Game Load Time Performance
Horizon Forbidden West (DirectStorage)
We are using the full retail game Horizon Forbidden West, with patch 1.0.43.0. This game supports DirectStorage for saved game load times. We are using an AMD Radeon RX 6800 16GB video card for testing and all components are shown to support DirectStorage. We enable the highest graphics settings in the game at 4K for testing. We are first going to launch the game and see how long it takes to launch on the SSD being reviewed. Then, we will show loading a saved game file and how long it takes to load into the game. All results are performed manually with a stopwatch.
In the graph above, we are testing the time it takes to launch the game from the launcher to the main menu fully loaded. We can see that the MSI SPATIUM M580 2TB FROZR SSD does have the fastest game launch time at 21.3 seconds to launch the game fully, beating the MSI SPATIUM M570 PRO and CORSAIR MP700 PRO by merely 0.1 seconds. For all intents and purposes, the game launch time is practically the same between these SSDs.
In this graph above, we are now testing the time it takes to load a saved game file, and this is where DirectStorage really comes into play. As you can see, the average time between all three SSDs is only 4 seconds to load a saved game. Technically, the new MSI SPATIUM M580 2TB FROZR SSD does take the lead with 0.2 seconds faster than the MSI SPATIUM M570 PRO FROZR and 0.1 seconds faster than the CORSAIR MP700 PRO. If we are talking percentages, then the MSI SPATIUM M580 2TB FROZR SSD is actually 4% faster than the MSI SPATIUM M570 PRO FROZR and 2% faster than the CORSAIR MP700 PRO when loading a saved game in Horizon Forbidden West.
Forspoken (DirectStorage)
We are using the full retail game Forspoken, which supports DirectStorage to test game loading time. Forspoken was released on January 24th, 2023, on the PC and uses the Luminous Engine. We are using an AMD Radeon RX 6800 16GB video card. We enable the highest graphics settings, including Ultra High Texture Memory, and run at 4K. We use the built-in benchmark and report the scene load times. We add the sum of all seven scene load times and run the benchmark three times. We then take the average of the three sums from each run. We graph the average result.
In Forspoken, the MSI SPATIUM M580 2TB FROZR SSD is at the bottom here, but the results between it and the MSI SPATIUM M570 PRO FROZR are so close honestly that it’s well within the margin of error, and one can call it the same performance. The CORSAIR MP700 PRO 2TB SSD is notably faster in game load times, by about 2% or 0.2 seconds.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker Benchmark
We use the Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker Benchmark which benchmarks the load times of several game scenes. The benchmark calculates the sum load time of the scenes and reports the number. We run the benchmark three times, and take the average of the load times. This provides consistent, objective game load testing data we can use for comparison in a game scenario outside of DirectStorage. This game uses DX11.
MSI SPATIUM M580 2TB FROZR SSD is at the top of performance loading levels in Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker Benchmark at just 6.021 seconds average load time. This beats the MSI SPATIUM M570 PRO FROZR by 2% and the CORSAIR MP700 PRO trails closely behind.