Last year, Qualcomm launched its premium Snapdragon X Elite laptops with a bold claim: games would simply work on them. Given that these were high-end Windows machines, the promise seemed reasonable. However, when users and reviewers began testing their actual game libraries, this assurance quickly unraveled.
Many games refused to launch entirely, while others exhibited strange graphical bugs and performance issues. The most significant hurdle was with online multiplayer titles, where anti-cheat software would often block the Arm-based devices before players could even join a match. While the laptops were praised for their exceptional battery life and efficiency for everyday work, the gaming experience felt like an unfinished, half-baked feature.
The Clean-Up Operation: Microsoft and Qualcomm's Practical Fixes
What has transformed the situation since 2024 is not a single miracle update but a steady, practical clean-up effort from both Microsoft and Qualcomm. While Windows on Arm is still not the primary choice for hardcore PC gamers, it has come a long way towards offering a normal Windows gaming experience.
Qualcomm's most crucial move has been the introduction of the Snapdragon Control Panel. Previously, these laptops lacked a dedicated gaming hub, a standard feature on other Windows PCs. This new control panel automatically detects installed games and provides users with familiar settings like frame rate limits and basic graphics options. The immediate benefit is noticeable, but the real value lies in Qualcomm finally building a proper gaming software layer around its hardware.
Alongside this, Qualcomm has been aggressively pushing newer Adreno graphics drivers. These drivers are the silent foundation of game stability. In their early stages last year, they were a common source of crashes and odd behavior. Qualcomm claims to have shipped fixes for over 100 games since 2024, directly addressing these stability problems.
Microsoft's Role: Breaking Down Compatibility Walls
On its part, Microsoft tackled one of the biggest compatibility barriers. Its Prism emulator, which allows Arm laptops to run games designed for Intel and AMD x86 systems, now supports AVX instructions. A large number of modern games require AVX just to start, and without it, Arm devices were instantly locked out. With this support, a significant portion of games that failed last year can now at least launch, a fix that users experience immediately.
Qualcomm's upcoming Snapdragon X2 Elite chips will add AVX2 emulation, and the company has confirmed that older Snapdragon X laptops will also receive this capability soon.
Microsoft has also enhanced the Xbox app for Arm laptops. At the launch of Copilot Plus PCs, the app was primarily a gateway to cloud gaming and did not support proper downloads of compatible games from a user's library or PC Game Pass. The updated app now allows for downloading games that are ready for Arm architecture.
The Anti-Cheer Hurdle is Starting to Crack
The multiplayer barrier is also showing signs of breaking. Even if a game could run via the Prism emulator, anti-cheat systems frequently prevented access. A major breakthrough came with Fortnite. Qualcomm collaborated with Epic Games to ensure Fortnite now runs on Windows on Arm with full Easy Anti-Cheat support, provided you have the latest Adreno driver. This is a critical development because if a title of this magnitude can overcome the hurdle, it sets a precedent for other games to follow. Qualcomm has stated it is engaged in similar collaborations with other anti-cheat providers.
This progress does not mean Windows on Arm is a perfect gaming platform yet. Some titles still rely on emulation rather than running natively, which can result in lower performance compared to similar x86 laptops. A number of games remain incompatible, and anti-cheat support is still in its early stages.
However, the change is undeniable. Last year, attempting to game on a Snapdragon laptop felt like a gamble. Today, the major roadblocks are being systematically cleared, and the experience is beginning to feel normal. If Microsoft and Qualcomm maintain this momentum, Windows on Arm will evolve from being just a battery-life champion to a sensible choice for professionals who want a work laptop that can also handle their gaming sessions without any drama.
