Inside

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Inside, with the data showing this pairing ranks in the 52nd percentile (1916 out of 3716 combos) for this specific title. The measured results indicate that this system is far more capable than the game demands, with average FPS figures ranging from 72 at 4K Ultra to 320 at 1080p Low, making the bottleneck analysis primarily a question of how the CPU and GPU divide their workloads at different settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500X3D brings 6 cores and 12 threads to the table, with a base clock of 4.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.50 GHz. This 7000-series processor, built on the Raphael architecture with a 5 nm process, features a substantial 96 MB of shared L3 cache, which is a significant asset for game performance. The CPU’s PassMark single-thread score of 3494 and multithread score of 25047 place it in the 89th percentile among all CPUs, indicating strong general-purpose performance.

In Inside, a puzzle platformer with a 2016 release date, the CPU’s role is less about raw multi-core throughput and more about maintaining consistent frame pacing. The game’s physics and logic are not heavily threaded, so the 7500X3D’s high single-thread performance, evidenced by its PassMark physics score of 2779, ensures that the game logic never becomes a limiting factor. The data supports this conclusion: at 1080p Low, the system reaches 320 FPS, a figure that suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU far more frames than the GPU can render at that setting.

When comparing to nearest rivals, the 7500X3D’s average benchmark score of 44573 is effectively tied with the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H (44466, 0.2% difference) and the Intel Core i9-13950HX (44342, 0.5% difference). It sits 0.6% above the AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 (44309) and 0.7% above the Intel Core i5-14600 (44889, showing a negative deltaPct of -0.7). These margins are negligible, meaning that in CPU-bound scenarios, the 7500X3D performs indistinguishably from these alternatives.

The 65 W TDP and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (83.2 GB/s bandwidth) suggest that the CPU is well-matched for this GPU, providing enough data throughput without creating a thermal or power constraint. In the measured results, the jump from 1080p High (167 FPS) to 1080p Ultra (159 FPS) is only 8 FPS, while the jump from 1080p Low (320 FPS) to 1080p Medium (266 FPS) is 54 FPS, indicating that the CPU handles the increased draw calls and object counts at higher settings without significant degradation. This pattern confirms that the 7500X3D is more than sufficient for Inside, with its 96 MB L3 cache providing a clear advantage in caching game assets and reducing memory latency.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the other half of this pairing, featuring 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus with 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its Ada Lovelace architecture (AD107 chip) operates at a base clock of 1830 MHz and boosts to 2460 MHz, with a memory clock of 2125 MHz (17 Gbps effective). The GPU’s PassMark G3D score of 19545 places it in the 61st percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17639.

For Inside, the RTX 4060’s 8 GB VRAM is more than adequate, as the game’s art style and 2016-era textures do not require large frame buffers. The GPU’s role becomes dominant at higher resolutions and settings, where the pixel fill rate (118.1 GPixel/s) and texture rate (236.2 GTexel/s) come into play. The data shows a clear scaling pattern: at 1080p, the RTX 4060 can push frame rates well above 150 FPS across all settings, but at 4K, the Ultra preset drops to 72 FPS, indicating that the GPU is the primary constraint at that resolution.

Comparing to nearest rivals, the RTX 4060’s average score of 17639 is essentially tied with the AMD Radeon HD 7790 (17666, -0.2% deltaPct) and the AMD Radeon 780M (17588, 0.3% deltaPct). It sits 0.5% above the AMD Radeon Pro 560 (17551) and 0.7% above the AMD Radeon Pro 460 (17509). These comparisons are based on synthetic benchmarks, but in Inside, the RTX 4060’s real-world performance is defined by its ability to maintain high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p while dropping to playable levels at 4K.

The GPU’s 15.11 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 24 RT cores are largely irrelevant for this title, which does not use ray tracing, but the raw rasterization power is what drives the measured results. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is never stressed, as even at 4K Ultra, the game only requires a fraction of that memory. The RTX 4060’s TDP of 115 W and suggested 300 W power supply indicate an efficient card that does not require excessive cooling, which matches the game’s modest demands.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a distinct scaling pattern that highlights the shift in bottleneck from CPU to GPU as resolution increases. At 1080p, the system is clearly CPU-limited at lower settings: Low achieves 320 FPS, Medium 266 FPS, High 167 FPS, and Ultra 159 FPS. The large gap between Low and High (153 FPS) suggests that the CPU is feeding frames as fast as it can, but the GPU is not the limiting factor at Low settings.

Moving to 1440p, the frame rates drop proportionally but remain exceptionally high: Low hits 239 FPS (a 25% drop from 1080p), Medium 192 FPS (28% drop), High 120 FPS (28% drop), and Ultra 114 FPS (28% drop). This consistent ~28% reduction across all settings indicates that the GPU is now becoming more involved, but the CPU is still keeping up without issue. The medium preset at 1440p shows a min FPS of 163 and max of 220, with an average of 192, demonstrating stable frame delivery.

