Windows 11’s Steam Deck-ish, streamlined Xbox gaming UI involves all PCs in April

When Asus and Microsoft launched the ROG Xbox Ally X final summer season, it got here with a bespoke controller-driven full-screen interface operating on prime of Windows 11. The handheld was nonetheless operating Windows beneath the hood, and you could possibly carry up the everyday Windows desktop any time, but it surely defaulted to the full-screen gaming UI.

Then referred to as both the “Xbox Experience for Handheld” or the “Xbox Full-Screen Experience (FSE)” relying on who you requested and when, Microsoft mentioned it could be accessible on all Windows PCs in some unspecified time in the future in 2026. That level has apparently arrived: Microsoft announced this week at the Game Developers Conference that different Windows 11 PCs “in select markets” could be getting what’s now being referred to as “Xbox mode” beginning in April.

Under the hood, a PC operating in Xbox mode continues to be operating regular-old Windows, with the identical capabilities as some other PC. But there are system companies and UI parts (like the usual Start menu and taskbar) that don’t launch when the system is in Xbox mode, one thing Microsoft claims can save a gigabyte or two of RAM whereas additionally permitting techniques to make use of much less power. Users can return to Windows’ conventional desktop mode every time they need, although.

Our expertise with Xbox mode on the ROG Xbox Ally X was blended; a Windows PC in Xbox mode continues to be a Windows PC, with each the broad sport/app compatibility and the messiness that entails.

The seams between the controller-friendly interface and the mouse-and-keyboard model of Windows had been probably the most seen when making an attempt to obtain and launch video games from third-party sport shops like Steam and the Epic Games Store, which typically required you to make use of these retailer apps to purchase and obtain video games earlier than they may very well be launched from the consolation of Xbox mode. We’ll have to check the replace on different PCs after it rolls out to see whether or not Microsoft has made substantial enhancements.