Inside

Inside is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer from 2016, and its demands on modern hardware are modest. The measured data for the Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the Intel Arc B370 shows a configuration that is heavily constrained by its graphics component, especially as resolution climbs. This combination, ranking 2654th out of 2887 tested combos for this game, does not deliver a high-refresh-rate experience at 4K, but it provides playable frame rates at lower resolutions and settings. The following analysis breaks down how this specific CPU-GPU pairing behaves in this title, using only the measured FPS data and hardware specifications provided.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent across all settings, pointing directly at the GPU as the primary bottleneck. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 141 FPS at 1920x1080 to 101 FPS at 2560x1440, a 28% reduction. Pushing further to 3840x2160, the average drops to 64 FPS, which is less than half of the 1080p figure. This pattern is not unique to Low settings; it repeats across the board, indicating that the rendering load is scaling faster than the Arc B370 can handle.

The Medium settings data provides the clearest picture of this scaling, as it is the only quality level with complete min and max FPS numbers. At 1920x1080, the average is 113 FPS, with a minimum of 96 FPS and a maximum of 130 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the average falls to 81 FPS, with the minimum dropping to 69 FPS and the maximum to 93 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average is 51 FPS, and the minimum and maximum are 43 FPS and 59 FPS respectively. The frame time variance also becomes more pronounced as resolution increases, suggesting that the GPU is spending more time on each frame, leaving less headroom for consistent delivery.

High settings show a similar trend, with the average FPS at 1080p being 70, dropping to 51 at 1440p, and then to 32 at 4K. The 4K High setting result of 32 FPS is barely above the threshold of what most players would consider playable for a slow-paced puzzle game, but it is not smooth. Ultra settings are the most demanding, with 67 FPS at 1080p, 48 FPS at 1440p, and only 30 FPS at 4K. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is significant—64 FPS versus 30 FPS—which shows that the game's visual options have a major impact on the Arc B370’s output.

The limiting component is clearly the GPU. The CPU, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is far more capable than what this game requires. The data shows that the FPS drops are almost entirely tied to resolution and settings, which are GPU-bound factors. At 1080p, even with the highest settings, the average FPS of 67 is relatively low for a game like this, which further suggests that the graphics card is the limiting factor. The fact that lowering settings from Ultra to Low at 1080p more than doubles the frame rate from 67 FPS to 141 FPS confirms that pixel throughput and shading work are the primary constraints.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2654 out of 2887 tested combinations places this system in the lower tier of performance for Inside. This position is not surprising given the GPU’s benchmark profile. The Intel Arc B370 has a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184, which places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in that benchmark are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 with a score of 1186, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1190, the AMD Radeon HD 7650M with 1192, and the AMD FirePro M2000 with 1168. The delta percentages are tight, ranging from -0.7% to 1.4%, meaning the Arc B370 is statistically on par with these older or mobile parts in synthetic testing.

This GPU performance dictates the combo’s standing. Being ranked at the 91.9th percentile of all combos (2654 divided by 2887) means that roughly 92% of the tested systems perform better in this specific game. The data does not provide a list of what those other combos are, but the implication is clear: the vast majority of systems tested for this database deliver higher average frame rates. The only reason this combo is not at the very bottom is the strength of the CPU, but for a game like Inside, the CPU’s contribution to FPS is minimal.

When looking at the CPU alone, it ranks in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620. Its nearest rivals are the Intel Xeon 6505P with an average score of 53701 (-0.2% delta), the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 with 53469 (0.3% delta), the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X with 53288 (0.6% delta), and the AMD EPYC 7313P with 53206 (0.8% delta). This indicates a very strong processor, but its power is largely wasted in this pairing for this game. The combo rank is dragged down by the GPU, not elevated by the CPU. The data shows a clear mismatch: a top-tier CPU paired with a bottom-tier GPU, resulting in a mid-to-low-tier gaming experience.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution, not a discrete card. Its memory is "System Shared," with a bus width and bandwidth also listed as "System Shared" and "System Dependent," respectively. This means it relies on the system's main memory (DDR4 or DDR5, as supported by the CPU) rather than dedicated VRAM. The base clock is 300 MHz, and the boost clock is 2400 MHz. The chip is named Panther Lake, built on a 3 nm process, and uses the Xe3-LPG architecture. It has 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster operation units. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s.

