For the first time, next-generation game consoles will feature solid-state storage. Both Microsoft and Sony will incorporate 1TB of SSD in the Xbox Series X and 825GB in the PS5, and the benefits are clear. Solid state drives are faster, and games load and perform much, much faster than before.

The elephant in the room, however, is the capacity of the drive. The current generation only requires 500GB to 1TB, but with the move to 4K gaming, the installed capacity will increase. And while current gamers can simply plug in an inexpensive external HDD, those thinking of doing the same with a supported SSD will be in for a rude awakening when they see the current prices of SSDs.

Fortunately, Microsoft has tricks up its sleeve to reduce the installation footprint.

"We're improving not only the hardware, but also the user interface to make storage easier to manage," Jason Ronald, director of program management for Xbox, told Microsoft teammate Larry 'Major Nelson' Friberg said in a podcast chat with the company. "For example, one of the new features we're adding is the ability to selectively uninstall different components of a game if the title chooses to support it.

"For example, let's say you play a campaign and then want to focus solely on multiplayer. If the developer chooses to support it, you can actually uninstall the campaign itself, giving you more control over how the storage is actually used.

This sounds pretty similar to Sony's plans for the PlayStation 5, which is not surprising since the installed capacity of triple-A titles is getting bigger and bigger. We've already heard that the launch title "Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Launch Edition" will be 105 GB, and even current generation games are growing in size.

Our sister site GamesRadar has a list of worst offenders for PS4: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (175GB), Destiny 2 (165GB), Red Dead Redemption 2 (105GB), The Elder Scrolls Online (86GB), and Battlefield 4 (71GB) would wipe out 73% of the PS5's storage.

And this does not take into account system files. We now know that the Xbox Series X operating system accounts for nearly 20% of the 1TB, and we imagine that similar bad news is in store for Sony. Given that expansion options for both models are currently on the expensive side, one would hope that selective installation will be widely adopted by developers.