Inside

# Inside: Intel Core i5-14600K + AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT

The Intel Core i5-14600K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT delivers a remarkably smooth experience in Inside, a puzzle platformer from 2016. Across all tested resolutions and settings, this combination never drops below 62 frames per second, and at 1080p it can reach nearly 280 FPS on Low settings. The data reveals a system with substantial headroom, though the performance scaling patterns indicate that the GPU becomes the primary constraint as resolution increases.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-14600K brings 14 cores and 20 threads to the table, running at a base clock of 3.50 GHz and boosting up to 5.30 GHz. This Raptor Lake-R architecture chip, built on Intel's 10 nm process, carries 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB of L2 cache per core. For a side-scrolling puzzle platformer like Inside, which was released in 2016, the computational demands are modest, and this processor's capabilities far exceed what the game requires.

Benchmark data confirms the CPU's strength. In Cinebench R23, the i5-14600K scores 32881 points in multicore and 4642 in single-core tests. Its Geekbench results show 15846 multicore and 2803 single-core scores. The PassMark multithread score reaches 38682, with single-thread performance at 4270. These numbers place the processor in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs tested on the platform.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, which scores nearly identically with an average benchmark score of 49062 versus the i5-14600K's 49166 — a negligible 0.2% difference. The Intel Core i5-14600KF is actually slightly faster at 49367, representing a -0.4% delta for the locked variant. The AMD EPYC 4345P leads by 0.9%, while the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H trails by 1.0%.

For Inside, the CPU's role is largely about maintaining consistent frame pacing rather than pushing raw throughput. The game's 2.5D environments and physics-based puzzles do not heavily tax even older quad-core processors. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 279.8 FPS, suggesting the CPU is not a bottleneck even at very high frame rates. The single-core performance of 4642 in Cinebench R23 ensures that the game's main thread has ample processing headroom.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, based on the Navi 23 chip with RDNA 2.0 architecture, provides 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock reaches 2589 MHz, with a game clock of 2359 MHz and base clock of 1968 MHz. The GPU's 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units produce 10.60 TFLOPS of FP32 performance.

The GPU sits in the 71st percentile among all tested graphics cards. Its average benchmark score of 27985 places it close to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (27956, only 0.1% behind) and the AMD Radeon R9 M395X (27883, 0.4% behind). The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 leads by 0.9%, while the AMD FirePro S7150 trails by 1.5%.

For Inside, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced as resolution increases. At 1080p, the GPU is capable of pushing frame rates well beyond what most displays can show — 279.8 FPS at Low settings. However, at 4K Ultra, performance drops to 62.1 FPS, indicating that the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and compute resources are being more fully utilized. The game's dark, atmospheric art style with volumetric lighting and particle effects benefits from the GPU's RDNA 2.0 architecture, which handles these visual elements efficiently.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo maintain 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with High settings, the average FPS is 62.7. Ultra settings yield 62.1 FPS, both above the 60 FPS threshold. Low settings at 4K reach 125.9 FPS, while Medium achieves 102.2 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rival?

A: The Intel Core i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 49166, which is only 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X's 49062. The i5-14600KF scores slightly higher at 49367, putting the standard i5-14600K 0.4% behind its KF variant.

Q: What is the best resolution for competitive play?

A: At 1920x1080, even High settings produce 137.8 FPS, while Low settings reach 279.8 FPS. This resolution offers the highest frame rates and is ideal for players seeking maximum responsiveness.

Q: Is the GPU a bottleneck at 1440p?

A: The data suggests the GPU begins to limit performance at 2560x1440. Frame rates range from 198.5 FPS at Low to 96.5 FPS at Ultra, showing a significant drop as settings increase, which indicates GPU-bound behavior.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: It ranks 1213 out of 1671 tested combos for Inside, placing it in the upper portion of the distribution. This indicates solid performance relative to other CPU-GPU pairings.

Q: What is the GPU's memory bandwidth?

