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Solid State Drives Power Gaming Championships In Beijing — And High-End Gaming At Home

Having the best hardware is crucial to not falling behind in high-end gaming.

The stakes were high at the 2017 League of Legends (LoL) Finals in Beijing in November — $2.25 million in prize money, to be exact. In the final moments, as fans in the 80,000-seat arena built for the 2008 Olympics watched, team Samsung Galaxy surged ahead to destroy SK Telecom T1. The winners gathered on stage to receive the Summoner's Cup, confetti rained down, and thousands of screaming fans waved glowing neon signs.

"Samsung has looked pretty untouchable," raved a commentator on the live feed from the stadium. While SKT has been finding new strategies and figuring things out as they go, Samsung has "been so good at controlling the game, at limiting their opponents' opportunities and more importantly, limiting their mistakes."

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What he didn't say, but was equally important, was that the members of Samsung Galaxy prepared with hardware that could support their skills. And among that hardware, solid state drives (SSDs) were fundamental.

We've partnered with Samsung to show how SSDs with the latest interface specification, non-volatile memory express (NVMe), helped Samsung Galaxy achieve their victory and what it means for high-end gaming in general.

Gearing Up with Superior Hardware

Having the best hardware is crucial to not falling behind in high-end gaming. "You don't want the guy you're competing with to be better just because he has a faster hardware setup," explains Jurre Pannekeet, head of esports at gaming market research firm Newzoo. Top players know that in order to win, they need the best processors and graphics. Storage is a major part of the equation.

In particular, for high-end games, SSDs are pivotal. Not having them, says Pannekeet, "doesn't mean that you can't compete. It's just, you want to be able to have as much detail and information as possible." A lack of information could prove detrimental in the heat of virtual combat.

It's not just the pros who get to have all the fun. The rise of high-end gaming has been a driving force for increasingly affordable high-end hardware for consumers as well. Advances in hardware make it possible to play more advanced games with better detail and frame rates than ever before. That means that anyone with fast SSDs has the potential enjoy pro-level performance at home.

In response, manufacturers have introduced a bevvy of new SSDs, creating myriad choices for consumers. But one technology stands out above the rest as a real game changer: Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) SSDs.

NVMe SSDs: Advancing the Game

NVMe promises superior performance, shattering the industry standard that Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) SSDs set when first released. Coupled with the trend toward ultra-detailed 4K video and DirectX 12 games, NVMe SSDs ensure that consumers get the most out of their gaming system buck.

Although an NVMe SSD costs more, it more than makes up the difference in far superior speed and performance. NVMe can deliver read speeds up to seven times faster than SATA SSDs, making it ideal for high-end games. While this difference in specifications looks good on paper, it really shines in hands-on, intensive gaming tests. 4K UltraHD resolution, the latest standard for the most popular games in the market right now, show the differences in performance most clearly.

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The Future of 4K and DirectX 12 Games

Tests on graphically demanding games — which involve loading larger files and more disk input/output operations — show that game loading times plummet by seven percent to 37 percent for systems with NVMe SSDs on board. You don't have to compete for millions of dollars to realize the benefits in terms of an edge against your less well-endowed opponents — and a more satisfying gaming experience.

Today's games can already greatly benefit from NVMe SSDs. Very soon, however, with more 4K and DirectX 12 games hitting the market, those faster SSDs will be essential for all serious gamers. They will also increasingly benefit professionals who use similarly demanding high-end programs. For these users, only NVMe SSDs can ensure that they obtain the fastest speeds available.

For gamers at home as well as on the world stage, NVMe SSDs help ensure at minimum on par hardware performance with opponents. Meaning that if you lose, you can't blame it on your gear. What will you achieve?

For more about how new technological advances are already taking both home and professional computing to new levels, visit Samsung U.S.