Inside

The Intel Core i7-12700KF and AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination delivers a highly playable experience in Inside, a Puzzle Platformer from 2016-07-06. The data shows that performance scales predictably across resolutions, with the pairing hitting a 70 FPS average at 4K High settings and climbing to 309 FPS at 1080p Low. This indicates that the system is well-balanced for this title, though the scaling patterns reveal where the bottleneck shifts between the CPU and GPU as workload changes.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data shows a clear and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario at higher pixel counts. At 1080p Low, the system produces an average of 309 FPS. Stepping up to 1440p Low reduces that figure to 222 FPS, a drop of roughly 28%. Moving to 4K Low yields 140 FPS, which is another 37% reduction from the 1440p figure. This steep decline with pixel count indicates that the Radeon RX 9060 is doing the heavy lifting at these settings, as the CPU has ample headroom to feed frames at lower resolutions.

The pattern holds across all quality presets. For High settings, the average FPS goes from 155 at 1080p, to 111 at 1440p, down to 70 at 4K. That is a 55% reduction from 1080p to 4K, which is substantial and points to the GPU being the limiting factor at the highest resolution. Similarly, Ultra settings drop from 147 FPS at 1080p to 106 at 1440p and finally to 66 at 4K. The consistent halving of performance from 1080p to 4K across these presets reinforces that the RX 9060's rendering throughput is the primary constraint when pixel count rises.

However, the scaling between Low and Ultra at the same resolution reveals the CPU's role. At 1080p, the gap between Low (309 FPS) and Ultra (147 FPS) is a massive 162 FPS. This spread is far larger than the difference seen at 4K, where Low (140 FPS) versus Ultra (66 FPS) is a 74 FPS gap. The fact that 1080p Low achieves over 300 FPS shows that the i7-12700KF is capable of feeding the GPU at very high frame rates, but the GPU cannot maintain that throughput when graphical complexity increases. The data suggests that at 1080p, the game becomes increasingly GPU-limited as settings rise, while at 4K, the GPU is firmly the bottleneck across all settings.

The medium preset offers the only complete min/max data in the pack, providing insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the average is 247 FPS with a minimum of 210 and a maximum of 284. At 1440p Medium, the average is 178 FPS with a minimum of 151 and a maximum of 204. At 4K Medium, the average is 112 FPS with a minimum of 95 and a maximum of 128. The minimum FPS values stay relatively close to the averages, indicating stable performance without severe hitches, even at 4K where the minimum of 95 FPS remains comfortably above 60.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 44 chip, fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. The GPU operates with a base clock of 1700 MHz, a game clock of 2400 MHz, and a boost clock of 2990 MHz. These specifications position the card as a capable mid-range part, and the benchmark results in Inside reflect that positioning.

The GPU's 8 GB VRAM buffer is not a limiting factor in this title, given its 2016 release date and simple visual style. The fact that the card achieves 70 FPS at 4K High without any reported stutter or memory-related issues suggests that the VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game's assets at this resolution. The memory clock runs at 2250 MHz, translating to 18 Gbps effective, which supports the 288.0 GB/s bandwidth. For a game like Inside, which uses a muted color palette and stylized graphics, the bandwidth is more than adequate to feed the shading units.

The GPU has 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. It also features 28 ray tracing cores, though a 2D side-scrolling puzzle platformer is unlikely to leverage those heavily. The pixel rate is 191.4 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 334.9 GTexel/s. The FP32 performance is rated at 21.43 TFLOPS. These figures translate into the measured FPS results, where the card shows strong scaling from Low to Medium settings but hits a performance wall at Ultra, particularly at 4K where the average drops to 66 FPS.

The GPU's average benchmark score across all tests is 16014, and it sits at the 59th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which has an average score of 16129, representing a delta of -0.7% for the RX 9060. This places the card in direct competitive territory with that previous-generation mid-range offering. The power draw is rated at 132 W TDP, suggesting the card is efficient, though the game performance data shows it is still the primary limiter at 4K resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-12700KF and AMD Radeon RX 9060 ranks 1615 out of 2887 tested combos for Inside. This places it in the 44th percentile of all pairings, which is a middling result for a system with a high-end CPU and a mid-range GPU. The ranking suggests that while the system is well above average, there are many combinations that deliver higher FPS in this specific title.

The ranking is influenced by the fact that Inside is not a demanding game by modern standards, and many older or lower-end GPUs can run it at high frame rates. The CPU's performance is a strong asset here, as the i7-12700KF has a percentile rank of 85 among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score is 35365, which is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13700T, which scores 35403 with a delta of -0.1%. This means the CPU is not holding the system back in this game.

However, the GPU's percentile rank of 59 among all GPUs is the limiting factor for the combo's overall rank. The RX 9060's average score of 16014 is close to its rivals, such as the AMD Radeon RX 7700 with a score of 15852 and a delta of 1%, and the AMD Radeon R9 370X with a score of 15862 and a delta of 1%. The combo's rank of 1615 out of 2887 indicates that there are about 1272 other combinations that perform better, likely those pairing the same CPU with a faster GPU or pairing a similar GPU with a CPU that has higher single-thread performance for this particular game.

