Xbox Full Screen Experience is Coming to All Windows Handhelds Tomorrow

Microsoft is finally ready to expand the Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE) that launched on the Asus ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X to more Windows handhelds. During its Xbox Partner Preview broadcast earlier today, the Xbox team announced that the new UX will be available on all handhelds currently available in the market starting tomorrow, November 21.

It was already possible for early enthusiasts to enable the Xbox Full Screen Experience on Windows 11 version 25H2 through registry changes and the use of third-party tools, but that soon won’t be necessary. “We’re expanding FSE to more Windows 11 PC form factors through the Xbox and Windows Insider programs,” the Xbox team said today.

The Xbox Full Screen experience completely hides the Windows desktop and disables non-essential tasks to improve gaming performance. It’s designed to offer a console-style navigation, and it also offers a unified game library that provides access to games installed from Steam and other Stores.

To enable the Xbox FSE, Windows handheld users will need to go to Settings > Gaming > Full screen experience, then select Xbox as their home app. Once enabled, it’s possible to access the FSE from Task View and Game Bar or configure devices to enter the full screen experience on startup.

As of today, the interface is pretty basic compared to Steam’s Big Picture Mode. Using the Windows desktop also remains necessary for a lot of tasks, including storage management and adjusting various settings. Overall, Microsoft still has a lot of work to do to optimize Windows for handheld devices, and the Xbox Full Screen Experience is just the start.