Inside

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER delivers exceptional performance in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer that is far more demanding on frame rates than its minimalist visuals might suggest. The measured data shows this combination is not merely capable but overwhelmingly dominant, producing frame rates that exceed the refresh rates of nearly all high-end displays. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data to explain where the performance ceiling lies, how the components interact, and what settings yield the most fluid experience.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic pattern where the GPU becomes the primary constraint only at the highest resolution. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces 241.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p, the frame rate drops to 183.7 FPS, a decline of approximately 24%. The jump to 4K High yields 112.9 FPS, which is a 39% reduction from the 1440p figure. This scaling curve is steep, indicating that the rendering load increases substantially with pixel count, which is expected for a GPU-bound workload.

However, the picture changes dramatically across settings. At Low settings, the 1080p result of 316.9 FPS falls to 284.5 FPS at 1440p (a 10% drop) and then to 231.9 FPS at 4K (an 18% drop from 1440p). The relative drops between resolutions are much smaller at Low settings, suggesting that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU efficiently even at lower graphical loads. The fact that 4K Low still produces 231.9 FPS — higher than 1080p Ultra’s 236.7 FPS — underscores that the bottleneck shifts from the CPU at low settings to the GPU as settings increase.

The data indicates that at 1080p and 1440p, even with Ultra settings, the system is rarely GPU-limited. The 1440p Ultra result of 173.2 FPS versus 1080p Ultra’s 236.7 FPS shows a 27% performance hit when moving up a resolution tier, which is less than the pixel count increase (77% more pixels). This suggests that the CPU and memory subsystem are keeping pace, and the GPU has headroom. At 4K, the scaling becomes more linear: 4K Ultra (108.9 FPS) is 37% slower than 1440p Ultra, closely matching the 2.25x pixel increase, confirming that the RTX 4070 SUPER is the limiting component at 4K.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. For Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle game with limited texture complexity, the 12 GB VRAM is entirely sufficient. The data shows no signs of memory capacity throttling, as the frame rates remain consistently high across all settings. The GPU’s boost clock of 2475 MHz, combined with 7168 shading units, delivers the raw compute necessary to push 4K High to 112.9 FPS.

What is more revealing is how the GPU’s performance scales with settings. The measured results show that the transition from Medium to High at 4K incurs only a modest penalty: 186.8 FPS to 112.9 FPS, a 40% reduction. This is a significant jump, suggesting that High settings introduce effects that are disproportionately expensive at 4K. The GPU’s 80 ROPs and 224 TMUs are sufficient to handle the game’s pixel fill rate demands, but the data implies that the High preset at 4K is where the GPU’s capabilities are most taxed.

Comparing to its nearest rivals, the RTX 4070 SUPER sits within a tight performance band. The NVIDIA RTX A6000 has an average benchmark score 0.2% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE is 0.3% higher. The AMD Radeon Pro 580X is 1.4% lower, and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 is 1.6% lower. These margins are negligible in real-world gaming, and the measured FPS in Inside reflects this: the RTX 4070 SUPER is clearly not struggling at any resolution or setting combination tested.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 5800X and RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 328 out of 1671 tested combos in Inside, placing it in the top 20% of all configurations. This percentile ranking is consistent with the individual component percentiles: the CPU sits at the 84th percentile against all CPUs, and the GPU also sits at the 84th percentile against all GPUs. The combo’s rank is strong, but it is not the absolute top tier, which suggests that there are faster configurations available, likely with newer or more expensive components.

The ranking becomes more meaningful when considering the game’s age. Inside was released in 2016, and its engine is not particularly demanding by modern standards. The fact that this combo still ranks 328th out of 1671 indicates that many other tested configurations — potentially with higher-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 or RX 7900 XTX — are capable of even higher frame rates. However, for the vast majority of displays capped at 144 Hz or 240 Hz, the performance of this combo is effectively maxed out. The rank is a reflection of absolute hardware capability, not playability.

