Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that places far more weight on atmosphere and level design than on raw hardware throughput, yet the measured results for the Intel Core i7-14700K and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER combination reveal a surprisingly wide performance envelope depending on how you configure the game. The data shows that this pairing is capable of delivering everything from a cinematic, sub-60 FPS experience at 4K Ultra to a blistering 215.6 FPS average at 1080p Low, making it a versatile option for players who prioritize either visual fidelity or competitive smoothness. The GTX 1660 SUPER, a Turing-based card with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory, proves to be the primary bottleneck in this pairing, while the 20-core, 28-thread i7-14700K provides ample headroom that goes largely untapped in this particular title.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve a 60+ FPS average?

A: At 1440p, the combo averages 76.5 FPS on High and 76.7 FPS on Ultra, both comfortably above 60 FPS. At 4K, only the Low preset (100.3 FPS) and Medium preset (77.3 FPS) exceed the 60 FPS threshold, while High (48 FPS) and Ultra (44.4 FPS) fall short.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its closest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 14286, which puts it within 0.7% of the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT (14389) and within 0.2% of both the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14314) and Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics (14315). It trails the AMD Radeon Vega 11 (14352) by 0.5%.

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p Low and 1080p Ultra settings?

A: The measured data shows a massive gap: the Low preset delivers an average of 215.6 FPS, while the Ultra preset yields 101.7 FPS. This represents more than a halving of frame rate for the highest visual quality.

Q: Is the i7-14700K a bottleneck for the GTX 1660 SUPER in this game?

A: No. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 44534 and its single-core score is 6287, placing it in the 96th percentile among all CPUs. Given the modest demands of a puzzle platformer, the CPU's 3.40 GHz base and 5.60 GHz boost clocks provide far more processing power than the GPU can utilize.

Q: Does the combo rank highly among all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 1489 out of 1671 total combos tested for this game, placing it in the lower portion of the field. This low rank reflects the GPU's 55th percentile standing among all GPUs rather than any CPU deficiency.

Q: What frame rate can a player expect at 4K with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Medium settings is 77.3 FPS, which is smooth for a puzzle platformer. This is significantly higher than the 48 FPS average seen on High settings at the same resolution.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the decisive component in this pairing, and the benchmark data makes its influence unmistakable. The card operates with a base clock of 1530 MHz and a boost clock of 1785 MHz, paired with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. These specifications translate into a PassMark G3D score of 12699 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1278, which places the GPU in the 55th percentile of all GPUs. In the context of Inside, this hardware is more than adequate for the game's stylized visuals, but it is also the limiting factor as resolution and settings scale upward.

The VRAM allocation is particularly relevant. At 4K Ultra, the game demands enough memory bandwidth that the 6 GB frame buffer becomes a constraint, evidenced by the drop to 44.4 FPS average. In contrast, dropping to 4K Low yields 100.3 FPS, showing that the card's raw compute—5.027 TFLOPS FP32—is sufficient when memory pressure is reduced. The pattern repeats at every resolution: Low settings deliver roughly double the frame rate of Ultra settings, with 1080p Low hitting 215.6 FPS versus 101.7 FPS at 1080p Ultra. This suggests that Inside is heavily dependent on fill rate and memory bandwidth, where the GTX 1660 SUPER's 85.68 GPixel/s pixel rate and 157.1 GTexel/s texture rate become the determining factors.

Interestingly, the GPU's nearest rivals in average benchmark score—the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 and Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics—are all within 0.7% of its 14286 average score. This indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER sits at a performance tier where small architectural differences matter more than raw specifications. In a game like Inside, which is not visually demanding by modern standards, the card's Turing architecture with DirectX 12 (12_1) support ensures compatibility, but the measured FPS data reveals that the GPU is the reason this combo ranks only 1489 out of 1671 combos.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is an overqualified participant in this benchmark, and the data reflects that. With 20 cores and 28 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, this Raptor Lake Refresh processor is built for heavy multi-threaded workloads, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44534 and PassMark multi-thread score of 52392. In a puzzle platformer like Inside, however, the game's logic and physics are unlikely to stress even a fraction of these resources. The CPU's single-core performance, measured at 6287 in Cinebench R23 and 2932 in Geekbench single-core, is more than sufficient to feed the GTX 1660 SUPER without creating any bottleneck.

