Inside

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination delivers exceptional performance in Inside, a 2016 puzzle platformer that is far more demanding on frame rates than its minimalist art style suggests. This pairing produces triple-digit frame rates even at 4K Ultra, placing it in the top percentile of all tested configurations. The data reveals a system where the GPU's immense power is the primary driver, while the CPU provides ample headroom to avoid bottlenecks.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases, though the magnitude of the drop is heavily influenced by the graphics preset. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 430 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low reduces this to 385 FPS, a drop of 45 FPS, and then to 300 FPS at 4K Low, another 85 FPS reduction. This indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU is still the limiting factor, as the CPU's 20 cores and 20 threads are more than capable of feeding the graphics card.

The scaling becomes more pronounced when looking at the Medium preset, which is the only setting with complete min/max frame data. At 1080p Medium, the average is 397 FPS with a minimum of 337 FPS and a maximum of 456 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 355 FPS (min 302, max 409), and at 4K Medium, it falls to 240 FPS (min 204, max 276). The frame time variance remains consistent, suggesting that the workload is being distributed evenly without stuttering.

The High preset shows a more dramatic drop from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p High, the average is 331 FPS, which is still remarkably high. At 1440p High, it drops to 239 FPS, and at 4K High, it reaches 150 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings is approximately 55%, which is substantial but expected for a game that scales well with GPU compute. This suggests that the higher-quality lighting and shadow effects in the High preset significantly increase the pixel shading workload.

The Ultra preset exhibits the steepest scaling curve, with 1080p Ultra hitting 317 FPS, 1440p Ultra falling to 228 FPS, and 4K Ultra settling at 143 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is about 55%, mirroring the High preset's relative decline. The fact that 4K Ultra still maintains an average above 140 FPS indicates that the RTX 5090's massive compute resources are not being fully saturated, leaving headroom for even more demanding scenarios or future driver optimizations.

The limiting component at lower resolutions is clearly the CPU, but not in a way that harms the experience. At 1080p Low, the 430 FPS average is likely near the engine's internal simulation cap or the CPU's single-threaded draw call limit. The RTX 5090, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, is not the bottleneck at these settings. The data shows that the GPU's utilization scales directly with resolution, making it the dominant factor from 1440p upwards.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and single-core score of 5960 place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. For a game like Inside, which has a linear, physics-based world with limited AI, the multi-core performance is less critical than the single-thread speed that drives the main game loop.

The benchmark results show that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this game. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 430 FPS, which is likely close to the engine's maximum frame output. The CPU's 30 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth provide ample data throughput for the game's asset streaming. The processor's PassMark single-thread score of 4689 is strong, and its Cinebench R20 single-core score of 884 confirms its ability to handle the primary simulation thread.

The nearest CPU rivals in the overall benchmark database are the AMD EPYC 4464P and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F. The EPYC 4464P scores 0.3% higher in average benchmark score, while the 265F scores 0.3% lower. These are negligible differences in synthetic workloads, and in gaming, the 265's boost clock of 5.30 GHz gives it a distinct advantage in frame generation. The fact that the game's frame rates do not improve significantly when moving from 1080p High (331 FPS) to 1080p Low (430 FPS) indicates that the CPU can handle the worst-case draw calls without breaking a sweat.

The processor's 65 W TDP and 3 nm process node from TSMC contribute to its efficiency, but the benchmark data does not show thermal throttling impacting performance. The CPU's architecture, with 192 KB of L1 cache per core and 3 MB of L2 per core, is well-suited for the low-latency requirements of a platformer that needs to respond instantly to player input. The game's release in 2016 means it was designed for far less capable hardware, so this modern CPU provides an enormous surplus of computational power.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance on the optimal settings for this hardware combination. The Low preset at 4K delivers 300 FPS, which is overkill for any display. The Medium preset at 4K offers 240 FPS with a minimum of 204 FPS, ensuring no frame drops below the 200 FPS threshold. This is the sweet spot for high-refresh-rate 4K displays, as it provides a substantial visual upgrade over Low while maintaining a massive performance buffer.

The High preset at 4K drops to 150 FPS, which is still excellent for 144 Hz displays but represents a 37.5% reduction from Medium. The visual difference between Medium and High in Inside is primarily in shadow resolution and ambient occlusion, which are subtle in the game's dark, atmospheric environments. For users with 120 Hz or 144 Hz 4K monitors, the High preset at 150 FPS is perfectly playable and offers the best balance of fidelity and smoothness.

