Everything at Xbox starts with the player. That’s why we’ve dedicated years to reimagining how to make it easier to enjoy the games you love—wherever you are—through Xbox Play Anywhere, Game Pass, Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta), Remote Play, and more. Whether you’re at home or on the go, your favorite games should follow you.

The ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X deliver an era of handheld gaming that makes it easier than ever to access your favorite games from Xbox, Battle.net, and other leading PC storefronts wherever you go. Whether you’re experiencing the crisp, colorful skateparks of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 or diving into the dynamic, immersive action of Gears of War: Reloaded, the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are built to give you the freedom to play your way, anytime, anywhere. 

Meet the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X

• ROG Xbox Ally: The essential handheld at a great value for everyone from the casual player to the avid enthusiast.
• ROG Xbox Ally X: The ultimate high-performance handheld, built for the most demanding players.

Both handhelds allow players to play natively, via the cloud, or remotely with their Xbox console in another room.

Handheld gaming just keeps getting better. You, our players, are shaping the future of handheld gaming by providing feedback to Xbox, Windows, and ASUS, and we’re listening and delivering updates to enhance the way you play. Since the launch of the ROG Xbox Ally handhelds, we’ve been hard at work, listening to level up your experience – and today, we’re excited to share what’s new, what’s improved and what’s coming up next, as we continue to raise the bar on gaming experiences. 

What’s New

Default Game Profiles (Preview) 

Spend more time playing and less time fine-tuning. Default Game Profiles, available in preview starting today, automatically balance frame rate (FPS) and power consumption for 40 supported games at launch, including Fortnite, Gears of War: Reloaded, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and others, with more coming soon. This means smoother, more enjoyable gameplay and extended battery life, without requiring manual adjustments. For example, in Hollow Knight: Silksong, the Default Game Profile can add nearly an hour of battery life compared to Performance mode while still delivering smooth 120 FPS gameplay. 

Default Game Profiles are hand-crafted per-game and only apply when on battery. When you launch a supported game, the system automatically applies a tailored game profile, which sets recommended power (TDP) and a FPS limit specific to the game.  

• If the game falls short of its target FPS, the game profile is designed to boost power to help reach the target FPS, trading a bit of battery life for a smoother gameplay experience. 
• If a game is performing above the target FPS, the game profile is designed to limit FPS at the target rate to save power. 

Players can turn these settings on or off in the game using the Armoury Crate Command Center Gare Bar widget, where Game Profiles appear at the top of the widget with an ON/OFF toggle.

You can experience Default Game Profiles in preview mode for supported games, including these first party games, and more: 

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7
• Call of Duty: Warzone
• DOOM Eternal
• DOOM: The Dark Ages
• Forza Horizon 5
• Gears 5
• Gears of War: Reloaded
• Gears Tactics
• Halo: The Master Chief Collection
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• Minecraft
• Sea of Thieves
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4

Additional Improvements  

We’ve also made several updates to deliver a smoother, faster, and more reliable experience on the Xbox ROG Ally based on your feedback.  You can see the complete list of updates in the patch notes here, and highlights include:

• Improved Gamepad response after login 
• Quicker Library loading, especially for players with large game libraries 
• Improved Cloud Gaming page performance, loading more quickly and more responsive 
• New Game Gallery filter by Performance Fit, helping you see how well games will run on your device 
• Bug fixes and performance enhancements for improved stability and responsiveness 

To experience Default Game Profiles (Preview), and all the latest improvements, make sure you’ve installed the latest updates for Armoury Crate SE, the Xbox PC app, and Windows 11. Check out our essential tips for getting started to learn how to stay up to date. 

Xbox Game Pass Benefits 

As we shared at launch, players in select markets will also receive three months of Xbox Game Pass Premium* (where available) with the purchase of an ROG Xbox Ally or ROG Xbox Ally X handheld. Game Pass Premium offers unlimited Xbox Cloud Gaming, access to PC titles, and a library of over 200 great games like Forza Horizon 5, Hogwarts Legacy, Minecraft, and more, to jump into anytime, anywhere. Learn more at Xbox.com. 

