Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that is anything but demanding by modern standards, and the data for the Intel Core i5-12600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D reflects that reality. This is a combination of a 10-core, 16-thread Alder Lake processor with a flagship Blackwell GPU, and the benchmark results show a system that is essentially unburdened by the game's engine. The measured frames per second are astronomically high across all settings, indicating that the primary limit here is not the hardware's capability, but the game's own frame rate ceilings and the synchronization of the CPU and GPU.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a predictable trend of decreasing performance as pixel count increases, but the absolute numbers remain so high that the frame rate drops are almost academic. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces an average of 276 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same High preset drops the average to 247 FPS, a reduction of roughly 10.5%. Pushing further to 3840x2160 at High brings the average down to 160 FPS, a substantial 35% drop from the 1440p result and a 42% drop from 1080p. This demonstrates that even at 4K, the GPU is still being fed enough data to maintain a triple-digit frame rate, but the load is clearly shifting more onto the graphics card.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all quality presets. With Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 331 at 1080p, to 297 at 1440p, and finally to 254 at 4K. The Ultra preset shows a similar curve: 271 at 1080p, 243 at 1440p, and 153 at 4K. The Low preset is the only one that shows a more dramatic cliff, with averages of 359 at 1080p, 321 at 1440p, and 275 at 4K.

The fact that the gap between 1080p and 1440p is relatively small (between 10-12% depending on the preset) while the gap between 1440p and 4K is much larger (between 35-42%) suggests that the RTX 5090 D has a massive amount of raw throughput. It is only when the resolution reaches 4K that the GPU's memory bandwidth and shading power become the definitive limiter. At 1080p and 1440p, the performance is so high that the CPU is likely preventing the GPU from reaching even higher numbers, though the scores are already so far beyond what any display can show that this bottleneck is invisible to the user. The data indicates that this combo is heavily GPU-bound at 4K, but at lower resolutions, the game is likely CPU-bound or hitting a game engine limit, given the sheer number of frames being produced.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is a 10-core processor with 16 threads, a base clock of 3.70 GHz, and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. Its benchmark scores show strong single-thread capabilities, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 1016 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3302. In a game like Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer with a relatively simple scene complexity, these single-thread scores are far more relevant than the multi-threaded performance. The game's logic and rendering commands are unlikely to scale well across many cores, making the i5-12600KF's high boost clock the most critical asset.

The multi-threaded performance is also robust, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 23391 and a Geekbench multicore score of 12137. Even so, Inside is not a title that would leverage 16 threads effectively; it is a game that relies on a few fast cores. The CPU's 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache provide low-latency access to data, which is beneficial for maintaining high frame rates when the game is not GPU-limited.

The benchmark results show that at 1080p Low settings, the average FPS reaches 359. This high number suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU frames faster than the GPU can render them at that low resolution, or that the game engine itself has a frame rate cap. When the resolution increases to 4K, the average drops to 160 at High settings, indicating the GPU is now the primary bottleneck. This transition is typical of a system with a very fast processor and a top-tier graphics card. The CPU is not holding the system back; it is providing a solid foundation that allows the RTX 5090 D to stretch its legs at higher resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations for Inside, this pairing of the Intel Core i5-12600KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D ranks at 105 out of 2887 total combos. This places it in the top 3.6% of all tested configurations. The high rank confirms the overall strength of both components, even if the game itself is easy to run. The CPU holds a percentile of 79 among all CPUs, meaning it outperforms most processors on the market, while the GPU sits in the 92nd percentile among all GPUs.

The CPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score include the Intel Core i9-10900K, which is only -0.3% different, and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, also at -0.3%. This shows that the i5-12600KF is competitive with previous generation flagship and high-end gaming CPUs. For the GPU, the nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (at 1.1% difference) and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (at -1.6%). However, these are mobile GPUs, which highlights the vast performance gulf between the RTX 5090 D and almost everything else in the database; its score is so high that its nearest neighbors are not even desktop parts.

