Inside

# Inside — AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D + AMD Radeon RX 9070

The measured performance of this pairing in Inside reveals a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher settings, yet surprisingly CPU-limited at 1080p with lower presets. The data shows a puzzle platformer that scales aggressively with both resolution and graphical fidelity, but the relationship between those two variables tells a nuanced story about where the bottleneck shifts. With the RX 9070's RDNA 4.0 architecture and the Ryzen 7 5700X3D's 3D V-Cache, this combo sits at rank 641 out of 1671 tested configurations, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all possible pairings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, but the magnitude varies dramatically depending on the preset. At Ultra settings, moving from 1920x1080 (207.3 FPS) to 2560x1440 (146.9 FPS) represents a 29% reduction, while the jump from 1440p to 3840x2160 (92.6 FPS) costs another 37%. This cumulative 55% loss from 1080p Ultra to 4K Ultra indicates that the GPU is the dominant constraint at these higher fidelity levels.

Low settings tell a different story. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 272 FPS, but dropping to 1440p Low only reduces this to 244.5 FPS — a mere 10% decline. The 4K Low result of 196 FPS shows another 20% drop, but the overall scaling is far less punishing than at Ultra. This suggests that at low presets and lower resolutions, something other than the GPU's pixel-pushing capability is limiting performance.

The Medium preset reveals the most linear scaling pattern: 251.4 FPS at 1080p, 224.3 FPS at 1440p (an 11% decline), and 155.6 FPS at 4K (a 31% drop from 1440p). This progression hints that the RX 9070's compute resources are being utilized more evenly at Medium, with neither the CPU nor the GPU fully saturating until the resolution climbs high enough to stress the render pipeline.

GPU Role

The Radeon RX 9070 brings 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. In a game like Inside, which features a dark, atmospheric art style, memory capacity is rarely the limiting factor — but the bandwidth helps maintain consistent frame pacing across resolutions. The GPU's boost clock of 2520 MHz and game clock of 2070 MHz provide the raw throughput needed to push 99.9 FPS at 4K High, a result that sits comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

At 4K Ultra, the GPU's 128 ROPs and 224 TMUs are clearly working hard to maintain 92.6 FPS, while the 3584 shading units handle the increased pixel shader workload. The fact that 4K Ultra drops below 100 FPS while 4K High stays above it suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that disproportionately tax the pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s. The RX 9070's 36.13 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is sufficient for this title's physics and particle effects, but the measured results indicate that memory bandwidth becomes a factor at extreme resolutions.

Interestingly, the GPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the NVIDIA A2 and Quadro GV100, with delta percentages of -0.2% and +0.3% respectively. These are not gaming-focused cards, which underscores how the RX 9070's real-world gaming performance can diverge from aggregate benchmark scores — in Inside, the 4K results demonstrate that this GPU is more than capable of handling modern rendering demands at high resolutions.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 7 5700X3D's 8 cores and 16 threads, based on the Zen 3 Vermeer architecture, provide ample processing power for a game that is not traditionally CPU-intensive. The 96 MB of shared L3 cache is the standout feature here, and it likely explains why the CPU never appears to be a significant bottleneck even at 1080p Low where frame rates reach 272 FPS.

However, the scaling data suggests that the CPU does impose a ceiling at very high frame rates. At 1080p, the difference between Low (272 FPS) and Ultra (207.3 FPS) is 64.7 FPS, and this gap narrows to 48.5 FPS at 1440p and 103.4 FPS at 4K. The fact that 1080p Low cannot exceed 272 FPS — while the same preset at 1440p hits 244.5 FPS — implies that the CPU's single-thread performance is the limiting factor in these extreme scenarios.

The CPU's boost clock of 4.10 GHz and base clock of 3.00 GHz are modest by modern standards, but the 3D V-Cache compensates in gaming workloads. The 3DMark single-thread score of 804 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3157 indicate that this processor is not a top-tier single-thread performer, yet the cache hierarchy allows it to maintain high average frame rates. The CPU's percentile rank of 82 versus all CPUs places it above the majority of processors, with its nearest rival being the Intel Core i7-1360P at a 0.2% delta.

