Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that, on this particular CPU-GPU pairing, delivers a wide spread of frame rates depending on how the image is rendered. The data shows a system that is overwhelmingly capable of running the game at high refresh rates, with the primary performance question being how much graphical fidelity users are willing to trade for speed.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear pattern of the GPU becoming the limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU holds the reins at lower ones. At 1080p with High settings, the combo produces 167.5 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops that to 118.7 FPS, a reduction of 48.8 FPS, and then to 74.4 FPS at 4K, another 44.3 FPS drop. This consistent decline indicates that each pixel increase puts more strain on the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT.

The trend is even more dramatic at Low settings. The 1080p Low result is 338.7 FPS, which is an exceptionally high number. At 1440p Low, it falls to 243 FPS, and at 4K Low, it is 151.8 FPS. The fact that the 4K Low result is still above 150 FPS shows the GPU's raw power in this lightweight scene. However, the scaling pattern is significant: dropping from 1080p to 1440p costs 95.7 FPS, while the 1440p to 4K step costs another 91.2 FPS. This suggests that even at Low settings, the resolution increase is heavily taxing the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth.

The data points to a system where the Intel Core i7-14700K is never the bottleneck for this title. The 4K Ultra score of 73.1 FPS is only slightly lower than the 4K High score of 74.4 FPS, which is a marginal difference of 1.3 FPS. This small gap between High and Ultra at 4K indicates that the GPU is already saturated at that resolution and settings level. In contrast, the gap between Low and Medium at 1080p is 70.1 FPS (from 338.7 to 268.6), showing that there is plenty of headroom for the CPU to push frames when the GPU is less burdened. The limiting component is clearly the graphics card, especially as resolution climbs.

How This Combo Ranks

The benchmark results for this specific pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700K and the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT place it in the 841st position out of 1671 tested combos. This means it sits just past the mid-point of all tested systems. This rank is a composite of the CPU's high performance and the GPU's more modest standing.

The CPU itself is in the top percentile. Its benchmark scores show it performing within a fraction of a percent of its nearest rivals. For example, the Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70104, a delta of 0% from the 70074 average of the i7-14700K. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X is only 0.5% faster, and the AMD EPYC 9115 is 0.3% slower. This puts the processor in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, indicating it is a top-tier component.

The GPU, however, is a different story. The Radeon RX 6700 XT sits in the 77th percentile of all GPUs and has an average benchmark score of 33721. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6800, which is 0.7% faster, and the NVIDIA RTX A5000, which is 1.3% faster. The combination of a top-tier CPU with a mid-to-high-tier GPU results in a system that is ranked lower than one might expect from the CPU alone. The 841st rank out of 1671 combos suggests that while the system is capable, there are many other combinations that deliver higher overall performance, likely due to more powerful GPUs. The data indicates that in this specific game, the overall combo rank is pulled down by the GPU's performance tier.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average frame rate this combo achieves in Inside?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 338.7 FPS, which is achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Inside?

A: Yes, the data shows playable frame rates at 4K. At High settings, it averages 74.4 FPS, and at Ultra settings, it averages 73.1 FPS. Even at Low settings, it maintains 151.8 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its closest rival, the Intel Core i7-14700KF?

A: The benchmark data shows that the Intel Core i7-14700K has an average score of 70074, while the Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70104. This represents a delta of 0%, indicating they perform essentially identically.

Q: What is the difference in performance between High and Ultra settings at 2560x1440?

A: At 1440p, the High setting yields an average of 118.7 FPS, while the Ultra setting yields 113.8 FPS. This is a difference of 4.9 FPS in favor of High settings.

Q: Is the GPU's performance close to the AMD Radeon RX 6800?

A: Yes, the data indicates that the Radeon RX 6800 has an average benchmark score of 33493, which is only 0.7% higher than the RX 6700 XT's score of 33721. They are very closely matched in overall benchmarks.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest average frame rate is 73.1 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings. This is still above the 60 FPS threshold, indicating consistent playability.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates show a consistent pattern across all settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 338.7 FPS. Stepping up to Medium reduces this to 268.6 FPS, a drop of 70.1 FPS. High settings produce 167.5 FPS, which is 101.1 FPS lower than Medium. The Ultra preset is the slowest at 1080p, with an average of 161.6 FPS, a further reduction of 5.9 FPS from High.

At 2560x1440, the scaling continues. Low settings average 243 FPS. Medium settings drop to 191.7 FPS, a 51.3 FPS decrease. High settings average 118.7 FPS, which is 73 FPS lower than Medium. The Ultra preset at 1440p averages 113.8 FPS, just 4.9 FPS below the High preset.

The 3840x2160 resolution shows the most significant impact on performance. Low settings still manage a high 151.8 FPS average. Medium settings reduce this to 123.2 FPS, a drop of 28.6 FPS. High settings average 74.4 FPS, a substantial 48.8 FPS decrease from Medium. The Ultra preset at 4K averages 73.1 FPS, which is only 1.3 FPS lower than High, showing a plateau in performance as the GPU becomes fully utilized.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data suggests that the most balanced experience is achieved with the High preset across all resolutions. At 1080p, High provides 167.5 FPS, which is only 5.9 FPS less than Ultra but a significant 101.1 FPS more than Medium's 268.6 FPS. This indicates that High offers a substantial visual upgrade from Medium with a relatively minor performance cost, and it is nearly indistinguishable from Ultra in terms of the performance hit.

For users with a 1440p monitor, the High preset is again the sweet spot. The 118.7 FPS average is well above the 113.8 FPS of Ultra, while the jump from Medium's 191.7 FPS to High represents a large performance penalty for what may be a modest visual gain. The data suggests that the visual difference between Medium and High is not worth the 73 FPS loss.

At 4K, the recommendation is also High. The 74.4 FPS average is only 1.3 FPS faster than Ultra's 73.1 FPS, making them functionally equivalent in performance. However, the jump from Medium's 123.2 FPS to High's 74.4 FPS is a massive 48.8 FPS loss. This indicates that while High is the best choice for visual fidelity while maintaining a playable frame rate, users who prioritize smoothness should consider Medium, which more than doubles the frame rate of High. The Ultra preset offers no performance advantage over High at 4K, making it the least desirable option.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. This high core count and boost clock are the primary reasons for its exceptional benchmark performance, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44534 and a single-core score of 6287.

In the context of Inside, a game with relatively simple graphics and physics, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and process game logic. The data shows that this CPU is more than capable of handling this task at any resolution. The fact that the frame rate drops so significantly from 1080p to 4K, even at Low settings, proves that the GPU is the bottleneck, not the CPU. The 1080p Low score of 338.7 FPS demonstrates that the CPU can push frames far beyond what most displays can show.

The processor's high single-thread performance, as evidenced by its Geekbench single-core score of 2932, is particularly relevant for gaming. Many game engines, including those used in puzzle platformers, rely heavily on single-threaded performance for main game loop logic. The i7-14700K's 5.60 GHz boost clock ensures that this logic is processed with minimal delay. The data suggests that in this pairing, the CPU is essentially a non-factor in limiting performance, leaving all the work to the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT.