Inside

The pairing of AMD’s Ryzen 7 9700F with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 in Inside presents a clear study in bottleneck dynamics. The processor is an 8-core, 16-thread Zen 5 part with a 5.50 GHz boost clock, while the GPU is a Pascal-generation card with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory. The data shows a system that is decisively GPU-limited at higher resolutions, yet entirely CPU-capable at the lower end of the spectrum.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals how sharply this combo's performance is dictated by resolution. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 231 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 166 FPS, a reduction of 28%. At 4K Low, the average falls to 104 FPS, which is a further 37% decline from 1440p. This steep scaling curve at the lowest settings indicates that the GTX 1070 is the primary limiting factor, as the CPU is not being stressed by these lower graphical loads.

The scaling pattern shifts significantly at higher settings. With High settings, the average FPS is 115 at 1080p, 83 at 1440p, and 52 at 4K. The relative drops are 28% from 1080p to 1440p and 37% from 1440p to 4K, mirroring the Low settings pattern. However, the absolute frame rates are much lower, reinforcing that the GPU is the bottleneck. The Ultra preset shows a similar trend: 110 FPS at 1080p, 79 FPS at 1440p, and 50 FPS at 4K.

The most telling data point is the gap between Low and Ultra at the same resolution. At 1080p, Low yields 231 FPS while Ultra yields 110 FPS, a 121 FPS difference. At 4K, the gap narrows to 54 FPS (104 vs. 50). This compression of the frame rate spread at higher resolutions is a classic sign that the GPU is saturated; the pixel fill rate and shading demands of 4K are so high that even lowering the settings cannot fully compensate for the hardware's limits. The CPU, with its high single-thread performance (a Passmark single-thread score of 4691) and 16 threads, is never the limiting factor here, as evidenced by the 1080p Low score exceeding 200 FPS.

FAQ

*Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo can achieve in Inside?*

A: The highest measured average is 231 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with the Low preset.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K resolution in Inside?*

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 4K with Medium settings, it averages 83 FPS. At High settings, it averages 52 FPS, and at Ultra, it drops to 50 FPS. The Low preset at 4K produces 104 FPS.

Q: How does the GTX 1070 compare to its closest rivals in general benchmarks?

A: The GTX 1070 has an average benchmark score of 9780. Its nearest rival, the AMD FirePro W5000, scores 9803, which is a 0.2% difference. The NVIDIA Quadro M2000M scores 9832 (0.5% higher), while the NVIDIA Tesla M10 scores 9724 (0.6% lower).

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 9700F's performance compare to the Intel Core i7-14700K?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F has an average benchmark score of 69996, while the Intel Core i7-14700K scores 69355. The data shows the Ryzen is 0.9% ahead of the Intel part in this metric.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game's frame rate at 1440p High?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. At 1440p High, the average FPS is 83. Given that the CPU can push 166 FPS at 1440p Low, it is not the bottleneck; the GTX 1070's rendering capabilities are the constraint at the High preset.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded in the data?

A: The only minimum FPS values provided are for the Medium preset. At 1920x1080, the minimum is 157 FPS; at 2560x1440, it is 113 FPS; and at 3840x2160, it is 71 FPS.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a powerhouse that is largely underutilized in this specific game. With 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 5 architecture, it has a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The benchmark data shows a significant lead in multithreaded workloads, with a Passmark multithread score of 36470. Its single-thread score of 4691 is also robust, which is critical for game logic and physics.

In Inside, a Puzzle Platformer with relatively simple visual fidelity, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage game state. The data suggests it does this with ease. The 1080p Low result of 231 FPS demonstrates that the CPU can handle frame pacing well beyond typical display refresh rates. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 89.6 GB/s of memory bandwidth provide ample headroom for data transfer.

The CPU's performance percentile is 94, placing it above most other processors. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, has an average score of 69875, which is 0.2% lower. The Intel Core i7-14700KF is 0.2% higher at 70163. These margins are negligible, indicating that the 9700F is at the top tier of CPU performance. Since Inside is not a demanding title for modern CPUs, the 9700F's role is to ensure the GTX 1070 is the only thing holding back the frame rate, which it does effectively.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 9700F and the GTX 1070 ranks 3056 out of 3716 tested combos in Inside. This places it in the lower percentile of all possible pairings, likely due to the age and performance level of the GPU. The CPU is a modern, high-end part, but the GPU is an older, mid-range component from the 10-series generation.

This rank is a direct reflection of the GPU's capabilities. While the CPU can push high frame rates in less demanding scenarios, the GTX 1070's 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 256.3 GB/s of memory bandwidth limit the overall system. The GPU's general benchmark percentile is 47, meaning it performs worse than 53% of all GPUs. This is the anchor on the combo's rank.

The data shows that the system is balanced in the sense that the CPU is never a bottleneck. The rank would be significantly higher if paired with a more powerful GPU, as the CPU's headroom is substantial. However, as is, the combo is limited by the graphics card's ability to render frames, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. The rank of 3056 is a clear indicator that this pairing is not optimal for maximizing performance in this title, though it remains playable at most settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS, the best experience balances frame rate with visual quality. For a standard 60 Hz display, the Medium preset is the sweet spot. At 1080p, it averages 184 FPS, at 1440p it averages 133 FPS, and at 4K it averages 83 FPS. These numbers provide a significant buffer above 60 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. The minimum recorded FPS for this preset is also solid, with 157 FPS at 1080p and 113 FPS at 1440p.

If the user has a high-refresh-rate monitor (144 Hz or above), the Low preset is the only way to fully utilize it. At 1440p, Low yields 166 FPS, and at 1080p, it yields 231 FPS. However, this requires sacrificing visual fidelity. The High preset offers a middle ground, with 115 FPS at 1080p and 83 FPS at 1440p, but it does not provide the same headroom as Medium.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for this combo. It offers negligible visual improvements over High in a game like Inside, but it costs performance. The average FPS at Ultra is 110 at 1080p, 79 at 1440p, and 50 at 4K. These numbers are only slightly lower than High, but they push the 4K result just below the 60 FPS threshold. For 4K gaming, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, as it is the only setting that consistently delivers above 60 FPS (averaging 83 FPS) while maintaining acceptable visual quality. The Low preset at 4K does achieve 104 FPS, but the visual downgrade is likely too severe for most users.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete data set for this combo is as follows. At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 231 FPS. The Medium preset averages 184 FPS, with a minimum of 157 FPS and a maximum of 212 FPS. High averages 115 FPS, and Ultra averages 110 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 166 FPS. The Medium preset averages 133 FPS, with a minimum of 113 FPS and a maximum of 153 FPS. High averages 83 FPS, and Ultra averages 79 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 104 FPS. The Medium preset averages 83 FPS, with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 96 FPS. High averages 52 FPS, and Ultra averages 50 FPS.

The data clearly shows a linear relationship between resolution and frame rate drops, and a non-linear relationship between settings and frame rate. The jump from Low to Medium incurs a significant performance hit (e.g., from 231 to 184 FPS at 1080p), while the jump from High to Ultra is minimal (115 to 110 FPS at 1080p). This suggests that the Medium preset is the most efficient use of the GPU's resources, offering a substantial improvement in visual quality over Low for a relatively modest performance cost. The Ultra preset, conversely, offers little benefit for the performance it consumes.