A: The Radeon RX 6600 XT provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth through its 128-bit bus with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory running at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective).

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks 1213 out of 1671 tested combos for Inside. This position places it in the 73rd percentile of all tested pairings, suggesting that while it is not among the absolute top configurations, it performs admirably for a mid-range GPU paired with a high-end CPU.

The ranking reflects a notable asymmetry between the two components. The CPU's 93rd percentile standing among all processors contrasts with the GPU's 71st percentile placement. This imbalance suggests that the GPU is the limiting factor in this pairing, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. The data supports this interpretation: at 1080p Low, the system achieves 279.8 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 62.1 FPS — a performance envelope that tracks closely with the GPU's capabilities rather than the CPU's.

For a game like Inside, which does not demand extreme hardware, this ranking is more than adequate. The combo sits comfortably above the median tested configuration, and the measured frame rates show that it handles the game's maximum settings at 4K without dropping below 60 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals clear GPU-bound behavior. At High settings, frame rates drop from 137.8 FPS at 1920x1080 to 99.5 FPS at 2560x1440, then to 62.7 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 28% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 55% reduction from 1080p to 4K.

Low settings show similar scaling patterns: 279.8 FPS at 1080p, 198.5 FPS at 1440p (a 29% drop), and 125.9 FPS at 4K (a 55% drop). Medium settings follow the same trend with 226.1, 161.7, and 102.2 FPS respectively. Ultra settings produce 131.5, 96.5, and 62.1 FPS across the three resolutions.

The consistent ~55% performance reduction from 1080p to 4K across all settings indicates that the GPU is the primary constraint. If the CPU were limiting, the scaling would show smaller absolute differences at lower resolutions or more pronounced drops at higher frame rates. Instead, the linear relationship between pixel count and frame rate suggests the Radeon RX 6600 XT is working at near-full capacity at 4K, while the i5-14600K has significant headroom remaining.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce 279.8 FPS, Medium achieves 226.1 FPS, High reaches 137.8 FPS, and Ultra yields 131.5 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra is minimal at just 6.3 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns from the highest preset.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong. Low settings hit 198.5 FPS, Medium achieves 161.7 FPS, High produces 99.5 FPS, and Ultra delivers 96.5 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra narrows further to 3.0 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects have little impact on this hardware at 1440p.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limits become apparent. Low settings still manage 125.9 FPS, Medium reaches 102.2 FPS, High produces 62.7 FPS, and Ultra delivers 62.1 FPS. The High to Ultra gap shrinks to just 0.6 FPS, showing that the final preset tier adds visual features without meaningful performance cost at this resolution.

The data reveals that Medium settings offer the most balanced experience across all resolutions, with frame rates 63% higher than High at 1080p, 62% higher at 1440p, and 63% higher at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, Medium settings provide the best overall experience for this hardware combination. At 1080p, Medium achieves 226.1 FPS — nearly double the frame rate of High settings at 137.8 FPS, with only modest visual compromises. At 1440p, Medium delivers 161.7 FPS, comfortably above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on modern monitors. At 4K, Medium maintains 102.2 FPS, far exceeding the 60 FPS target.

For players prioritizing visual fidelity, High settings are the optimal choice. The jump from Medium to High costs significant performance — 88.3 FPS at 1080p, 62.2 FPS at 1440p, and 39.5 FPS at 4K — but the visual improvements may justify the trade-off on a large display. Ultra settings, by contrast, offer negligible gains over High across all resolutions, with differences of only 6.3, 3.0, and 0.6 FPS at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K respectively.

Low settings are only recommended for players seeking maximum frame rates, potentially for competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays. The 279.8 FPS at 1080p Low exceeds what most monitors can display, making this setting unnecessary for standard use cases. The data suggests that Medium represents the sweet spot, balancing visual quality with performance headroom that makes this combo well-suited for Inside at any resolution.