Inside

Inside is a puzzle platformer from 2016, and the benchmark results for the Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 show a combination that is heavily skewed toward high refresh rate gaming. The data shows a system capable of delivering extremely smooth frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, while still maintaining playable performance at 4K. This analysis breaks down how the resolution scaling, settings, and individual component roles contribute to the overall experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves an average of 155 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 111 FPS, a decrease of roughly 28%. At 4K High, the average falls to 70 FPS, which is a further drop of about 37% from the 1440p figure. This trajectory indicates that while the GPU is the primary scaling factor, the frame rates remain well within the playable range even at the highest resolution tested.

The scaling becomes more pronounced when looking at the lower settings, which are less bound by the graphics card. At Low settings, the system delivers 309 FPS at 1080p, 222 FPS at 1440p, and 140 FPS at 4K. The performance drop from 1080p to 4K at Low is 54.7%, which is significantly larger than the 54.8% drop at High settings. This suggests that at lower settings, the CPU and its cache hierarchy are doing more of the heavy lifting, but the GPU still manages to keep up.

A more detailed look at the Medium preset shows the only resolution with min and max FPS data. At 1080p Medium, the average is 247 FPS with a min of 210 and a max of 284. At 1440p Medium, the average is 178 FPS with a min of 151 and a max of 204. At 4K Medium, the average is 112 FPS with a min of 95 and a max of 128. The variance between min and max FPS is relatively tight, indicating consistent frame pacing without major hitches or stutters.

The limiting component shifts based on resolution. At 1080p, the CPU’s high single-thread performance (2160 in Cinebench R23 single-core) allows the GPU to stretch its legs, resulting in frame rates that far exceed what most displays can show. At 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, as the frame rate at Ultra settings is only 66 FPS. The data suggests that the sweet spot resolution for this combo is 1440p, where the High preset delivers 111 FPS and the Ultra preset delivers 106 FPS, providing a balance between visual fidelity and high refresh rate smoothness.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear picture of how each preset impacts performance. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields an average of 147 FPS, which is only 8 FPS lower than the High preset’s 155 FPS. This small difference suggests that the Ultra preset is highly efficient for this game, likely due to the CPU’s strong performance not being the limiter at this resolution. The data shows that at 1080p, there is little reason to drop below High, as even Ultra maintains a frame rate above 144 Hz.

At 1440p, the High preset delivers 111 FPS, while the Ultra preset delivers 106 FPS. The difference is only 5 FPS, making the Ultra preset the better choice for users with 144 Hz monitors who want the best visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The Medium preset at 1440p delivers 178 FPS, which is a significant jump, but the visual quality trade-off may not be worth it for only a 60 FPS gain over Ultra.

At 4K, the situation changes. The Ultra preset averages 66 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay on standard displays. The High preset averages 70 FPS, providing a slightly larger margin for dips. The Medium preset averages 112 FPS, which is a substantial improvement and makes 4K gaming much more fluid. For 4K, the Medium preset appears to be the best balance, as it delivers double the frame rate of Ultra while maintaining a playable experience.

The Low preset is consistently the highest performer, with 309 FPS at 1080p, 222 FPS at 1440p, and 140 FPS at 4K. However, given that the game is a puzzle platformer with a specific art style, the visual downgrade to Low may be unnecessary. The recommendation is to use Ultra at 1080p and 1440p for the best experience, and to drop to Medium at 4K if a higher frame rate is preferred over maximum visual fidelity. The data indicates that the High preset is a safe middle ground, but the Ultra preset’s performance delta is too small to ignore at lower resolutions.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the driving force behind the resolution scaling observed in the data. With a boost clock of 2990 MHz and a game clock of 2400 MHz, the GPU shows strong raw throughput. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s, which is sufficient for this game’s demands. The GPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 17631 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3322, place it in the 59th percentile among all GPUs.

When comparing to its nearest rivals, the RX 9060’s average benchmark score of 16014 is only 0.7% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which scores 16129. It is 1% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 370X and the AMD Radeon RX 7700, and 2.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5500. This indicates that the RX 9060 is a mid-range performer, and the game’s results reflect that. At 4K Ultra, the GPU produces 66 FPS, which is a typical result for a card in this performance class.

