Inside

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER pairing delivers a surprisingly robust experience in Inside, a puzzle platformer from 2016 that is far more demanding on the GPU than its minimalist art style suggests. The data shows a combo that scales cleanly from high-refresh 1080p gaming down to a playable 4K, with the CPU’s modern architecture providing enough headroom to keep frame pacing consistent. This analysis breaks down exactly what this hardware duo offers, based solely on measured benchmark results.

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a desktop processor built on the Zen 5 architecture, using a 4 nm process at TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The processor has a 65 W TDP and supports DDR5 memory through a dual-channel bus with 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth. It includes 32 MB of shared L3 cache, alongside 80 KB of L1 and 1 MB of L2 per core. The chip also carries integrated Radeon Graphics, though the system under analysis uses a discrete GPU.

For a game like Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer, the CPU workload is not typically the primary bottleneck. However, the 9700X’s single-thread performance is exceptional. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 1280 in 3DMark single-thread and 4459 in Cinebench R23 single-core. These numbers are critical because Inside’s physics and logic update frequently, and a strong single-core result ensures that frame times remain stable even when the scene has many interactive elements. The multi-threaded scores are equally strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 31588 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 17002.

Relative to its nearest rivals, the 9700X is positioned in a tight cluster. It scores 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i5-14500HX and 0.6% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845. It trails the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H by 0.4% and the Intel Core Ultra 5 225H by 0.8%. These deltas are negligible in real-world gaming scenarios, meaning the CPU is never the limiting factor in this pairing. The processor sits in the 89th percentile of all CPUs tested, indicating that it outperforms the vast majority of desktop and mobile parts available.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X?

A: The launch MSRP is $359. This places it as a mainstream high-end desktop part, though the analysis here focuses solely on its performance metrics.

Q: How does the RTX 2070 SUPER compare to its closest rivals in raw GPU compute?

A: The RTX 2070 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 22206. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA RTX A400, scores 22307, which is 0.5% higher. The GeForce GTX TITAN Z scores 22006, coming in 0.9% lower. The RTX 4060 Mobile scores 22729, which is 2.3% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 5700 scores 21670, which is 2.5% lower. The GPU sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: What are the core and clock specifications of the RTX 2070 SUPER?

A: The GPU uses the TU104 chip on a 12 nm process. It has a base clock of 1605 MHz and a boost clock of 1770 MHz. It features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output units. It also includes 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores. The memory configuration is 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Is the RTX 2070 SUPER still a relevant GPU for modern gaming?

A: The production status is listed as end-of-life, and it was released in 2019. However, its benchmark results show it remains capable. It scores 18169 in Passmark G3D and 98316 in Geekbench OpenCL. For a game like Inside, the measured frame rates at 1440p and 4K indicate it can still handle demanding titles at medium-to-high settings.

*Q: What is the combo rank of this CPU and GPU pairing in Inside?*

A: The combination ranks 1002 out of 1671 tested combos for this game. This places it in the upper-middle tier, meaning there are many faster configurations, but it also outperforms a significant portion of the database.

Q: How does the CPU’s memory bandwidth affect gaming performance?

A: The 9700X supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus, providing 89.6 GB/s of bandwidth. This is ample for feeding the 8 cores and 16 threads. For Inside, which is not memory-bandwidth sensitive, this specification ensures there is no artificial bottleneck when the GPU requests data for texture streaming or scene updates.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern: the RTX 2070 SUPER is the primary limiting component at higher resolutions, while the CPU holds up well at 1080p. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo achieves 152.9 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High, the frame rate drops to 110.9 FPS, a reduction of approximately 27%. At 3840x2160 High, the average FPS falls to 67.5, which is a 56% drop from the 1080p result.

This scaling behavior is typical for a GPU-bound scenario. The RTX 2070 SUPER’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K, the pixel fill rate becomes the bottleneck. The GPU’s pixel rate is 113.3 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 283.2 GTexel/s. At 4K, the demand on these units increases significantly, leading to the observed frame rate reduction.

