Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that, on paper, should not stress modern hardware. Yet, the measured frame rates for the Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER combination reveal a fascinating scaling curve that tells a story about engine limits, GPU headroom, and where the bottleneck truly lies. The data suggests this is a title where the GPU is the primary driver of performance, but the CPU's immense power ensures it never becomes a limiting factor, even at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The most striking observation from the measured data is the dramatic FPS drop as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves a staggering 430 FPS average. Moving to 1440p at the same settings drops that to 368 FPS, a 14.4% reduction. Pushing further to 4K at Low settings yields 231 FPS, which is a 46.3% drop from the 1080p result. This pattern is consistent across all settings presets, indicating that the rendering load scales predictably with pixel count.

However, the nature of the bottleneck changes with resolution. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high (ranging from 244 FPS at Ultra to 430 FPS at Low) that they approach the practical limits of what a game engine from 2016 can typically output. The data implies that the CPU, with its 24 cores and 32 threads, is likely not the constraint here; instead, the game's own simulation and draw call logic may be the limiting factor. The i9-14900K's exceptional single-core performance, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2262.5, is more than sufficient to feed the GPU at these rates.

At 4K, the picture becomes clearer. The gap between Low (231 FPS) and Ultra (110 FPS) is 121 FPS, whereas at 1080p, the same settings gap is 186 FPS. This compression of the performance spread at higher resolutions is a classic sign of the GPU becoming the primary bottleneck. The RTX 4070 SUPER's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are being taxed more heavily as the pixel shader workload increases. The data suggests that while the GPU is powerful, the sheer pixel count at 4K is what ultimately limits the frame rate, not the CPU's ability to process the game logic.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows offer clear guidance on the optimal settings-to-performance trade-off. At 4K, the jump from Ultra (110 FPS) to High (116 FPS) is minimal, a mere 5.5% improvement. However, dropping to Medium yields 185 FPS, a 68.2% increase over Ultra. This is a massive gain for what is likely a modest visual fidelity reduction. The min FPS data for Medium at 4K is 157, which is still far above the 110 FPS average for Ultra, suggesting that Medium provides a significantly smoother experience overall.

At 1440p, the story is similar. Ultra delivers 175 FPS, while High provides 184 FPS—a small 5.1% uplift. Medium, however, jumps to 294 FPS, which is a 68% improvement over Ultra. The min FPS for Medium at 1440p is 250, which is higher than the average FPS for Ultra, indicating that Medium offers a more consistent frame pacing. For players with high refresh rate monitors, the step from High to Medium is transformative, moving from a range that is good for 165Hz displays to one that comfortably exceeds 240Hz.

At 1080p, the differences are less impactful for playability but still notable. Ultra runs at 244 FPS, High at 256 FPS, and Medium at 397 FPS. While all are playable, Medium's 397 FPS average with a 337 FPS minimum offers the best headroom for competitive play or for users who want to ensure they never drop below their monitor's refresh rate. The data suggests that Medium is the "sweet spot" across all resolutions, offering a disproportionate FPS increase relative to the likely visual downgrade from High or Ultra.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i9-14900K is a 24-core, 32-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz. In a game like Inside, which is not heavily threaded, the raw core count is less relevant than the processor's ability to execute the main game loop with minimal latency. The benchmark results indicate the i9-14900K excels in this regard, with a strong Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2262.5 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2655.

The measured FPS data supports the theory that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this title. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 430 FPS, which is a frame rate that would challenge even the most efficient game engines. If the CPU were struggling to keep up, we would expect to see a plateau or a regression at these lower resolutions where the GPU has less work to do. Instead, the FPS scales consistently with resolution, implying the CPU has ample headroom. The i9-14900K's 36 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps keep the game's working set close to the cores, minimizing memory access latency.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the i9-14900K performs as expected. It is 0.3% behind the Intel Core i9-14900KF in average benchmark score, and 0.6% behind the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus. It is 1.2% behind the AMD EPYC 7413, but 1.7% ahead of the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395. These tiny differences in synthetic benchmarks are unlikely to manifest as any noticeable difference in Inside's frame rates, as the game's demands are far below the processor's theoretical maximum.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing sits at rank 290 out of 3716 combos. This places it in the top 7.8% of all tested systems, which is a strong showing. However, for a top-tier CPU and a high-end GPU, one might expect an even higher percentile. The data suggests that while this combo is exceptional, there are 289 other configurations that achieve higher average frame rates in Inside.

