Inside

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 580 delivers a highly capable experience in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer that is not particularly demanding on modern hardware. The measured data shows that this combination is capable of producing very high frame rates at mainstream resolutions, with the primary trade-off appearing at 4K Ultra settings where the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The benchmark results indicate that this pairing is well-suited for high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming, and remains perfectly playable at 1440p with adjusted settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how settings impact performance across different resolutions. For the best balance of visual fidelity and smooth gameplay, the High preset at 1920x1080 is the standout choice, delivering an average of 74.6 FPS. This is a strong result that comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play, while still offering a significant visual upgrade over the Medium preset. The step from Medium to High costs a relatively small amount of performance—from 119.6 FPS down to 74.6 FPS—but the visual improvement is typically substantial in a game with Inside's atmospheric lighting and shadow work.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset emerges as the optimal setting, producing an average of 83.5 FPS. This provides a smooth and responsive experience while maintaining a higher resolution. The High preset at this resolution drops to 55 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a game that benefits from consistent frame pacing. For users with a 144Hz 1440p display, the Low preset at 110 FPS offers the best chance of approaching that refresh rate, but the graphical compromises are noticeable. Therefore, Medium at 1440p is the recommended sweet spot, offering a 52% performance uplift over High while retaining most of the game's visual character.

For those pushing 3840x2160, the data shows a stark reality: the Low preset is the only viable option for a smooth experience, with an average of 71.2 FPS. The Medium preset at 54.1 FPS is borderline, and the High and Ultra presets, at 32 FPS and 31.8 FPS respectively, fall well below the acceptable threshold for a game that relies on precise timing and atmospheric tension. The recommendation is clear: if gaming at 4K, stick to Low settings to maintain frame rate integrity. The scaling from Low to Medium at 4K represents a 24% performance hit, which is a significant cost for the incremental visual gain.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580, with its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus providing 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, plays the decisive role in this configuration's gaming performance. The GPU's memory capacity is more than sufficient for Inside, which is a relatively lightweight title. The card's clock speeds, with a base of 1257 MHz and a boost of 1340 MHz, are the primary drivers of its compute throughput, which is rated at 6.175 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. These specs place the RX 580 at the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, indicating it is a mid-range performer in the current landscape.

The benchmark results show a clear GPU-bottleneck pattern at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the frame rates scale dramatically with lower settings, from 73.2 FPS at Ultra to 149.5 FPS at Low, demonstrating that the GPU has headroom when the render load is reduced. However, at 4K, the GPU's raw pixel throughput becomes the limiting factor. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is only 39.4 FPS (from 71.2 to 31.8), a much smaller absolute gap than at 1080p, where the same settings difference yields 76.3 FPS. This compression of performance at 4K indicates that the RX 580 is heavily constrained by its 32 ROPs and the demands of rendering four times the pixels of 1080p. The card's DirectX 12 benchmark score of 43 in PassMark, while a synthetic measure, aligns with its real-world performance ceiling observed in this title.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Inside at 4K smoothly?*

A: Only at the Low preset, which yields an average of 71.2 FPS. Higher presets at 4K result in averages below 55 FPS, with Ultra dropping to 31.8 FPS, which is not recommended for a smooth experience.

Q: What is the best setting for a 144Hz 1080p monitor?

A: The Low preset at 1920x1080 achieves the highest measured average of 149.5 FPS, which is above the 144Hz threshold. However, the Medium preset at 119.6 FPS and High at 74.6 FPS are also viable if you prefer visual quality over maximum frame rate.

Q: How much performance is gained by dropping from High to Medium at 1440p?

A: The data shows a significant gain. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 83.5 FPS, which is 28.5 FPS higher than the High preset's 55 FPS. This represents a performance increase of roughly 52%.

Q: How does the i5-11400F's CPU performance compare to its immediate rivals?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score is 17181. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, scores 17189, a negligible deltaPct of 0. The Intel Core i7-1260P and Core Ultra 7 164U are also within -0.2%, showing the i5-11400F is statistically tied with these processors in overall compute benchmarks.

Q: Is the RX 580's 8GB VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: Yes. The 8 GB of GDDR5 memory is more than adequate for Inside. The bottleneck at 4K is not memory capacity but the GPU's raw rendering throughput, as indicated by the significant frame rate drops when increasing settings.

Q: What frame rate can be expected at 1440p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average is 52.3 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS target, so while playable, it may not be the ideal experience for all users, especially in a game that benefits from consistent frame times.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured average frame rates provides a comprehensive view of the system's performance scaling.

At 1920x1080, the results are consistently high. The Low preset produces an average of 149.5 FPS, which is the highest measured result in the entire dataset. Medium follows at 119.6 FPS, offering a 25% reduction in performance for better visuals. High drops further to 74.6 FPS, and Ultra comes in at 73.2 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra at 1080p is minimal (1.4 FPS), suggesting that the Ultra preset offers little additional performance cost over High but also little benefit in this title.

At 2560x1440, the scaling is more pronounced. Low averages 110 FPS, which is still excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium drops to 83.5 FPS, a solid result. High falls to 55 FPS, and Ultra to 52.3 FPS. The transition from Medium to High at this resolution represents a 34% performance decrease, which is a substantial cost for the upgrade in graphical settings.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles to maintain high frame rates at higher presets. Low is the only playable option at 71.2 FPS. Medium averages 54.1 FPS, which is borderline. High and Ultra are nearly identical at 32 FPS and 31.8 FPS respectively, indicating that the GPU is fully saturated and the visual settings have little impact on the final frame rate. The data shows a clear pattern: the RX 580 has a hard performance ceiling at 4K in this game, and only the lowest settings can bypass it.

How This Combo Ranks

In the comprehensive database of tested hardware combinations for Inside, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 580 holds a rank of 1543 out of 1671 total combos. This places it in the lower portion of the ranking, which is a reflection of the hardware's age rather than its performance in this specific title. The comboRankInGame of 1543 indicates that while the combination is far from the top of the charts, its measured performance data shows it is perfectly capable of delivering a playable experience.

The ranking should be interpreted with context. The RX 580's average benchmark score of 13559 places it at the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570, has a nearly identical average score of 13564 with a deltaPct of 0. This indicates that the GPU is a solid mid-range performer. The CPU, with a score of 17181, ranks at the 75th percentile of all CPUs, showing it is a stronger component in this pairing. The low overall combo rank is therefore likely due to the GPU being the bottleneck in more demanding modern titles, but for Inside, the data shows that the combo can still achieve high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p. The rank of 1543 signifies that while other combos may achieve higher peak frame rates, this specific system offers a reliable and smooth experience for this particular game without requiring top-tier hardware.