ASUS ROG Alley (opens in new tab) A new topic in the PC gaming world. This sleek little handheld PC is Asus’ answer to Valve’s Steam Deck. The main difference is that this little unit runs Windows instead of Linux. Steam Deck’s cheaper offering is still worth picking up, but this, combined with a sensible price point, has catapulted ROG Ally to the top spot on the portable PC podium. (opens in new tab)And Microsoft may be trying to widen the gap even further.
Swillockers (opens in new tab) During the ROG ALLY launch video, we spotted a snippet of Xbox manager Roanne Sones talking about some gaming features that could come to Windows 11. Xbox’s closed he infrastructure allows the console to take advantage of some cool features that haven’t been ported yet. Migrate to Windows. Many of these ideas are perfect for something as portable as Ally, so it’s no surprise that Microsoft is starting to seriously consider bringing them to Windows.
Sones acknowledges that these new handheld PCs have “changed the way Microsoft thinks about the Windows experience.” He didn’t specifically say what the changes would be, nor if they would apply across Windows 11 or if they could be exclusive to these console PC hybrids. However, she mentions one of my favorite features of the new Xbox console her as a hypothetical example.
Quick resume is a great feature (opens in new tab) Xbox Series consoles let you put your game on hold and pick up right where you left off. Switch games or put your console into rest mode and it will instantly return to where you left it. You don’t need to go through actual load times or intro screens, you basically just enter and exit the game with no additional hardware load. Perhaps this is one of the main features Microsoft would like to see introduced to the handheld PC world.
It would be nice to be able to quickly switch between the games you’re currently obsessed with on your PC without having to close them.Hot swap between Genshin and Starrail (opens in new tab) It’s great that waifu can use daily resources. Not to mention how easy it is to switch between games depending on your commute time or your mood. It would be great for the PC gaming world if Microsoft could bring Quick Resume to Windows.
Another feature that sounds pretty exciting should also be taken with a bit of a grain of salt. It was mentioned that Microsoft is looking into allowing instant swapping of games between devices on Windows. That means you can play on his PC at home, pick up ROG Ally, and transfer your game session there without rebooting.
These are all great ideas to bring into the world of PC gaming, so hopefully they’re not just limited to handheld experiences. No matter what Microsoft accomplishes, this new portable gaming PC market means increased demand for console functionality running on the Windows platform, which will only benefit us all.
