 5500X3D is effectively performance-equivalent to these alternatives, with all deltas within a fraction of a percent.

The implication for Inside is that the CPU is unlikely to be the limiting factor at any resolution or settings combination. The game's physics and logic are not heavily threaded, and the 5500X3D's single-thread performance is robust enough to handle the game's demands without issue. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 268 FPS, which is a frame rate that far exceeds what the game's visuals require. Even at 1080p with Ultra settings, the system still averages 129 FPS, indicating that the CPU is not creating a bottleneck that would cap performance below the GPU's capability. The high L3 cache likely helps in maintaining consistent frame pacing, as it reduces the penalty of data fetching from system memory, which is DDR4 running at a dual-channel bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s.

The CPU's average benchmark score of 37018 further contextualizes its position. It sits just above the median of its rivals, with the Intel Core i9-12900T being the only one to score slightly higher at 37112. This suggests that for Inside, the CPU is a non-issue; it provides ample headroom for the GPU to work at its full potential. The fact that the system achieves 123 FPS at 4K Low settings, versus 61 FPS at 4K High, indicates that the GPU is the primary driver of performance differences, not the CPU. In summary, the 5500X3D is a capable and balanced partner for the Arc B580, ensuring that the GPU is the sole determinant of frame rates across all tested configurations.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Arc B580 is the graphics powerhouse in this pairing, built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage generation) using TSMC's 5 nm process node. It features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. The GPU operates at a base and boost clock of 2670 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The card has 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 80 raster operation units, along with 20 ray tracing cores. Its rated FP32 performance is 13.67 TFLOPS, with a pixel rate of 213.6 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 427.2 GTexel/s. The TDP is 190 W, requiring a suggested 450 W PSU, and it connects via PCIe 4.0 x8.

In the context of Inside, the Arc B580's specifications translate into a GPU that is well-suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with the capacity to handle 4K at moderate settings. The 12 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for a game released in 2016, as Inside does not have demanding texture or geometry requirements. The high memory bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s ensures that data can be fed to the GPU cores efficiently, which is evident in the frame rates achieved at high resolutions. The GPU's PassMark G3D score is 15748, placing it in the 68th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021.

The nearest rivals for the Arc B580 provide interesting context for its performance. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP scores 23061 (0.2% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895 (0.6% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 scores 23172 (0.7% lower), and the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 23249 (1% lower). This indicates that the Arc B580 is performance-wise in the same ballpark as the RTX 2080 and RTX 3080 in synthetic benchmarks, despite being a newer architecture. For Inside, this means the GPU is capable of delivering high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, and playable frame rates at 4K.

The measured FPS data shows a clear scaling pattern tied to settings. At 4K, the GPU produces 61 FPS on High, 98 FPS on Medium, and 123 FPS on Low, with Ultra dropping to 58 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset is the most demanding, likely due to increased rendering effects or higher resolution scaling factors. The 12 GB VRAM is never a limiting factor in these tests, as the game's memory footprint is well below this capacity. The GPU's clock speed of 2670 MHz is relatively high, and the data indicates that it maintains consistent performance across resolutions, with the frame rate dropping by roughly half when moving from 1080p Low (268 FPS) to 4K Low (123 FPS), which is expected given the pixel count quadruples. The Arc B580 is clearly the dominant component in this system, with its performance directly determining the playable settings at each resolution.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average FPS achieved by this system in Inside, and at what settings?*

A: The highest average FPS is 268, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is followed by 217 FPS at 1080p Medium and 195 FPS at 2560x1440 Low.

*Q: Can this system run Inside at 4K with smooth 60+ FPS?*

A: Yes, the system achieves 61 FPS average at 3840x2160 resolution with High settings, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold. For a more comfortable margin, Medium settings at 4K yield 98 FPS average, while Ultra settings drop to 58 FPS average.

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

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D has an average benchmark score of 37018. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450, scores 37093 (0.2% lower), while the Intel Core i9-12900T scores 37112 (0.3% lower). The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F scores 36945 (0.2% higher), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 scores 36938 (0.2% higher). All deltas are within 0.3%.

Q: What is the performance delta between the Intel Arc B580 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080?

A: The Arc B580 has an average benchmark score of 23021, while the RTX 2080 scores 22895, which is 0.6% higher than the Arc B580. This places the two cards at near-parity in synthetic tests, though actual gaming performance may vary.

Q: What is the FPS drop when moving from 1080p to 4K at Medium settings?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the system averages 217 FPS. At 3840x2160 Medium, the average drops to 98 FPS, representing a 54.8% reduction in frame rate. This indicates that the GPU is the limiting factor at higher resolutions.

Q: Which settings preset provides the highest minimum FPS?

