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Forget the Nintendo Switch 2 – I’m more excited that Microsoft could be making Windows 11 gaming handhelds even better with a new ‘handheld mode’

April 2, 2025
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  • Hidden clues in Windows 11 point to a new ‘full screen experience’ for gaming handhelds
  • This could be a long-rumored ‘handheld mode’ that has several choices for layouts the user can select
  • It’s still very early days with this speculation, but Microsoft’s past (and more recent) moves all appear to add up to this really happening

In terms of gaming portables, all the chatter might be around the big Nintendo Switch 2 reveal today, but that’s not what I’m most interested in, frankly.

No, what has grabbed my attention instead is the airing of the strongest hint yet that Windows 11 could get a dedicated mode to make the OS a lot more usable on gaming handhelds like the Asus ROG Ally X.

Windows Central picked up on a regular leaker on Bluesky, Xeno, who posted about a recent preview build of Windows 11 that has some interesting changes hidden away in the background of the OS.

These are applied to settings in a new ‘GamingPosture’ category, and they include a mention of ‘Boot into the Full screen experience at device startup’ and ‘Choose your Full screen experience.’

In theory, that ‘full screen experience’ refers to a separate mode in Windows 11 which will be specifically designed around making the operating system work better on a small screen, such as those found on gaming handhelds.

As Xeno points out, Microsoft is also busy stripping out anything pertaining to the HoloLens from within the Settings app in Windows 11, which makes sense now Microsoft has dumped the headset.

PC gaming handheld on white table

(Image credit: Future)

Analysis: An increasingly likely prospect

There’s a major problem with gaming handhelds powered by Windows 11 right now, namely that the operating system’s normal interface is clunky to use and unfortunately tricky to navigate on a small screen.

There have been rumors of Microsoft at least mulling a ‘handheld mode’ for a long time now, which would frame Windows 11 with a much more gaming portable-friendly interface – a new ‘full screen experience’ for the OS, as we see with the leaked changes.

Indeed, the mention of a choice of full screen experience indicates that there may be multiple options to pick from in terms of how this handheld mode is presented – which would be a useful twist here. Options for customization, or different spins on the same basic idea, are always welcome.

Before we get carried away with a grand vision of Microsoft building a new way of working with Windows 11 specifically for handhelds, though, we need to remember that this is the wispiest of leaks at this point. It’s just a few tweaks to code in the background of Windows 11, with nothing even near testing yet.

However, there are already a lot of clues that this is the direction Microsoft is heading in. Not just the early rumors around the handheld mode I’ve already mentioned, but a bunch of strides forward since then.

That includes a ‘compact mode’ for the Xbox app on PC, and the same treatment for Windows 11’s Game Bar (which has been further improved in this respect very recently). Not to mention another recent addition for Windows 11, the gamepad keyboard layout to facilitate easier typing with the on-screen keyboard using a controller, or on a handheld.

These are concrete changes already in Windows 11, which seems a pretty clear signal from Microsoft that it’s serious about making the OS better for handhelds. And what else has popped up very recently? That teaser from Asus about the rumored Xbox handheld Microsoft is supposedly cooking up, which underlines the company’s ambitions on the portable gaming front.

Indeed, that Xbox-branded handheld might be the first device to use this new full-screen UI experience in Windows 11, but again, let’s sprinkle some caution over all this before we leap too zealously towards any conclusions here. As difficult as it may be to exercise restraint when it comes to the prospect of Microsoft supercharging Windows 11 handhelds to much better compete with the excellent interface delivered by Valve’s SteamOS, a dedicated gaming spin on Linux which remains a core strength of its Steam Deck.

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