Inside

The Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer. The data shows this pairing is more than capable of handling the game’s demands, with performance scaling predictably across resolutions and settings. The primary bottleneck shifts from the CPU at lower settings to the GPU at higher resolutions, but the overall experience remains smooth even at 4K Ultra.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. In a game like Inside, which is a puzzle platformer with relatively modest processing demands, this CPU provides a substantial performance cushion. Its benchmark scores reflect strong multi-threaded and single-threaded capabilities: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16518 and a single-core score of 2332, alongside a Geekbench single-core score of 2221. The processor’s 18 MB of shared L3 cache helps maintain low-latency access to game data.

The CPU’s role in this specific game becomes apparent when examining frame rates at lower settings. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 277.9 FPS, which is significantly higher than the 4K Ultra result of 60.7 FPS. This suggests that at lower resolutions and settings, the CPU is not the limiting factor; instead, the GPU is working well within its limits. The i5-12400F’s PassMark single-thread score of 3481 and multithread score of 19433 indicate it can easily feed frames to the GPU without introducing a CPU-side bottleneck. The processor ranks in the 77th percentile against all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 19221 places it nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-8700K (deltaPct of 0.1%), showing that it holds its own against older high-end parts. For Inside, the CPU is effectively a non-issue, providing ample headroom for the GPU to operate at its maximum potential.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is the more significant contributor to the performance envelope in this title. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The GPU’s boost clock is 1650 MHz, and it relies on the Turing architecture with 2176 shading units. For a game released in 2016, the RTX 2060 SUPER’s specifications are more than sufficient, but the data shows how its performance scales under load.

At 1080p Low, the frame rate reaches 277.9 FPS, but this drops to 132 FPS at 1080p Ultra. This 145.9 FPS difference highlights how the GPU’s shading units and memory bandwidth are taxed by higher graphical presets. The GPU’s PassMark G3D score of 16462 and its 63rd percentile ranking against all GPUs indicate it is a mid-range performer by modern standards, yet it still delivers playable frame rates at 4K. The nearest rival comparisons are telling: the RTX 2060 SUPER’s average benchmark score of 19774 is only 0.5% higher than the RTX 2070 (deltaPct of 0.5%), meaning the performance gap between these two cards is negligible in synthetic tests. In Inside, the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM is never a limiting factor, as the game’s assets are not demanding by current standards. The GPU’s 175 W TDP and 7.181 TFLOPS FP32 performance are adequate for the game’s rendering needs, and the data confirms that the GPU is the primary scaling factor when moving from Low to Ultra settings.

FAQ

*Q: What is the maximum average frame rate achievable with this combo in Inside?*

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 277.9 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the i5-12400F compare to the Intel Core i7-8700K in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The i5-12400F’s average benchmark score is 19221, which is only 0.1% higher than the i7-8700K’s score of 19210, making them effectively equivalent in performance.

Q: Is the RTX 2060 SUPER significantly faster than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070?

A: No, the RTX 2060 SUPER’s average benchmark score of 19774 is just 0.5% higher than the RTX 2070’s score of 19680, indicating near-identical performance.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average frame rate is 60.7 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance more at 1080p Low?

A: At 1080p Low, the frame rate is 277.9 FPS, which suggests the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the GPU is able to render frames at a very high rate without being constrained by processor throughput.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER’s memory bandwidth affect high-resolution performance?

A: The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth supports smooth performance at 4K, as evidenced by the 64.7 FPS average at 4K High, which remains playable despite the higher pixel count.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rate data provides a clear picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the combo delivers 277.9 FPS on Low, 224.9 FPS on Medium, 137.9 FPS on High, and 132 FPS on Ultra. This shows a steep drop of 145.9 FPS from Low to Ultra, indicating that the higher presets significantly increase the GPU’s workload. Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates are 202.2 FPS on Low, 163.3 FPS on Medium, 99.8 FPS on High, and 97.6 FPS on Ultra. The delta between Low and Ultra narrows to 104.6 FPS, but the absolute numbers remain high.

