One of the reasons some gamers are hesitant about purchasing the digital-only versions of next-gen consoles, whether it be the Xbox Series S or the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition, is that the SSD hard drives seem rather small when considering the fact that game file sizes have only gotten larger over the years.
This potential issue was further emphasized with the news that the Xbox Series S will have only half the storage space as the Xbox Series X, 512 GB versus 1 TB, respectively. However, a recent interview with Jason Ronald, Xbox’s Director of Program Management, revealed why Microsoft doesn’t see this as a problem.
On the Series S, game install sizes are expected to be approximately 30 percent smaller than on the Series X. The graphical performance target for the lower-spec console is only 1440p resolution and not the 4K of its substantially bigger brother. This means the console will make use of smaller resolution texture packages and thus there will be less data eating up that precious storage space.
Ronald clarified that game developers may target their Xbox games for 4K resolutions if they choose, since the Series S can support upscaling. But Microsoft will not require that the Series S versions of games download the higher resolution textures. It will really be up to the developers.
In a video diving deeper into the architecture and specs of the Xbox Series S, Ronald explained that developers use a number of techniques like dynamic resolution scaling to optimize their games for multiple performance profiles. The typical scenario is that developers will optimize their creations for 4K on the Series X and then downscale the rendering resolution for Series S without making fundamental changes to a game’s other next-gen features.
Additionally, gamers who opt for the Xbox Series S don’t necessarily need to worry about running out of storage space. Both versions of the new Xbox will feature expandable storage, and Microsoft has partnered with Seagate to create proprietary 1 TB expansion cards that can be hot-swapped into a slot on the rear of the console. These expansion cards replicate and provide the same speed enhancements as the internal SSD of both consoles.
On the next-gen Xbox, the SSD and expansion cards will bring overall improved performance not only to Series X and Series S games, but also original Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One titles as well. Games will benefit from noticeably faster loading times, and the new console’s Quick Resume feature will allow players to switch seamlessly between multiple games and resume where they left off.
Source: IGN