The combo's rank of 105 is impressive, but considering the GPU is in the 92nd percentile and the CPU is in the 79th, the ranking makes sense. The CPU is a very capable mid-range-to-high-end part, but it is not the absolute best available, which explains why the combo does not rank higher. A more powerful CPU would likely push this combo into the top 50, but the i5-12600KF provides enough performance to keep the system well ahead of the vast majority of other builds.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how this system handles different resolutions and quality presets. At 1920x1080, the performance is exceptionally high across the board. With Low settings, the average is 359 FPS. Raising the quality to Medium drops the average to 331 FPS, with a minimum of 281 FPS and a maximum of 381 FPS. The High preset yields an average of 276 FPS, and the Ultra preset produces 271 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is minimal, suggesting that the Ultra preset adds a few graphical effects that have a negligible impact on the GPU load at this resolution.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain elevated. The Low preset averages 321 FPS. The Medium preset averages 297 FPS, with a minimum of 252 FPS and a maximum of 341 FPS. The High preset reduces the average to 247 FPS, and the Ultra preset brings it down to 243 FPS. The consistency between High and Ultra continues at this resolution, with only a 4 FPS difference. This indicates that the extra graphical fidelity of the Ultra preset is nearly free in terms of performance cost.

At 3840x2160, the demands on the GPU become more apparent. The Low preset still manages an excellent average of 275 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 254 FPS, with a minimum of 216 FPS and a maximum of 292 FPS. The High preset averages 160 FPS, and the Ultra preset brings the average down to 153 FPS. The step from Medium to High at 4K is the largest single jump in the entire dataset, representing a 37% performance loss. This suggests that the High and Ultra presets enable a feature, possibly related to shadow quality or ambient occlusion, that is particularly taxing at 4K resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a monster of a graphics card, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a massive 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. Its core clock runs at 2017 MHz base and boosts to 2407 MHz. With 21,760 shading units and 176 ROPs, its raw compute power is staggering, achieving 104.8 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The benchmark scores reflect this, with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 14326 and a Passmark G3D score of 44065.

In Inside, this GPU is almost overkill. At 1080p and 1440p, the GPU is likely idling most of the time, waiting for the CPU to send draw calls. The frame rates at these resolutions are so high that the game's engine is probably the limiting factor. However, at 4K, the GPU starts to flex its muscles. The difference between 1440p High and 4K High is a 35% drop, which shows that the GPU is finally being pushed. The 32 GB of VRAM is entirely irrelevant for this game, as even the most demanding 4K textures in a 2016 puzzle platformer would not come close to using a fraction of it.

The GPU's nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and RX 6850M XT, which are laptop parts. This shows that the RTX 5090 D is in a class of its own for desktop gaming. The performance data in Inside shows that the GPU is capable of maintaining a playable frame rate at 4K Ultra, but the system is so powerful that the game's visual complexity is not enough to create a truly demanding workload.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience with this hardware, the choice of settings depends entirely on the display's refresh rate. If the target is a standard 60 Hz display, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 is the obvious choice. It delivers an average of 153 FPS, which is more than double the refresh rate, ensuring perfect smoothness with all visual features enabled. There is no reason to lower the settings at this resolution for a 60 Hz panel, as even the Ultra preset provides a massive margin of performance.

For users with a high-refresh-rate 1440p or 1080p monitor, the High preset is the sweet spot. At 2560x1440, it averages 247 FPS, and at 1920x1080, it averages 276 FPS. The Ultra preset offers only a marginal frame rate cost (4 FPS at 1440p and 5 FPS at 1080p), so if the display can handle the refresh rate, Ultra is also viable. However, the High preset offers a slight frame rate advantage that could be the difference between hitting a 240 Hz or 360 Hz refresh rate cap.

The Medium preset is the most efficient option for those seeking maximum frame rates. At 1920x1080, it averages 331 FPS, which is the highest average among the playable presets (Low is higher but looks worse). At 1440p, it averages 297 FPS, and at 4K, it manages 254 FPS. The data shows that the jump from Medium to High at 4K is huge, so if a user has a 4K 240 Hz display and wants to get closer to that number, Medium is the only preset that comes close, while High and Ultra fall short of 240 FPS. Ultimately, for most displays, the High preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, but the Ultra preset is perfectly playable at any resolution in this game.