Winhanced is a controller-first gaming shell for Windows. It unifies your entire game library across Steam, Xbox, Epic, GOG, and PlayStation into one beautifully designed interface, fixes Windows sleep and resume behavior, and provides intelligent performance management, all without replacing Windows itself.

Does Winhanced replace Steam Big Picture or Armoury Crate?

Not entirely. Winhanced works more like a unified frontend that can launch and organize games across multiple platforms while adding a more console-like experience to Windows handhelds.

Why Winhanced instead of Armoury Crate or Playnite?

OEM tools like Armoury Crate and Legion Space mainly focus on device-specific hardware controls and settings management. Community-driven launchers such as Playnite emphasize library organization and customization, while Winhanced aims to combine game library management, handheld-focused optimizations, and controller-friendly navigation into a more unified gaming experience.

Can Winhanced improve gaming performance on handheld PCs?

It doesn't directly boost FPS, but its streamlined interface and quick-access controls can make handheld gaming feel smoother and less cluttered.

Is Winhanced only for handheld gaming devices?

No, while it is designed with devices like the ROG Ally and Legion Go in mind, it can also be used on regular Windows gaming PCs with a controller.

Features

Every game you own, one place

Every storefront. Every library. Unified, beautifully presented, and always current. No launcher switching, no gaps.

Put it down. Pick it up. It's there.

Reliable suspend and resume across every supported device and title. The promise no other Windows app makes. And keeps.

The device optimizes itself

Autopilot, WARP upscaling, Smart Profiles, Dynamic TDP. When it works it's invisible. When it's visible, it's delightful.

Play locally or in the cloud.

Native xCloud streaming built right in. No browser. No workarounds. Full controller support, direct launch.

Make Winhanced your Windows home screen.

Winhanced is the first third-party app that can register as your Windows Full Screen Experience home app. One setting, and you are in Winhanced the moment you pick up your device, no Xbox app required.

Pick up where you left off. Every time.

Sleep your device. Come back. Your game is exactly where you left it. Up to 80% less battery drain while asleep. No compromises.

Full control. Without leaving your game.

TDP, resolution, frame rate targets, and Lossless Scaling controls are all accessible mid-game through the Winhanced HUD, a native Xbox Game Bar widget that lives inside your game without interrupting it.

What's New

MSI Claw: Native TDP & Driver Control

  • Full TDP control across the entire MSI Claw lineup, no MSI Center required. Winhanced auto-disables MSI's background services on launch and flips them back on when you close the app, so nothing's fighting over the hardware while you play
  • Native driver control covering every driver MSI ships on its support site. The Claw is now a first-class supported device end to end

PC Streaming

  • Moonlight now works better with Winhanced, with automatic game adding to Sunshine, Wake-on-LAN, and seamless controller handoff

Performance

  • HDR on launch: automatically enable HDR when a game starts and turn it back off on exit. (Note: the feature is built but won't be usable until a HUD update ships)
  • Remap-OEM and Winhanced-TDP toggles are now linked and visually grouped so they stay in sync
  • AutoPilot improvements for more reliable power-profile switching

Library

  • Faster, smoother library scrolling and lower memory use, even with large collections

Redesigned First-Run Onboarder

  • The first-run setup got a full visual rewrite. Five focused steps: Welcome, Device, Libraries, Customize, Done
  • New dynamic backdrop tinted by your Windows accent color, real device renders for every supported device, and controller-driven navigation throughout
  • Per-step micro-interactions make first-run setup feel smoother and more seamless

System Accent Theme & In-App Color Picker

  • Backdrop and accent highlights retint live to match your Windows accent color
  • The Customize step in the onboarder and Settings → General both include a 48-color picker that overrides just within Winhanced
  • Pick a color and the entire UI follows, generating a dynamic 3-color theme backdrop based on your selection

Adaptive Display Scaling

  • Big rewrite under the hood. The launcher now scales as a single canvas with one root transform instead of compensating per-element
  • UI fills any aspect ratio (16:9, 16:10, 21:9 ultrawide) without letterboxing or weird text sizing bugs
  • Game details panel respects the footer and sizes canvas-relative
  • Seven of the widest dialogs (game options, batch import, Steam QR, etc.) got proper width caps so they never stretch off-screen

Per-Game Executable Path & Launch Arguments

  • Game Options on any tile now exposes two new fields: an Executable Path override and Custom Launch Arguments
  • Point a game at a modded .exe, alt build, or custom launcher, with per-game command line support
  • Hidden for Xbox UWP titles where the package family drives launch
  • Steam shows a heads-up if your override would break overlay injection