Microsoft: Gaming on Windows 11 is going to get so much better in 2026
2025 is drawing to a close, so Microsoft has seen it fit to highlight all the ways it made gaming better on traditional PCs and handheld devices like the ROG Xbox Ally this year. The company claims that the gaming experience on Windows 11 became much faster, portable, and visually impressive in 2025.
One of the ways in which this was made possible was through partnerships with ASUS and AMD to build innovative handheld hardware. Other enhancements include:
- Xbox full screen experience (FSE) for handhelds
- Advanced Shader Delivery (ASD)
- System-level performance boosts
- Local gameplay with Xbox PC app (Insiders) for Windows on Arm
- Expanded Prism compatibility
- Native anti-cheat support for Windows on Arm
- DirectX Raytracing 1.2 (DXR 1.2)
- Neural rendering (preview)
- Improvements to Bluetooth LE Audio
Now, Microsoft intends to build upon all of these foundations in 2026 with even more improvements. This includes the availability of Xbox FSE for more form factors such as traditional PCs and 2-in-1s. It is currently available in preview for Insiders. Similarly, ASD is also being expanded to cover more games on the ROG Xbox Ally handhelds.
Moreover, AI-powered upscaling through Auto Super Resolution (Auto SR), initially exclusive to Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon X processors will be landing as a public preview on the ROG Xbox Ally X, running on AMD’s Ryzen AI NPU. The firm has also promised some performance benefits down the line, noting that:
We’re committed to making Windows the best place to play, and we will continue refining system behaviors that matter most to gaming: background workload management, power and scheduling improvements, graphics stack optimizations, and updated drivers.
Microsoft has encouraged gamers who want to stay on the bleeding edge of technology to join the Windows and Xbox Insider programs. It also plans to share more information around upcoming features at GDC in March 2026.
Source: https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-gaming-on-windows-11-is-going-to-get-so-much-better-in-2026/