this post was submitted on 09 Aug 2026
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There are a number of games
particularly those since SSD storage became pretty much the norm
that do not load a whole level, but load while playing. Why not just load the game (or the level)? Because it lets devices with less RAM store more stuff than they otherwise would. You have more relaxed caps on things lile texture size.
I'd assume that the engine is still going to try to predict what content is going to be needed prior to it being needed, that it's got a strategy more sophisticated than just "load resource first time it's requested". But SSD storage is going to be more forgiving of a miss than rotational storage.
Bethesda uses the term "cell". I know that their engine uses a square grid as the loading unit, loads a sort of circle of cells around the cell where the player is.
searches
It sounds like the Unreal 5 terminology is "sublevel", for the units loaded.
https://old.reddit.com/r/unrealengine/comments/1tchk8k/is_level_streaming_even_worth_it_if_your_game/
Right, that's what I was referring to in my comment. Games that load while playing to avoid loading screens between areas. ๐