Inside

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 presents a fascinating dataset for Inside, a puzzle platformer from 2016. The measured frames per second (FPS) across resolutions and settings reveal a system with substantial headroom, but the scaling patterns expose a clear division of labor between the CPU and GPU. This analysis walks through the measured results, interpreting what they mean for the best settings, component roles, and overall ranking.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data for Inside shows a consistent hierarchy across all three resolutions: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra, in that order of performance. For players prioritizing the highest possible frame rate, the Low preset delivers exceptional numbers, but it is not necessarily the optimal experience. The data suggests that the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual fidelity and performance, as it retains a significant portion of the frame rate while providing a more complete visual experience than Low.

At 1920x1080, the Medium preset achieves an average of 282 FPS, with a minimum of 240 FPS and a maximum of 325 FPS. This is only a 36 FPS drop from the Low preset's 318 FPS average, yet it represents a substantial upgrade in graphical quality. The High preset at this resolution drops to 177 FPS, and Ultra falls to 168 FPS. While these are still very playable, the jump from Medium to High costs 105 FPS, which is a steep price for the incremental visual gains typical of a puzzle platformer.

The pattern repeats at 2560x1440, where Medium averages 203 FPS (min 173, max 234), compared to Low's 254 FPS. High drops to 127 FPS, and Ultra to 121 FPS. The Medium preset here maintains a comfortable margin above 144Hz refresh rates, making it the clear recommendation for high-refresh monitors. At 3840x2160, the Medium preset averages 128 FPS (min 108, max 147), which is still above the 60 FPS threshold for standard displays and even approaches the lower end of high-refresh 4K gaming.

The Ultra preset consistently delivers the lowest frame rates, though it never falls below 76 FPS at 4K. This means Ultra is viable for players who insist on maximum settings, but the performance cost is significant. The data indicates that Medium is the sweet spot, offering roughly 60-70% of the performance of Low while delivering a much richer visual presentation. For a game like Inside, where atmosphere and lighting are crucial, the Medium preset provides the best experience per the measured rows, balancing smoothness with visual quality.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the primary driver of frame rate differences across resolutions. With 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, the GPU has ample memory bandwidth (624.1 GB/s) for a 2016 title. The memory clocks run at 2438 MHz (19.5 Gbps effective), and the GPU boost clock is 2459 MHz, with a game clock of 2041 MHz. These specifications, combined with 2560 shading units and 96 ROPs, are far beyond what Inside requires, which explains the high frame rates even at 4K.

The measured data shows that the GPU's performance scales predictably with resolution. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 318 FPS, but this is likely not a GPU bottleneck. The GPU's role becomes more apparent at higher resolutions and settings. The transition from 1440p Medium (203 FPS) to 4K Medium (128 FPS) demonstrates a 37% drop, which is a direct consequence of the increased pixel count. The 4K Ultra setting, at 76 FPS, shows the GPU is being pushed harder, but it still maintains a playable frame rate.

The RX 7700's nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the AMD Radeon R9 370X (deltaPct -0.1), AMD Radeon RX 9060 (deltaPct -1), AMD Radeon Pro W5500 (deltaPct 1.1), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (deltaPct -1.7). These comparisons are based on average benchmark scores, not game-specific performance. The RX 7700's percentile vs all GPUs is 58, indicating it sits in the upper-middle tier of all GPUs tested. For Inside, the GPU's 16 GB VRAM is never a limiting factor, as even the most demanding settings at 4K do not come close to exhausting the memory pool. The GPU is the component that determines the ceiling at 4K Ultra, but the CPU is the limiting factor in many other scenarios.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and setting combo for the highest frame rate?

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 318 FPS at 1920x1080 with the Low preset. This is the only setting that breaks the 300 FPS mark in the dataset.

Q: Does the system maintain a playable frame rate at 4K with maximum settings?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset, the system achieves an average of 76 FPS. This is above the 60 FPS standard for 4K gaming, indicating the combo can handle max settings at 4K.

Q: How does the Medium preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 203 FPS, while High averages 127 FPS. This represents a 76 FPS difference, making Medium significantly faster while still offering a quality visual experience.

Q: Is there a large difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: Yes, the difference is substantial. At 1920x1080, Low averages 318 FPS, while Ultra averages 168 FPS. This is a 150 FPS drop, showing that Ultra costs nearly half the frame rate of Low.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160 with Medium settings, the minimum measured FPS is 108, with a maximum of 147 and an average of 128. This shows the frame rate stays well above 100 FPS even in the most demanding scenario.

Q: How does the CPU's benchmark score compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X has an average benchmark score of 51947. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX, scores 52073, a delta of -0.2%. The Intel Core i9-13900F scores 51730, a delta of 0.4%.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and AMD Radeon RX 7700 ranks 1257 out of 2887 tested combos for Inside. This places it in the 43rd percentile of all combos, meaning it outperforms roughly 43% of the systems tested. This ranking is surprisingly modest given the high frame rates measured, which suggests that many other combos in the database achieve even higher performance, likely due to more powerful GPUs or CPUs that are better optimized for this title.