Looking Ahead 

Based on early feedback from players, we’re actively investing in enhancements like sleep and wake reliability, improved formatting options for microSD cards, and more. Early next year, ROG Xbox Ally X will also introduce exciting AI-powered features such as Automatic Super Resolution (Auto SR) and highlight reels, giving players more ways to enjoy and share their gaming moments.  

Game Save Sync Indicator Coming Next Week

We’re rolling out the Game Save Sync Indicator next week, a feature designed to give you peace of mind when switching between devices. With clear status updates, you’ll know exactly when your progress has synced to the cloud, whether you’re wrapping up on your PC or powering down your handheld. No more guessing or lost progress, just seamless, stress-free play across devices.  

Full Screen Experience Expands 

Last month, we launched full screen experience on the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X—a feature optimized specifically for handheld gaming—which is now available on Windows 11 handhelds and is also expanding in preview to more Windows 11 form factors, such as desktops, laptops, and tablets, for Xbox and Windows Insiders.   

Powered by Windows 11 and inspired by the streamlined console experience, the Xbox full screen experience is purpose-built for gaming. On handhelds, it minimizes background activity and defers non-essential tasks, so more system resources are dedicated to gameplay. 

This is just the beginning. We’re continuing to listen to your feedback, and excited to deliver even more new features and options that elevate the handheld experience. We’re building a new way to make sharing your input with us even easier, and we’ll have more to share on that soon. In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you directly in the feedback hub. 

Thanks for being part of the Xbox community. We’re excited to keep building the future of gaming together. Stay tuned for more updates. 

 * Claim within 30 days of device activation. Valid payment method required. Subscription continues automatically at regular monthly price unless cancelled. Subject to xbox.com/subscriptionterms. Eligible existing Essential membership(s) will upgrade to Premium. For existing Ultimate members, the code will convert at a ratio. See xbox.com/code-conversion. Terms and exclusions apply. Game catalog varies over time, by region, device, and plan. xbox.com/gamepass. 

Here’s what you can look forward to on your Xbox Ally handheld:

• Launch directly into the Xbox full screen experience, a dedicated experience purpose-built for gaming, powered by Windows 11, and inspired by the console user experience. With new modifications that minimize background activity and defer non-essential tasks, more system resources are dedicated specifically to gameplay.
• A dedicated Xbox button opens an enhanced Game Bar overlay for Windows 11, making it easy to return home, browse your library, launch or quit games, chat with friends, access ROG’s innovative Armoury Crate SE, and more.
• An aggregated gaming library gives you quick access to games from Xbox, Game Pass (where available), and installed games from Battle.net and other leading PC stores.
• Xbox controller-inspired grips, with ergonomics that allow you to play comfortably for longer gaming sessions.
• Every Xbox Ally comes with three months of Xbox Game Pass, unlocking hundreds of games playable across devices. More information about the Game Pass offer will be shared prior to October 16. Terms and conditions apply.

Whether you love playing on PC, console, or streaming your games on the go, the Xbox Ally opens up new ways to access your Xbox library, through: 

• Native play, which allows you to play PC games from any store that are installed and run directly on the device. And with Xbox Play Anywhere, you can play more than 1,000 supported titles from Xbox across console, PC, and handhelds with a single purchase. Today, Xbox Play Anywhere titles are where the majority of console players spend their time on Xbox, and you can now experience those same games on the go with the Xbox Ally handhelds.
• Remote play, which allows you to stream your full console library from your Xbox console anywhere in your home – all via a smooth and intuitive user experience built for handheld.
• Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta), which takes portability even further by allowing you to stream your Xbox library of console games to your handheld on the go.  Whether you’re traveling, commuting, or just stepping out, you can pick up where you left off (where available). 
• Our Handheld Compatibility Program, a new Xbox initiative that indicates which games play great on handheld. At launch, thousands of titles will be Handheld Optimized or Mostly Compatible, making it easier to find games that are ready to play on your Xbox Ally.

Here’s how the specs compare between the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X:

The Xbox Ally ($599.99) and Xbox Ally X ($999.99) is available in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with availability to follow for other markets where ROG Ally series products are sold today.