Do I need an HDD in my gaming rig?

[Mike3k24]

Hello everyone, I'm building my gaming PC next month and I only have 550$ to spend. I was wondering if I will need an HDD for my rig. I already have a 120 GB SSD that has my copy of Windows 10 on it. Sorry if this question is stupid I'm a noob when it comes to computers but I'm trying to learn. So if you decide to answer please say 1. If I will need it 2. What is the Hdd used for 3. Does it impact gaming in anyway.
Here's my rig if you'd like to see what I will be putting together! Tell me what you think!
Also the parts that I left out are the parts I do not need. (I'm not sure about the HDD yet so I just left it out)
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($197.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B150M BAZOOKA Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($196.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $543.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-06-14 19:02 EDT-0400

 

[rgd1101]

how many game do you ususally install at a time? what type of game, example would be helpful.

 

[StormBrew]

I would most definitely purchase a hard drive if you're gaming:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($197.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B150M BAZOOKA Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.49 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 380X 4GB PCS+ Myst. Edition Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case ($37.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $573.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-06-14 19:08 EDT-0400

1. Yes you need a hard drive.
2. The hard drive is used to store files the same way an SSD does. HDD are typically slower than SSD's, but offer much more space for storage. I own a 120GB SSD, and I can only fit 2-5 modern titles on it. The rest of my files, downloads, and programs are stored on the hard drive.
3. It impacts gaming in the sense of having your games available to actually play. You can't play what you can't download. For example, Battlefield 4 takes up roughly 30 gigabytes of space for just the game, and adds on another 20 gigabytes for the rest of the DLC's. Most modern titles have large downloads, and a 120GB SSD won't cut it on its own. Use the SSD for the games and programs you use most often, while using the HDD to store the rest of your files.

I switched the graphics card for a more powerful R9 380X, but I would advise waiting for the RX 480 to release later this year. It will be priced at $200 for baseline models, and outperforms the GTX 970.

I changed the power supply to a much better model, that is better optimized for higher tier gaming systems.

The case is higher quality, with more robust features.

 

[Mike3k24]

rgd1101 The only time I'll really be installing multiple games at a time will be when I build the PC. This is cause I will have to download my steam games such as CSGO CoD Rocket league and left for dead 1 and 2.

 

[Mike3k24]

Storm Brew thank you for that in depth explaination. Also does the HDD have to be 7200? Cause I have a 5400 that I can use if it's compatible.

 

[StormBrew]

rgd1101 The only time I'll really be installing multiple games at a time will be when I build the PC. This is cause I will have to download my steam games such as CSGO CoD Rocket league and left for dead 1 and 2.

Your 120GB SSD is going to fill up very fast. This was the case with my 120GB SSD, and I soon realized I would need to begin downloading to a separate hard drive. If you do not buy a hard drive, you essentially are limiting your ability to store files and programs without worrying about storage space.

 

[StormBrew]

Storm Brew thank you for that in depth explaination. Also does the HDD have to be 7200? Cause I have a 5400 that I can use if it's compatible.

No, but the 5400 RPM hard drives are quite slow. Expect any games stored on that device to open slowly and have long load times. The benefit of a 7200RPM drive is that it operates at the fastest speed for HDD. SSD's outpace it easily, but for mass storage HDD's are still king.

 

[USAFRet]

A single 120GB drive won't last long. It will fill up quickly.
Stuff you didn't even know you wanted.

Yes, you need a larger HDD.

 

[Mike3k24]

rgd1101 The only time I'll really be installing multiple games at a time will be when I build the PC. This is cause I will have to download my steam games such as CSGO CoD Rocket league and left for dead 1 and 2.

Your 120GB SSD is going to fill up very fast. This was the case with my 120GB SSD, and I soon realized I would need to begin downloading to a separate hard drive. If you do not buy a hard drive, you essentially are limiting your ability to store files and programs without worrying about storage space.

Makes sense. So I'm definitely getting that HDD