Inside

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers exceptional frame rates in Inside, a game that is clearly not demanding by modern standards. The data shows this combination is capable of pushing even 4K Ultra settings well past the 60 FPS threshold, making it a definitive overkill setup for this title. This analysis breaks down how the components scale across resolutions and settings, providing a practical guide for users who want to maximize their experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable and dramatic drop in performance as resolution increases, but the absolute numbers remain so high that the experience is fluid at every tested setting. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 357 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 320 FPS, a decline of 37 FPS or roughly 10%. The jump to 4K Low further reduces the average to 209 FPS, which is a 35% reduction from the 1440p figure. This scaling pattern indicates that at lower resolutions and settings, the frame rate is heavily influenced by the CPU's ability to feed frames, as the GPU is far from being a bottleneck.

The trend becomes more pronounced when examining higher settings. At Medium settings, the frame rate scales from 330 FPS at 1080p down to 266 FPS at 1440p (a 19% drop), and then to 167 FPS at 4K (a 37% drop from 1440p). This steeper decline at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU begins to take on a more significant role, though it is still far from being saturated. The 4K Medium result of 167 FPS is still exceptionally high, and the minimum FPS of 142 recorded at this setting shows that even the worst-case dips remain well above any threshold for smooth gameplay.

With High settings, the scaling is similar. The average FPS at 1080p is 231, which drops to 166 at 1440p (a 28% reduction) and then to 104 at 4K (a 37% reduction from 1440p). The gap between 1080p and 1440p is larger here than at lower settings, indicating that the pixel fill rate demands of the GPU are starting to matter more. However, the 4K High result of 104 FPS is still excellent for a 4K experience. Finally, at Ultra settings, the frame rates are 220 FPS at 1080p, 158 FPS at 1440p, and 99 FPS at 4K. The similarity between the 1080p High and Ultra results (231 vs 220 FPS) and the 1080p Low and Ultra results (357 vs 220 FPS) suggests that the game's Ultra preset is not significantly more taxing than High, but rather that the CPU is likely limiting performance at 1080p.

The key takeaway from the resolution scaling is that this hardware is never the limiting factor for a playable experience. The limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p to the GPU at 4K, but the combined power of the Ryzen 9 8945HX and RTX 4090 ensures that even the most demanding configuration, 4K Ultra, maintains an average of 99 FPS. The data indicates that users can prioritize resolution and visual fidelity without needing to compromise on frame rate, as the system has a massive amount of headroom.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Dragon Range. It features a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. For a game like Inside, which is a 2D puzzle platformer, the threading demands are typically low, meaning that the game will likely rely on a single core or a few cores for its primary logic. The CPU's single-threaded performance is strong, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6030. This score is crucial because it dictates how fast the game can process its main loop, physics calculations, and input logic.

The benchmark results for the CPU show it is a top-tier part. With a percentile rank of 95 against all CPUs, it sits in the top 5% of processors. Its multi-core performance is also exceptional, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42713. While Inside may not utilize all 16 cores, this massive multi-threaded headroom ensures that any background tasks or system processes will not interfere with the game's performance. The data shows that the CPU's capability far exceeds what Inside requires, making it a non-factor in limiting the frame rate, especially at lower resolutions where the GPU has less work to do.

Comparing it to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 9 8945HX is virtually tied with the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX, showing a deltaPct of 0.1% higher in average benchmark scores. It also edges out the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D by a 0.6% margin in the same metric. This places it in a performance tier that is essentially at the top of the consumer mobile market. For a game like Inside, the specific choice among these top CPUs will have no measurable impact on the frame rate because the game is not CPU-bound at higher resolutions, and even at 1080p, the processor's single-core speed is more than sufficient to push hundreds of frames per second.

The CPU's memory support for DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and a bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s further ensures that data can be fed to the cores quickly. While Inside is not a memory-intensive title, the high bandwidth and low latency of DDR5 eliminate any potential memory bottlenecks. The processor's 64 MB of L3 cache is also beneficial for holding game assets, though the game's size and simplicity mean this is likely not a critical factor. Ultimately, the CPU's role in this combo is to provide a foundation that never limits the GPU. The data confirms that it is an extremely powerful processor that is well-suited for this task, even if its full potential is not being utilized by Inside.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings for this combination are surprisingly straightforward: the game can be run at maximum settings at any resolution without issue. The data shows that at 1080p, the difference between Low (357 FPS) and Ultra (220 FPS) is significant in raw numbers, but 220 FPS is already far beyond the refresh rate of most displays. For 1440p, the Ultra preset yields an average of 158 FPS, which is still exceptionally smooth. Even at 4K, the Ultra preset produces an average of 99 FPS, which is a perfect experience for a game like this.

The most practical recommendation is to use the Ultra preset at 1440p. The measured average of 158 FPS at this setting provides a high refresh rate experience that will be smooth on any high-end monitor. The jump from High to Ultra at 1440p costs only 8 FPS (166 down to 158), which is a negligible trade-off for the potential visual improvements. This makes Ultra the clear choice for a "best experience" at this resolution, as the performance penalty is minimal.

