Inside

Inside is a 2D puzzle-platformer from 2016, and the benchmark data for this Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti combination shows a system that is dramatically overqualified for the title. The measured results across all resolutions and settings reveal a game that is fundamentally easy to run, with the hardware delivering frame rates that far exceed the demands of the genre. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS data to understand the role of each component, how the game scales with resolution, and what settings provide the optimal experience.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread desktop processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture. It operates with a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, and its benchmark scores indicate substantial processing power. In Cinebench R23, it achieves a multi-core score of 42216 and a single-core score of 5960. This places it in the 93rd percentile against all CPUs, indicating top-tier performance. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 4464P, which scores slightly higher by 0.3%, and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F, which trails by 0.3%.

For a game like Inside, which is a 2D side-scroller with relatively simple physics and AI, the CPU is rarely the limiting factor. The data supports this. At 1080p with Low settings, the system produces 430 FPS. At 4K with Low settings, it still produces 206 FPS. The sheer magnitude of these numbers suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any tested resolution or setting. The 20 cores and 20 threads provide massive parallel processing capability, but the game’s engine likely uses only a fraction of them. The high single-thread performance, evidenced by the 5960 score in Cinebench R23 single-core, is more relevant for gaming. A strong single-core score ensures that the main game logic thread can be processed quickly, which is essential for maintaining high frame rates.

However, the benchmark data shows that the CPU's performance headroom is vast. The difference between the 1080p Low score of 430 FPS and the 4K Low score of 206 FPS is largely attributable to the GPU, not the CPU. The CPU is consistently capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to maintain these high frame rates. The processor’s 30 MB of shared L3 cache also helps in this regard, providing fast access to frequently used data. The Passmark multi-thread score of 49682 reinforces its capability, but for Inside, its role is to simply avoid being a bottleneck, which it does with ease. The data indicates the CPU's performance is more than sufficient, and the frame rate ceilings observed are likely dictated by the GPU's rendering capabilities or even engine-level frame rate limits rather than CPU processing limits.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti is the primary driver of the frame rates in this benchmark. This GPU, based on the Ampere architecture, features 10240 shading units and 112 ROPs. Its memory subsystem is robust, with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 912.4 GB/s. The memory clock operates at 1188 MHz, which translates to 19 Gbps effective. These specifications are far beyond what a 2D puzzle-platformer would typically require.

The GPU's role becomes clear when examining the frame rate scaling with settings. At 4K, the average FPS drops from 206 at Low settings to 165 at Medium, then to 103 at High, and finally to 98 at Ultra. This is a clear indication that the GPU is the limiting component as settings increase. The game is likely pushing more complex lighting, shadow, and post-processing effects at higher presets, which increases the load on the GPU's shaders and ROPs. The 12 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, even at 4K Ultra, so memory capacity is not a limiting factor. The bandwidth of 912.4 GB/s is also more than adequate.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 83rd percentile. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon Pro 5300, scores 0.8% lower, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 scores 2% lower. This indicates that the 3080 Ti is a very high-performing card. However, in the context of Inside, its power is only partially utilized. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 430 FPS, which is an extremely high frame rate. This suggests that the GPU is still the primary limiting factor, as it must process each frame. Even at 1080p, the GPU's rendering pipeline is the bottleneck, but it is bottlenecked at a level that is so high as to be irrelevant for the game's actual playability. The frame time at 430 FPS is around 2.3 milliseconds, which is incredibly low. The GPU's pixel rate of 186.5 GPixel/s is a theoretical maximum, and the game's simple geometry and pixel shaders mean it can approach these limits. The texture rate of 532.8 GTexel/s is also a non-issue for a game with relatively low-resolution textures. The RTX 3080 Ti is a high-end card, and this data confirms it easily handles this title, with the main performance variance coming from the GPU's ability to execute the game's draw calls and fragment shaders.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how the system scales across resolutions. From 1080p to 1440p to 4K, the average frame rates drop significantly, confirming that the GPU is the primary performance limiter. At High settings, the system produces 228 FPS at 1080p, 164 FPS at 1440p, and 103 FPS at 4K. This represents a 28% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 37% drop from 1440p to 4K. The scaling is consistent with a GPU-bound workload, where the number of pixels to be rendered increases dramatically with resolution.

The scaling pattern is similar for other settings. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 430 at 1080p to 329 at 1440p (a 23% drop) and then to 206 at 4K (a 37% drop). At Medium settings, the scores are 366, 263, and 165, respectively. The fact that the percentage drops are relatively consistent across different settings suggests that the GPU's fillrate and memory bandwidth are the key factors. The 4K resolution has exactly four times the pixels of 1080p, but the frame rate does not drop by four times. This indicates that the GPU is not purely fillrate-limited; other factors like shader complexity and memory latency also play a role.