How This Combo Ranks

Out of 1671 tested combinations, this pairing ranks 641st. This places it in the 62nd percentile of all combos, which is respectable but not elite. Given that the GPU ranks in the 79th percentile and the CPU in the 82nd percentile individually, the combined rank is slightly lower than either component's standalone standing — suggesting that this particular game does not fully leverage the strengths of both parts simultaneously.

The rank of 641 indicates that there are 640 combinations that perform better in Inside, which reflects how well-optimized this game is across a wide range of hardware. The data shows that the combo's performance is strong at 1080p and 1440p, with all presets delivering at least 146.9 FPS, but the 4K Ultra result of 92.6 FPS is where the ranking likely suffers. Many higher-end GPUs with more bandwidth or shading units would outperform this setup at 4K Ultra, while the CPU's relative weakness in single-threaded tasks may hold back 1080p Low performance.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the system delivers 251.4 FPS, which is only 20.6 FPS less than Low but provides substantially better visual fidelity. At 1440p Medium, the 224.3 FPS result remains far above display refresh rates, and even 4K Medium at 155.6 FPS is exceptionally playable.

For users with high-refresh-rate 1080p or 1440p monitors, High settings are still viable — 211.7 FPS at 1080p and 157.5 FPS at 1440p are both excellent. The Ultra preset at 1080p (207.3 FPS) and 1440p (146.9 FPS) offers only marginal improvements over High while costing measurable performance, making it the least efficient choice. At 4K, High settings (99.9 FPS) are the safest recommendation, as Ultra drops to 92.6 FPS — still playable, but with a noticeable hit for what may be imperceptible visual gains in a game with a muted color palette.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the frame rates span from 207.3 FPS at Ultra to 272 FPS at Low, with Medium (251.4 FPS) and High (211.7 FPS) filling the middle. The 64.7 FPS gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is the smallest of any resolution tested, reinforcing the idea that 1080p is where the CPU's influence is most pronounced.

The 2560x1440 results show a wider spread: Low hits 244.5 FPS, Medium drops to 224.3 FPS, High falls to 157.5 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 146.9 FPS. The 97.6 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p indicates that the GPU is beginning to feel the strain of higher resolutions, particularly with the more demanding presets.

At 3840x2160, the hierarchy shifts dramatically. Low manages 196 FPS, Medium drops to 155.6 FPS, High settles at 99.9 FPS, and Ultra falls to 92.6 FPS. The 103.4 FPS spread between the lowest and highest presets at 4K is the largest of any resolution, confirming that the RX 9070 is the primary bottleneck at this resolution. The 196 FPS at 4K Low is particularly noteworthy, as it demonstrates that this GPU can handle even 4K at high frame rates when the visual effects are stripped back.

FAQ

*Q: Is this system capable of 4K gaming in Inside?*

A: Yes, the data shows 99.9 FPS at 4K High and 92.6 FPS at 4K Ultra, both well above the 60 FPS threshold. Even 4K Low achieves 196 FPS.

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

A: At 2560x1440, all presets exceed 146.9 FPS, with Low hitting 244.5 FPS and Medium at 224.3 FPS. This makes 1440p viable for high-refresh-rate displays across all settings.

Q: Does the Ultra preset provide a meaningful improvement over High?

A: The performance cost is substantial: at 1080p, Ultra is 4.4 FPS slower than High, but at 4K, the gap widens to 7.3 FPS. Given that High already delivers over 99 FPS at 4K, the Ultra preset's visual gains may not justify the frame rate loss.

Q: How does the CPU's cache affect performance in this game?

A: The 96 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps maintain high average frame rates, particularly at 1080p where the CPU is more likely to be a factor. The 3DMark multi-thread score of 6764 and single-thread score of 804 suggest the cache compensates for modest clock speeds.

*Q: Is the RX 9070's 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for Inside?*

A: Yes, the game's art style and era (released in 2016) do not demand large memory pools. The 644.6 GB/s bandwidth is more relevant, and the measured results show no signs of memory-related stuttering at any resolution.

Q: Why is the 1080p Low frame rate capped around 272 FPS?

A: The data implies a CPU limitation at very high frame rates, as the 1440p Low result of 244.5 FPS is only 10% lower despite a 78% increase in pixel count. This suggests the Ryzen 7 5700X3D's single-thread performance is the limiting factor in this scenario.