If a user is targeting 4K, the Ultra preset remains the best option. The drop from High (104 FPS) to Ultra (99 FPS) is only 5 FPS, which is imperceptible in a game of this genre. The 99 FPS average at 4K Ultra is well above the 60 FPS standard and provides a very fluid experience. The Medium preset at 4K offers a higher frame rate of 167 FPS, but the visual downgrade is not worth the extra 68 FPS when the Ultra setting already provides a flawless experience. The data suggests that there is no reason to lower settings below Ultra for this game, as the hardware has more than enough power to handle it.

For users with high refresh rate 1080p displays (240Hz or higher), the High preset at 231 FPS or the Medium preset at 330 FPS are the best options. The Medium preset at 1080p offers the best balance of high frame rate and visual fidelity, with a minimum FPS of 280 that ensures no stutters even in the most demanding scenes. However, the Ultra preset at 220 FPS is also a valid choice, as it still exceeds 200 FPS. In summary, the data indicates that "max it out" is the only sensible advice, with the specific resolution being the only variable a user needs to decide on.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 537th out of 2887 tested combinations for this game. This places it in the top 18.6% of all tested systems. While this might sound low for such a high-end setup, it is important to consider the context. The game Inside is not graphically intensive, meaning that a wide range of older or less powerful hardware can also achieve high frame rates. The ranking is a measure of raw performance, and while this combo is in the upper echelon, the game's low requirements mean that many mid-range systems can also hit the maximum frame rate cap for a typical 60Hz display.

The ranking of 537 suggests that there are 536 other combinations that can produce higher average frame rates in Inside. Since the game is likely CPU-bound at low resolutions, many desktop processors with higher single-threaded clock speeds or more powerful desktop GPUs might edge out this mobile combo. However, the absolute performance is still staggering. The combo's performance is defined not by its rank, but by its absolute capability. It is one of the most powerful mobile configurations available, but for a game like this, the performance ceiling is so high that the ranking becomes a less meaningful metric.

The combo's rank is a reflection of the high performance of both the CPU and GPU. The CPU is in the top 5% of all processors, and the GPU is in the top 12% of all GPUs (88th percentile). The combination of these two parts results in a system that is overkill for Inside. The rank of 537 is not a criticism of the hardware, but rather an indication that the game is so easy to run that other, less powerful combos can compete. For users, this means that this specific setup will not be the absolute best in every title, but it will be in the top tier, and for Inside, it guarantees a flawless experience at any resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a powerhouse GPU based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring the AD102 chip. With 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, it offers a massive 1.01 TB/s of memory bandwidth. This bandwidth is critical for high-resolution textures and is one of the reasons the GPU performs so admirably at 4K. The GPU's core clocks are high, with a base of 2235 MHz and a boost of 2520 MHz, and it has 16384 shading units, 512 texture mapping units, and 176 ROPs. These specifications make it a top-tier part, as evidenced by its 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs.

The GPU's role in Inside is to render the game's visuals, which include its atmospheric lighting, shadows, and unique art style. The game is not a typical 3D AAA title, but it still requires a capable GPU to run at high resolutions. The data shows that the RTX 4090 is more than capable. At 4K Ultra, it manages an average of 99 FPS. This reflects its raw compute power. The GPU's FP32 performance of 82.58 TFLOPS is immense, but for a 2D side-scroller, the actual workload is more about fill rate and memory bandwidth.

The transition from 1080p to 4K shows the GPU becoming more of a limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the frame rate is 357 FPS, which is likely capped by the CPU's ability to issue draw calls. As the resolution increases to 4K, the GPU must process more pixels, and the frame rate drops to 209 FPS at Low settings. This is a clear sign that the GPU is taking on more work. The difference between 4K Low (209 FPS) and 4K Ultra (99 FPS) shows the impact of the visual settings on the GPU. The Ultra preset likely enables more complex shaders and effects, which increases the GPU load.

The GPU's 24 GB of VRAM is far more than what Inside requires. Even at 4K Ultra, the game's textures are not likely to exceed a few gigabytes. This headroom means there is no risk of VRAM-related stuttering or texture pop-in. The GPU's memory bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s is also overkill, but it ensures that data can be moved quickly, contributing to the high minimum FPS observed at 1440p Medium (142 FPS) and 1080p Medium (280 FPS). In this game, the RTX 4090 is effectively a "silver bullet" that eliminates any possibility of a GPU bottleneck, allowing the user to focus purely on resolution and refresh rate.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo can achieve in Inside?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 357 at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Inside?

A: Yes, the data shows it can run 4K at Ultra settings with an average of 99 FPS, and at 4K High it achieves 104 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more of a limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU is more likely the limiting factor at 1080p, as the frame rates are extremely high and the GPU has less work to do.

Q: What is the difference between the High and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: The High preset averages 166 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 158 FPS, a difference of only 8 FPS.

Q: How does the Ryzen 9 8945HX compare to the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX in average benchmark scores?

A: The Ryzen 9 8945HX is 0.1% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX in average benchmark scores.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 142 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Medium settings.