The Ultra preset at 4K yields 143 FPS, which is nearly identical to High but with a slight drop. The 7 FPS difference between High and Ultra at 4K is negligible, suggesting that Ultra adds minimal visual complexity. For 1440p displays, the High preset at 239 FPS is the recommended choice, as it exceeds the refresh rate of most 240 Hz monitors. The Medium preset at 1440p (355 FPS) offers no tangible benefit over High unless the user has a 360 Hz display.

At 1080p, the High preset at 331 FPS is the best option, as the Ultra (317 FPS) and Medium (397 FPS) provide no meaningful advantage for standard 144 Hz or 240 Hz monitors. The data shows that the Medium preset's min FPS of 337 at 1080p is higher than the High preset's average, but the visual quality trade-off is not worth it. The recommendation is to use High at all resolutions, as it provides the best visual quality per frame rate, with Ultra reserved for those who prioritize absolute fidelity over the small performance cost.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 27th out of 2887 tested combinations in Inside. This places it in the top 0.9% of all systems, which is an extraordinary position for a game that is not typically used for benchmarking high-end hardware. The rank reflects the system's ability to maintain extremely high frame rates at 4K, where many other combinations fail to reach 100 FPS.

The top 26 combinations ahead of this one likely feature even more aggressive CPU overclocks or newer flagship processors with higher boost clocks, as the RTX 5090 is already the most powerful consumer GPU available. The 265's 5.30 GHz boost clock is competitive, but processors with higher single-thread performance may edge out a few more frames at 1080p. However, at 4K, the GPU is the limiting factor, and the RTX 5090's performance is what drives this combo to such a high rank.

The nearest GPU rivals in the database are the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, which have similar average benchmark scores but are not gaming-focused products. The RTX 5090's PassMark G3D score of 39650 and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 18355 demonstrate its dominance in compute-heavy scenarios. The combo's rank of 27 out of 2887 suggests that only a handful of systems with the same GPU and a slightly faster CPU can outperform it, making this an elite configuration for Inside.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is a monster of a graphics card, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process node. It features 21,760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 ROPs, with a boost clock of 2407 MHz. The 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus provides 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth, which is more than sufficient for the game's simple textures and effects. The GPU's FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS is the primary driver of the high frame rates observed.

In Inside, the GPU's role is to render the game's distinctive monochromatic visuals with smooth gradients and volumetric lighting. At 4K Ultra, the 143 FPS average indicates that the GPU is working hard but not maxed out. The GPU's 176 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s, which is crucial for the game's full-screen post-processing effects. The texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s ensures that the game's detailed environments are rendered without any texture streaming hitches.

The GPU's memory bandwidth is not a constraint, as the game's asset sizes are small relative to the 32 GB frame buffer. The 1.79 TB/s bandwidth is overkill for a game like Inside, but it ensures that there are no memory-related frame drops. The RTX 5090's nearest rivals in the database, such as the Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (0.3% higher average score) and the Radeon RX 6850M XT (1.1% higher), are not comparable in gaming performance. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 39650 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 376728 confirm its top-tier status.

The GPU's 575 W TDP and 950 W suggested PSU are not relevant to the frame rate data, but they indicate the card's power appetite. The benchmark results show that the GPU scales efficiently with resolution, providing a 50% performance drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings, which is expected for a card with this much compute power. The RTX 5090 is the clear bottleneck at 4K, but it is a very fast bottleneck, delivering playable frame rates at all settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo at 4K?

A: The highest average FPS at 4K is 300 FPS, achieved with the Low preset. The Medium preset delivers 240 FPS, High delivers 150 FPS, and Ultra delivers 143 FPS.

Q: Does the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 bottleneck the RTX 5090 in this game?

A: No, the data shows that the CPU is not a limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 430 FPS, which is near the engine's limit. The CPU's 5.30 GHz boost clock and high single-thread performance are sufficient to feed the GPU at all resolutions.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: This combination ranks 27th out of 2887 tested combinations in Inside, placing it in the top 0.9% of all systems. Only 26 other configurations with slightly faster CPUs or more optimized setups perform better.

Q: What is the best preset for a 144 Hz 4K monitor?

A: The High preset at 4K delivers 150 FPS, which is above the 144 Hz refresh rate. This provides the best visual quality while maintaining a frame rate that fully utilizes the monitor's capability.

Q: Is there a significant difference between High and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: The difference is minimal. At 1440p, High delivers 239 FPS while Ultra delivers 228 FPS, a difference of only 11 FPS (4.6%). The visual upgrade from High to Ultra is subtle in this game's art style.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium?

A: The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 204 FPS, with a maximum of 276 FPS. This indicates a consistent frame time distribution with no significant stuttering or drops.