Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that, on this specific Intel Core i5-12400F and AMD Radeon RX 570 combination, demonstrates a clear performance hierarchy tied directly to resolution and settings. The measured data indicates that the game is highly scalable, with the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU remains a stable foundation throughout.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates reveal a steep performance curve as resolution increases, which is typical for a GPU-bound title like Inside. At 1080p with High settings, the combination produces an average of 66.4 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops this to 48.7 FPS, a reduction of roughly 27%. At 4K, the average falls further to 29.2 FPS, which represents a 56% decrease from the 1080p result. This pattern strongly indicates that the Radeon RX 570 is the limiting component at higher resolutions, as the pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth demands outpace the GPU’s capabilities.

The scaling from Low to Ultra settings provides additional insight into the bottleneck. At 1080p, Low settings yield 132.9 FPS, while Ultra yields 66.1 FPS. This shows the GPU is still doing significant work even at lower resolutions. However, the gap between settings narrows considerably at 4K. Here, Low produces 63.2 FPS, but Ultra drops to 29.5 FPS. The fact that 4K Low is only slightly below 1080p High (63.2 vs 66.4 FPS) suggests that the GPU’s raw throughput is the primary constraint, not the CPU. The data shows a consistent pattern: resolution scaling is steep, and the performance delta between 1080p and 4K is substantial across all settings.

Benchmark results indicate that the CPU, with its high single-thread and multi-thread scores, is not the limiting factor in this scenario. The i5-12400F’s performance in synthetic tests, such as a PassMark single-thread score of 3481 and a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518, is more than sufficient for a game of this era. The measured FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is far more pronounced than what a CPU bottleneck would produce, confirming that the RX 570’s 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are the decisive factors. The 4K Ultra result of 29.5 FPS is essentially unplayable, while the 1080p High result of 66.4 FPS is smooth.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the central component determining the experience in Inside. Its specifications, including a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1244 MHz, along with 2048 shading units and 32 ROPs, define its processing capacity. The 4 GB GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is directly relevant to the game’s performance at higher resolutions, where texture and geometry data demands increase.

The data shows that the GPU’s performance ceiling is reached at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS is 29.5. This is a clear indicator that the RX 570 is unable to sustain a high frame rate under maximum load at that resolution. In contrast, at 1080p Low, the same GPU achieves 132.9 FPS, showing that it has ample headroom when the workload is reduced. The GPU’s percentile ranking of 74 versus all GPUs, and its average benchmark score of 30158, places it in a mid-range tier. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, have average scores of 30109 and 30097 respectively, with delta percentages of 0.2% and 0.2%. This indicates that the RX 570’s raw compute performance is competitive with much newer cards, but its memory constraints and older architecture limit its real-world gaming performance at high resolutions.

The measured FPS at 4K Medium (50.0 FPS) versus 4K High (29.2 FPS) shows a significant performance cliff. This suggests that the High preset introduces effects or shading loads that disproportionately impact the GPU’s fill rate. The game is clearly capable of running at 4K, but only with significant reductions in visual fidelity. The FP32 performance of 5.095 TFLOPS and texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s are the theoretical limits, and the benchmark data shows that Inside approaches these limits at 1080p but falls short at 4K due to memory bandwidth saturation.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal balance between visual quality and performance for this hardware is achieved at 1080p with High settings, producing 66.4 FPS. This is above the standard 60 FPS threshold and provides a significant visual upgrade over Medium, which yields 108.7 FPS. The jump from High to Ultra at 1080p is negligible in performance (66.4 to 66.1 FPS) but may offer diminishing visual returns.

For users with a 1440p display, the High preset is also viable, delivering 48.7 FPS. This is playable for a puzzle platformer, though not perfectly smooth. The Medium preset at 1440p provides a more comfortable 79.9 FPS, representing a better choice for fluidity over the High preset’s marginal visual gains. At 4K, the situation is more constrained. The Low preset is the only playable option, yielding 63.2 FPS. Medium at 4K produces 50.0 FPS, which may be acceptable for some, but High and Ultra are not recommended due to sub-30 FPS averages.

The data suggests that the “best experience” is a trade-off. For a consistent 60+ FPS experience, 1080p High is the sweet spot. The Ultra preset at 1080p offers no performance benefit over High, indicating that the settings have hit a performance cap, likely due to the CPU or a game engine limit. The 1440p Medium setting is a strong alternative for those prioritizing resolution over some graphical details. The measured data does not include any frame time variance, so the analysis relies solely on average FPS, which shows a clear preference for High settings at 1080p.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate achievable at 4K resolution with this hardware?

A: The highest average frame rate at 4K is 63.2 FPS, which is achieved with the Low settings preset. The Medium preset drops to 50.0 FPS, while High and Ultra produce 29.2 FPS and 29.5 FPS respectively.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-12400F a bottleneck for the AMD Radeon RX 570 in this game?

A: No, the benchmark data indicates the CPU is not the limiting factor. The i5-12400F has a PassMark single-thread score of 3481 and a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518, which are far above the requirements for a 2016 game. The significant FPS drops at higher resolutions point to the GPU as the primary bottleneck.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its nearest rivals in general compute benchmarks?

A: The RX 570 has an average benchmark score of 30158. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, has an average score of 30109, a delta of 0.2%. The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT scores 30097, also a 0.2% delta. This places the RX 570 in a very close performance tier with these GPUs in synthetic tests.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average frame rate at 1080p is 66.4 FPS, which drops to 48.7 FPS at 1440p and 29.2 FPS at 4K. This represents a 56% performance decrease when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Which settings preset provides the best balance of quality and performance at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 1440p provides an average of 79.9 FPS, which is significantly higher than the High preset’s 48.7 FPS. Given the genre’s emphasis on precise control, the Medium preset is the recommended choice for a smoother experience.

Q: Does the Ultra preset offer any performance advantage over High at 1080p?

A: No, the data shows that Ultra (66.1 FPS) is essentially identical to High (66.4 FPS) at 1080p. This suggests that the performance is capped by another factor, and the Ultra preset does not impose a significant additional load on the GPU at this resolution.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F serves as a capable and stable foundation for this gaming configuration. With 6 cores and 12 threads, a base clock of 2.50 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, it provides ample processing power for Inside. The CPU’s performance in synthetic benchmarks is robust, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332. Its PassMark multithread score of 19433 and data encryption score of 11679 further illustrate its capability.

The role of the CPU in this game appears to be secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS data shows that performance scales almost entirely with resolution and settings, which are GPU-dependent variables. The CPU’s 18 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory are more than adequate for a game from 2016. The fact that the 1080p Ultra and 1080p High results are nearly identical (66.1 vs 66.4 FPS) suggests a possible engine-level frame cap or a point where the CPU’s single-thread performance becomes relevant.

Comparing the i5-12400F to its nearest rivals, it has an average benchmark score of 19221. The Intel Core i7-8700K is a close match with a score of 19210 and a delta of 0.1%, while the AMD Ryzen 5 7533HS scores 19364, a delta of -0.7%. This indicates the i5-12400F is right in the middle of its performance class. The CPU’s percentile ranking of 77 versus all CPUs shows it is a solidly above-average performer. The benchmark results confirm that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this analysis; the data shows that the RX 570’s memory bandwidth and pixel throughput are the primary determinants of frame rate in Inside, especially as resolution increases.