Inside

The Intel Core i9-14900K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT ranks at position 1,529 out of 3,716 tested combinations for Inside, placing it in the upper half of all systems. This rank reflects a configuration that is heavily CPU-favored for this title, with the processor's immense single-thread performance ensuring that the graphics card becomes the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The data indicates this combo is overkill for a game of this scope, delivering playable and often exceptionally high frame rates across all tested settings, but the rank itself is tempered by the GPU being a mid-range part relative to the CPU's flagship status.

How This Combo Ranks

The 1,529 rank out of 3,716 combos places this system in the 59th percentile of all tested configurations for Inside. This is a strong result, but it is not top-tier, which is expected given that the RX 6750 XT sits below the absolute highest-end graphics cards. The data suggests that the i9-14900K is doing the heavy lifting to secure this position. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU has a percentile of 95 against all processors, while the GPU has a percentile of 71 against all graphics cards. This mismatch in relative strength is the defining characteristic of this combo: the CPU is a top-5% part, while the GPU is a top-29% part. Consequently, the ranking is a direct reflection of the GPU's capabilities in this specific game, as the CPU is more than capable of feeding it frames without limitation.

When looking at the CPU's nearest rivals, the i9-14900K scores an average benchmark of 79,097, which is only -0.3% behind the Intel Core i9-14900KF and -0.6% behind the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus. This proximity in scores shows that the processor is not leaving any meaningful performance on the table. On the GPU side, the RX 6750 XT's average score of 26,011 is a mere 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M395X and 0.6% ahead of the AMD FirePro W7100, showing that its direct competition is a mix of older and mobile parts. This reinforces that the GPU, while competent, is not a high-flying contender in the absolute sense, which caps the potential rank of this combo in a game that is not demanding enough to stress the CPU.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with a Navi 22 chip, and its role in this combo is to provide the graphical horsepower for Inside. It features 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s. The card's base clock is 2150 MHz, with a game clock of 2495 MHz and a boost clock of 2600 MHz. These clocks are substantial, but the game's actual workload determines how they are utilized. The measured frames per second at 1080p Ultra (168 avg) versus 1080p Low (353 avg) shows a 52% difference, clearly indicating that the GPU is the scaling component when settings are increased at the same resolution.

The card's memory configuration is more than adequate for this puzzle platformer. With 12 GB of VRAM, there is no risk of running out of memory at 4K, as evidenced by the 80 FPS average at 4K High. The GPU's FP32 performance of 13.31 TFLOPS and pixel rate of 166.4 GPixel/s are strong on paper, but the game's simple visuals mean that these capabilities are not pushed to their limits. Instead, the limiting factor at higher resolutions becomes the fill-rate and shading throughput, which is why the frame rate drops from 353 FPS at 1080p Low to 160 FPS at 4K Low. The data shows the GPU is the primary determinant of performance in this combo, as the CPU is never a bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and reveals the limiting component. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 177 at 1080p to 127 at 1440p and finally to 80 at 4K. This represents a 31% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a 37% drop from 1440p to 4K. This pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering resolution directly impacts the workload on the graphics card. The CPU is not the bottleneck here because the i9-14900K's single-core performance, which is critical for game logic, is far beyond what Inside requires. The CPU's Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,262.5 and Geekbench single-core score of 2,655 show its massive headroom.

The scaling at Low settings is even more telling. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 353 FPS, but this falls to 254 FPS at 1440p and 160 FPS at 4K. Even at the lowest settings, the 4K resolution demands significant GPU work, resulting in a 55% reduction in FPS from 1080p. This confirms that the RX 6750 XT is the performance ceiling. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see a plateau in FPS as resolution decreases, but the continuous increase all the way down to 353 FPS at 1080p proves that the GPU is the primary constraint. The data indicates that for this game, the combo's performance is entirely dictated by the GPU's ability to fill pixels.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the Medium preset at 1440p provides an optimal balance of visual quality and performance. The measured data shows an average of 203 FPS at 1440p Medium, with a minimum of 173 FPS and a maximum of 234 FPS. This is more than sufficient for a smooth, responsive experience and offers a significant improvement over the High preset's 127 FPS. The jump from Low to Medium at 1440p costs only 51 FPS (254 to 203), but the visual upgrade is substantial, making Medium the sweet spot. At 4K, Medium is also the best choice, delivering 128 FPS with a minimum of 109 FPS, which remains comfortably above 60 FPS.

The High and Ultra presets are not recommended for this combo, as they offer diminishing returns. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 76, and while playable, it sacrifices the headroom that ensures no stutters. The 1080p Medium setting provides the highest minimum FPS (240) of any preset, making it the most consistent option for competitive or high-refresh-rate displays. However, for most users, the 1440p Medium recommendation stands as the best compromise between fidelity and frame rate, as it keeps the average FPS above 200 while delivering a higher resolution than 1080p. The data strongly suggests that the Ultra preset is unnecessary for this game, as the visual differences are not worth the 37% performance penalty over Medium at the same resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo excels. The Low preset produces an average of 353 FPS, which is exceptional. Medium yields 283 FPS average, with a minimum of 240 FPS and a maximum of 325 FPS. High drops to 177 FPS, and Ultra to 168 FPS. All of these are well above the threshold for smooth gameplay, and even the lowest average (168 FPS at Ultra) is high. The frame rate difference between Low and Ultra is 185 FPS, showing that settings have a large impact, but the absolute numbers mean all presets are playable.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains excellent. Low produces 254 FPS, Medium 203 FPS (with a minimum of 173 FPS), High 127 FPS, and Ultra 121 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is only 6 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset is not significantly more demanding than High at this resolution. The Medium preset's minimum of 173 FPS is still very high, ensuring no noticeable frame drops. At 3840x2160, the GPU starts to feel the pressure. Low delivers 160 FPS, Medium 128 FPS (with a minimum of 109 FPS), High 80 FPS, and Ultra 76 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra narrows to just 4 FPS, indicating that the game's Ultra preset has diminishing returns. The 4K Medium preset is the only one that offers a high frame rate with a minimum above 100 FPS, making it the clear choice for 4K displays.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K plays a supporting but critical role in this combo. With 24 cores and 32 threads, it is an absolute powerhouse, but Inside is not a multithreaded game. The data shows that the CPU's single-threaded performance is what matters. Its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,262.5 and Geekbench single-core score of 2,655 are exceptionally high, and this ensures that the game's logic and draw calls are processed with minimal latency. The CPU's boost clock of 6.00 GHz is a key factor here, as it allows for rapid execution of the game's main thread.

The CPU's performance is so far beyond the game's requirements that it never becomes a bottleneck. Evidence for this is the massive FPS counts at 1080p Low, where the frame rate is not limited by the CPU. The processor's L3 cache of 36 MB and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory also contribute to smooth data flow. In comparison to its rivals, the i9-14900K is effectively equal to the i9-14900KF, with a delta of only -0.3%, and it even surpasses the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 by 1.7% in average score. This means that the CPU is delivering its maximum potential, and any performance shortfalls in this combo are entirely attributable to the GPU. The CPU's 125W TDP and Raptor Lake architecture are more than adequate to handle this game, and the data confirms that it is not a limiting factor at any resolution or settings preset.