I’m on a computer from 2017, so storage is one of the first upgrades I’d think about. I looked at real load-time tests instead of spec sheets. Here’s what works.

Move your games to an SSD

In a PCWorld test, Cyberpunk 2077 took almost a minute longer to load from a hard drive than from an SSD. Marvel Rivals loaded over seven times slower on the hard drive.

Don’t overpay for NVMe

A fast NVMe drive looks great on paper, but for gaming the gap over a SATA SSD is small in many games. A SATA SSD is still a big step up from a hard drive.

Don’t wait for cheaper flash

TrendForce expects NAND flash prices to rise another 15 to 20 percent, so waiting may cost you more.

Keep both drives

Put Windows and the games you play most on the SSD, and keep the rest on the hard drive. On an older computer, that split is the cheapest way to get faster loads.

Check before you buy

• Whether your machine takes SATA or M.2 drives
• How much space your games really need
• Prices at a few stores, since they’re moving

An old hard drive isn’t a dead end. It just works better as storage than as a game drive.