Microsoft loves to promote Windows 11 25H2's AI features and other improvements, but can it actually game faster than Windows 10? We tested 14 modern titles to find out if the upgrade is worth it.
Windows 11 25H2 vs Windows 10: Which is Faster for Gaming?
- Thread starter Steve
- Start date
Windows 10 starts to show its age. However, still delivers better overall gaming performance than any Linux distro. By overall I mean no cherrypicking a single game. Also, any anti cheat solution will work.
Windows 12 this year?
Windows 12 this year?
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acrossthestars
Posts: 281 +266
That's only the case, insofar as anticheat is concerned. If anticheat makers were do to decide that kernel-level anticheat is no longer needed (or if Microsoft forces that to become a reality) and make all multiplayer games Proton-compatible, by mandating all cheat engines run in userspace, then both versions of Windows pale in comparison to SteamOS and its derivatives.
But, sure, tech industry. Please continue this charade of acting like either version of Windows is the preeminent platform to play games on. Windows 10 may technically be the superior version, but that's only because Windows 11 can't be f*cked to show up half the time. When it's not falling apart after every system update, it will stop working or come with even more ways to tell the user their feedback is no longer needed.
Kernel level is the only way to stop cheating. Which is why no anti cheat that works in Linux stops cheaters that knows what they are doing.
All multiplayer games that work in Linux, have big problems with cheaters.
So if you want to play with cheaters, just play multiplayer games that work in Linux.
CS2 for example, is infested with cheaters, to the point that serious and pro players, plays on closed servers where ID is needed + invite only.
Linux absolutely sucks for multiplayer gaming and Valve skimped on anti cheat to make it work on Linux. Tons of cheaters as a result.
This test clearly shows 11 beats 10 now. Especially in newer games. Which means it will beat Linux with absolute ease overall as well. Linux is overall still crap for multiplayer gaming. Most games won't even work as a result.
11 has been just as good as 10 for gaming since day one, if you actually know what you are doing meaning custom install + tweaks / limited processes running = Peak gaming performance, especially when using newer hardware in new(er) games. Also, all games will work, all anti cheat will work.
Building a high-end gaming machine, just to install Linux, is like buying a Ferrari to put on the cheapest shitty used tires you can find, which might explode shortly after.
People that claim Linux is good for gaming mostly plays old games, single player, on weak/dated hardware, claiming 30 fps at 60 Hz is smooth as butter. Mostly casuals. If Linux was actually superior, all serious, pro gamers and streamers would be using Linux not Windows. Proof enough that Linux is not better for gaming, or even comes close.
Linux is good for servers. Awesome actually. I use it on multiple machines and VMs. For gaming? Hell no, it is like asking for trouble. When building a gaming machine, people want to play games, not do troubleshooting.
I do enough troubleshooting at work (Linux servers, clusters)
The fun part of all this, is that people claiming Linux is good for gaming, often don't even know how to use Linux and just install a gaming focused distro.
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adisoftcafe
Posts: 83 +66
I use Fedora KDE to play games on Linux. I play Arc Raiders, Division 2 and a lot of single player games, including Hogwarts Legacy, God of War, AC Mirage, Mass Effect, Forza Horizon 5. It works. no tweaks, no custom settings, no command line. New and old games. VRR is enabled, so is HDR on Tv (fro single player games using controller). I play Arc Raiders and Division 2 at 120 fps.
MasterAce
Posts: 307 +423
If an actual cheat proof system was built, Linux would be much better as the kernel comes with drivers included and the whole thing can be signed and verified via secure boot, forcing cheat engines into the userspace. Immutable distros like bazzite demonstrate what it would look like and I do believe that immutable OS are the future as they are most secure and trustworthy for a non-technical consumer. And Linux can strike a balance between freedom and oversight with immutable.
Melkor Unlimited
Posts: 355 +321
Stop that nonsense and unprovoked hate.
As you wrote many times:
- Nobody plays on Linux
- Games are full of cheaters because Linux
Pick one. Both can not be true at once.
j4ni1
Posts: 37 +97
Even a few cheaters are sufficient to kill the joy of a multiplayer session for everyone else.
godrilla
Posts: 2,304 +1,729
Meanwhile the January 13 update is being recalled.
Windows 11 January 2026 Update Triggers Black Screens, Outlook Failures, and Emergency Patches | TechPowerUp Forums https://share.google/MyzIuqEzqNeqNhCOt
Windows 11 January 2026 Update Triggers Black Screens, Outlook Failures, and Emergency Patches | TechPowerUp Forums https://share.google/MyzIuqEzqNeqNhCOt
So...then, should we not support alternatives to Microsoft for PC gaming, ever? I mean, I don't think anyone here is going to really dispute that, as it stands, Microsoft is better at gaming, overall. But do you want that dominance to last forever, especially in light of recent MS decisions? I certainly don't. If we are not willing to support alternatives, that market and demand can never grow.