The rank is also notable because the data is measured, not estimated. The 2887 combos in the database include a wide range of hardware pairings, and a rank of 1615 means the system sits just below the median. This is a reasonable result for a GPU that is positioned near the RTX 3060 Ti in terms of average scores, as that card is not typically considered a high-end option for 4K gaming. The CPU's strength does not fully compensate for the GPU's mid-range status in this specific benchmark.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average FPS is 309, which is the maximum recorded for this combo. Medium settings yield an average of 247 FPS, with a minimum of 210 and a maximum of 284. High settings produce an average of 155 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to an average of 147 FPS. At this resolution, the system is capable of taking full advantage of high-refresh-rate monitors, even at Ultra settings where the frame rate remains above 144 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but shows the expected decline. Low settings average 222 FPS, while Medium settings average 178 FPS with a minimum of 151 and a maximum of 204. High settings average 111 FPS, and Ultra settings average 106 FPS. The 1440p results indicate that the system can handle high refresh rates at Medium settings, but at High and Ultra, it drops below the 144 FPS threshold, settling into the 106-111 FPS range which is still smooth for most displays.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck. Low settings average 140 FPS, which is still very playable. Medium settings average 112 FPS with a minimum of 95 and a maximum of 128, providing a smooth experience. High settings average 70 FPS, and Ultra settings average 66 FPS. The 4K results show that the system can handle 4K gaming at Medium settings comfortably, but High and Ultra settings push the average below 70 FPS, which may require a lower refresh rate monitor or adaptive sync for optimal smoothness.

The data shows that the most significant performance leap occurs between Low and Medium settings at any resolution, while the jump from High to Ultra is comparatively smaller. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Medium is 62 FPS, while the difference between High and Ultra is only 8 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset does not add much additional visual fidelity for the performance cost, and the Medium preset offers the best balance of visuals and frame rate for this hardware.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Inside at 4K?*

A: Yes, it can. At 4K Medium settings, the average FPS is 112 with a minimum of 95, which is smooth. At 4K High, the average drops to 70 FPS, and at Ultra it is 66 FPS, both of which are playable but not ideal for high-refresh-rate displays.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1440p gaming?

A: For 1440p, the Medium preset offers the best balance with an average of 178 FPS. High settings average 111 FPS, while Ultra averages 106 FPS. If maximizing frame rate is the goal, Low settings at 222 FPS is the fastest option.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its closest rival in this game?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, scores 16129, which is 0.7% higher. This indicates very similar overall performance, though game-specific results may vary.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p Low, the system hits 309 FPS, indicating the CPU is capable of high frame rates. However, the drop to 147 FPS at Ultra settings shows the GPU becomes the limiting factor as graphical load increases.

Q: What is the combo's overall ranking?

A: The Intel Core i7-12700KF and AMD Radeon RX 9060 ranks 1615 out of 2887 tested combos for Inside. The CPU is in the 85th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 59th percentile.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM cause any issues at 4K?

A: The data shows no indication of VRAM-related issues. The system achieves 70 FPS at 4K High and 66 FPS at 4K Ultra, with stable performance and no reported stuttering, suggesting 8 GB is sufficient for this game.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is a 12-core, 20-thread processor from the Alder Lake architecture, released on 2021-11-03. It has a base clock of 3.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. The CPU features a 25 MB shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB per-core L2 cache. Its performance in Inside is dictated by its strong single-thread capabilities, as this puzzle platformer does not heavily utilize multi-threading.

The CPU's benchmark scores reflect its strength in both single and multi-threaded workloads. In Cinebench R23, it scores 28838 in multicore and 4071 in single-core. In Geekbench, it scores 14367 in multicore and 2255 in single-core. The 3DMark results show a progression from 1043 in single-thread to 9282 in 16-thread and 9983 in max-thread tests. These scores indicate that the CPU has significant headroom for feeding the GPU in Inside, even at high frame rates.

The fact that the system achieves 309 FPS at 1080p Low shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at lower resolutions. The i7-12700KF's boost clock of 5.00 GHz provides the high single-threaded performance that games like Inside rely on. The CPU's percentile rank of 85 among all CPUs confirms that it is a top-tier processor for gaming workloads. Its average benchmark score of 35365 is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13700T, which scores 35403, a difference of only -0.1%.

However, the CPU's role in this specific game is limited by the GPU. The data shows that as resolution increases, the FPS drops significantly, which means the RX 9060 is the limiting component at 1440p and 4K. The CPU's strong multi-threaded performance, evidenced by a Passmark multithread score of 34092 and a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 28838, does not directly translate to higher FPS in Inside once the GPU is saturated. The CPU is effectively overqualified for this title, as even a less powerful processor could likely achieve similar results at 4K with the same GPU.

The CPU's memory support for DDR4 and DDR5, along with its dual-channel memory bus, ensures that it can feed data to the GPU efficiently. The 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes provide adequate bandwidth for the GPU's PCIe 5.0 x16 interface, though the game does not appear to be bandwidth-sensitive. The CPU's TDP of 125 W and its active production status indicate it is a modern, power-efficient part that pairs well with the 132 W GPU in this system. Ultimately, the data suggests that the i7-12700KF provides all the processing power needed for Inside, leaving the RX 9060 as the sole determinant of frame rates at higher resolutions.