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Horizon Forbidden West storage: How much space to free on PC and PS5

By Freedom251 Team · · 7 min read

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Free 150 GB on an SSD for the PC Complete Edition, or plan for at least 121 GB on PS5 for the Complete Edition. Those are the safest figures for making room to install. They are not the same as the size of the files that end up installed: an English Steam installation was listed at about 123 GB on disk and 97 GB to download on 29 October 2026. The older PS5 and PS4 size figures are regional preload downloads from 2022, not current post-patch storage requirements.

How much space does each version of Horizon Forbidden West need?

The amount depends on platform and edition. The clearest current planning figures are the official 150 GB SSD requirement for the PC Complete Edition and the 121 GB minimum printed for the PS5 Complete Edition. The base-game console figures below are historical launch downloads; they should not be mistaken for a live 2026 store listing or a guaranteed current install size.

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Platform and edition Figure What the figure means
PC Complete Edition 150 GB Official SSD free-space requirement; Steam, Nixxes Software, and PlayStation list this for PC.
PC Complete Edition, English Steam install About 123 GB on disk; 97 GB download Steam 250 byte counts, updated 29 October 2026; actual reported install and download, not the free-space requirement.
PS5 standard edition, US 87.608 GB PSN preload download for version 01.003.000, February 2022.
PS5 standard edition, EU 98.074 GB PSN preload download for version 01.003.000, February 2022.
PS5 standard edition, Japan 83.797 GB PSN preload download for version 01.003.000, February 2022.
PS4 standard edition, Europe 90.243 GB European preload download for version 1.03, 2022; a complete US/JP comparison was not reported.
PS5 Complete Edition, physical At least 121 GB Minimum installation space printed on the two-disc box, reported in October 2023.
Burning Shores, PS5 About 15–17 GB 2023 regional download figures; included in the Complete Edition.

There is no independently reported 2026 PlayStation Store page in the available sources that gives a current live GB figure for the PS5 standard or Complete Edition. The PS5 base-game numbers are useful for understanding the launch build, but patches since then can change what is installed.

Why is the PC requirement 150 GB when the game is about 123 GB?

150 GB is the amount of free SSD space to reserve; about 123 GB is the reported size of a single-language English Steam installation. The figures describe different things, so the smaller install figure is not a reason to ignore the official requirement.

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Steam lists “150 GB available space” and adds “150GB SSD Space.” Nixxes Software’s requirements, updated 12 March 2026, and PlayStation’s PC specification also list 150 GB SSD space across the published performance tiers. Nixxes says the minimum tier targets Very Low settings at 1280 × 720 and an average 30 frames per second, while its recommended tier targets Medium settings at 1920 × 1080 and an average 60 frames per second. The storage requirement is the same at both tiers.

Steam 250’s listing, last updated 29 October 2026, reports 131,638,726,764 bytes on disk and 104,090,887,152 bytes to download—rounded there to 123 G and 97 G. Converted to binary units, the installed byte count is about 122.62 GiB. SteamDB’s Windows-and-English-only depot view, with DLC depots filtered out, is close at 122.60 GiB on disk and 96.94 GiB to download.

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The difference between those reported values and the 150 GB requirement leaves room for the installation process and future updates. Keep the full 150 GB free before starting rather than relying on the smaller final folder size; an update may need working space while files are downloaded or replaced.

Why do some PC size reports show nearly 174 GiB?

SteamDB’s 173.99 GiB on-disk and 136.06 GiB download total counts every language depot, rather than a typical single-language setup. Individual language depots are roughly 2.2–2.4 GiB each. SteamDB also lists a 26.35 GiB depot associated with DLC app 2452460, with a 15.59 GiB download size. Steam 250’s English figure matches the SteamDB view with DLC depots filtered out, so do not automatically add 26.35 GiB to the 123 GB figure. Check the installed files shown in your own Steam library before assuming that depot is present separately.

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One Japanese PlayStation PC specification row lists 15 GB for Recommended storage, but the same page’s other tiers and the English official listings say 150 GB. Treat the 15 GB entry as a localization error, not a different requirement.

How much space did the PS5 and PS4 base games take?

The February 2022 preload reports show regional differences, particularly on PS5: the EU download was larger than the US and Japanese versions. These numbers were reported for specific launch versions and regions; they are not official current free-space requirements.

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PlayStation Game Size reported the PS5 version 01.003.000 preload as 87.608 GB in the US, 98.074 GB in Europe, and 83.797 GB in Japan. GameSpot and PlayStation LifeStyle relayed those figures in February 2022. The EU build’s larger download reflects its regional language set; it does not establish that every later PS5 installation will retain the same size difference.