Anti-Cheat does not require Kernel-level anti-cheat to be successful, nor is it inherently better because of it. If it was, there still would not be cheats to kernel-level anti-cheats; that argument I flatly reject; with respect, of course.
For those in support of Linux gaming, the hope is, with a major backer, we can finally have choice across the board: Microsoft or Linux...the OS won't matter, only the game. So we will finally be free of MS's antics and not beholden to them.
Gravitytr1
Posts: 226 +135
Microslop is a big reason, if not the only reason, for all of these anti user hardware requirements.
They won't ever tell developers to reverse that when they themselves are making deals to mandate it.
So stripped of all the annoying bloat 11 is performing pretty well.
I'd love to see you do this test again, but with OOTB experiences. Let's see how much slower 11 is with all the BS running.
Kernel level anticheat has in no way stopped cheating. Cheating is still a problem in every MMO that uses it, in battlefield 6, and in call of duty.
I'd love to see you do this test again, but with OOTB experiences. Let's see how much slower 11 is with all the BS running.
What a stupid thing to say.
Kernel level anticheat has in no way stopped cheating. Cheating is still a problem in every MMO that uses it, in battlefield 6, and in call of duty.
Melkor Unlimited
Posts: 355 +321
Windows supplies more than enough cheaters without help of Linux.
... and do not forget console players where "Aiming Help" is official part of game. The same on PC is considered as cheating.
johnsonlam.hk
Posts: 36 +17
Agree, it's not only FPS but the whole bunch of junks with Windows 11, also unreliable update always bring down the system, even you can remove them it returns with more after windows update.
LimyG
Posts: 589 +252
Totally. W10 is the better choice by a wide margin when taking all the W11 bugs, and massive slop into account.
But, even if sticking exactly to topic. Gaming performance. A 5% gain on average for an OS that has been out for approx 4 years or so is pathetic.
Shame on MicroSlop.
Knot Schure
Posts: 473 +240
Article a tad incomplete?
Missing Linux results? This is now no longer a 'laughable statement'.
Missing Linux results? This is now no longer a 'laughable statement'.
Stupid thing to say? Haha, BF6 and the new COD literally has extremely few cheaters, almost none, because Anti Cheat and measures actually work and if you are caught? Hardware ban which can't be spoofed easily.
Experienced no cheaters in 150+ hours of BF6. None. Zero. I can play CS2 on public servers and see cheaters after a few matches. BF6 don't work in Linux. CS2 works in Linux.
Big difference between people acusing good players and actual cheaters. CS2 is riddled with cheaters compared to BF6. Simply fact.
None of these games work in Linux. Only insecure anti cheat works in Linux. Which is why Linux is pointless if you play multiplayer games. More and more games won't work. People don't like cheaters to ruin their games.
Are you a casual gamer playing single player only? Then Linux might work. For multiplayer games, with effective anti cheat, it is not an option. Linux is unsupported for now.
I cringe when I read people say Linux is good for gaming, when even Valve says (officially) that anti cheat is the single biggest opstacle for Linux which won't be solved anytime soon if ever.
Linux is niche for gaming, and pointless for most that won't limit themselves in terms of game catalog.
Who builds a high-end gaming PC and installs Linux only? Pretty much no-one.
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No I want competition but Linux is not a good alternative or even close, yet.
When Linux can deliver the same perf or better, with all games working, all anti cheat supported, then we can talk about it being an alternative.
For now, Linux is niche for gaming and many games won't work. The games that actually work, have worse perf in pretty much all games. Especially 1% lows are worse.
I mean, well, I have to disagree. I've seen quite a few. In BE6, the absolute worst one was someone who likely decided "meh, why not lose this account" and was doing insta-headshots. The end total was 129 kills to himself on conquest in Manhattan bridge. 70 of those were in the first 3 minutes. How many cheaters? Difficult to say, but clearly far more than what is being insinuated by the studio and a cursory evaluation by just YouTube shows it's more likely than you think.
For CS2, equating the fact it runs on Linux to a games widespread cheating, is not logically sound. One of the most proliferate cheating sites to this day, ArtificialAiming, does not even make a client for Linux, but lists BE6 as one of their targets. I still play CS2 and it's one of the few I do not encounter heavy cheating in casual or FFA. They certainly exist, and I'm not going to fool myself into thinking it's not a heaven. However, I've encountered more in BE6 and Apex than CS2, and I consistently come out on top. I'm an Ops spammer though; so your dislike of my play style might vary.
Hardware spoofing is quite easy, in Windows or Linux. I do it all the time from a development standpoint in pc image creation for POC's. Hardware "bans" are just a marketing slogan. Even with kernal-level integration of any kind, hardware account thumbprinting is trivial
All "anti-cheat" software is insecure. If it was secure, there would be no cheaters at all. If there is even one cheater, it is not secure, and BE6 and COD do still have cheaters, thus it is not secure, and neither run on Linux; rendering this argument null.