The CPU’s role in this scaling is minimal. The 9700X’s strong single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 1280, ensures that even at 308.4 FPS (1080p Low), the processor does not introduce a frame-time spike. The data indicates that the system is never CPU-limited in this game, as the FPS scales predictably with resolution and settings. The GPU is the component that determines the ceiling at 4K, while the CPU easily keeps up with the frame generation demands at lower resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER combination ranks 1002 out of 1671 tested combos for Inside. This rank places it in the 60th percentile of all configurations tested. While this might seem like a mid-pack result, it is important to contextualize this number.

The rank is based on the average FPS across all resolutions and settings tested. Many of the combos ranked higher likely feature more recent GPUs with higher memory bandwidth and more shading units. The RTX 2070 SUPER, while competent, is an older part. The GPU’s average benchmark score of 22206 and its 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs suggest that it is a solid mid-range performer, but not a top-tier one.

However, the 9700X is a high-end CPU, ranking in the 89th percentile of all CPUs. This mismatch is why the combo lands in the upper-middle tier. The CPU provides a strong foundation, but the GPU limits the overall score. For a game like Inside, which is not heavily threaded, the CPU’s advantage is less pronounced than in a multi-threaded simulation. The rank of 1002 indicates that there are faster combos, but this pairing is still capable of delivering a smooth experience at most settings, as the measured FPS data confirms.

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

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets.

At 1920x1080, the combo is exceptionally fast. With Low settings, the average FPS is 308.4. This is a high-refresh rate experience that will easily drive a 240 Hz monitor. Medium settings yield 244.4 FPS, and High settings produce 152.9 FPS. Ultra settings drop the average to 149.5 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is minimal, suggesting that the Ultra preset adds effects that are not significantly more demanding on the GPU.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains strong. Low settings achieve 220.9 FPS, which is still excellent for competitive play. Medium settings produce 181 FPS, and High settings deliver 110.9 FPS. Ultra settings drop to 103.9 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a consistent reduction of roughly 27-30% across all settings, which is expected for a GPU-bound title.

At 3840x2160, the GPU begins to struggle. Low settings achieve 138.3 FPS, which is still playable. Medium settings drop to 110 FPS, and High settings fall to 67.5 FPS. Ultra settings produce 65 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is significant, but the drop from High to Ultra is small, indicating that the Ultra preset’s additional effects are not the primary cost at 4K. The 4K results are the most demanding, but the combo still manages to stay above 60 FPS on High, which is a playable threshold for many.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate.

For 1920x1080, the High preset at 152.9 FPS is the recommended choice. It provides a smooth experience on any standard 144 Hz monitor, and the visual quality is high. The Ultra preset at 149.5 FPS is not worth the 3.4 FPS loss, as the visual difference between High and Ultra is often imperceptible in a game with Inside’s art style. For users with a 240 Hz monitor, the Medium preset at 244.4 FPS is the best option, as it maintains a frame rate high enough to take advantage of the display’s refresh rate while still offering decent visual fidelity.

For 2560x1440, the High preset at 110.9 FPS is the best balance. It is well above 60 FPS and provides a sharp image. The Medium preset at 181 FPS is excellent for high-refresh 1440p monitors, but the visual downgrade from High may be noticeable. The Ultra preset at 103.9 FPS is also viable, but it offers only a marginal visual improvement over High at a cost of 7 FPS.

For 3840x2160, the High preset at 67.5 FPS is the best experience. It stays above the 60 FPS threshold, which is the minimum for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 110 FPS is significantly faster, but the visual quality drop is substantial. The Ultra preset at 65 FPS is not recommended, as it offers no meaningful visual gain over High while providing a lower average frame rate. The Low preset at 138.3 FPS is an option for users who prioritize frame rate over visuals, but it is not necessary for a game that is not competitive.

In summary, the High preset is the safest recommendation across all resolutions, offering the best balance between visual quality and performance. The data shows that the Ultra preset is rarely worth the performance cost, and the Low preset is only useful for extreme frame rate targets.