Inside

Inside is a puzzle platformer that scales impressively across hardware, and the pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces frame rates that are almost uniformly excessive for the game’s mechanics. The data shows a system that is dramatically over-provisioned for the title, with the measured results indicating that the primary bottleneck shifts between the CPU and GPU depending on the resolution and settings applied. This analysis walks through the component roles, scaling behavior, and the practical implications for players based strictly on the measured FPS rows.

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

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using a 4 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus and a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s, and it connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 24 lanes from the CPU.

For a game like Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer with relatively simple scene geometry and physics, the CPU load is typically modest. The benchmark results for this processor show strong single-thread performance, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1253 and a Cinebench R23 single-core result of 2183.5 points. Multi-threaded performance is also respectable, with Cinebench R23 multi-core at 17528.5 points and Geekbench multi-core at 14438. The 3DMark 2-thread score of 2456 is particularly relevant, as many puzzle platformers rely heavily on a small number of threads for game logic and object updates.

In the context of the measured FPS, the CPU appears to be sufficient to feed the GPU at high frame rates, but there are signs of a ceiling. At 1080p Low settings, the average FPS is 419, which is the highest measurement in the dataset. Moving to 1080p High reduces the average to 322 FPS, while Medium sits at 386 FPS. The fact that Low settings at 1080p yields a lower average than Medium at 1440p (375 FPS) suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions; rather, the GPU is still capable of rendering frames quickly enough. However, the gap between Low and Medium at 1080p (419 vs. 386 FPS) is only 33 FPS, indicating that the CPU’s ability to handle increased draw calls and game logic begins to plateau as settings rise, even if it does not become a hard bottleneck.

The CPU’s percentile ranking against all CPUs is 81, with an average benchmark score of 29713. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE (deltaPct 0.2%), AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (deltaPct -0.5%), AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT (deltaPct -0.6%), and AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (deltaPct -0.8%). These deltas are all within one percentage point, meaning the 9600X performs essentially on par with these alternatives in general benchmarks. For Inside specifically, the data shows that the CPU’s single-thread strength is more valuable than its multi-thread capacity, as the game’s frame pacing at high FPS is dependent on quick sequential processing rather than parallel throughput.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a flagship GPU from the GeForce 50-series, based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and the GB202 chip. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. The memory clock is 1750 MHz, with an effective data rate of 28 Gbps. The GPU’s base clock is 2017 MHz with a boost clock of 2407 MHz. It has 21760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 render output units. The RT cores number 170, and tensor cores are 680. The pixel rate is 423.6 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 1,636.8 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance at 104.8 TFLOPS.

For a puzzle platformer, the GPU’s massive compute capability is largely underutilized. The game’s art style, which features a dark, atmospheric side-scrolling world, does not heavily tax modern GPUs, particularly at lower resolutions. The measured FPS data confirms this: at 1080p Low, the average is 419 FPS, and even at 4K Ultra, the average is 153 FPS. The 32 GB of VRAM is far more than Inside requires, as the game’s texture and geometry data are minimal compared to open-world titles. The memory bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s is likewise excessive for this workload.

The GPU’s percentile ranking is 92, with an average benchmark score of 77712. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (deltaPct 1.1%), AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (deltaPct -1.6%), NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB (deltaPct -2.1%), and NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (deltaPct -2.4%). These deltas are larger than the CPU’s rivals, suggesting more variability in GPU performance. For Inside, the RTX 5090 D’s role is to push frame rates to extremely high levels, especially at 1080p and 1440p, where the CPU becomes more relevant. At 4K, the GPU’s raw rasterization power is what keeps the average above 150 FPS even on Ultra settings. The data indicates that the GPU is the primary driver of performance at higher resolutions, as the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is more pronounced at lower settings, where the CPU’s influence diminishes.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS across resolutions reveals a clear pattern of scaling. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 419 at 1080p to 375 at 1440p and then to 321 at 4K. This represents a 10.5% decrease from 1080p to 1440p and a 23.4% decrease from 1080p to 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 14.4%, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as pixel count increases.

At Medium settings, the averages are 386 at 1080p, 346 at 1440p, and 256 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 10.4%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 26.0%. This steeper decline at 4K suggests that the GPU’s rendering load is increasing significantly with resolution, and the CPU’s ability to keep pace becomes less critical. The min and max FPS for Medium settings also show this: at 1080p, min is 328 and max is 444; at 1440p, min is 294 and max is 398; at 4K, min is 218 and max is 295. The spread between min and max narrows as resolution increases, with the 4K range being 77 FPS compared to 116 FPS at 1080p, indicating more consistent frame pacing at higher resolutions due to the GPU being the bottleneck.