The GPU’s VRAM usage is not explicitly listed, but the 8 GB capacity is a factor. At 4K with Ultra settings, the game may be pushing against the memory limit, but the frame rates suggest it is handling the load adequately. The texture rate of 334.9 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 191.4 GPixel/s contribute to the GPU’s ability to maintain consistent frame times at 1440p and 1080p. The GPU’s FP32 performance of 21.43 TFLOPS is also a strong indicator of its compute capability, which helps in rendering the game’s atmospheric lighting and shadow effects.

The GPU’s role becomes more apparent when looking at the FPS drop from 1080p to 4K. The fact that the frame rate halves from High 1080p (155 FPS) to High 4K (70 FPS) confirms that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. This is expected behavior, and the data shows that the RX 9060 is well-matched for this game at 1440p, where it can maintain high frame rates without breaking a sweat.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo of the Intel Core i7-14700K and the AMD Radeon RX 9060 ranks 1615 out of 2887 tested combinations for Inside. This places it in the 56th percentile, meaning it outperforms just over half of all tested systems. This ranking is relatively low for a combo that includes a high-end CPU like the i7-14700K, which is in the 94th percentile among all CPUs. The ranking is likely dragged down by the GPU, which is only in the 59th percentile.

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the i7-14700K has an average benchmark score of 69355. This is 0.1% higher than the AMD EPYC 9115, 0.2% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, 0.7% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX, and 0.9% lower than the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F. These deltas are negligible, indicating that the CPU is performing as expected for its class. The ranking of 1615 suggests that the bottleneck in this combo is not the CPU, but rather the GPU’s ability to keep up at higher resolutions.

The combo’s rank of 1615 out of 2887 is a reflection of the GPU’s mid-range standing. For a game like Inside, which is not graphically demanding, this ranking is acceptable. The data shows that the combo can achieve high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, which is where most gamers will play. The ranking would likely be higher if the game were more CPU-bound, but since it scales heavily with GPU performance, the RX 9060 holds the combo back from a higher position.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its architecture, Raptor Lake-R, is built on a 10 nm process. The CPU has a large L3 cache of 33 MB shared across the cores, which is crucial for gaming performance. In Cinebench R23, the CPU scores 33440.5 in multi-core and 2160 in single-core, demonstrating strong overall performance.

In the context of Inside, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with data and handle the game’s physics and logic. The game is a puzzle platformer, which typically has a higher reliance on CPU single-thread performance. The i7-14700K’s single-core score of 2160 in Cinebench R23 is excellent, and it shows in the 1080p results. At Low settings, the combo achieves 309 FPS at 1080p, which is likely close to the CPU’s limit for this game.

The CPU’s multi-core performance, while impressive, is not fully utilized by this game. The Passmark multithread score of 52392 and the Passmark physics score of 2964 indicate that the CPU has plenty of headroom. The data shows that at 1080p, the frame rates are high enough that the CPU is not the bottleneck, but at 4K, the GPU takes over as the limiting factor. The CPU’s 33 MB of L3 cache helps reduce latency, ensuring that the GPU receives a steady stream of data.

The CPU’s integrated graphics, UHD Graphics 770, are irrelevant for this discrete GPU setup, but the CPU’s support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory and its PCIe Gen 5 interface future-proof the system. The CPU’s TDP of 125 W is manageable with a capable air cooler, and its unlocked multiplier allows for overclocking if the user desires. Overall, the CPU’s role in this game is to provide a solid foundation for the GPU, and it does so without breaking a sweat.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Inside?

A: The data shows that 1440p is the sweet spot. The High preset delivers an average of 111 FPS, and the Ultra preset delivers 106 FPS, both of which are ideal for high refresh rate monitors.

Q: How does the RX 9060 compare to its nearest rival, the RTX 3060 Ti?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, which is 0.7% lower than the RTX 3060 Ti’s score of 16129. In practice, this means nearly identical performance in this game.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 1080p?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 309 FPS, which is very high. The CPU’s strong single-core performance (2160 in Cinebench R23) ensures that it does not bottleneck the GPU at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the frame rate at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 66 FPS. This is just above the 60 FPS threshold, making it playable, but dropping to High or Medium settings will provide a smoother experience.

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

A: The combo ranks 1615 out of 2887 tested combinations, placing it in the 56th percentile. The ranking is limited by the GPU, which is in the 59th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: Is the 8 GB VRAM on the RX 9060 sufficient for this game?

A: The benchmark results show that at 4K Ultra, the game averages 66 FPS, indicating that the 8 GB of GDDR6 memory is adequate for this title. The memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s is also sufficient for the game’s demands.