Inside

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 delivers exceptional performance in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer that is far more demanding on frame rates than its minimalist aesthetic suggests. Benchmark data shows this combination is capable of obliterating high-refresh-rate targets at every resolution, with the primary challenge being selecting a preset that balances the GPU's massive headroom against the CPU's architectural limits. The measured results indicate that this pairing is massively overqualified for the game, making the settings choice a matter of matching the display's refresh rate rather than chasing playability.

Settings Recommendations

For a 1080p display, the data strongly favors the High preset, which delivers an average of 210 FPS. While the Low preset pushes the average to 273 FPS and Medium reaches 252 FPS, the High preset provides a substantial visual upgrade over Low while still maintaining an average well above the 200 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset, at 206 FPS, offers diminishing returns; it is only 4 FPS slower than High on average, but the visual difference between High and Ultra in a game like Inside is typically marginal, while the performance gap is measurable. For 1080p, High is the sweet spot, offering a 48 FPS advantage over Ultra at the same resolution.

At 1440p, the Medium preset emerges as the optimal choice. The data shows an average of 226 FPS with a minimum of 192 FPS and a maximum of 259 FPS. This is a significant drop from the Low preset's 244 FPS, but the Medium preset provides a far more stable frame-time experience, as evidenced by the recorded minimum and maximum values. The High preset at 1440p produces 156 FPS, which is still excellent, but the Medium preset's 70 FPS advantage over High makes it the clear winner for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming. The Ultra preset falls to 148 FPS, making it the least attractive option at this resolution due to the steep performance cost.

For 4K gaming, the High preset is the recommended setting, delivering an average of 98 FPS. This is the only 4K preset that offers a playable experience above the 60 FPS threshold without sacrificing significant visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 4K averages 157 FPS, which is remarkably high, but the gap between Medium and High is 59 FPS, suggesting that High is a more balanced choice for 4K. The Low preset hits 196 FPS but is visually compromised, while the Ultra preset drops to 93 FPS, which is barely above the High preset's output and not worth the extra graphical load. The data suggests that High at 4K provides the best visual quality per frame.

The overall pattern across all resolutions is that the Medium preset offers the best balance of frame rate and visual quality, particularly at 1440p where the frame-time data shows the most stability. However, the High preset is the more conservative choice for users who prioritize visual detail over raw frame rates, especially at 4K. The Low preset should be avoided on this hardware unless the user owns a 360 Hz monitor and requires maximum frame rates, as the performance gains over Medium are substantial but the visual cost is high.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 9070 combination ranks 1362 out of 3716 tested combos in Inside. This places the pairing in the top 36.7% of all systems tested, which is a solid result given the game's age and the hardware's respective strengths. The CPU's percentile ranking against all processors is 71, while the GPU sits at the 69 percentile against all graphics cards, indicating that both components are above average in their respective pools.

The combo's rank is somewhat surprising given the GPU's raw power, but it reflects the CPU's limitations in a game that appears to be more bound by single-thread performance than raw graphics throughput. The CPU's single-thread score in PassMark is 2981, and its 3DMark single-thread score is 868, which are respectable but not top-tier numbers. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 25381 is exceptionally high, yet the combo rank suggests that the CPU is holding back the GPU in certain scenarios, particularly at lower resolutions where the CPU becomes the limiting factor.

Compared to the nearest rival CPUs, the i5-11400F performs almost identically to the AMD EPYC 7H12, with a deltaPct of just 0.3% in the CPU's average benchmark score. It is also closely matched with the Intel Core i5-12450H and AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G, with deltas of -0.4% and -0.6% respectively. This indicates that the i5-11400F is a well-balanced mid-range processor, but it is not a performance outlier that would boost the combo rank significantly.

On the GPU side, the RX 9070's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z, AMD Radeon RX 6800S, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER. The RX 9070 outperforms the GTX TITAN Z by 0.6% and the RTX 3080 Mobile by 1.1%, while trailing the RX 6800S by 0.8% and the RTX 2080 SUPER by 1.2%. These deltas are all within 1.2% of each other, meaning the RX 9070 is squarely in the middle of a tight performance cluster. The combo rank of 1362 reflects this mediocrity; the hardware is capable but not exceptional in the context of all tested systems.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the dominant component in this pairing, featuring 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with a bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s. The GPU's boost clock is 2520 MHz, with a game clock of 2070 MHz and a base clock of 1330 MHz. These clocks, combined with 3584 shading units and 128 ROPs, provide the raw compute power that drives the high frame rates seen in the measured results.

The GPU's memory capacity and bandwidth are more than sufficient for Inside, a game that does not require large textures or high-bandwidth access. The 16 GB VRAM is entirely overkill for a game of this era, but it ensures that there is no memory bottleneck at any resolution. The GPU's pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s are critical for the game's rendering, and the data shows that the GPU is never the limiting factor in this title.

The GPU's performance in synthetic benchmarks is notably high, with a PassMark G3D score of 25381 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6290. However, the GPU's DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 PassMark scores are relatively low at 281 and 74 respectively, which suggests that the RX 9070's architecture is optimized for newer APIs. Inside is a game that likely relies on DirectX 11 or earlier APIs, which could explain why the GPU's performance is not as dominant as its synthetic scores would suggest. Despite this, the GPU still manages to deliver frame rates well above playable thresholds at all settings.

