Inside

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 produces a fascinating set of results in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer that is far more demanding than its minimalist aesthetic suggests. The data reveals a system where the GPU is the primary bottleneck at high resolutions, but the CPU’s immense headroom allows for extraordinary frame rates at lower settings, making this combo a study in asymmetric performance.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable but steep decline as resolution increases, confirming that the RTX 2060 is the limiting component in most scenarios. At 1080p with High settings, the combo averages 126.3 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 93.0 FPS, a 26.4% reduction. At 4K, the average falls to 56.1 FPS, which is just over half of the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is classic GPU-bound behavior; the CPU is not the constraint here.

The Low settings preset tells a different story. At 1080p Low, the system produces 258.6 FPS, which is exceptional. At 1440p Low, it still manages 186.3 FPS, and even at 4K Low, it holds onto 113.7 FPS. The fact that 4K Low (113.7 FPS) is nearly double the 4K High figure (56.1 FPS) indicates that the game’s higher presets introduce significant pixel and shading workloads that saturate the GPU. The gap between 1080p High (126.3 FPS) and 4K High (56.1 FPS) is a 55.6% performance loss, which is substantial but not catastrophic for a game of this era.

What the data implies is that the RTX 2060’s memory bandwidth and compute throughput are the deciding factors at 4K, while the Ryzen 7 9700X’s 8 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient to feed the GPU at lower resolutions. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at High settings (126.3 to 93.0 FPS) is a 26.4% drop, while the 1440p to 4K transition (93.0 to 56.1 FPS) is a 39.7% drop. This accelerating decline suggests that the GPU’s 192-bit memory bus and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth become progressively more strained as pixel count grows.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is built on the TU106 chip using a 12 nm process, featuring 1920 shading units and 48 ROPs. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus delivers 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These specifications explain the observed frame rates. In Inside, a game that relies on atmospheric lighting and shadow effects, the GPU’s raw fillrate and memory throughput are the primary drivers of performance.

The RTX 2060’s boost clock of 1680 MHz and base clock of 1365 MHz are modest by modern standards, but they are sufficient for a 2016 title. The data shows that at Ultra settings, the GPU is heavily taxed: 4K Ultra yields 56.8 FPS, which is nearly identical to 4K High (56.1 FPS). This suggests that the Ultra preset adds minimal visual fidelity for the same performance cost, likely due to the GPU being bottlenecked by its memory subsystem rather than shader complexity.

The GPU’s percentile ranking of 58% versus all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16074, places it in the mid-range. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S, scores 15996 (0.5% higher), while the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 scores 16351 (1.7% higher). These small deltas indicate that the RTX 2060 is competitive with its peers, but its 6 GB VRAM capacity is a potential limitation for modern titles. In Inside, the 6 GB allocation is not a constraining factor, as the game’s art style does not require massive texture pools. The data confirms this: the frame rate drop from Medium to Ultra at 4K is only 37.2 FPS (90.0 to 56.8), which is more attributable to compute load than memory overflow.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy for the best experience. At 1080p, the Medium preset offers 202.6 FPS, which is more than sufficient for a smooth experience, and it is only 21.6% slower than Low (258.6 FPS) while likely providing better visual quality. The Ultra preset at 1080p delivers 124.0 FPS, which is still excellent, but the 38.7% performance gap between Medium and Ultra (202.6 to 124.0) is not justified by the incremental visual gains in a game like Inside.

For 1440p, the Medium preset (149.4 FPS) is the sweet spot, as it maintains a high refresh rate while staying well above the 60 FPS threshold. High at 1440p (93.0 FPS) is playable, but Ultra (90.5 FPS) offers no meaningful improvement over High, making High the better choice if settings must be lowered for stability. At 4K, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset (113.7 FPS) is the only preset that guarantees a smooth experience, as Medium (90.0 FPS) is borderline, and High (56.1 FPS) and Ultra (56.8 FPS) dip below 60 FPS, which is noticeable in a game that requires precise timing.

The data suggests that the best experience per the measured rows is 1080p Medium for maximum fluidity, or 1440p Medium for a balance of resolution and speed. For 4K, Low is the only viable option to maintain a consistent frame rate. The Ultra preset appears to be a performance trap, as it provides nearly identical FPS to High across all resolutions (124.0 vs 126.3 at 1080p, 90.5 vs 93.0 at 1440p, 56.8 vs 56.1 at 4K) without a proportional visual benefit.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the data shows a clear progression. Low settings average 258.6 FPS, Medium drops to 202.6 FPS, High falls to 126.3 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 124.0 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 56.0 FPS (21.6%), while the gap between Medium and High is 76.3 FPS (37.7%). This indicates that the High preset introduces a significant rendering load, likely from advanced shadow and lighting techniques, that the RTX 2060 struggles to maintain at the same level as lower presets.