At High settings, the averages are 322 at 1080p, 255 at 1440p, and 160 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 20.8%, and from 1440p to 4K is 37.3%. This is the largest percentage drop between resolutions among all settings, showing that High settings amplify the GPU load disproportionately. At Ultra settings, the averages are 317 at 1080p, 243 at 1440p, and 153 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 23.3%, and from 1440p to 4K is 37.0%. The similarity between High and Ultra at 4K (160 vs. 153 FPS) suggests that the GPU is nearing its limit for this game at that resolution, while the CPU is not the primary constraint.

The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is more likely to be the limiting factor, as the FPS differences between settings are smaller (419 to 317 FPS, a 24.3% range) compared to 4K (321 to 153 FPS, a 52.3% range). At 4K, the GPU’s rendering capacity dominates, and the CPU’s performance becomes less relevant. This is typical for a game of this type, where the CPU handles game logic and the GPU handles frame rendering; as resolution increases, the GPU’s workload grows faster than the CPU’s.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks 19th out of 2887 tested combos in Inside. This places it in the top 0.7% of all combinations, which is an extremely high ranking. The data reflects that this pairing is among the most powerful available for this game, but it is not the absolute top, indicating that there are 18 other combos that achieve higher average FPS or better performance metrics.

The ranking is somewhat surprising given the GPU’s 92nd percentile and the CPU’s 81st percentile, but it makes sense when considering that Inside is not a demanding title. The combo’s rank suggests that the CPU-GPU balance is near-optimal for this game, with neither component severely bottlenecking the other at the tested resolutions and settings. The fact that the combo ranks 19th out of 2887 means it outperforms 99.3% of tested combinations, which is a strong result for a 6-core CPU paired with a flagship GPU.

However, the ranking also implies that there is headroom for even higher performance, likely from combos with faster CPUs or GPUs that can push frame rates above the 419 FPS ceiling observed at 1080p Low. For most players, this rank is more than sufficient, as the game is playable at maximum settings with frame rates well above 150 FPS at 4K. The data does not provide specific details on the top 18 combos, but the delta between this rank and the higher ranks is likely small, given the game’s low system requirements.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, all settings produce average FPS above 300, with Low at 419, Medium at 386, High at 322, and Ultra at 317. The difference between High and Ultra is minimal (5 FPS), suggesting that Ultra is the best choice for 1080p if the user wants maximum visual quality without sacrificing performance, as the average remains above 300 FPS.

At 1440p, the averages are 375 for Low, 346 for Medium, 255 for High, and 243 for Ultra. The drop from Medium to High is significant (91 FPS), indicating that High settings introduce a notable GPU load increase. For a smooth experience, Medium offers a high average of 346 FPS with a min of 294 FPS, ensuring no noticeable stutters. Ultra at 243 FPS is still playable but offers diminishing returns over High.

At 4K, the averages are 321 for Low, 256 for Medium, 160 for High, and 153 for Ultra. The jump from Medium to High is a 37.5% drop, which is substantial. For 4K, Medium is the recommended preset, as it provides an average of 256 FPS with a min of 218 FPS, which is well above the typical 60 FPS threshold for a puzzle platformer. Ultra at 153 FPS is also viable, but the visual difference between High and Ultra is likely negligible for this game’s art style. The data suggests that Medium at 4K offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, as the min FPS is high enough to prevent any frame pacing issues.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achieved by this combo in Inside?

A: The highest average FPS is 419, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested combinations in Inside?

A: It ranks 19th out of 2887 tested combos, placing it in the top 0.7% of all combinations.

Q: At which resolution does the CPU become less of a limiting factor?

A: At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck, as the FPS drops more steeply between settings (e.g., from 321 at Low to 153 at Ultra) compared to 1080p (419 to 317).

Q: What is the average FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 153.

Q: Is there a significant difference between High and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The difference is minimal, with High at 322 FPS and Ultra at 317 FPS, a gap of only 5 FPS.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1440p Medium?

A: The minimum FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 294.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data for the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D in Inside is as follows:

At 3840x2160 (4K), the average FPS varies by settings: High is 160, Low is 321, Medium is 256 (with a min of 218 and max of 295), and Ultra is 153.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: High is 255, Low is 375, Medium is 346 (with a min of 294 and max of 398), and Ultra is 243.

At 1920x1080, the averages are: High is 322, Low is 419, Medium is 386 (with a min of 328 and max of 444), and Ultra is 317.

The data shows a consistent trend where Low settings always yield the highest average FPS, followed by Medium, then High, and finally Ultra. The min and max FPS are only provided for Medium settings across all resolutions, which allows for a precise look at frame pacing: at 4K, the range is 218-295 FPS; at 1440p, it is 294-398 FPS; at 1080p, it is 328-444 FPS. This indicates that the game maintains a tight frame delivery at all resolutions, with the lowest min FPS (218 at 4K) still being well above the standard 60 FPS target. The overall pattern confirms that this combo is exceptionally capable for Inside, with even the most demanding settings at 4K producing average FPS above 150.