Thursday, February 26th 2026 February Xbox Update Brings 1440p Streaming, ROG Xbox Ally Updates, Controller Responsiveness on PC and More Press Release by GFreeman Today, 03:09 Discuss (2 ) February was a big month as we launched a lot of new features and updates, all with one thought in mind: improving your Xbox gaming experience. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members can now stream their favorite games at up to 1440p resolution on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One X and Xbox One S consoles. On the Xbox PC app, we've added new sounds to help improve your controller navigation responsiveness. We've also listened to your feedback and added several new updates to the ROG Xbox Ally, including the ability to easily format your removable storage. And, in case you missed it, we recently released Postgame Recaps to Xbox Insiders, which provides a recap of your recent gameplay on your PC, and the updated Xbox Cloud Gaming web experience is now in public preview for Insiders. Read all about these exciting updates, including new game additions, below. Here's What's New Sharper Streams. Smoother Play. Built for Xbox Consoles. Xbox Cloud Gaming on Xbox consoles is leveling up. We're now rolling out up to 1440p, higher bitrate streaming for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members, delivering sharper visuals and more responsive gameplay across supported titles and regions. This upgrade is beginning to roll out on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One X and Xbox One S consoles - joining the Xbox PC app, handhelds, supported browsers, select Fire TV devices, LG TVs, and Samsung TVs. With Xbox Cloud Gaming now out of beta, we're continuing to refine performance, expand support, and make cloud gameplay seamless. Learn more on the support page. Updates Listen for New Sounds on the Xbox PC App We're bringing a little extra polish to your controller experience on the Xbox PC app. Rolled out this month, you'll notice new, subtle navigation sounds that make moving around the app with a controller feel more responsive and intuitive. These optional audio cues play during key actions - like shifting focus, selecting an item, or backing out - giving every interaction a bit more feedback and personality. If you want to customize things, you're in control: head to Settings > Audio to turn controller navigation sounds on or off and adjust the volume to match your setup. ROG Xbox Ally UpdatesImproved Removable Storage Formatting support: ROG Xbox Ally players can now easily format removable storage (including the officially licensed Sandisk microSD cards) for installing and running games directly in the Xbox app. When installing a game, you can simply select your removable storage drive and format it directly.Advanced Shader Delivery Indicator: ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X players will now see a notice on the game loading screen of supported titles indicating if graphic shaders were pre-compiled. Advanced Shader Delivery preloads game shaders during download so select games launch faster and run smoother on first play.Additional Improvements: We've made several other updates for ROG Xbox Ally players based on their feedback. You can see the complete list of updates in the patch notes. In Case You Missed It Postgame Recaps: Available for Xbox Insiders on PC We recently rolled out Postgame Recaps, a new feature available to Xbox Insiders enrolled in the PC Gaming Preview through the Xbox PC app on WindowsPCs. After you wrap up a gaming session, you'll start to see recaps that detail any achievements unlocked or captures taken, surface upcoming in-game events, and give you a chance to share feedback that helps us keep improving your experience. And just like the rest of the Xbox PC app experience, you're in control. You can choose which recaps you want to see, Just head to Settings > App > Postgame to customize everything to your liking. Recaps will only appear sometimes (for example: after you've earned new achievements, or played a game for the first time). Want to dive deeper? Check out the full article for more details. Try the New Xbox Cloud Gaming Web Experience: Now in Public Preview We're testing a refreshed Xbox Cloud Gaming experience on the web. This public preview gives Insiders who opt in a first look at our updated browser interface. This was built to help us move faster, innovate more often, and bring new features to players sooner. If you opt in, you'll notice some changes right away, including updated navigation and a refreshed look and feel. Since this is a preview, a few features may be limited or behave differently than what you're used to in the current web experience, but that's all part of helping us shape where the experience goes next. We'll be iterating throughout the preview, so expect things to evolve over time. Learn how to access the preview and get all the details in the full article. Game Additions Handheld Compatibility Program - Optimizing Play for Players The Handheld Compatibility Program makes it easier for you to identify which games are optimized for handheld play. This update is now visible on product detail pages across select Windows devices and featured in the handheld compatible channel on Home on supported Windows handhelds. Recently, the following gameswere added to the program:Cash Cleaner Simulator (Handheld Optimized)Dragon Quest VII Reimagined (Handheld Optimized)High on Life 2 (Handheld Optimized)Reanimal (Mostly Compatible)Starsand Island (Mostly Compatible) Xbox Play Anywhere - Buy Once, Play Anywhere Over 1,000 games now support Xbox Play Anywhere, making it easier than ever to switch between PC, console, and supported handhelds for Xbox Play Anywhere games you own at no