Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III Needs 213GB on PC With HQ Textures

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Might be time for 4TB SSDs to become mainstream.

A screenshot of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III's PC version from the same Steam page.
A screenshot of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III's PC version from the same Steam page. (Image credit: Activision's CODMW3 Steam Page)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is pegged to be the most storage-intensive entry in the Call of Duty series on PC when it releases on November 10, 2023, demanding a whopping 213GB of free storage for a full installation of the game. That's no meager amount of storage, especially for the SSD users this announcement seems primarily targeted at. In fact, both the Steam page system requirements and Activision's own system requirement heavily recommend SSD usage.

213GB is a big chunk out of even a 2TB drive, never mind the more common 1TB models. Thankfully, prices on the best SSDs are quite affordable right now, with 2TB models starting at under $100, but the storage bloat of modern games still feels a bit too much.

Activision's official Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III PC Specs graphic.

Activision's official Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III PC Specs graphic— note the "Hi-Rez Assets Cache" section. (Image credit: Activision)

Technically, the game files by themselves should only comprise 149GB, which is a number that can be reduced to 78 GB if you choose to pre-install COD HQ and Warzone or already have them installed. This is actually the minimum file size install, though. If you use a full 213GB install size, you'll also be getting a so-called "Hi-Rez Assets Cache" in your storage that will take up the remaining 64GB of that 213GB total without Warzone.

With a launch install size that can realistically take up 213GB on your storage drive — more with updates — Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is looking like the devourer of SSD capacity for multiplayer gaming scenarios. Of course, gamers who don't care for the highest-quality textures and only want the multiplayer gameplay specifically can also opt for a barebones 79GB install, which should be more tolerable for the storage constrained and easier on the throughput of a slower storage drives.

Beyond storage requirements, the latest Modern Warfare is sure to put your CPU and GPU through their paces as well, particularly in large open scenes with a lot of battlefield chaos flying around. The game will support AMD FSR2 and Nvidia DLSS3 (which includes Reflex) in order to help alleviate GPU performance concerns, though anyone trying to play below minimum CPU spec should be warned that upscaling may not be enough to save you.

Christopher Harper
Christopher Harper
Contributing Writer

Christopher Harper has been a successful freelance tech writer specializing in PC hardware and gaming since 2015, and ghostwrote for various B2B clients in High School before that. Outside of work, Christopher is best known to friends and rivals as an active competitive player in various eSports (particularly fighting games and arena shooters) and a purveyor of music ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Killer Mike to the Sonic Adventure 2 soundtrack.

11 Comments Comment from the forums
  • derekullo
    Almost to the point where you'll need a nas with some form of raid to fit all the games.
    Reply
  • Makaveli
    derekullo said:
    Almost to the point where you'll need a nas with some form of raid to fit all the games.
    hmm I would rather keep that Raid 0 on local storage than across the network. Its why I still have a raid 0 setup in my rig and have been considering upgrading my 1TBx2 drives to either 2x2 or 4x4 will see how sales are later this year. I still have an M2 Drive that is free for games that will benefit from the games that support direct storage.
    Reply
  • funguseater
    213GB and will probably get us a terrible 8 hour campaign
    Reply
  • txfeinbergs
    I only play the campaign. Why can't there just be an option for that?
    Reply
  • Geef
    This is probably another reason why a 16GB video card is a good idea. Also a reason to make sure your internet connection subscription is set for Unlimited download. If one game does it then everyone else will follow.

    ---

    I stopped playing CoD after what they did to those streamers though.
    Reply
  • Colif
    if we ever get 8k texture packs, games will need 1tb just to install. I got a 4tb ssd yesterday and jokingly said soon that only hold 4 games. Soon?

    I wouldn't be playing it anyway.
    Reply
  • Order 66
    Colif said:
    if we ever get 8k texture packs, games will need 1tb just to install. I got a 4tb ssd yesterday and jokingly said soon that only hold 4 games. Soon?

    I wouldn't be playing it anyway.
    Wouldn't the texture packs be compressed? Or is there something I do not understand?
    Reply
  • Colif
    Yes, but they still might be big. I don't know as I can't see the future.
    Reply
  • Order 66
    Colif said:
    Yes, but they still might be big. I don't know as I can't see the future.
    If any games are 1TB to install, I will absolutely not be playing them since at my current 25 Mbps internet it would take about 11 hours to install. Not to mention, My 2 TB SSD would only be able to hold two games.
    Reply
  • Crazyy8
    In what world do we need that hi res textures? We don't need to see the sweat pores on some background character 200 meters away. Half-Life 2 and it's episodes have great looking textures and models even today, just improve them a bit and focus on gameplay and boom: Good looking game with fun gameplay that barely takes up 10GB.
    Reply