The CPU's 33 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for DDR4 and DDR5 further ensure that data delivery to the GPU is never a limiting factor. Its 96th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70074, places it in the top tier of desktop processors. When compared to its nearest rivals, the i7-14700K is virtually tied with the Core i7-14700KF (0% delta) and AMD EPYC 9115 (0.3% ahead), while trailing the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X by 0.5% and the Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 by 1.4%. These margins are negligible in gaming scenarios.

In practice, the CPU's role here is to ensure that frame times remain consistent, and the measured FPS data shows no signs of CPU-induced stutter. Even at 1080p Low, where the GPU is least stressed and the CPU would be most likely to become a limiting factor, the 215.6 FPS average indicates that the i7-14700K's 5.60 GHz boost clock is more than capable of keeping up with the GTX 1660 SUPER's output. The CPU's 125 W TDP and active production status suggest it is a modern, power-efficient choice, but for Inside specifically, its vast multi-threading capabilities are simply unused headroom.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the i7-14700K and GTX 1660 SUPER ranks 1489 out of 1671 tested combos for Inside, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations. This low rank is a direct consequence of the GPU's modest standing in the broader hardware landscape. The GTX 1660 SUPER's average benchmark score of 14286 and 55th percentile rank among all GPUs means that, when paired with a top-tier CPU like the i7-14700K, the overall system performance is dragged down by the graphics card. The CPU's 96th percentile ranking does little to boost the combo's position because Inside is a GPU-bound title at the resolutions tested.

This rank is not a verdict on playability, however. The measured FPS data shows that the combo can achieve excellent frame rates at lower settings, with 1080p Medium hitting 172.2 FPS and 1440p Medium reaching 126.3 FPS. The rank reflects the absolute performance ceiling of the GPU rather than the quality of the experience. For comparison, the GPU's nearest rivals in average score—the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 and Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics—would likely produce similar or slightly better ranks when paired with comparable CPUs, given their 0.2% performance delta. The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can fully leverage its strengths, rather than 4K, where it falls below 60 FPS on higher presets.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS rows provide a clear hierarchy of settings for this combo, and the optimal choice depends on the user's display resolution and performance targets. At 1080p, the High preset delivers 105.6 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and offers a good balance of visual quality and smoothness. The Ultra preset at 1080p yields 101.7 FPS, a marginal drop of 3.9 FPS, making it a viable choice for players who want maximum settings without sacrificing playability. For competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays, the Low preset at 215.6 FPS is the clear winner, though the Medium preset at 172.2 FPS provides a more visually appealing experience while still exceeding 144 Hz.

At 1440p, the High and Ultra presets are nearly identical in performance, with 76.5 FPS and 76.7 FPS respectively, both comfortably above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 126.3 FPS is the standout option for 1440p, offering a substantial frame rate boost over High and Ultra with only a modest reduction in visual fidelity. The Low preset at 155.8 FPS is excessive for most users, but it is there for those who prioritize frame rate above all else. For 4K, the situation is more constrained: only Low (100.3 FPS) and Medium (77.3 FPS) provide smooth experiences, while High (48 FPS) and Ultra (44.4 FPS) fall below the 60 FPS threshold and are best avoided unless the user is willing to accept a cinematic frame rate.

The data suggests that the Medium preset is the sweet spot for this combo across all resolutions, as it consistently delivers frame rates that are at least 60% higher than the High preset while maintaining a playable experience. At 1080p Medium, the 172.2 FPS average is 63% higher than High, and at 1440p Medium, the 126.3 FPS average is 65% higher than High. For users with 4K displays, Medium is the only preset that balances visual quality and performance, offering 77.3 FPS, which is sufficient for a puzzle platformer. Ultimately, the GTX 1660 SUPER's 6 GB VRAM and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are best utilized at Medium settings, where the game's demands align with the card's capabilities.