extra cost to you. Jump into games like Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade and MIO: Memories in Orbit now. Your progress travels with you, including saves, add-ons, and achievements. Just sign in with your Xbox account on any supported device and pick up right where you left off. Xbox Game Pass subscription required to play Xbox Play Anywhere Games via Cloud Gaming (sold separately). These are the games added to the Xbox Play Anywhere collection in January:Baking TimeBus Driving Simulator : EvoDirection QuadDrop DuchyDustland DeliveryEscape From Ever AfterFight for AmericaFinal Fantasy VII Remake IntergradeFoot ClinicGod Bless, or GoddessGridz KeeperHeroes Battle AwakeningHero SeekersHextreme VoidHo Ho & MoveI'm in Love With Your Dead GrandmotherInk & Paper: DoodleCutThe Last Case of John MorleyMIO: Memories in OrbitNinja NightfallThe NomParkingJamPathologic 3Rage SwarmRaptor EvolutionSimRail - The Railway SimulatorSpeedballStable Stories - Forest and Meadow RideSudoku ChampionsCheck out the full list of available games that players can enjoy anywhere. Stream Your Own Game - Over 1,000 Games We're continuing to grow the Stream your own game collection in Xbox Cloud Gaming. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Premium, and Essential subscribers can now stream from a library of 1000+ games they own, across supported devices. That includes titles like Gears of War andHigh on Life 2. More games, more flexibility, and more ways to play - wherever you may be. Recently added:Aerial_Knight's DropShotBlazBlue Entropy Effect XChromaGun 2: Dye HardDeath HowlDeath Match Love Comedy!Gears of WarHigh on Life 2Milano's Odd Job CollectionMordhauPummel PartyReanimalRide 6Roadside Research (Game Preview)Romeo is a Dead ManStarsand IslandStyx: Blades of GreedTCG Card Shop Simulator…and many more! Coming soon:Chained EchoesGhostrunner 2Slay the Princess - The Pristine CutSpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic ShakeStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy OriginStar Trek: ResurgenceStar Wars: Dark Forces Remaster…and many more! Check out the full list of cloud-playable games available to stream on supported devices here. For more information on Stream your own game, learn more here. Retro Classics has 100+ Games Great games deserve to stick around, and we're making sure they do. Xbox and Antstream Arcade are bringing 100+ retro favorites to modern devices with Retro Classics available on Xbox Game Pass, so players can keep enjoying the classics. With over 1 million players already diving into Retro Classics, here's a look at the titles that have been recently added to Retro Classics:Beyond ZorkKabobberReturn to ZorkSeaquestStampedeXbox Game Pass subscribers can join weekly tournaments, take on community challenges and enjoy a growing library of Activision and Blizzard games with the Retro Classics collection of over 100 titles and more to come over time. Click here for more information on Retro Classics. Xbox Adds More Games for Mouse & Keyboard and Touch Controls Xbox supports the use of wired USB mice and keyboards for navigation in select games and apps, as well as across Xbox and Windows devices. For players enjoying Xbox games on mobile, Xbox touch controls deliver a controller-free experience for hundreds of titles. Today, there are 130+ games with mouse and keyboard support active on cloud and 260+ games with touch controls available on cloud, giving you more ways to play than ever before. Some games even provide custom control overlays or render their own touch layouts, creating a tailored experience for each title's unique gameplay. Learn how to set up and customize your touch controls here. Here are the latest titles added this month: Mouse and keyboard:Company of Heroes 3Hotel BarcelonaTransport Fever 2For support on setting up devices, see here for more details. Help Shape the Future of Xbox Stay tuned to Xbox Wire for future updates and the latest and greatest Xbox news. For support related to Xbox updates, visit the official Xbox Support site. We love hearing from the community, whether it's a new feature idea or feedback on something we can improve upon. Xbox is always evolving, and your input helps shape what's next. If you'd like to help create the future of Xbox and get early access to new features, join the Xbox Insider Program today by downloading the Xbox Insider Hub for Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One or Windows PC. Happy gaming! Source: Xbox Wire Related News Tags: Keyboard PC PC Gaming Retro Classic Update Updates Windows Xbox Xbox Game Pass Xbox Insiders Xbox One Xbox One S Xbox One X Xbox Series X Aug 18th 2025 Microsoft Windows 11 24H2 Update May Cause SSD Failures (278) Oct 21st 2025 Windows 11 25H2 October Update Bug Renders Recovery Environment Unusable (170) Oct 17th 2025 Microsoft Breaks Localhost with Windows 11 October Update, Users Forced to Revert (105) Oct 1st 2025 Microsoft Releases Windows 11 25H2... With Zero New Features? 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If I remember correctly, video capturing is handled by a bespoke processor, but I was unaware that it could do 1440p. #2 _JP_ Still too much focus on subscription-based features, not enough on the actual content to drive people to put money into the platform, let alone the ecosystem. ROG Ally is a side-quest. Want me to spend north of 300€ on that special 4TB expansion card? Motivate me, damn it. So far, 1TB built-in has been more than enough, ffs. Play Anywhere still feels like a total artificial barrier, considering that the Xbox is just a dedicated x86 platform for games on Windows. There are zero excuses for all of the catalog to be available in the bog-standard Windows 1x (other than licensing, again artificial).
