Windows 11s Game Bar gets a fresh coat of paint, plus a tweak to work better on handhelds and I like the direction Microsofts heading in here

Date:
Thu, 27 Mar 2025 10:31:49 +0000

Description:
Use Windows 11s Game Bar? Youll likely appreciate its new design that offers
a cleaner, neater look, and a tweak for gaming handhelds.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Microsof ts March updates for Xbox also brought something for Windows 11 The Game Bar has been given a makeover, including multiple widgets Theres also a useful change to improve the Game Bar Widget Store when using a controller

Microsoft has just brought in a raft of changes for the Xbox consoles in its March updates, but theres something here for PC gamers too a new look for
the Game Bar (and a useful tweak for handhelds, too).

For the uninitiated, the Game Bar is an overlay that can be summoned to provide easy and convenient access to a bunch of game-related options. That includes tricks such as recording gameplay , monitoring your PCs performance, tweaking audio settings and much more. The bar can be customized with various widgets and its a very useful tool for Windows 11 gamers on the whole.

And now, as Neowin spotted , Microsoft has given the Game Bar a graphical makeover, and also tells us that this is the start of several visual enhancements that will be rolling out this week.

The overall look of the bar has been refreshed, and there are new designs for some of the widgets that can be hosted in the Game Bar. That includes the Capture widget, Performance widget, Resource widget, and also the Widget
Store itself.

Furthermore, when youre in the Widget Store, Microsoft says it has improved the way you navigate around with the controller, so this will provide a
better experience in Compact Mode.

You might recall that the Game Bars Compact Mode was an innovation brought in last year , designed to display the contents of the overlay more optimally in a smaller space as the name suggests making life easier for those running Windows 11 on a gaming handheld. (Image credit: Microsoft) Analysis: Handheld hopes

In terms of its appearance, the Game Bar has been refined considerably over the past year or so, and this is yet another step towards making this overlay look more modern. These latest touches make the bar look neater and cleaner, at least in my opinion, so Im pleased with the general design philosophy Microsoft has gone with here.

Its also good to get that improvement to make it easier to explore the Widget Store with a controller, which is another step forward for those using the Game Bar on a Windows 11 handheld like the Asus ROG Ally X .

The more Microsoft introduces tinkering aimed at such gaming handhelds and there have been quite a few small steps taken in that direction now the more hope I have for an eventual handheld mode for Windows 11 (which has been rumored to be something the company has been considering for some time now). You may also like... Shock, horror Im not going to argue with Microsofts latest bit of nagging in Windows 11, as this pop-up is justified Microsoft is supercharging Windows 11s voice commands on Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon
CPUs, and fine-tuning a few Recall features Windows 11 fully streamlined in just two clicks? Talon utility promises to rip all the bloatware out of Microsofts OS in a hassle-free way



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/windows/windows-11s-game-bar-gets-a-fresh- coat-of-paint-plus-a-tweak-to-work-better-on-handhelds-and-i-like-the-directio n-microsofts-heading-in-here


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