Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer whose measured performance on the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX combo is remarkably high, with average frame rates ranging from 115 FPS at 4K Ultra to 404 FPS at 1080p Low. The data shows this pairing delivers a consistently fluid experience across all tested resolutions and settings, making it a strong candidate for high-refresh-rate displays even at maximum quality.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to run Inside with this CPU and GPU combo?

A: Based on the measured FPS data, 1920x1080 offers the highest frame rates, with an average of 404 FPS at Low settings and 255 FPS at Ultra. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset still achieves an average of 184 FPS, while 3840x2160 Ultra drops to 115 FPS, which remains playable but is the lowest measured result.

Q: How does the combo rank against all other tested system combinations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 189th out of 2,887 tested combinations, placing it in the top 6.5% of all systems in the database. This is a strong showing, especially considering the game is a 2.5D puzzle platformer rather than a demanding AAA title.

Q: Which graphics preset provides the largest performance jump?

A: The data shows that switching from High to Low settings provides the biggest boost. At 3840x2160, the average FPS jumps from 121 on High to 242 on Low, a doubling of performance. Similarly, at 2560x1440, Low reaches 362 FPS versus 193 FPS on High, and at 1920x1080, Low hits 404 FPS versus 268 FPS on High.

Q: Are there any minimum FPS numbers available for the Ultra presets?

A: No, the measured data only includes minimum and maximum FPS for the Medium preset at each resolution. At 3840x2160 Medium, the minimum is 165 FPS and the maximum is 223 FPS; at 2560x1440 Medium, the minimum is 262 FPS and the maximum is 355 FPS; at 1920x1080 Medium, the minimum is 317 FPS and the maximum is 429 FPS.

Q: What is the launch MSRP for the components in this build?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 has a launch MSRP of $246. The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX has a launch MSRP of 999 USD. These are the only pricing details provided in the data.

Q: Does the GPU's performance percentile align with its in-game ranking?

A: The GPU sits at the 64th percentile among all GPUs, while the CPU is at the 85th percentile among all CPUs. The combo's 189th rank out of 2,887 systems indicates the pairing performs above the GPU's percentile, suggesting the CPU helps maximize the GPU's potential in this title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 31 chip, featuring 6,144 shading units, 384 texture mapping units, and 192 render output units. It operates at a base clock of 1929 MHz, a game clock of 2365 MHz, and a boost clock of 2498 MHz, with memory running at 2500 MHz or 20 Gbps effective. The GPU is equipped with 24 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s.

These specifications translate directly to Inside's measured performance. The 24 GB VRAM buffer is far more than this puzzle platformer requires, but the sheer memory bandwidth ensures that even at 4K resolution, texture streaming and scene complexity never become a bottleneck. The boost clock of 2498 MHz allows the GPU to maintain high utilization across all settings, as evidenced by the 194 FPS average at 4K Medium and 115 FPS at 4K Ultra.

The GPU's pixel rate of 479.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 959.2 GTexel/s are particularly relevant for Inside's art style, which relies on heavy atmospheric effects and detailed silhouettes. The 96 ray accelerators (listed as RT cores) are present but not heavily exercised in this title, given its 2016 release and 2.5D perspective. The FP32 throughput of 61.39 TFLOPS provides substantial compute headroom, though the game's visual complexity is more dependent on fill rate and memory bandwidth than raw shader math.

The Radeon RX 7900 XTX scores 31,238 in Passmark G3D and 17,689 in Passmark GPU Compute, with an average benchmark score of 19,410 and a 64th percentile ranking among all GPUs. In the context of Inside, these synthetic scores align with the observed frame rates: the GPU's 64th percentile placement is modest, yet the game's low graphical demands allow the card to run at very high speeds. At 1080p Low, the 404 FPS average suggests the GPU is barely stressed, with the CPU becoming a limiting factor at that point.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX ranks 189th out of 2,887 tested combos for Inside, which places it in the top 6.5% of all systems in the database. This ranking is notable because it is driven by the game's modest requirements rather than the components' absolute performance ceilings. The GPU's 64th percentile among all GPUs might suggest mid-pack performance, but the CPU's 85th percentile ranking helps boost the combo to a much stronger position.

Compared to the GPU's nearest rivals by average benchmark score, the RX 7900 XTX sits within 1.2% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB, the NVIDIA Quadro K5200, the AMD FirePro D300, and the NVIDIA TITAN Xp. This is a peculiar grouping that reflects the GPU's average score of 19,410, but it does not represent gaming performance parity. The RX 7900 XTX's 24 GB VRAM and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth are in a different class from the GTX 1060's 3 GB, and Inside's measured FPS reflects the actual GPU capability, not the synthetic average.

The CPU's nearest rivals by average benchmark score include the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450, and Intel Core i9-12900T, all within 0.5% of the Core Ultra 5 225's average score of 36,938. The Core Ultra 5 225's 10 cores and 10 threads, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and boost clock of 4.90 GHz, provide strong single-threaded performance, which is critical for Inside's physics and logic. The combo's 189th rank reflects that this CPU-GPU pairing is well above average for this title, though it is not near the top 100 systems, which likely feature higher-end CPUs and GPUs.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the measured averages are 121 FPS on High, 242 FPS on Low, 194 FPS on Medium, and 115 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset includes a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 223 FPS, providing the only frame time variance data at this resolution. The gap between Low and Ultra is substantial, with Low delivering more than double the frame rate of Ultra. High sits close to Ultra, with only a 6 FPS difference, suggesting that the High and Ultra presets share similar GPU workloads.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the averages rise significantly: 193 FPS on High, 362 FPS on Low, 308 FPS on Medium, and 184 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 262 FPS and a maximum of 355 FPS. The performance delta between Low and Ultra is 178 FPS, with Low nearly doubling Ultra's frame rate. High and Ultra are again close, with just a 9 FPS gap, indicating that the visual difference between these presets does not translate into a major performance cost at this resolution.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the averages reach their highest levels: 268 FPS on High, 404 FPS on Low, 373 FPS on Medium, and 255 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset has a minimum of 317 FPS and a maximum of 429 FPS. This is the only resolution where Low does not achieve the highest frame rate relative to the others in a proportional sense; Low is 149 FPS ahead of Ultra, but the gap between Medium and Ultra is 118 FPS. The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU becomes a more significant factor, as the GPU can render frames faster than the processor can feed it, capping the Low preset at 404 FPS.

Across all resolutions, the Medium preset is the only one with complete FPS range data, showing consistent frame times without severe dips. The minimum FPS values at Medium are 165 FPS at 4K, 262 FPS at 1440p, and 317 FPS at 1080p, all well above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra presets, while lacking min/max data, still deliver averages of 115 FPS at 4K, 184 FPS at 1440p, and 255 FPS at 1080p, which are smooth for a puzzle platformer.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread desktop processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz, with a 65W TDP. The CPU features 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 20 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s, and it connects via PCIe Gen 5 with 20 lanes.

For Inside, the CPU's performance is primarily defined by its single-threaded capabilities. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3,655 and Passmark single-thread score of 4,412 indicate strong per-core performance, which matters for the game's physics calculations and update loops. The boost clock of 4.90 GHz allows the processor to rapidly cycle through game logic, while the 10 cores provide ample headroom for background tasks and system overhead.

The CPU's multi-threaded scores, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25,891 and a Passmark multithread score of 30,459, are less relevant for Inside but indicate that the processor is not a bottleneck when the GPU is idle. The Passmark physics score of 2,342 and data compression score of 302,811 suggest the CPU can handle complex simulation tasks, though Inside's 2.5D environments do not heavily tax these capabilities.

In the measured FPS data, the CPU's influence is most apparent at 1080p Low, where the average of 404 FPS is likely limited by the processor rather than the GPU. The 4.90 GHz boost clock and 20 MB L3 cache help maintain consistent frame delivery, as evidenced by the Medium preset's minimum FPS values. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs places it well above the GPU's 64th percentile, meaning the processor is not holding back the graphics card in this title. The Core Ultra 5 225's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, has a nearly identical average benchmark score (36,945 vs. 36,938), but the Intel chip's higher boost clock gives it an edge in single-threaded workloads that Inside depends on.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, the Medium preset is the recommended choice. It is the only preset with complete FPS range data, showing a minimum of 165 FPS at 4K, 262 FPS at 1440p, and 317 FPS at 1080p. These minimums are well above any display's refresh rate, ensuring no noticeable stutter. The Medium preset also delivers average FPS of 194 at 4K, 308 at 1440p, and 373 at 1080p, which are 79, 124, and 105 FPS higher than the Ultra preset at the respective resolutions.

If maximum visual fidelity is the priority, the Ultra preset remains viable. At 4K, it averages 115 FPS, which is sufficient for a smooth experience on a 60Hz display. At 1440p, the 184 FPS average comfortably exceeds 144Hz refresh rates, and at 1080p, the 255 FPS average is suitable for 240Hz monitors. However, the performance cost of Ultra over High is minimal (6-9 FPS difference), so choosing High over Ultra yields nearly identical visuals with a slight frame rate improvement.

For users with 144Hz or 240Hz monitors, the Low preset is the top choice at 1440p and 4K, delivering 362 FPS and 242 FPS respectively. At 1080p, Low reaches 404 FPS, which exceeds most displays' capabilities, so Medium's 373 FPS is a better trade-off for improved visual effects. The Low preset at 4K still provides 242 FPS, which is more than double the Ultra frame rate, making it the best option for competitive or high-refresh-rate play.

The data shows that High and Ultra presets are nearly identical in performance, with the largest gap being 9 FPS at 1440p. This suggests that the Ultra preset's additional effects, such as enhanced shadows or post-processing, are not particularly demanding on this GPU. Therefore, the recommended settings hierarchy is: Medium for a balanced experience, Low for maximum frame rates above 240 FPS, and Ultra only at 1080p or 1440p where the frame rates remain high enough to justify the visual upgrade. At 4K, Medium is the sweet spot, as it provides a 79 FPS advantage over Ultra while maintaining a minimum of 165 FPS.