The ranking is likely influenced by the fact that the RTX 4070 SUPER, while powerful, is not the absolute fastest GPU available. Its 83rd percentile ranking among all GPUs indicates there are faster options, and those, when paired with similarly powerful CPUs, would naturally rank higher in this game. The i9-14900K's 95th percentile ranking among CPUs is excellent, but the GPU's slightly lower percentile relative to the CPU means the overall combo ranking is dragged down by the graphics card's absolute performance ceiling.

This rank of 290 is not a verdict on the combo's capability—it confirms the depth of the benchmark database. In absolute terms, 116 FPS at 4K Ultra is an excellent result for a 2016 puzzle platformer. The ranking simply contextualizes this performance against the absolute best money can buy, showing that while this is a top-tier system, it is not the absolute pinnacle of performance for this specific title.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER, based on the AD104 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture, is the primary driver of the FPS differences seen across resolutions and settings. With 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, it offers 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock of 2475 MHz and 7168 shading units provide a substantial amount of compute power, which is reflected in its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 4627.

The GPU's role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution increases. At 1080p, the GPU can render frames faster than the game engine can deliver them, leading to the extremely high FPS numbers. At 4K, the pixel workload becomes so demanding that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth become the limiting factors. The drop from 231 FPS at Low to 110 FPS at Ultra at 4K is a direct result of the increased shader complexity and memory pressure.

The 12 GB VRAM capacity is unlikely to be a constraint in Inside, given its age and art style. However, the memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s is crucial for maintaining high frame rates at 4K, where the GPU must access textures and geometry data at a much faster rate. The data shows that the RTX 4070 SUPER is capable of delivering playable frame rates even at 4K Ultra, but its performance is more comfortable at 1440p and below, where it can push well past 175 FPS on the highest settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across all tested configurations.

1920x1080:

• Low: 430 FPS average
• Medium: 397 FPS average (min 337, max 456)
• High: 256 FPS average
• Ultra: 244 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 368 FPS average
• Medium: 294 FPS average (min 250, max 338)
• High: 184 FPS average
• Ultra: 175 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 231 FPS average
• Medium: 185 FPS average (min 157, max 213)
• High: 116 FPS average
• Ultra: 110 FPS average

The pattern is consistent: Low settings always provide the highest FPS, followed by Medium, then High, and finally Ultra. The delta between Medium and High is consistently large, often exceeding 60% at 1440p and 4K. The delta between High and Ultra is consistently small, typically under 5%. This data strongly suggests that the visual difference between High and Ultra is small, and the performance cost is significant, making High the better choice for those who want maximum quality without the FPS hit.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Inside?

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 430, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. The lowest average FPS is 110, recorded at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K. The FPS gap between Low and Ultra settings at 4K is 121 FPS, which is smaller than the 186 FPS gap at 1080p. This compression of performance spread at higher resolutions is a classic indicator of GPU limitation.

Q: How does the i9-14900K compare to its closest rival, the i9-14900KF?

A: The Intel Core i9-14900K has an average benchmark score of 79097, while the Intel Core i9-14900KF scores 79371. This makes the i9-14900K 0.3% slower than the i9-14900KF in synthetic benchmarks.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a smooth 4K experience?

A: Based on the measured data, Medium settings at 4K provide a 185 FPS average with a 157 FPS minimum. This offers a significant performance boost over High (116 FPS) and Ultra (110 FPS), making it the best choice for maintaining high frame rates at 4K.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested configurations?

A: This specific combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 290th out of 3716 tested combos for Inside, placing it in the top 7.8% of all systems.

Q: Does the RTX 4070 SUPER have enough VRAM for this game?

A: The RTX 4070 SUPER has 12 GB of GDDR6X memory. Given that Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer, the data does not suggest that VRAM capacity is a limiting factor at any of the tested resolutions or settings. The performance drops are more attributable to the GPU's compute and bandwidth limits.