GTA 6’s PS5 Preload Could Free SSD Space by Moving PS4 Games to an HDD

PlayStation Store pre-orders can preload now, while PS4 games can run from USB storage and PS5 titles stored there must be moved back before play.

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An M.2 SSD installed inside an open PS5 console, illustrating the storage space at issue for GTA 6's preload.

Grand Theft Auto VI’s PS5 preload is underway for PlayStation Store digital pre-orders, while buyers of code-in-a-box editions have to wait before starting their download. Clearing room does not have to mean deleting every older game or buying a larger SSD. A USB hard drive can keep PS4 titles installed and playable while freeing console storage for PS5 games.

Rockstar confirmed the digital pre-order preload in its preload announcement. PS5 pre-orders should have at least 212 GB of free space. Rockstar’s device-dependent maximum does not establish the exact PS5 download size, so that free-space figure is not confirmation that every console will download a 212 GB file.

External storage works especially well for PS4 games. The PS5 can run those titles from an external hard drive, but PS5 games stored there cannot be played directly. Move a PS5 game back to console storage when you want to play it, rather than deleting it and downloading it again.

If your library spans both generations, moving PS4 games to an external drive can preserve those installs and leave more room for PS5 titles. It may also spare you from buying a larger SSD solely to clear space for the preload.

The preload announcement also arrived with a brief new trailer, which includes a few fresh snippets of the game. It features Tove Lo’s “Blood In Your Eyes,” a song included on Grand Theft Auto VI’s licensed soundtrack.

Would you keep your PS4 library on an external drive to save SSD space for PS5 games? Follow the storage and preload details as Grand Theft Auto VI approaches its November 19 launch on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.

Grand Theft Auto VI heads to the state of Leonida, home to the neon-soaked streets of Vice City and beyond in the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet.