Xbox Series X

Ever since Sony and Microsoft revealed the specs for their upcoming next-gen consoles, there's been a lot of chatter about what a massive difference SSD tech is going to make. Both systems come equipped with solid-state storage, and developers have been keen to stress what a seismic change this technology is going to bring with it, eliminating load times and allowing them to create massive, seamless worlds to immerse players in.

As you might expect, comparisons have been drawn between the SSDs in both the Xbox Series X and PS5, with Sony's fans pointing out that the drive in the new PlayStation offers a speed advantage over the one in Microsoft's upcoming console.

It's understood that while the Sony drive is indeed faster, the Series X drive is larger – but ultimately, it will make little difference anyway. Speaking to MS Poweruser, Scorn Game Director Ljubomir Peklar states that the CPU is the real story here:

Everyone is touting the SSD as the next big thing, and yes SSDs will help a lot with loading and moving assets, but the biggest culprit that is creating problems in the current generation is the CPU. That's where the biggest next-gen difference compared to current generation will come from. We didn't want to bring Scorn to current-gen consoles because we want our game to be played at 60 FPS.

Talking to the Express, Snowed in Studios' Jared MacDonald and Nigel Franks also commented on the SSD debate, agreeing that while the PS5 drive is quicker and the Series X one larger, the differences will ultimately mean little as the generation progresses.

MacDonald said:

As for which is superior, the Xbox SSD is larger but the speed of the PS5 SSD is much better. I think I will wait and see once the consoles are launched before making a final decision. Regardless of which one is superior, having SSDs means more time for gaming and less time loading/installing. It’s a great time to be a gamer.

Franks added:

As for which is better, yes, the Xbox SSD is larger, but with every console generation we get bigger, faster drives on the same hardware platform in years two, three and beyond. I’m a fan of the SSD in a console and it’s super-cool, but that also means we’ll have larger game worlds to load too. I think it’s going to matter less over time as game streaming gets more widely adopted.

Do you think SSD speed and size are going to matter all that much this generation? Let us know with a comment.

[source mspoweruser.com]