These specifications explain the measured performance. The lack of dedicated VRAM is a significant handicap, especially at higher resolutions. At 4K, the GPU must manage a massive framebuffer, and sharing system memory introduces latency and bandwidth constraints. The 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is a modest figure, and it shows. The 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184, which is in the 5th percentile, confirms that this is not a gaming-oriented part. The fact that it is an IGP with a 25 W TDP means it is designed for basic tasks, not sustained gaming loads.

In this game, the GPU’s role is to render the game's dark, atmospheric visuals. At Low settings and 1080p, the Arc B370 manages 141 FPS, which is playable. However, the frame rate drops dramatically as the pixel count increases. The 4K Ultra result of 30 FPS is a clear indicator that the GPU is overwhelmed. The RT cores, of which there are 10, are irrelevant for a game like Inside, which does not require ray tracing. The DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4 support are forward-looking features, but they do not help with raw rasterization performance in this title. The GPU’s boost clock of 2400 MHz is relatively high, but it cannot compensate for the small number of shading units and the shared memory architecture.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average frame rate is 70 FPS.

Q: Is the game playable at 4K with this combo?

A: It depends on the settings. At Low settings, the average is 64 FPS. At Medium, it is 51 FPS. At High, it drops to 32 FPS, and at Ultra, it is 30 FPS. The lowest settings are playable, but the higher settings are not smooth.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1184. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1186, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190, the AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1192, and the AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1168. The performance is nearly identical, with all deltas within 1.4%.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking compared to all CPUs?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F is in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620.

Q: What is the difference in average FPS between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings produce an average of 101 FPS, while Ultra settings produce an average of 48 FPS. This is a difference of 53 FPS.

Q: Does the GPU have dedicated VRAM?

A: No, the memory size, type, and bus width are all listed as "System Shared," meaning it uses the system's main memory.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table summarizes all measured FPS data for this combo in Inside.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

|---|---|---|---|---|

| 1920x1080 | Low | 141 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 113 | 96 | 130 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 70 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 67 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 101 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 81 | 69 | 93 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 51 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 48 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 64 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 51 | 43 | 59 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 32 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 30 | - | - |

At 1080p, the jump from Low to Medium is 28 FPS (from 141 to 113), and from Medium to High is 43 FPS (from 113 to 70). The difference between High and Ultra is only 3 FPS (70 to 67), suggesting that the Ultra preset adds little visual overhead relative to High at this resolution. At 1440p, Low yields 101 FPS, which is close to the 1080p High result of 70 FPS, showing that resolution scaling is more punishing than settings scaling. The Medium preset at 1440p (81 FPS) is roughly equivalent to the 1080p High preset (70 FPS) in terms of performance, indicating a trade-off between resolution and quality.

At 4K, all settings fall below the 60 FPS threshold except for Low, which averages 64 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K has a minimum FPS of 43, which could result in noticeable stutters during complex scenes. The High and Ultra presets are effectively unplayable for smooth action, with averages of 32 and 30 FPS, respectively. The data shows that for a consistent 60 FPS experience, the user must play at 1080p with Low or Medium settings, or at 1440p with Low settings. The 4K resolution is only viable with the lowest visual quality settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a desktop processor from the Core 14th Gen series, based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has 20 cores and 28 threads, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration, and it has a 65 W TDP. Its launch MSRP is $359. The CPU is not overclockable, as the multiplier is locked.

For Inside, this CPU is far more powerful than necessary. The game is a puzzle platformer, not a simulation or strategy title that benefits from high core counts. The CPU’s single-core performance is strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4958 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2429. Multi-core scores are also high, such as 35122 in Cinebench R23 and 19620 in Geekbench. These numbers are irrelevant for this game’s frame rates, as the bottleneck is entirely on the GPU. The measured FPS does not change based on CPU load; it changes based on resolution and graphics settings.

The CPU’s role here is to feed the GPU with draw calls and physics data, which it does with ease. The game’s simple 2D side-scrolling environments do not require complex AI or large numbers of entities. In fact, the CPU’s performance is so far ahead of the GPU that it could be considered wasted potential. The 91st percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620, places it in the same league as server processors like the Intel Xeon 6505P and AMD EPYC 7313P. This is a workstation-class CPU, but for Inside, any modern dual-core processor would likely achieve similar frame rates when paired with the same GPU. The CPU does not appear in the measured FPS bottleneck; the data shows that the same FPS figures are achieved regardless of the CPU’s massive headroom. The system’s low combo rank is a direct result of the GPU, not the CPU.