How Much Storage Do I Need For Gaming? One might think that when it comes to gaming, the bigger the better. This is not always the case, as not all games are created equal, and not all players have an unlimited amount of storage space.
Some titles may only take up a few gigabytes worth of space, while others can take up an entire hard drive. If you’re not sure how much storage space you need for gaming, then you need to read our guide below to find out. Let’s dive in!
Disk Storage Capacities for Common Game Sizes
Let’s start by understanding the average game size. The standard modern AAA game will be at least 25GB in size. The maximum size of AAA games is likely to be at least 50 GB. Some may even reach 100 GB. On average, three of these games will fit on a hard drive with 100 GB.
This statement can be further interpreted as meaning that each terabyte of storage can hold around 30 games, provided that all games you want to store are AAA or 3D. Space is less important for indie games, such as those with a lower budget than others. Even AAA games of the last generation and older require less space.
The ratio of 30 games to 1 terabyte storage space is not favorable. You can afford a larger hard disk if you have enough money to invest in the games you need to get started. Here are some common sizes of hard drives that you can consider for gaming.
500GB: This is the ideal disk for an avid player who wants to get started. This is an excellent choice for casual gamers or budget players. These are those who don’t have a large stream library, don’t play many games, or only play a few titles.
If you begin to fill your library with games and the library becomes too full, it’s time to upgrade to a storage device with a capacity greater than 500GB. You can also remove certain games and multimedia to make room for more.
1000 GB (1 TB): This is the most popular hard drive size, especially for those looking to save money. Yes, 1TB hard drives are now cheaper. Even if you have a large backlog, you can still store a substantial number of games on a 1TB hard disk. It will eventually stop storing more games than it can hold.
2000GB (2 TB): This is also one of the most popular storage sizes. This deal is also very affordable. It will take time to fill up even if you only play modern games and invest in new ones frequently. This exception is for frequently downloaded media files or videos that are recorded.
3000 GB (3TB) or More: This is the highest-end collection of consumer hard drives. Hard drives with a larger capacity are not usually available for gaming. Although hard drives larger than 3 TB are possible, they are reserved for high-end servers and networks.
Hard drives of 3 TB capacity are great for gamers who love to expand their gaming collection and play more versions. If you don’t plan on upgrading your computer anytime soon, you can consider purchasing a hard drive of at least 3 TB.
Best Gaming PC Storage Space
An HDD or an SSD is the best storage options for your gaming computer. SSDs are faster than HDDs, making them great for certain games and the OS. HDDs, on the other side, offer bulk storage at a low cost.
SSDs can improve the OS’ responsiveness and speed up the loading times for video games. An SSD is recommended, particularly if you are looking for 500-1000GB of storage, as well as a minimum 2TB HDD.
It is recommended to combine two hard drives. You should use the faster one for critical activities, while the slower one is needed to store long-term data. It is recommended that you have an SSD or NVME drive for your OS. For other file types, such as documents, you should get 1 to 2 hard drives.
You can even move games that you don’t play very often for faster drives to free up space. Steam and many other platforms allow you to transfer your game installation by just clicking a few buttons. It is also advisable to move to an SSD if you experience long loading times, stuttering, or other problems with a game on your HDD.
What SSDs, HDDs, or SSHDs should you choose?
Modern options for gaming storage are SSDs, HDDs (Hard Disk Drives), and SSHDs. SSDs can replace HDDs because they are faster loading and data access is easier. SSDs are the best option for many gamers. These features are already built into the latest laptops.
A 256 GB SSD is commonly used for regular tasks. This amount of storage will not affect your gaming experience. For popular games such as FIFA 19 or Witcher 3, more than 50GB is necessary. You can store up to 5 such games on a 256GB SSD.
Gaming laptops have 1 TB SSD. However, gamers require a 512GB SSD. Any less storage can negatively impact your gaming experience. A higher SSD can store more movies and videos.