At 2560x1440, the values are 186.3 FPS for Low, 149.4 FPS for Medium, 93.0 FPS for High, and 90.5 FPS for Ultra. The drop from Low to Medium is 36.9 FPS (19.8%), and from Medium to High is 56.4 FPS (37.8%). The pattern repeats: High and Ultra are nearly indistinguishable in performance (93.0 vs 90.5 FPS), suggesting a hard limit imposed by the GPU’s shading units or ROPs.

At 3840x2160, the results are 113.7 FPS for Low, 90.0 FPS for Medium, 56.1 FPS for High, and 56.8 FPS for Ultra. The Low to Medium drop is 23.7 FPS (20.8%), and the Medium to High drop is 33.9 FPS (37.7%). The High and Ultra values are astonishingly close (56.1 vs 56.8 FPS), reinforcing the conclusion that the Ultra preset is not optimized for this hardware. Across all resolutions, the High to Ultra delta is never more than 3.2 FPS, while the Medium to High delta is consistently around 37%, indicating a distinct tier in graphical complexity.

FAQ

*Q: Is this combo capable of running Inside at 4K with playable frame rates?*

A: Yes, but only at Low or Medium settings. The data shows 4K Low averages 113.7 FPS and 4K Medium averages 90.0 FPS, while 4K High drops to 56.1 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: Why is there almost no difference between High and Ultra settings in this game?

A: The measured FPS shows less than a 3.2 FPS difference between High and Ultra at any resolution (e.g., 1080p: 126.3 vs 124.0, 4K: 56.1 vs 56.8). This suggests the GPU is bottlenecked by its memory bandwidth or ROP throughput, making the Ultra preset’s additional effects cost nearly nothing in performance but also adding no headroom.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 16074, which is 0.5% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600S (15996) and 1.8% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (15786). It trails the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 by 1.7% (16351).

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: Medium is the optimal choice, with an average of 149.4 FPS. High drops to 93.0 FPS, which is still playable, but Medium offers a 60.7% performance advantage over High while likely retaining most visual quality.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: No. The CPU has 8 cores and 16 threads with a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, and its benchmark scores are high (e.g., Cinebench R23 multicore score of 31588). The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K is consistent with GPU limitations, not CPU constraints.

*Q: Is the 6 GB VRAM sufficient for Inside?*

A: Yes. The game’s simple art style does not appear to exceed 6 GB, as the frame rate differences are more closely tied to compute load than memory capacity. The GPU’s 336.0 GB/s bandwidth is the more likely limiting factor at 4K.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a Zen 5 (Granite Ridge) processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, base clock of 3.80 GHz, and boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 4 nm process node contribute to strong single-thread and multi-thread performance. In Inside, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics calculations, which are minimal for a puzzle platformer. The data shows the CPU is not a bottleneck: at 1080p Low, the system achieves 258.6 FPS, which is likely near the game’s engine limit.

The CPU’s benchmark scores are impressive. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 31588, and its single-core score is 4459. Its 3DMark single-thread score is 1280, and its 3DMark 16-thread score is 9824. These figures place the Ryzen 7 9700X in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 36029. Compared to its nearest rivals, it is 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core i5-14500HX (35940) and 0.6% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 (35802), but 0.4% behind the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H (36165). This level of performance ensures that the CPU can handle any preset in Inside without limiting the GPU.

The CPU’s 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth is more than adequate for this game. The data implies that even at 4K Low (113.7 FPS), the CPU has ample headroom, as the frame rate is still highly dependent on GPU workload. The combination of a powerful CPU and mid-range GPU means that in lighter scenes, the CPU could push even higher frame rates, but the GPU’s 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 performance caps the output.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 1349th out of 1671 tested combos in Inside. This rank of 1349 places it in the bottom 20% of all combos, which is surprising given the high CPU performance. The reason is clear: the RTX 2060’s relatively low GPU benchmark scores (average 16074, 58th percentile) drag the combo down. The CPU is ranked in the 89th percentile, but the GPU is only in the 58th percentile, creating a significant imbalance.

This ranking suggests that while the CPU is overqualified for this game, the GPU is the limiting factor. The measured FPS data supports this: at 1080p High, the combo achieves 126.3 FPS, but a stronger GPU would likely push this much higher. The combo’s rank of 1349 out of 1671 means that most other combinations tested deliver higher average FPS in Inside, likely due to more balanced GPU performance. However, the data shows that for this specific pairing, the experience is still playable at most settings, with the exception of 4K High and Ultra, which fall below 60 FPS.

The rank is a reflection of the GPU’s age and position in the market. The RTX 2060 is end-of-life, and its 6 GB VRAM and 12 nm process are outdated. In contrast, the Ryzen 7 9700X is a current-generation part with a 4 nm process and DDR5 support. This mismatch is evident in the data: the CPU can deliver 258.6 FPS at 1080p Low, but the GPU cannot maintain that performance at higher settings. The combo’s ranking is therefore a warning that pairing a top-tier CPU with a mid-range GPU will result in GPU-bound performance, leaving CPU headroom unused. For Inside, this means the user is limited by the GPU’s 2019-era capabilities, not the CPU’s 2024-era strengths.