The GPU's role in the measured FPS is primarily to provide headroom; it is never the bottleneck. The data shows that at 1080p, the CPU is the limiting factor, as the GPU's frame rates are likely capped by the CPU's ability to feed it draw calls. At 4K, the GPU's workload increases, but it still delivers 98 FPS on High settings, indicating that it has substantial reserves. The GPU's 16 GB VRAM and high bandwidth ensure that even at 4K, there is no memory pressure, and the 128 ROPs are sufficient to handle the game's pixel rendering demands.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the combo delivers an average of 273 FPS on Low settings, 252 FPS on Medium, 210 FPS on High, and 206 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 214 FPS and a maximum of 290 FPS, indicating a tight frame-time distribution. The gap between Low and Medium is 21 FPS, while the gap between Medium and High is 42 FPS, and the gap between High and Ultra is just 4 FPS. This suggests that the High preset is the most efficient at 1080p, offering only a 4 FPS penalty over Ultra while providing a significant visual upgrade over Medium.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down predictably. The Low preset averages 244 FPS, Medium averages 226 FPS with a minimum of 192 FPS and a maximum of 259 FPS, High averages 156 FPS, and Ultra averages 148 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 29 FPS on Low, 26 FPS on Medium, 54 FPS on High, and 58 FPS on Ultra. The larger drops on High and Ultra indicate that these presets are more sensitive to resolution scaling, likely due to increased pixel shading demands. The Medium preset's minimum of 192 FPS is lower than the 1080p Medium minimum of 214 FPS, but it remains well above the 144 FPS threshold for high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 3840x2160, the 4K results show a more pronounced impact from resolution scaling. The Low preset averages 196 FPS, Medium averages 157 FPS with a minimum of 133 FPS and a maximum of 180 FPS, High averages 98 FPS, and Ultra averages 93 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 48 FPS on Low, 69 FPS on Medium, 58 FPS on High, and 55 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset's minimum of 133 FPS is the lowest recorded value in the entire dataset, indicating that 4K Medium can occasionally dip below the 144 FPS threshold. The High preset at 4K delivers 98 FPS, which is still excellent for 4K gaming, but it is a 58 FPS drop from the 1440p High result.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: the CPU is the bottleneck at 1080p, where the frame rates are capped around 273 FPS on Low, while the GPU becomes more relevant at higher resolutions. The Ultra preset at 4K produces only 5 FPS more than High, making Ultra a poor choice for 4K. The Medium preset at 4K is the most balanced, offering 157 FPS with a minimum of 133 FPS, which is adequate for most displays.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is a clear indicator of where the bottleneck lies in this system. At 1080p Low, the average is 273 FPS, and at 4K Low, it drops to 196 FPS, a reduction of 28.2%. This relatively modest drop suggests that the CPU is the primary limiter at 1080p, as the GPU has enough headroom to handle the increased pixel count without a massive performance hit.

The scaling picture changes dramatically when moving from 1440p to 4K. At 1440p Low, the average is 244 FPS, and at 4K Low, it is 196 FPS, a drop of 19.7%. This is a smaller percentage drop than the 1080p to 1440p transition, which saw a 10.6% reduction from 273 FPS to 244 FPS. The diminishing percentage drops as resolution increases indicate that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor at 4K, but it still delivers playable frame rates.

The High preset shows the most significant resolution scaling. From 1080p High at 210 FPS to 1440p High at 156 FPS, the drop is 25.7%. From 1440p High to 4K High at 98 FPS, the drop is 37.2%. This steep decline at 4K High suggests that the GPU is being pushed harder, but the resulting 98 FPS is still well above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The Ultra preset follows a similar pattern, with a 28.2% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 37.2% drop from 1440p to 4K.

The Medium preset's scaling is more moderate. From 1080p Medium at 252 FPS to 1440p Medium at 226 FPS, the drop is 10.3%. From 1440p Medium to 4K Medium at 157 FPS, the drop is 30.5%. The 4K Medium minimum of 133 FPS represents a 30.5% drop from the 1440p minimum of 192 FPS, indicating that the GPU is starting to struggle with the pixel load at 4K, but it remains capable.

The data shows that the CPU is the limiting component at 1080p, as the frame rates are consistently high regardless of settings. The GPU becomes the bottleneck at 4K, particularly on the High and Ultra presets, where the performance drops are more pronounced. The system is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can maintain frame rates above 200 FPS on most presets, while 4K gaming is possible but requires the Medium or High presets to stay above 90 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p monitor with a 144 Hz refresh rate?

A: The Medium preset is the best choice, delivering an average of 226 FPS with a minimum of 192 FPS. This provides a comfortable margin over the 144 FPS target, ensuring smooth gameplay without dips below the refresh rate.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but with caveats. The High preset averages 98 FPS and the Medium preset averages 157 FPS, both of which are playable. However, the Ultra preset drops to 93 FPS, and the Low preset is visually compromised. The Medium preset is the recommended 4K option due to its balance of visual quality and frame rate.

Q: Why is the frame rate capped at around 273 FPS at 1080p?

A: The CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p. The Intel Core i5-11400F's single-thread performance, as indicated by its PassMark single-thread score of 2981, is insufficient to push frame rates higher, even though the GPU has ample headroom.

Q: How does the RX 9070 compare to its nearest rivals in this game?

A: The RX 9070's average benchmark score is within 1.2% of its nearest rivals, including the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER and AMD Radeon RX 6800S. This indicates that the GPU is competitively positioned, but not a standout performer relative to those specific cards.

Q: Is the Ultra preset worth using?

A: No, the data shows that Ultra offers minimal gains over High. At 1080p, the difference is 4 FPS, at 1440p it is 8 FPS, and at 4K it is 5 FPS. The visual improvement from High to Ultra is negligible in a game like Inside, making High the more efficient choice.

Q: What does the combo's rank of 1362 out of 3716 indicate?

A: It places the system in the top 36.7% of all tested combos for this game. This is a solid result, but not exceptional, reflecting the CPU's mid-range standing and the GPU's tight competition with its nearest rivals.