# Game updates, extras and leftover files can inflate storage use

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/why-your-games-take-up-way-more-drive-space-than-expected-even-when-uninstalled/
- Published: 2026-10-31T13:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-31T13:13:00+00:00
- Original publisher: Engadget
- Original article: https://www.engadget.com/2299478/games-take-up-more-drive-space-expected/
- Topics: Space, Technology

## Key points

- Store listings show only the base game size.
- Updates, DLC and recordings can add many gigabytes.
- Saves, caches and mods may remain after uninstalling.

## Summary

Modern games can take up far more space than their store listings suggest, and uninstalling them may not remove every file they leave behind. The extra storage use comes from updates, downloadable content and optional assets, as well as recordings and other files created while playing.

The article compares the original Tomb Raider’s roughly 100MB requirement with 40GB for Shadow of the Tomb Raider, a 400-fold increase. It gives examples of large launch updates: Fallout 76’s 54GB PS4 patch on top of a 45GB install, and a 48GB to 52GB first update for The Division 2. On PS5, Astro Bot can also generate 63 trophy videos; on PC, shader caches, screenshots, saves, settings and mods may remain after an uninstall.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.