Microsoft’s “Xbox full screen experience” could transform gaming on Windows
Microsoft’s finally tackling Windows 11’s bloat, at least for PC gaming handhelds
Alongside their ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X, Microsoft unveiled some major changes for Windows 11. Microsoft’s Xbox and Windows teams are collaborating to enhance the Windows gaming experience, aiming to deliver performance improvements for gamers. With the “Xbox full screen experience”, gamers should expect increased performance and a longer battery life from handheld systems.
Simply put, Microsoft’s “Xbox full screen experience” isn’t a gaming skin for Windows 11. When it is running, Windows 11’s idle power draw can drop by two-thirds. How? Microsoft is shutting down tasks that aren’t dedicated to gaming, freeing up system resources and saving power. Those system resources can then be used to boost the performance of PC games.
Microsoft reckons that this mode can save up to 2GB of RAM by dropping search indexing, office background processes, Copilot, and other features. For PC gaming handhelds, this freed-up RAM can increase the graphical fidelity of games, as these systems use a combined memory pool for CPU and GPU tasks. Honestly, this change to Windows is so beneficial, it better not be exclusive to PC gaming handhelds. Desktop users will want these options too.
The Xbox full screen experience is coming to the ROG Xbox Ally first, and other devices later
Microsoft’s new gaming features for Windows are still in development. At launch, it will be exclusive to ASUS’ ROG Xbox Ally systems, though it will be rolled out to more devices later.
Honestly, this move is a step in the right direction for Microsoft and Windows. Over time, Windows has become a bloated mess, and Valve’s SteamOS has shown itself to be a strong competitor in the PC handheld space. Microsoft is making these changes to Windows because they have to. If Microsoft wants to maintain its dominant position, Windows needs to be stable, efficient, and performant. Right now, it isn’t.
Microsoft is promising the versatility of Windows with more performance and power efficiency for gamers. These changes are necessary for Microsoft moving forward, especially as they continue to embrace the “Xbox Everywhere” mentra.
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