A: The Medium preset provides the only recorded minimum FPS values across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 185 FPS; at 1440p Medium, the minimum is 133 FPS; and at 4K Medium, the minimum is 83 FPS. These are the only configurations with measured min FPS data.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this system in Inside covers three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) and four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra). The data is complete for average FPS, while minimum and maximum FPS are only recorded for the Medium preset at each resolution.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the system achieves its highest performance. Low settings produce an average of 268 FPS, which is the highest recorded value across all tests. Medium settings yield 217 FPS average, with a minimum of 185 FPS and a maximum of 250 FPS. High settings produce 136 FPS average, and Ultra settings produce 129 FPS average. The drop from Low to High is 132 FPS (49.3%), while the drop from High to Ultra is only 7 FPS (5.1%), indicating that the Ultra preset adds minimal additional load over High at this resolution.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the frame rates scale down as expected. Low settings average 195 FPS, which is still very high. Medium settings average 156 FPS, with a minimum of 133 FPS and a maximum of 180 FPS. High settings average 98 FPS, and Ultra settings average 93 FPS. The transition from Low to High results in a loss of 97 FPS (49.7%), while High to Ultra loses only 5 FPS (5.1%). This pattern mirrors the 1080p results, showing that the Ultra preset is only slightly more demanding than High.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the system remains playable but with reduced headroom. Low settings average 123 FPS, which is still excellent for 4K. Medium settings average 98 FPS, with a minimum of 83 FPS and a maximum of 113 FPS. High settings average 61 FPS, which is just at the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra settings average 58 FPS, which is below 60 FPS and may be noticeable as slight stutter on a 60 Hz display. The drop from Low to High is 62 FPS (50.4%), and High to Ultra loses only 3 FPS (4.9%), again confirming that Ultra is not significantly more demanding than High.

The data shows a consistent pattern: the Medium preset provides the best balance of performance and quality, with the only recorded minimum FPS values indicating that frame pacing is stable. At every resolution, the gap between High and Ultra is minimal, suggesting that the Ultra preset may not be worth the small FPS cost. The system is capable of 4K gaming, but only at Low to Medium settings for a consistently smooth experience above 90 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important insights about the system's bottleneck. At Low settings, the system averages 268 FPS at 1080p, 195 FPS at 1440p, and 123 FPS at 4K. This represents a 27.2% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 54.1% drop from 1080p to 4K. The theoretical pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p and by 300% from 1080p to 4K. The fact that FPS does not drop proportionally to pixel count indicates that the GPU is not fully saturated at lower resolutions, and other factors such as CPU or memory bandwidth may play a role, though the data suggests the GPU is the primary limiter.

At Medium settings, the system averages 217 FPS at 1080p, 156 FPS at 1440p, and 98 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 28.1%, and from 1080p to 4K is 54.8%. These percentages are very close to the Low settings scaling, indicating that the GPU is the consistent bottleneck across all presets. The minimum FPS values at Medium also scale similarly: 185 at 1080p, 133 at 1440p, and 83 at 4K, representing drops of 28.1% and 55.1% respectively.

At High settings, the system averages 136 FPS at 1080p, 98 FPS at 1440p, and 61 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 27.9%, and from 1080p to 4K is 55.1%. At Ultra settings, the averages are 129 FPS at 1080p, 93 FPS at 1440p, and 58 FPS at 4K, with drops of 27.9% and 55.0%. The consistency of these scaling percentages across all settings presets is striking. In every case, moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces FPS by roughly 28%, and moving from 1080p to 4K reduces FPS by roughly 55%.

This uniform scaling pattern strongly indicates that the Intel Arc B580 is the limiting component. The CPU's performance is not a factor, as it would typically cause a more pronounced drop at lower resolutions if it were the bottleneck. The fact that FPS scales almost exactly with pixel count (a 300% pixel increase results in a 55% FPS drop, which is less than linear) suggests that the GPU has some headroom at 1080p that is not fully utilized due to other system constraints, but at 4K, the GPU is working at its maximum capacity. The 12 GB VRAM and 456.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for this game, as there is no evidence of a memory-related performance cliff. The data shows that the Arc B580 is the definitive performance limiter, and users should expect frame rates to halve when moving from 1080p to 4K, regardless of quality settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset for this system in Inside depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. The data shows that the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance, as it is the only preset with recorded minimum FPS values, indicating a stable frame delivery. At 1080p, Medium produces 217 FPS average with a minimum of 185 FPS, which is far above any display's refresh rate and provides a flawless experience. At 1440p, Medium averages 156 FPS with a minimum of 133 FPS, which is still excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. At 4K, Medium averages 98 FPS with a minimum of 83 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a smooth experience on standard 4K displays.

The High preset is the next best option, but it offers diminishing returns. At 1080p, High averages 136 FPS, which is 81 FPS lower than Medium. At 1440p, High averages 98 FPS, which is 58 FPS lower than Medium. At 4K, High averages 61 FPS, which is 37 FPS lower than Medium and just barely above the 60 FPS line. The visual difference between Medium and High in Inside is likely subtle, given the game's art style, and the substantial FPS cost suggests that High is not worth it unless a user has a 144 Hz monitor at 1080p and prefers slightly better shadows or effects.

The Ultra preset provides the worst performance-per-FPS. At 1080p, Ultra averages 129 FPS, which is only 7 FPS lower than High but 88 FPS lower than Medium. At 1440p, Ultra averages 93 FPS, which is 5 FPS lower than High and 63 FPS lower than Medium. At 4K, Ultra averages 58 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and represents the only configuration that fails to maintain smooth gameplay on a standard 60 Hz display. The data shows that the gap between High and Ultra is consistently small (3-7 FPS), suggesting that the Ultra preset adds minimal visual improvements at a significant cost relative to Medium. Therefore, for the best experience, users should select the Medium preset at any resolution. If a user insists on the highest visual fidelity, High is acceptable, but Ultra should be avoided at 4K due to the sub-60 FPS average. The Low preset is only recommended for users with very high refresh rate displays (240 Hz or more) at 1080p, as it provides 268 FPS but sacrifices visual quality. In summary, the measured data points to Medium as the sweet spot, delivering 98 FPS at 4K and over 200 FPS at 1080p, ensuring a smooth and responsive experience across all resolutions.