Choosing a good SSD for gaming can be complicated, especially considering that there are still many doubts that no longer make sense. I also realized that many of you still don’t realize what actually matters on the save disk when you launch the game, and that there were issues new myths which entrenches and expands the SSD myths we already knew.

For that reason, I wanted to publish an updated article where I will not only touch on these new myths and help you to clearly and simply debunk them, but also explain them to you. What a good SSD should have for gaming. You will also learn everything you need to know about the operation of this type of unit while using the games.

Before we dive in, it’s important to note that the way a game uses an SSD is quite different from the way other types of applications use it, so A good SSD for gaming may not be such a good choice for performing other types of tasks. where, for example, write operations take precedence.

What a good SSD should have for gaming

1.-High reading speed

When we run the game on the SSD drive almost all operations it performs are reads. Practically everything from the game loading process to the continuous loading of assets that gradually represent the world and its various elements are read operations performed by the SSD and the component that handles the data decompression tasks, which will be the CPU in a normal scenario or the GPU if the game uses DirectStorage or NVIDIA RTX I/O.

A good SSD for gaming should have a high read speed because This will reduce loading timewill enable production smooth transitions between different scenarios and placement, which is crucial in open scenarios and will prevent cracking issues and slow loading textures, among other things. Ultimately, this is also key for advanced graphics engines like CD Projekt RED’s RED Engine to reach their full potential.

PCIe NVMe SSD drives operate at speeds that typically range between 2,000 MB/s and 10,000 MB/s, depending on the standard we choose and the performance of each drive. Even with the most basic models, we will enjoy a very good experience in games and the actual differences in games will be very small when using more powerful models. Generally speaking, from 4000 MB/s up we have already reached the optimal level in terms of price/performance ratio.

2.-Good storage capacity

This is crucial because games are taking up more and more space and because this trend will only increase. Having a 250GB SSD storage unit has no place in today’s gaming PC Titles like Starfield take up 125GB and Red Dead Redemption 2 needs 150GB. We couldn’t install both games on this unit at the same time.

I know what you are thinking, I gave two extreme examples and you are partially right, but think this today It’s normal for games to need between 50 and 100 GB of free space to a minimum, and that these amounts may increase with future updates or content expansion, meaning that eventually even a 500GB drive may be too small in a very short time.

To all of the above, we must add that it is not advisable to completely fill an SSD, as this can significantly affect its performance, especially in the case of drives that do not have DRAM as a cache and are dependent on the use of the part. NAND Flash as SLC type cache to improve performance. A good gaming SSD is a must have these days at least 1 TB capacity, although 2 TB is ideal.

3.-NAND Flash TLC memory

This is related to both lifetime and performance of the drive. SSDs with QLC NAND Flash memory write four bits per cell, which allows you to reduce costs from units with a larger capacity, but this type of solution has lower performance and lifetime compared to those using TLC NAND Flash memory (three bits per cell).

Also note that SSDs with QLC memory when filling the unit, they lose performance in a more pronounced way, and as I said, they have a lower resistance to write cycles. The average user usually installs and uninstalls games quite often, and taking into account the space they end up taking up, we can accumulate a significant number of write cycles in a short period of time.

Since the price of SSDs has come down a lot, and the difference between QLC and TLC drives is minimal today in some cases even zero, there is no reason to select models based on the former. For around 100 euros it is possible to find 2TB SSD units with quite good performance values ​​and configured with TLC memory.

Three things that aren’t so important about a gaming SSD that create new myths

1.-Speed ​​of writing

Read speed is, as I told you before, the most important value that we have to consider when choosing a good SSD for gaming. I.e write speed is not that important and that generally any SSD that has a good read speed will be enough to get you a good gaming experience as long as it meets the other two points we’ve seen.

In typing operation games They usually come down to saving games, either manually or automatically. With SSD, auto-save happens immediately and if the game is well optimized, the most normal thing is that we don’t notice anything at all. I’m sure many of you remember that a few years ago this wasn’t the case and when using HDD drives there was a slight stutter accompanied by a slight twitch due to those automatic saves.

Write speed helps make these transitions when saving automatically They are perfect because they are not noticeable, but as I said, a very powerful SSD is not necessary for optimal experience. When installing or moving games to an SSD, the write speed matters, but that’s something more secondary because we don’t do it every day and because the difference it can make is a few minutes at most.

2.-Cache type

Image: Repository Review.

Most SSDs on the market today use two different approaches when it comes to caching. They have higher models block of DRAM memory, while the most economical ones use NAND Flash SLC memory as cache. In the first case, we have a dedicated chip with said DRAM, while in the second, part of the storage capacity is used as an SLC cache.

Cache type affects drive performance during write operations, so its impact on games is practically zero. Therefore, a good SSD for gaming does not need to have DRAM as cache, and it is perfectly viable to use a drive that is limited to using SLC memory as cache. The price difference can be quite large in some cases (up to 50%), so keep that in mind.

The SLC cache acts as a very limiting factor only when we perform intensive and sustained write operations which eventually will eventually exceed the amount of available cache. For example, the 2 TB Corsair MP600 GS SSD has 124 GB of SLC cache, which means that whenever we perform a write operation that is equal to or less than this amount of storage, the drive will operate at maximum performance, approximately 4.5 GB/s. . If we exhaust the cache, the speed drops to 1.6 GB/s. This does not affect read operations.

3.-Maximum raw speed peak

Many users still believe that the maximum peak speeds an SSD can achieve are critical to achieving good gaming performance, but nothing could be further from the truth. The difference between a drive that maxes out at 4.9GB/s in sequential reads and one that maxes out at 7.5GB/s will be minimal in gaming and In specific cases it can be almost negligible.

I’ll give you a very simple example, an SSD with a sequential read speed of up to 7 GB/s such as the WD Black SN850 and Corsair MP600 GS, which have a sequential read speed of up to 4.9 GB/s, offer practically the same performance in games. The difference between the two loading times can be a maximum just a few tenths of a secondso priceless.

With this, I want to leave you with a very important moral that will be of great benefit to you, that if you are on a very tight budget and your goal is to play It is better if you buy a slower but higher capacity SSD than faster with less capacity. This can make an important difference, because today for the price of a 1TB SSD of 7GB/s or more, it is possible to buy a 2TB unit that moves at 4GB/s.

Don’t forget that SSD won’t give you more frames per second in game, but it can greatly affect its performance and graphics engine. Nowadays, these types of drives have become a basic requirement for a good gaming experience, and it’s only a matter of time before it becomes impossible to play smoothly with a hard drive.

Starfield is one of the best recent examples I can give you because the game is a pain to run on a hard drive, due to the constant shutdowns it experiences, tearing and very long load times. In New Atlantis, one of the most challenging areas of the game, you can’t move for more than a few seconds without the game stopping for a few moments due to the strain of moving to the hard drive.