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To compare SSD game load times fairly, use the same game, system, settings, and clearly defined load endpoint for every drive; separate first loads from later loads; and repeat each run. Report real-game timings separately from benchmark scores: a storage workload or DirectStorage feature test is not the same thing as the time a game takes to load.
What an SSD game-load benchmark actually measures
A timed game load is an end-to-end result. It reflects the drive, but also the game’s asset-management system, the rest of the platform, and the work done while loading. With DirectStorage, the NVMe storage path, GPU capability, decompression, and I/O latency can also matter. A drive’s advertised sequential throughput alone therefore cannot predict how long a particular game load will take.
Keep three kinds of results distinct:
- Actual game timing: elapsed time for a defined load event in a named game on a specified system.
- Storage benchmark workload: a repeatable test representing selected gaming-related storage activities, rather than a game’s complete loading process.
- DirectStorage feature test: a test of the DirectStorage path under its own conditions, not a universal measure of end-to-end game loading.
Set up a fair, repeatable comparison
There is no single consumer protocol prescribed by the cited benchmark and platform documentation. The controls below are practical methodology: they make it possible to interpret a result and repeat the comparison.
- Choose one repeatable load event. Name the game, scene or save, and exact endpoint. Define when the timer starts and stops, then use those same points for every drive.
- Hold the test platform and game configuration constant. Record the system configuration, game version, relevant settings, and the drive model, capacity, and connection. If DirectStorage is involved, note relevant storage, PCIe, GPU, and decompression configuration.
- Separate first and subsequent loads. Do not combine a first load with later runs that may have different cache or warm-up conditions. Identify each condition in the results.
- Repeat the runs and show the observations. Report individual times or their spread alongside any summary. Do not choose only the most favorable run.
- Label the measurement type. State whether a figure is an actual game time, a 3DMark Storage Benchmark result, or a 3DMark DirectStorage feature-test result.
Choose the right tool for the question
| Tool or method | What it measures | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Timed load in an actual game | Elapsed time for the named game event on the tested system. | Use this to report that game’s observed loading behavior. Disclose the endpoint and conditions so readers can judge the comparison. |
| 3DMark Storage Benchmark | Gaming-related activities such as loading games, installing files, saving progress, and recording gameplay streams, as described by UL Benchmarks on Steam. | Useful as a repeatable storage workload alongside game tests, but its result is a benchmark workload—not the load time of every game. |
| 3DMark DirectStorage feature test | A near-best-case DirectStorage scenario. Its score is average bandwidth, in GB/s, for game assets transferred using DirectStorage. | Use it to discuss the tested DirectStorage path, not as a proxy for a game’s full loading behavior. UL notes that the feature test does not include variables such as a game’s asset-management system or other GPU work during loading. See the feature-test description and score explanation. |
| Microsoft PIX timing capture | DirectStorage queue events and NVMe I/O request latency visible in timing captures. | Use for diagnostic context when investigating a DirectStorage path; it does not replace a live game measurement. See Microsoft’s PIX performance-analysis documentation. |
Why DirectStorage results need extra context
Microsoft describes DirectStorage as using the NVMe storage subsystem in its DirectStorage overview. That does not mean all games or systems will show the same loading behavior: a feature test isolates a narrower path than a complete game load, and platform capabilities can alter the work and timing.
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NVIDIA’s developer guidance recommends benchmarking across varying NVMe, PCIe, and GPU capabilities when choosing staging-buffer behavior. It also notes that resource types and compression can change latency characteristics. Those dependencies are another reason to disclose the tested configuration rather than attributing every difference to the SSD alone. For a deeper investigation, PIX timing captures can help identify queue activity and NVMe request latency.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Report results so readers can reproduce them
For each result, publish the game and load event, timer start and stop points, drive model and connection, platform and game configuration, and whether the run was a first or subsequent load. Include repeated observations or their spread, and identify benchmark workload scores separately from game timings. If a DirectStorage feature test is included, name its average-bandwidth metric and avoid presenting it as a general percentage or number of seconds saved in games.
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No fixed number of seconds or percentage improvement for “faster SSDs” follows from these test descriptions. Any such claim needs a cited test identifying the game, drives, platform, and measurement method.
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