Gaming & DirectStorage Performance
On this page we will examine the game load time performance of the SSD, using 2 games that support DirectStorage as well 2 games that do not. In addition, we will utilize the DirectStorage test in 3DMark to look specifically at the DirectStorage benchmark on the SSD.
Horizon Forbidden West (DirectStorage Support)
We are using the full retail game Horizon Forbidden West. 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 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 Horizon Forbidden West, the TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD actually results in the fastest load times at 16.913 seconds, which is very competitive. It is about 0.23% faster than the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO. It seems from the get-go that DirectStorage performance is very fast.
Forspoken (DirectStorage Support)
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.
The tale is a little different in Forspoken, where the TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is toward the bottom of the pack, but it still beats the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO in loading time. The TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is 0.29% faster than the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO, improving upon it slightly.
Starfield
We are using the full game of Starfield, patched to the latest version. Starfield does not support DirectStorage, so this is the raw load time of a game without DirectStorage as a factor on the SSD. Starfield typically has longer load times, and thus is a great test to see how long it takes to load a saved game. We are using an AMD Radeon RX 6800 16GB video card and we enable the highest graphics settings at 4K. 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 Starfield, which doesn’t use DirectStorage, the TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is again toward the bottom of the pack on performance for loading, but better than the MSI SPATIUM M580 FROZR. The TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is very close to the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO, practically they are equal in game loading time performance.
Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark
We are now including the Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark as well, which benchmarks the load times of several game scenes. This new and updated benchmark utilizes a new updated engine with updated and improved graphics textures and fidelity. 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 benchmark uses DX11.
In Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail benchmark, this game also does not utilize DirectStorage, and we once again see the TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD fall toward the bottom of the pack. In regard to the Phison E28 reference SSD, keep in mind that this is a pre-production reference SSD, and results will change with production retail models with custom firmware. The TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is a bit slower than the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO here, about 4% slower, so that’s a notable difference.
3DMark DirectStorage Benchmark
We are running the 3DMark DirectStorage feature test, and showing the overall feature test score, and individual test results as displayed when run on the SSD.
According to the 3DMark DirectStorage test, the TEAMGROUP T-FORCE GE PRO AirFlow I 2TB SSD is 219.4% faster with DirectStorage enabled. This is a good result, and is higher than the ADATA LEGEND 970 PRO, which resulted in 208.2%. With DirectStorage on, we are achieving 25.28GB/s, and with DirectStorage off, 7.91GB/s.