The ranking position is influenced by the CPU's performance profile. The Ryzen 9 5950X has a percentile vs all CPUs of 91, indicating it is a top-tier processor. However, its nearest rivals in the CPU benchmark database include the Intel Core Ultra 5 235HX (avgScore 52073, deltaPct -0.2) and the AMD EPYC 8124P (avgScore 52121, deltaPct -0.3). The 5950X's score of 51947 is essentially tied with these rivals, but the combo's rank in Inside is more dependent on the GPU, which only has a percentile of 58. The GPU's mid-tier percentile drags the overall combo ranking down, despite the CPU's high percentile.

The data indicates that while the combo is capable of very high frame rates, it is not among the top performers in the database. The rank of 1257 out of 2887 suggests that a significant portion of other combos deliver higher FPS in Inside. This is likely because many combos pair high-end CPUs with more powerful GPUs, which can push frame rates even higher, particularly at lower resolutions where the CPU becomes the primary bottleneck.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is a 16-core, 32-thread processor from the 5000 series, based on the Zen 3 architecture (Vermeer) on a 7 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with 64 MB of L3 cache. This is an exceptionally powerful CPU, with a percentile vs all CPUs of 91 and an average benchmark score of 51947. In synthetic tests, it scores 26017 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 1614 in single-core, and 11597 in 3DMark max threads.

For Inside, a puzzle platformer, the CPU's role is to ensure the game logic and physics run smoothly. The measured data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 318 FPS, which is a very high frame rate. However, the CPU's influence is most evident when comparing the scaling between resolutions. At 1080p Low, the frame rate is 318 FPS, but at 1440p Low it drops to 254 FPS, and at 4K Low it is 160 FPS. This scaling indicates that the CPU is a limiting factor at 1080p, but the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution increases.

The 5950X's massive core count (16 cores, 32 threads) is likely overkill for Inside, which is not a heavily multithreaded title. The CPU's single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1614) is more relevant. The data shows that the CPU can sustain high frame rates without issue, as the minimum FPS for the Medium preset at 1080p is 240 FPS, which is well above typical display refresh rates. The CPU is not the bottleneck in this combination; rather, it provides a solid foundation that allows the GPU to operate at its full potential.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS across settings are: Low 318, Medium 282 (min 240, max 325), High 177, and Ultra 168. The Medium preset shows a narrow range between minimum and maximum, indicating stable performance. The drop from Medium to High is 105 FPS, which is the largest single-setting drop at this resolution. Low to Medium is a 36 FPS drop, while High to Ultra is only 9 FPS, showing diminishing returns at the top end.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 254, Medium 203 (min 173, max 234), High 127, and Ultra 121. The Medium preset's minimum of 173 FPS is still very high, but the gap between Medium and High is 76 FPS. The Low to Medium drop is 51 FPS. High to Ultra is only 6 FPS, again showing that Ultra offers marginal gains over High.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 160, Medium 128 (min 108, max 147), High 80, and Ultra 76. The Medium preset's minimum of 108 FPS is the lowest minimum recorded for any Medium setting, but it is still above 100 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 32 FPS, and from Medium to High is 48 FPS. High to Ultra is only 4 FPS, which is the smallest difference between any two settings across all resolutions.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: Low and Medium are the only presets that maintain average FPS above 100 at all resolutions. High and Ultra are always below 180 FPS, and at 4K they drop below 80 FPS. The Medium preset is the only one that provides a minimum FPS above 100 at every resolution, making it the most reliable choice for a consistent experience.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K shows how the frame rate drops as the pixel count increases. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 318 at 1080p to 254 at 1440p (a 20% drop) and then to 160 at 4K (a 37% drop from 1440p). This steep decline indicates that the GPU is struggling to keep up with the increased pixel count, even at Low settings.

At Medium settings, the averages are 282 at 1080p, 203 at 1440p, and 128 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 28%, and from 1440p to 4K is 37%. This scaling is consistent, showing that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at Medium settings. The minimum FPS at Medium also scales similarly, from 240 at 1080p to 173 at 1440p and 108 at 4K.

At High settings, the averages are 177 at 1080p, 127 at 1440p, and 80 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 28%, and from 1440p to 4K is 37%. This is nearly identical to the Medium scaling, confirming that the resolution is the dominant factor in performance loss.

At Ultra settings, the averages are 168 at 1080p, 121 at 1440p, and 76 at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 28%, and from 1440p to 4K is 37%. The scaling is uniform across all settings, which strongly suggests that the GPU is the limiting component in this combo. The CPU, with its high single-thread and multithread scores, does not appear to be a bottleneck, as the frame rate drops are directly proportional to the pixel count increase. The transition from 1080p to 1440p represents a 2.25x increase in pixels, and the frame rate drops by roughly 20-28%, while the transition to 4K (a 2.25x increase from 1440p) drops by 37%. This non-linear scaling is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become the critical factors.