For PS4, the reported European version 1.03 preload was 90.243 GB. GameSpot described it as about 8 GB smaller than the PS5 EU version. No matching full US-and-Japan PS4 size table was reported, so do not apply the European figure to every region.

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Pre-release tracker estimates such as roughly 96 GB for PS5 were superseded by the actual February preload figures. For current space planning, allow for patches rather than treating any 2022 preload number as the exact size of a fully updated install.

How much space does the PS5 Complete Edition need?

The PS5 Complete Edition requires a minimum of 121 GB to install, according to the figure printed on the physical box and reported in October 2023. The physical release comes on two Blu-ray discs: a single PS5 Ultra HD Blu-ray disc holds up to 100 GB, so two discs accommodate the release. The discs do not eliminate the stated installation-space requirement.

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Complete Edition includes the base game, the Burning Shores expansion, digital soundtrack, digital art book, the Horizon Zero Dawn Vol. 1: The Sunhawk digital comic, and in-game items. Because the expansion is already included, buyers of this edition should not add its standalone 15–17 GB download figure on top of the 121 GB minimum.

Some reports rounded the box figure to 120 GB. The reported wording from MauroNL, quoted by Insider Gaming, gives 121 GB as the minimum, so that is the more precise figure to use. Complete Edition is not available for PS4 because Burning Shores is PS5-only.

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How large is Burning Shores?

Burning Shores, released for PS5 on 19 April 2023, was reported at 16.763 GB in Europe and 14.921 GB in Japan; the US download was expected to be around 15 GB. PlayStation Game Size figures were relayed by PlayStation LifeStyle, with other coverage describing the European download as just under 17 GB. Regional download sizes vary.

The expansion is not a PS4 add-on. Guerrilla Games said the PS5 hardware enabled more distant, higher-detail views, and director Mathijs de Jonge also pointed to a demanding battle scene requiring substantial memory and processing power. For owners of Complete Edition, the expansion is bundled; for another compatible PS5 edition, its separate download adds to the space you need.

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Will Horizon Forbidden West fit on a 1 TB PS5 or a Steam Deck?

A 121 GB Complete Edition install takes a meaningful share of a PS5’s available storage. A standard PS5 is commonly described as shipping with an 825 GB SSD, of which about 667 GB is usable after system software; a later 1 TB storage figure should not be confused with the amount available for games on every model.

On Steam Deck, SteamDB marked the game Playable—not Verified—in its 7 October 2026 check of build 14835813, and manual graphics configuration is required. The 150 GB PC free-space requirement still applies: a 64 GB Deck cannot accommodate the game, while 256 GB is tight once the operating system and Proton files are accounted for. A 512 GB or 1 TB model is the more realistic capacity for installing it alongside other software.

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On PC, the SSD requirement is explicit in the official specifications. An HDD is not a supported storage substitute for this requirement. If a 512 GB system drive is already crowded, a larger internal SSD is a more practical option than trying to squeeze the game into the remaining space.

What can you do if there is not enough storage?

Make room for the full required free-space figure before downloading, then decide whether to remove other installs or expand storage. The expansion path differs between PC and PS5.

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On PS5

  • Remove or move games you are not currently playing to create room for the installation.
  • For playable PS5 games, use compatible internal M.2 NVMe storage as the expansion option. PlayStation storage guidance reported by Tom’s Guide in August 2026 notes that external USB drives can hold copies for rest-mode storage, but PS5 games must be on the console’s internal storage or an M.2 drive to play.
  • Check the available space again before an update; a game that fit at first installation may need additional room when updated.

On PC

  • Check the free capacity on the SSD where the Steam library is installed, not just the total capacity printed on the drive.
  • Uninstall or relocate other games if needed, or install the library on a larger SSD. The requirement is 150 GB free on an SSD.
  • Do not count all-language depot totals as the size of a normal English install, and do not count the separate DLC depot twice without checking whether Steam has installed it.

For the least ambiguous decision, reserve 150 GB of SSD space before installing on PC or at least 121 GB on PS5 Complete Edition. Use the older regional preload figures only as historical context for the standard console editions, not as a current patched-install guarantee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I play a PS5 game directly from an external USB drive?

External USB storage can keep copies of PS5 games, but those games must be copied back to the console’s internal storage or a compatible M.2 SSD before they can be played. A compatible M.2 drive is the internal expansion route for playing PS5 titles.

Do I have to finish Horizon Forbidden West before starting Burning Shores?

Yes. PlayStation says the main quest must be completed through “Singularity”; then return to the Base and interact with an artifact to begin the expansion.

Does the two-disc PS5 Complete Edition avoid a large download?

The physical release is on two Blu-ray discs, but its box still specifies at least 121 GB for installation. The disc format does not remove the need to reserve that console storage.

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