At 4K, the scaling becomes more pronounced and the GPU takes over as the primary bottleneck: Low drops to 150 FPS (53% drop from 1080p), Medium to 120 FPS (55% drop), High to 75 FPS (55% drop), and Ultra to 72 FPS (55% drop). This uniform ~55% reduction from 1080p to 4K across all settings confirms that the RTX 4060 is now the limiting component, as the CPU has ample headroom to handle the increased resolution’s draw calls.

The data shows that the transition from 1080p to 1440p costs about 28% of performance, while the transition from 1440p to 4K costs an additional 38-40% depending on the setting. This non-linear scaling is typical for a GPU with 8 GB VRAM and a 128-bit bus, as the memory bandwidth (272 GB/s) becomes a constraint at higher resolutions. The fact that the 4K Low setting (150 FPS) is still higher than the 1080p Ultra setting (159 FPS) is notable, indicating that the settings preset has a greater impact on performance than resolution alone at this level.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the Medium preset provides the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium achieves 266 FPS with a min of 226 and max of 306, which is more than sufficient for any display and provides a 60% improvement over High (167 FPS) while maintaining smooth frame pacing. At 1440p, Medium delivers 192 FPS (min 163, max 220), which is still well above the 144 Hz refresh rate threshold that most monitors support.

The High preset offers a marginal visual upgrade over Medium but at a significant performance cost: at 1080p, High drops to 167 FPS (37% lower than Medium), and at 1440p it drops to 120 FPS (37% lower). The Ultra preset provides even less benefit, with 159 FPS at 1080p and 114 FPS at 1440p, representing only a 5% and 5% reduction from High respectively, which suggests diminishing returns.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset (120 FPS) is the recommended choice, as it maintains a high frame rate while the High (75 FPS) and Ultra (72 FPS) presets fall below the 90 FPS threshold that many players consider smooth. The Low preset at 4K (150 FPS) is unnecessary, as the visual downgrade is not worth the extra 30 FPS over Medium.

The data clearly shows that the Medium preset is the sweet spot for this CPU/GPU combination. It offers the best frame rate-to-quality ratio, with the measured results indicating that the game’s art direction does not require Ultra settings to look good. Players with 144 Hz monitors should prioritize Medium at 1440p for the best experience, while those with 4K displays can still enjoy Medium at 120 FPS without compromising on the game’s core visual appeal.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Inside at 4K with high settings?*

A: Yes, the measured data shows 75 FPS average at 3840x2160 with High settings, which is playable. However, the Medium preset at 4K achieves 120 FPS, offering a smoother experience with minimal visual difference.

Q: What is the maximum frame rate achievable with this setup?

A: The highest measured average is 320 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. At 1440p Low, the system achieves 239 FPS, and at 4K Low, it reaches 150 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the CPU is the primary limiter, as shown by the 153 FPS gap between Low (320 FPS) and High (167 FPS) settings. The GPU has headroom to render more frames, but the CPU cannot feed it faster.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest rivals in this game?

A: In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 4060’s average score of 17639 is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon HD 7790 (17666, -0.2% delta) and the AMD Radeon 780M (17588, 0.3% delta). The real-world performance in Inside is determined by the game’s modest requirements rather than benchmark differences.

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

A: At 1440p, the Medium preset (192 FPS) or High preset (120 FPS) both work well. For 1080p, even the Ultra preset (159 FPS) exceeds 144 Hz, but Medium (266 FPS) provides the best headroom.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM ever become a bottleneck in this game?

A: No, the measured data shows no VRAM-related performance drops. The game’s 2016-era assets fit easily within 8 GB, as evidenced by consistent frame rates across all resolutions and settings without any stuttering issues.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 320 FPS average
• Medium: 266 FPS average (min 226, max 306)
• High: 167 FPS average
• Ultra: 159 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 239 FPS average
• Medium: 192 FPS average (min 163, max 220)
• High: 120 FPS average
• Ultra: 114 FPS average

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 150 FPS average
• Medium: 120 FPS average (min 102, max 138)
• High: 75 FPS average
• Ultra: 72 FPS average

The complete dataset shows a clear pattern: the Medium preset offers the most consistent performance with available min/max values at all three resolutions, indicating stable frame delivery. The High and Ultra presets at 4K both fall below 80 FPS, making Medium the recommended choice for 4K gameplay. The Low preset at any resolution exceeds 150 FPS, but the visual trade-off is unnecessary given the strong performance of the Medium preset. This system is exceptionally well-suited for Inside, capable of delivering smooth gameplay at any resolution and settings combination, with the only caveat being the 4K Ultra setting at 72 FPS, which still remains playable.