Raise your effective FPS with Windows Game Mode

Steps

1. 01
   • Settings›Gaming›Game Mode›keep it ON— it stops background tasks like Windows Update from stealing CPU cycles mid-game and suppresses notification pop-ups
2. 02
   • Windows 11: Settings → Gaming → Captures → switch off 'Record what happened', which stops the background recording — the part that costs performance. Settings → Gaming → Game Bar has no main on/off switch, only 'Allow your controller to open Game Bar' and a controller Guide-button option, so Windows 11 has no single switch that disables Game Bar
3. 03
   • Windows 10: Settings → Gaming → Xbox Game Bar has an on/off switch — turn it off; then Settings → Gaming → Captures → switch off 'Record in the background while I'm playing a game'
4. 04
   • If you have a hybrid CPU (Intel 12th-gen or newer, with P-cores and E-cores), open Task Manager,right-click the game's process›Set affinity, and restrict it to the P-cores — this can smooth out frame pacing in CPU-heavy titles
5. 05
   • Game Mode's benefit is biggest on machines with limited cores or RAM; on a high-end rig with headroom to spare, expect fewer interruptions rather than a dramatic FPS jump