"Effective Anti-Cheat" is a bit of a misnomer. It isn't so much effective as it is a deterrent for most legitimate folks, just as speeding tickets only deter the masses from peddling faster than say 10MPH. Linux does have native binary support from EAC, BattleEye, VAC. Though others, like Marathon, has ruled out Linux. It isn't unsupported, but not widely supported and in nearly all cases, not used, either, outside of Proton or WINE.
Why? Linux is good for gaming. In the iGPU tests such as on Legion Go or ROG, Linux showed improved frames over Windows. At the very least, it signals that users of that OS desire an alternative to run those games on to the current dominate platform of Windows. Anti-Cheat can be "solved" on Linux, but only when adoption rates will meet the effort worth development, which cannot happen unless people are using it. Chicken and Egg scenario. Though, I don't think Anti-Cheat is the biggest obstacle, but usage numbers in general. All Valve said was that others were not supporting it. That can easily change once adoption reaches a better threshold.
My laptop 5080 is Fedora. Linux works surprisingly well. No one person is saying "Linux is perfect". Anyone using it acknowledges there are still limitations to this day. I will continue to state that Linux can and does game very well and for those games that are supported leaves little to nothing on the table in terms of performance. I know PUBG and BE6 do not run on Linux. Heck, even Roblox doesn't have a native client (Sober isn't very good Roblox Android client). And for now, I have some Windows PC's to play those. My kids who play Roblox and those games use Windows. If you don't have those dependencies, and the over whelming majority of PC gamers are NOT playing those large game types, Linux can and does work for them, especially those who are sick and tired of Microsoft's, quite literally, bully tactics. I, personally, would like to own my computer and not be trapped in a situation where MS knows best. We don't even have options for some items like Updates; reinstalled Apps we removed due to bloat; forced AI, etc, etc, etc.
Put another way, what other solution would you suggest? To challenge the dominate player, it will take years upon years to grow a foundation to make it worthwhile to Developers to include support for that OS. Valve is doing the Lord's work here in attempting to level the playing field with Linux, SteamOS and Proton; even if it was born from a self-serving idea. It at least gives those who want to tackle this issue an avenue of support.
So Linux gets my time. And my hope is, it will continue to grow, with Valve's major backing, so that we can get back choice. Choice to choose how my OS will treat me. Choice to not be spied on. Choice to not be thrusted into updates when I'm in the middle of a match or creating a spreadsheet.
If Linux is not for you, that is good. We support you. But let's not be a downer just because your specific workflow needs are not met. No one argued that. The challenge was to anti-cheat being successful, which it is not.
All that said, I hope your pre-Friday goes well. Cheers.
Today, a client had a computer with 4Gigs of Ram, it booted on losedows 10 © (not even losedows 11 ©) with 93 % full memory. Almost unusable. Many Linux distros (mostly on xfce and the like) perform perfectly for browsing, watching videos and office tasks. People are less and less willing to pay to replace a perfectly functioning PC. Even inflation is helping Linux.
And for the guy who said that nobody buys modern hardware for Linux, know that Linux users are 10 times geeker than losedows's ©. Good hardware deserves good software.
And for the guy who said that nobody buys modern hardware for Linux, know that Linux users are 10 times geeker than losedows's ©. Good hardware deserves good software.
BadThad
Posts: 1,768 +2,029
Thanks for the interesting test, great article!
No thanks to Windows 11. I'll stick out Windows 10 until I go to install a game and it won't let me. lol
Windows 10 + data backup + image FTW!
No thanks to Windows 11. I'll stick out Windows 10 until I go to install a game and it won't let me. lol
Windows 10 + data backup + image FTW!
Did not even read this Wall of Text when you claim BF6 is not secure. Lowest cheat rate in any shooter right now. You probably just suck. I top most matches and wins most BR, git gud.
Btw. Good luck spoofing a hardware ban in BF6. Hahahha. You are clueless.
I just love casuals claiming Linux is good for gaming... Haha, laptop user..
500 fps on 500 Hz OLED is how I play BF6.
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Melkor Unlimited
Posts: 355 +321
You are showing how much you do not now.
Again.
Corelation does not mena causality.
CS2 has a lot of cheater bc its easy to use use them on Windows.
... almost.
Forget kernel level Cheap-Anti on client. Its not the way.
No need for kernel level client side Cheap-Anti.
Any client side Cheap-Anti.
You should not live under the rock.
Even nVidia now supports Linux with client for streamed gaming.
You did.
Or are you lying whole time?
Are you considering yourself no-one?
PS: Steamdeck, handhelds, android phones, GF Now, .... let diminish relevancy of windows for ... everything.
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