Inside

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-12700KF paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7600 lands at rank 1125 out of 1671 tested combos for Inside. That places this configuration in the lower-middle tier of the database, though the context of the game is crucial. Inside is a Puzzle Platformer from 2016, and its demands are modest by modern standards. The ranking reflects the absolute performance ceiling of this pairing across all tested hardware, but the measured frame rates tell a story of a system that is far more capable than its percentile rank suggests.

The CPU itself sits in the 89th percentile against all processors, while the GPU is in the 63rd percentile against all graphics cards. This is a notable imbalance. The processor is a high-end part relative to the broader market, while the graphics card is decidedly mid-range. In a title like Inside, which is not graphically intensive, this combination still produces excellent results, but the ranking shows that there are many other, often more balanced, pairings that score higher in aggregate. The data indicates that this is a capable machine, but not one that challenges the top echelons of the database hierarchy.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is a 12-core, 20-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. This is a desktop-class part with a 125W TDP, featuring a 25 MB shared L3 cache. Its synthetic benchmark scores are robust, including a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 28979 and a single-core score of 4091. In Geekbench, it scores 13596 multicore and 2526 single-core. These figures place it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, making it a formidable processing engine.

In the context of Inside, the CPU's role is less about raw multi-threaded throughput and more about maintaining high single-thread performance and consistent frame pacing. The game's physics and logic are not heavily threaded, so the i7-12700KF's strong single-core performance, evidenced by its 3DMark single-thread score of 1043, is what matters most. The processor is never a bottleneck here. When comparing to its nearest rivals, the data shows a near tie. The Intel Core i5-14400 has an average score of 35336, a mere 0.1% behind, while the Intel Core i7-13800H is 0.2% ahead. The Core i9-12900HX is 0.2% behind, and the Core i5-13600T is 0.3% ahead. In essence, the 12700KF is performance-equivalent to these parts, meaning any FPS differences in Inside will be dictated almost entirely by the GPU, not the CPU.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture and features the Navi 33 chip. It comes with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. The GPU's game clock is 2250 MHz, with a boost clock of 2655 MHz. It houses 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Its compute capability is rated at 21.75 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. The GPU's benchmark results show a Passmark G3D score of 16634 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 90825, placing it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs.

For a game like Inside, the RX 7600 is more than sufficient. The 8 GB VRAM is ample for the game's art style and resolution targets. The GPU's performance is the primary variable in the measured FPS, as the CPU is not a limiting factor. The data shows that the RX 7600 is closely matched with its nearest rivals. The RX 7600 XT is a scant 0.6% faster, while the RX 460 is 0.8% faster in aggregate. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile is 1.3% slower, and the Intel Arc B570 is 1.5% slower. This clustering indicates that the RX 7600 sits in a tightly contested performance band, and its specific strengths in Inside will manifest through the frame rate measurements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combination reveals a system that excels at high refresh rates, particularly at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the performance is exceptional. With Low settings, the average FPS is 281.4. Moving to Medium settings, the average drops to 224.9 FPS. High settings yield an average of 143.2 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 133.4 FPS. These numbers indicate that the system can easily drive a 144Hz monitor at 1080p with maximum settings, and even a 240Hz monitor with reduced settings.

At 1440p, the performance remains very strong. Low settings deliver an average of 202.9 FPS. Medium settings still manage a high 164.7 FPS average. High settings drop to 102.1 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 98.3 FPS. This shows that 1440p gaming is highly viable, with High settings providing a smooth experience near the 100 FPS mark. The step from Low to Medium at 1440p is a significant reduction of 38.2 FPS, but the transition from High to Ultra is a much smaller 3.8 FPS drop, suggesting that the visual fidelity gains from Ultra are not as costly as the jump from Low to Medium.

At 4K, the system begins to show its limits, though it remains playable. Low settings yield an average of 125.3 FPS, which is still excellent. Medium settings drop to 102.1 FPS. High settings produce 64.3 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 58.8 FPS. The data shows that 4K gaming is possible, but to maintain high frame rates, users must sacrifice settings. Ultra at 4K dips below 60 FPS, which is a threshold many consider the minimum for smooth gameplay. The system is clearly more comfortable at 1080p and 1440p.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling of this combo shows a predictable degradation in performance as pixel count increases, but the pattern reveals which component is the limiting factor. From 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS across all settings drops by roughly 28-30%. For instance, at High settings, the FPS goes from 143.2 to 102.1, a 28.7% reduction. This is a significant drop, but the frame rates remain high.

Scaling from 1440p to 4K is more punishing. At High settings, the FPS drops from 102.1 to 64.3, a 37.0% reduction. At Ultra settings, the drop is from 98.3 to 58.8, a 40.2% reduction. This steeper decline at higher resolutions is a classic sign of GPU limitation. The RX 7600's 8 GB VRAM and memory bandwidth are being taxed as the render load increases.

The data indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K. At 1080p, the CPU is strong enough to feed the GPU, allowing it to reach high frame rates. As resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows, and the FPS drops accordingly. The fact that the drop from 1080p to 1440p is less severe than from 1440p to 4K suggests that the GPU has some headroom at 1440p, but it becomes fully saturated at 4K. For this pairing, the optimal experience is at 1440p with High settings, where the balance of visual quality and performance is ideal. At 4K, the user must choose between frame rate and fidelity, as the GPU cannot deliver both.