At some point in the previous generation of consoles, game installs became a common way for developers to improve performance. However, what began as an optional feature in titles such as Gran Turismo 4 and Final Fantasy XIII is quickly becoming the standard in console gaming, at least when it comes to AAA titles.
The amount of install space required steadily increased in the previous console generation as we went from 5GB for games such as Metal Gear Solid 4 and Fallout New Vegas to 8GB for titles like Rage and Grand Theft Auto V. Now with the Xbox One and PS4 the current generation of consoles seems to be taking this to another level.
According to the requirements published by Bethesda Softworks on the company’s blog, their newest title, Wolfenstein: The New Order, will require 47GB of hard drive space on Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Similar to Grand Theft Auto V, the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions will require 8GB of install space. The Xbox 360 version will also be on four separate discs.
Video Games Have Reached a New Level of Resource-Hogging
The constant push for greater visuals, physics and AI in AAA games has yielded beautiful results, but these titles have a voracious appetite for memory and processing power. Killzone: Shadowfall required 45GB of hard drive space and Titanfall for the Xbox One required 20GB. These figures aren’t for downloading the games onto your hard drive but just to be able to play them from the disc.
The entirety of Metal Gear Solid 4 got tons of coverage from the gaming press for filling up a 50GB blu-ray disc in the previous console generation. What does it say that today’s AAA games need that much space just to run early into the current generation?
These bloated hard drive requirements are getting out of hand. The Xbox One and PS4 come with 500GB of hard drive space. That would mean that, barring the use of an external hard drive or switching out the stock drive for a higher capacity one, Xbox One and PS4 owners could only have a maximum of 10 games installed at once.
Wolfenstein Showcases Impressive Visuals, At A High Price
It’s obvious that developers of AAA titles will keep pushing the envelope and that will lead to larger required installations. Video games are becoming much more expensive as of late, for the developers and the consumers. The insatiable demand for better graphics, faster load times and bigger, more complex environments will lead to greater required installations as this console generation progresses. If the previous generation is anything to go by, Wolfenstein: The New Order will be dwarfed by other titles a year or two from now that are even bigger resource-hogs.
Published: May 5, 2014 01:35 pm