Operating software and related components will run more smoothly and faster if you buy a 1TB SSD SSD than an HDD of the same capacity. SSDs are more expensive than HDDs.
Read also: How Much Electricity Does A Gaming Computer Use? (2021)
Things to consider when deciding how much storage you will need
What Kinds of Games Are You Playing?
Different games need different amounts of disk space. AAA games like Final Fantasy XIV, Metro Exodus, and Resident Evil occupy more space than less graphics-intensive titles like CupHead and Into The Breach.
You don’t need much data storage capacity if you only intend to play games that are low-end on your computer.
How often do you buy games?
You won’t be buying many games if you buy a gaming laptop for casual gaming. You won’t need much storage, as 512 GB will suffice.
If you intend to play a lot of heavy gaming on your laptop, you will likely purchase and download many games quickly. In this instance, 512GB of storage space is likely to fill up quickly, so you need at least 1TB.
How Many Games You Currently Own (For Example On Steam And GOG Libraries)
You will need a lot of storage space to download large amounts of games from platforms like Origin, Steam, and GOG. If you plan to download many games from platforms like Origin, Steam, and GOG, you will need at least 1 TB.
Whether You Like To Hoard Games
Gamers like to delete old games after they are done playing them. This frees up space to install new games.
If you like to keep older games and have multiple games to switch between them, you will need lots of storage.
Other things you plan on doing besides gaming
You may also wish to store large media files, download software for school or work, and collect movies. You’ll run out of storage space quickly if you plan to do other things than gaming.
What amount do you want to spend?
Although we all desire a lot of data storage on our laptops, sometimes our budgets limit us. If you don’t limit how much money you can spend, you should get as much storage as you can.
Gaming laptops with high-end specs can store up to 2 TB or more. If you have a limited budget, consider a gaming laptop with a powerful processor and graphics card. Storage and RAM can be added later.
While you can always upgrade RAM and Storage later, most laptops cannot be upgraded to the CPU or GPU.
FAQs
What is the easiest way to store games on an SSD?
It has been said that the easiest way to store games on an SSD is by using a flash drive, but this isn’t always the case.
Most modern operating systems can accommodate both types of storage (hard drive and SSD) and there is no set size that you must use. The reason this is important is that most people like to think that their SSD is faster than a hard drive, and when in reality this isn’t always the case.
Is there a limit to how many video games can be stored?
You cannot store unlimited amounts of video games. Some households can only fit a few, while others have a large enough space to store all their favorite titles. The limit for most families is about 30 games.
If you are thinking of purchasing large amounts of games at one time, you might want to look into upgrading your hard drive.
Does a higher capacity hard drive mean a better gaming experience?
Many gamers believe that having a hard drive with a large storage capacity is important for their gaming experience. However, this is not always the case. A hard drive’s storage capacity impacts the speed at which files can be loaded into the system, not the quality of gameplay.
A gamer could have a console with a 500GB hard drive and face the same challenges as another gamer with a 20GB hard drive.
Why do some gaming laptops have both SSD and HDD storage?
Gaming laptops can have both SSD storage and HDD storage. SSDs are faster at loading heavy programs like games, while HDDs allow for more space to store smaller files without increasing the price.
For fast booting and loading, you recommend installing the OS and the games on the SSD. The HDD can be used for general storage.
Conclusion
The amount of storage that you require in your gaming laptop will depend on the number of games and applications you install, as well as the size of those files. You will need more storage space if you have larger files or games.
A hard drive’s storage capacity will also affect the speed of your games. Larger games could increase your loading times and decrease your gameplay time. The need for a large hard drive will depend on your own personal use and needs.
Thanks for reading this post! If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the comment section below.
Eyal Ephrat serves as the co-founder and CEO of medCPU.com, where technology is making significant strides in the field of medicine. Through his experience in purchasing PC and laptop equipment and various other tech products, Eyal Ephrat contributes valuable insights to medCPU’s mission.
