Inside

Inside is a 2016 puzzle platformer that places almost no sustained stress on modern high-end hardware, and the measured results for the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K paired with the Intel Arc B570 confirm that this combo is far more about raw capacity than about scraping for frames. The data shows a system that can obliterate the game’s requirements at lower resolutions, yet still demonstrates predictable scaling patterns that reveal where the bottleneck shifts as resolution climbs.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is a 20-core, 20-thread desktop processor built on the Arrow Lake architecture, using a 3 nm process from TSMC. It runs with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. For a game like Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer with relatively simple physics and AI logic, the CPU is almost never the limiting factor. The benchmark results support this: at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 240 FPS, which is the highest measured average in the entire dataset, and that number likely represents a frame cap or a point where the CPU is feeding frames faster than the display can show them.

The processor’s single-thread performance is strong, with a Geekbench single-core score of 2713 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2020. Inside’s gameplay loop is largely single-thread-bound, as most puzzle platformers are, but even the weakest modern desktop CPU would handle it easily. The 265K’s 20 cores and 20 threads matter little here because the game does not scale to that many threads; the data shows that the CPU has massive headroom. For example, the multi-threaded Cinebench R23 score of 35850 and the Passmark multithread score of 58594 indicate that the chip can handle far more demanding workloads, but in this game, those resources sit mostly idle.

The cache layout includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and a 30 MB shared L3 cache. That L3 cache is more than sufficient for Inside’s small level data and asset streaming, which means the CPU can keep frequently accessed data close at hand without stalling. The processor’s memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s over a dual-channel DDR5 bus is also ample; the game’s memory footprint is tiny by modern standards. In terms of rivals, the 265K sits within 1.3% of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and 1% of the Intel Core i7-14700KF in average benchmark score, meaning that any of these CPUs would deliver effectively identical performance in Inside. The bottleneck in this combo is never the CPU, as evidenced by the fact that FPS drops are far more pronounced when resolution increases, which shifts the load to the GPU.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured data includes four presets at each of three resolutions, and the results clearly indicate that the highest settings are not worth the frame loss. At 1080p, the Ultra preset delivers 114 FPS, which is perfectly playable, but the Medium preset delivers 192 FPS with a minimum of 163 FPS and a maximum of 221 FPS. The difference between Medium and Ultra is 78 FPS, which is a 68% improvement in average frame rate by stepping down just one notch. The Low preset at 1080p hits 240 FPS, which is the ceiling of the dataset, but Medium is the sweet spot because it offers a 192 FPS average with a minimum of 163 FPS, ensuring no drops below the refresh rate of most high-Hz monitors.

At 1440p, the pattern repeats. Ultra delivers 82 FPS, High delivers 86 FPS, but Medium delivers 138 FPS with a minimum of 117 FPS and a maximum of 159 FPS. The jump from High to Medium is 52 FPS, which is a 60% increase, and the Medium preset maintains a minimum above 117 FPS, which is critical for smooth motion. At 4K, the Medium preset delivers 87 FPS with a minimum of 74 FPS and a maximum of 100 FPS, while Ultra drops to 52 FPS and High drops to 54 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K is the only one that stays comfortably above 60 FPS, and its minimum of 74 FPS means there are no noticeable hitches.

Given the data, the optimal experience across all resolutions is the Medium preset. It consistently offers the best balance between visual quality and frame rate, with minimums that stay well above playable thresholds. The High preset at 1080p delivers 120 FPS, which is good, but it is still significantly lower than Medium’s 192 FPS, and the visual difference in a game like Inside is minimal because the art style is largely flat-shaded and atmospheric. The Ultra preset is the worst value in the dataset, as it costs 78 FPS at 1080p and 35 FPS at 4K compared to Medium, with no measurable benefit in the data. For players with 60 Hz displays, even the Ultra preset at 4K would be sufficient, but for anyone with a high-refresh monitor, Medium is the clear recommendation.

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

The scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound behavior, but with an interesting twist because the CPU is so powerful. At Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 192 at 1080p to 138 at 1440p, and then to 87 at 4K. That is a 55% drop from 1080p to 4K, which is less severe than what would be seen with a weaker CPU, indicating that the CPU is not holding the GPU back at any point. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 54 FPS, and the drop from 1440p to 4K is 51 FPS, showing a nearly linear degradation as pixel count increases. This suggests that the Intel Arc B570 is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the CPU has enough headroom to feed it consistently.

At High settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The average FPS drops from 120 at 1080p to 86 at 1440p, then down to 54 at 4K. That is a 66 FPS drop from 1080p to 4K, which is a 55% reduction, but the absolute numbers are lower because the GPU is working harder. The Low settings show the least drop-off in relative terms: 240 FPS at 1080p, 172 at 1440p, and 108 at 4K. The fact that Low settings at 4K still achieve 108 FPS indicates that the GPU has enough raw compute to handle the game’s simple shaders, but the higher presets introduce effects that scale with resolution, such as shadow quality and post-processing, which tax the GPU more.

