SSDs with different PCIe interfaces tend to provide significantly different performance in typical high workload applications due to bandwidth limitations. But it seems that the difference between PCIe Gen3 and PCIe Gen5 drives may not be as significant when using DirectStorage. This is according to an analysis based on a built-in download test in Forspoken (so far the only game that supports the technology), performed by the YouTube channel Compusemble.
As a reminder, the Microsoft DirectStorage 1.1 technology transfers data unpacking processing from the central processor to the video card. GPUs optimized for parallel operations cope with the task many times faster. In order for it to work, it needs to be supported by the game itself.
There are two key advantages that the DirectStorage interface gives to games: faster loading and reducing the load on the processor when working with NVMe requests, which allows you to transfer assets from storage to the graphics subsystem faster and more efficiently.
It is already known that DirectStorage can significantly speed up data unpacking even for solid-state drives with SATA interface. This reduces boot time, and also raises the question of whether DirectStorage games will be so different in the capabilities of SSDs with different interfaces. A new test confirmed the fears.
In all cases, downloads in Forspoken have been significantly reduced. Even when combining the load times of seven different scenes in the built-in test, the difference between an advanced Phison E26-based SSD (the controller that many high-speed SSDs will be released this year) with a PCIe Gen5 x4 interface and an Adata XPG SX8200 Pro with a PCIe Gen3 x4 interface only 3 seconds.
Formally, the drive with PCIe Gen3 was 32% slower than the SSD with PCIe Gen5, but in practice this means that the difference was practically imperceptible in all summarized scenes. This is despite the fact that the bandwidth of PCIe 5.0 x4 is approximately four times higher than that of the PCIe 3.0 x4 interface. So not only does DirectStorage compression work great, but it actually blurs the line between different SSDs in games.
Of course, while there is only one game that supports Microsoft DirectStorage, buying a PCIe 5.0 drive does not make any sense. The good news is that once DirectStorage takes off, current SSDs will likely be on par with next-gen gaming drives.
The first reviews are out on Forspoken, and they’re not great, with the game scoring 68 out of 100 on Metacritic and 69 on OpenCritic
Source: Tom’s Hardware