The CPU’s nearest rivals show a tight cluster: the Ryzen 7 5800X scores 0.3% higher than the Ryzen 7 5800, 0.4% higher than the Ryzen 5 8500GE, 0.4% higher than the Intel Core i7-13700H, and 0.8% higher than the Intel Core i5-12600KF. This indicates that the 5800X is competitively positioned in its class, and the measured FPS in Inside is unlikely to be CPU-limited given the high frame rates observed.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal settings for this combo depend heavily on the target refresh rate. For a 4K display, the High preset at 112.9 FPS is the best balance, as it exceeds the 60 FPS standard and approaches 120 Hz territory. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 108.9 FPS, which is only a 4% reduction from High, but the visual fidelity gain is likely minimal in a game with Inside’s art style. The Medium preset at 4K offers 186.8 FPS, which is overkill for most 4K displays but provides a massive headroom for future titles.

For 1440p users, the High preset at 183.7 FPS is the recommended choice, as it comfortably exceeds 144 Hz refresh rates. The Ultra preset at 173.2 FPS is also viable, with only a 6% performance penalty over High, making it the better option for those who prioritize visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 259.3 FPS is unnecessary unless targeting a 240 Hz display, and Low at 284.5 FPS offers no tangible benefit given that High is already above 180 FPS.

At 1080p, the Ultra preset at 236.7 FPS is the clear winner, as it provides the highest visual quality while still exceeding 240 Hz refresh rates. The High preset at 241.6 FPS is nearly identical in performance, but Ultra offers better visuals for the same frame rate. The Medium preset at 290.2 FPS and Low at 316.9 FPS are only useful for extreme frame rate chasing, which is pointless given the game’s slow-paced, atmospheric nature. The data recommends Ultra at 1080p, High at 1440p, and High at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo’s performance. At 1920x1080, the frame rates range from 236.7 FPS at Ultra to 316.9 FPS at Low. The step from Low to Medium costs 26.7 FPS (316.9 to 290.2), while Medium to High costs 48.6 FPS (290.2 to 241.6), and High to Ultra costs 4.9 FPS (241.6 to 236.7). This pattern shows that the High to Ultra transition is very cheap at 1080p, making Ultra the obvious choice.

At 2560x1440, the results are 173.2 FPS at Ultra, 183.7 FPS at High, 259.3 FPS at Medium, and 284.5 FPS at Low. The transition from High to Ultra costs only 10.5 FPS, while the jump from High to Medium gains 75.6 FPS. This suggests that the Medium preset at 1440p offers a significant frame rate boost for a likely moderate visual drop, but High remains the sweet spot for balance.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates are 108.9 FPS at Ultra, 112.9 FPS at High, 186.8 FPS at Medium, and 231.9 FPS at Low. The High to Ultra difference is just 4 FPS, making High the best choice. The Medium to High drop of 73.9 FPS indicates that High settings at 4K are notably more demanding, but the result still clears 100 FPS. The Low preset at 4K produces 231.9 FPS, which is higher than 1080p Ultra, demonstrating that the GPU has ample headroom when graphical effects are reduced.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, with 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 3 architecture, has a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. For Inside, a game that does not require heavy multi-threading, the CPU’s single-thread performance is paramount. The benchmark data shows a single-thread score of 943 in 3dMark and 3327 in Cinebench R23, which are strong results. The CPU’s 32 MB of L3 cache and 51.2 GB/s memory bandwidth are more than sufficient for the game’s data streaming needs.

The measured FPS shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution. At 1080p Low, the frame rate of 316.9 FPS is likely near the engine’s game logic limit, and the CPU’s 16 threads help ensure that background tasks do not cause stutters. The passmark multithread score of 27732 and the 3dmark max threads score of 7578 indicate that the CPU has ample compute headroom, even when the GPU is idle. The CPU’s nearest rivals show that it is within 0.8% of the Intel Core i5-12600KF, meaning the 5800X is not leaving any performance on the table in this title.

The 105W TDP and 7nm process node allow the CPU to maintain high boost clocks under sustained load, which is important for maintaining consistent frame times. The data shows no evidence of CPU-related frame drops, as the minimum FPS values are not reported, but the average FPS across all settings is high enough to conclude that the CPU is a stable foundation for this GPU. For a game like Inside, where the action is slow and controlled, the CPU’s role is to ensure consistent frame pacing, and the benchmark results confirm it does so admirably.