At 3840x2160, the performance scales down further: 128 FPS on Low, 102.1 FPS on Medium, 64.7 FPS on High, and 60.7 FPS on Ultra. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 67.3 FPS, which is less pronounced than at lower resolutions. Notably, the gap between High and Ultra is consistently small across all resolutions: 5.9 FPS at 1080p, 2.2 FPS at 1440p, and 4 FPS at 4K. This suggests that the Ultra preset offers only marginal visual improvements over High for a significant performance cost. The data also shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER can maintain above 60 FPS even at the most demanding settings, with the only sub-60 result being 60.7 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is still technically playable.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drops as resolution increases, which is expected, but the magnitude of the drop reveals the limiting component. From 1080p Low (277.9 FPS) to 1440p Low (202.2 FPS), there is a 27.2% decrease, and from 1440p Low to 4K Low (128 FPS), there is a 36.7% decrease. This scaling is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario, where the number of pixels being rendered directly impacts the frame rate. At High settings, the drop from 1080p (137.9 FPS) to 1440p (99.8 FPS) is 27.6%, and from 1440p to 4K (64.7 FPS) is 35.2%. The similar percentage drops across settings indicate that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at all presets, as the CPU’s performance remains constant regardless of resolution.

The data indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER’s 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is sufficient to handle the increased data throughput at higher resolutions, but the shading unit load becomes the limiting factor. At 4K Ultra, the 60.7 FPS result shows that the GPU is nearly saturated, while at 1080p Low, the 277.9 FPS result suggests the GPU has significant headroom, and the CPU is not yet a limiting factor. This scaling behavior confirms that for Inside, the RTX 2060 SUPER is the component that determines performance as resolution increases, while the i5-12400F provides a stable foundation that does not introduce additional bottlenecks.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the High preset offers the best balance between visual fidelity and performance. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 137.9 FPS, which is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay. At 1440p High, the frame rate is 99.8 FPS, still well above the 60 FPS threshold, and even at 4K High, the 64.7 FPS average remains playable. The Ultra preset, by contrast, provides only a marginal improvement over High while costing a noticeable amount of performance. At 1080p, the difference between High (137.9 FPS) and Ultra (132 FPS) is just 5.9 FPS, and at 4K, the difference is only 4 FPS. This suggests that the visual enhancements in Ultra are not worth the performance trade-off.

For players with high-refresh-rate monitors, the Medium preset at 1080p (224.9 FPS) or 1440p (163.3 FPS) is the recommended choice, as it offers frame rates that can fully utilize 144Hz or 165Hz displays. At 4K, the High preset (64.7 FPS) is the optimal choice, as it stays above 60 FPS while the Ultra preset (60.7 FPS) dips to the edge of playability. The Low preset, while delivering the highest frame rates (277.9 FPS at 1080p), likely sacrifices too much visual quality for a game that is heavily atmospheric. Overall, the data supports High as the default recommendation, with Medium being a viable alternative for competitive play or high-refresh-rate setups.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database for Inside, the Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER combination ranks 1170 out of 1671 tested combos. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested systems, which is surprising given the high frame rates achieved. The ranking reflects the fact that many other combos in the database likely feature more powerful GPUs or CPUs, but the actual gameplay performance is still strong. The combo’s rank of 1170 suggests that while it is not a top-tier setup, it is far from the bottom, and the measured FPS data confirms that it can handle Inside with ease at all resolutions.

The RTX 2060 SUPER’s performance relative to its rivals is a key factor in this ranking. Its average benchmark score of 19774 is only 0.5% higher than the RTX 2070, meaning that this combo performs nearly identically to systems with a slightly more powerful GPU. Similarly, the i5-12400F’s score of 19221 is within 0.1% of the i7-8700K, indicating that CPU choice has minimal impact on the overall ranking. The combo’s position at 1170 out of 1671 (roughly the 70th percentile) is primarily driven by the GPU’s mid-range standing, as the CPU is more than adequate for this game. Despite the ranking, the data shows that this combo delivers a high-quality experience, with frame rates that exceed 60 FPS even at 4K Ultra, making it a reliable choice for Inside.