It's officially February 2022, and that means that major triple-a games are releasing nearly every week for the next few weeks. The first in the lineup is Dying Light 2, the follow-up to 2015's zombie-slaying RPG. With Dying Light 2 just days away, those that have pre-ordered it are beginning the pre-load process. Strangely, PS5 players are getting a surprisingly slim download.
Over on Twitter, user @PlayStationSize shared a comparison of Dying Light 2's PS5 download size compared to the PS4 version. The difference is substantial, and certainly not what most players will be expecting. It appears that Dying Light 2 is only 25.49 GB on PS5, but will clock in at 50.967 GB – roughly twice the size despite being an inferior version.
Why the PS5 File Size is So Small
The difference between the two versions of Dying Light 2 is likely due to compression, which is a special perk introduced by the PS5's internal hardware. The PS5 uses the "Kraken" decoder, which is what allows game file sizes to be shrunk down by so much. Ultimately, gamers should see file sizes get progressively smaller as compression improves as a technology, which means that they'll be able to get more bang for their buck when it comes to hard drive space
https://twitter.com/PlaystationSize/status/1488498628155035657
When it was first announced, Sony revealed that the PlayStation 5 would have an 825 GB SSD, smaller than the 1TB found in the PS4 Pro. With ballooning game sizes, there were notable concerns that the hard drive would only be able to hold a few games before gamers would have to start making sacrifices.
Those fears were reinforced by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare's and Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War's install size, as both games neared the 200 GB marker. Call of Duty Vanguard has notably been smaller, though whether that's thanks to Kraken or some other technical wizardry isn't exactly clear.
Regardless, smaller install sizes are a positive thing, and with any luck, more games will manage to cut down on their hard drive usage in the future. After all, the shift towards lifestyle games has caused chunky install sizes, making it harder to strike a balance between different types. For those that are only invested in one or two games at a time, that's not a massive issue. But for those looking to sample everything the games industry has to offer, it can be tough to decide what's worth downloading.
Dying Light 2 releases February 4, 2022, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.