This scaling behavior confirms that the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is not a bottleneck. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see the frame rates plateau at higher resolutions, or the drop from 1440p to 4K to be less pronounced. Instead, the frame rates drop consistently as the resolution increases, which is the classic signature of GPU limitation. The CPU is capable of providing the necessary draw calls and physics calculations at all resolutions, but the GPU's rendering workload is what ultimately sets the performance ceiling. The data strongly suggests that for this specific combination and game, the GPU is the component that determines the final frame rate, and the CPU has ample headroom to spare.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this system in Inside?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 430 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the system perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings, the system achieves an average frame rate of 98 FPS.

Q: Is there a significant performance difference between High and Ultra settings?

A: Yes, the data shows a measurable difference. At 1080p, High settings produce 228 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 218 FPS, a difference of 10 FPS. At 4K, the difference is 5 FPS (103 FPS for High vs. 98 FPS for Ultra).

Q: Does the CPU appear to limit performance in this game?

A: No. The frame rates scale consistently with resolution, indicating a GPU-bound workload. The CPU's high single-core and multi-core performance appears to provide enough headroom to avoid becoming a bottleneck.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded across all tests?

A: The lowest average frame rate is 98 FPS, recorded at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings.

Q: How does the system's 1440p Medium performance compare to its 4K High performance?

A: At 1440p Medium, the system achieves 263 FPS. At 4K High, it achieves 103 FPS. The 1440p Medium result is significantly higher, illustrating the impact of resolution on the GPU's workload.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following is the complete set of measured average FPS data for this system configuration, broken down by resolution and settings preset.

• 1920x1080 (1080p)
• Low: 430 FPS
• Medium: 366 FPS (Min: 311 FPS, Max: 420 FPS)
• High: 228 FPS
• Ultra: 218 FPS

• 2560x1440 (1440p)
• Low: 329 FPS
• Medium: 263 FPS (Min: 223 FPS, Max: 302 FPS)
• High: 164 FPS
• Ultra: 156 FPS

• 3840x2160 (4K)
• Low: 206 FPS
• Medium: 165 FPS (Min: 140 FPS, Max: 190 FPS)
• High: 103 FPS
• Ultra: 98 FPS

The data shows a clear hierarchy. The 1080p Low preset achieves the highest frame rate, while the 4K Ultra preset achieves the lowest. The Medium presets provide the only rows with min and max FPS data, showing a frame time variance of over 100 FPS at 1080p, which is still well within the territory of smooth gameplay. The overall pattern is one of diminishing returns as settings are increased, with the largest absolute FPS drops occurring between Low and Medium settings at each resolution.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset for this system in Inside is the High preset at 4K resolution. This configuration provides an average frame rate of 103 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. The visual improvement over the Medium preset (165 FPS) is likely substantial, with better lighting and shadow effects, and the frame rate remains high enough that the difference in smoothness between 103 FPS and 165 FPS is negligible for a puzzle-platformer.

At lower resolutions, the High preset is also recommended. At 1440p, it produces 164 FPS, and at 1080p, it produces 228 FPS. The Ultra preset offers a marginal average FPS increase of only 5-10 FPS over High, depending on the resolution, but the visual difference is often imperceptible in a game with a stylized art direction like Inside. The data suggests that the Ultra preset is not worth the performance cost relative to High. The Medium preset is a viable alternative if the user prefers a higher frame rate buffer, but the High preset offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance. The Low preset, while achieving the highest frame rates, is not recommended as it would likely degrade the game's atmosphere and visual clarity. For this system, High settings at 4K is the sweet spot, providing a console-beating frame rate with maximum visual detail.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti combination is ranked 416 out of 2887 tested combos for this game. This places it in the top 14.4% of all tested systems, indicating that it is a very high-performing configuration for this title. The rank is likely influenced by the high frame rates achieved across all settings, as the system consistently produces over 98 FPS even at the most demanding 4K Ultra preset. The ranking reflects the raw power of the RTX 3080 Ti, which is the primary driver of frame rates in this game. The CPU's contribution to the rank is secondary, as it provides enough processing power to ensure it is not a bottleneck. The 416th rank out of 2887 combos suggests that while many systems are capable of running Inside well, this particular combination is in the upper echelon of performance, delivering frame rates that are only surpassed by a small fraction of more powerful or more specialized configurations. The data confirms this is a top-tier setup for this game, with performance that is overkill for the game's requirements but impressive nonetheless.