The data strongly indicates that the GPU is the limiting component at 4K, especially at High and Ultra settings, where the average FPS falls below 60. The CPU’s role is negligible, as evidenced by the fact that the same CPU with a stronger GPU would likely see higher 4K numbers, but with this Arc B570, the GPU’s 10 GB of VRAM and 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth are sufficient for the game’s assets, yet its raw shading power is what holds it back. The 11.52 TFLOPS FP32 performance is modest by modern standards, and at 4K with Ultra settings, it simply cannot maintain high frame rates. The scaling pattern confirms that the Arc B570 is the bottleneck, and the CPU is never the constraint.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the global database of tested combos for Inside, this pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K with the Intel Arc B570 ranks 2301 out of 2887 total combinations. That places it in the 20th percentile, meaning that roughly 80% of all tested combos perform better in this specific game. This is a surprisingly low rank for a modern CPU and a mid-range GPU, but it makes sense when considering that Inside is an older title that is highly sensitive to single-thread performance and GPU rasterization efficiency. The rank indicates that many older or lower-end GPUs with higher clock speeds or better driver optimization for DirectX 11 can outperform the Arc B570 in this specific workload.

The rank is not a reflection of the CPU, which sits in the 94th percentile against all CPUs in the database, but rather a reflection of the GPU’s performance in this game. The Arc B570 ranks in the 65th percentile against all GPUs, but its drivers may not be fully optimized for a 2016 title like Inside, which uses older graphics APIs. The combo’s rank of 2301 out of 2887 suggests that the GPU is holding the system back, especially when compared to combos featuring NVIDIA or AMD cards that have mature drivers for legacy titles. The data shows that this combo is capable of high frame rates at lower settings, but the rank implies that other combos with similar or lower-tier CPUs but stronger GPUs achieve better results.

In terms of the GPU’s nearest rivals, the Arc B570 is within 0.5% of the AMD Radeon R9 M390X and 0.1% of the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M in average benchmark score, which are both laptop or workstation parts from several generations ago. This reinforces the idea that the Arc B570’s raw compute is not the issue, but its driver efficiency in older games is. The combo rank is below what the CPU’s capabilities would suggest, and the data indicates that the limiting factor is the GPU’s ability to translate its theoretical performance into actual frame rates in this specific game. For players who already own this combo, the rank suggests that lower settings are required to achieve competitive frame rates, but the game is still very playable.

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

The Intel Arc B570 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage) using a 5 nm process from TSMC, with a 272 mm² die size containing 19,600 million transistors. It has 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, providing 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base and boost clocks are both 2500 MHz, and the memory runs at 2375 MHz with 19 Gbps effective speed. For Inside, the 10 GB VRAM is more than adequate; the game’s textures are low-resolution by modern standards, and the memory usage likely never exceeds a few gigabytes. The 380.0 GB/s bandwidth is also sufficient, as the game does not stream massive textures that would saturate the bus.

The GPU’s shading units number 2304, with 144 texture mapping units and 80 raster operation units. The pixel rate is 200.0 GPixel/s and the texture rate is 360.0 GTexel/s. These specs explain the performance at 4K Ultra, where the GPU’s fill rate and shading power become the limiting factor. The FP32 performance of 11.52 TFLOPS is modest, and at 4K with Ultra settings, the GPU has to process over 8 million pixels per frame, which taxes its 80 ROPs. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 52, which is below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the GPU’s rasterization throughput is insufficient for that preset at that resolution.

The GPU’s DirectX 12 Ultimate support is not fully utilized by Inside, which was released before that API was standardized, and the game likely runs in DirectX 11 mode. The Passmark DirectX 11 score of 118 and DirectX 12 score of 72 indicate that the GPU is better optimized for modern APIs than for legacy ones, which explains why the frame rates are lower than what the raw specs might suggest. The Arc B570’s nearest rival, the Intel Arc A750, has an average score that is 0.1% higher, showing that the B570 is effectively on par with its predecessor in general benchmarks, but in Inside specifically, the driver overhead may cause performance to lag. The GPU’s role is clearly the dominant factor in the measured FPS, as evidenced by the steep drop-off at higher resolutions and presets, and its 65th percentile ranking among all GPUs reflects its mid-range positioning.

FAQ

Q: What is the best setting to use for a 60 Hz display at 4K?

A: The Medium preset at 3840x2160 delivers an average of 87 FPS with a minimum of 74 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. The High and Ultra presets both fall below 60 FPS, so Medium is the only viable option for a smooth 60 Hz experience at 4K.

Q: Can this combo hit 240 FPS at 1080p?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is exactly 240, which is the highest measured value in the dataset. Medium settings at 1080p deliver 192 FPS, showing that the Low preset is required to reach the absolute ceiling.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in general performance?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K has an average benchmark score that is 1% higher than the Intel Core i7-14700KF and 1.3% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F. It lags the Intel Xeon 6511P by 0.2% and the Xeon Platinum 8270 by 0.7%.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU the bottleneck in this game?

A: The data shows that the GPU is the limiting component. At 4K with High settings, the average FPS drops to 54, while the CPU’s strong single-thread score of 2713 in Geekbench indicates it has ample headroom. The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is much larger than any CPU-related variation.

Q: What is the minimum FPS at Medium settings across all resolutions?

A: At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 163 FPS; at 1440p Medium, the minimum is 117 FPS; and at 4K Medium, the minimum is 74 FPS. All of these are above 60 FPS, making Medium the most consistent preset.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for Inside?

A: It ranks 2301 out of 2887 total combos, placing it in the bottom 20% of tested systems. This rank is lower than expected due to the GPU’s performance in this older title, despite the CPU being in the 94th percentile overall.