The collaboration between Microsoft and Asus for ROG Xbox Ally looked promising on paper, with an optimized interface called Xbox Full Screen Experience meant to reduce background processes and improve performance. However, a new test conducted by YouTube channel Cyber Dopamine has revealed that the portable gaming device can deliver significantly better results when ditching Windows for Linux, demonstrating once again how the open source operating system can squeeze every drop of power out of available hardware.
The benchmark results speak for themselves and call into question the manufacturer’s software choices. During testing with Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, the Bazzite Linux distribution recorded a 32% increase in frames per second compared to the Windows configuration with Xbox FSE, when the device was operating at its maximum power of 17 watts. Hogwarts Legacy also showed substantial improvements, with a 24% gain in performance at the same power, although the gap narrows considerably when lowering power consumption to 13 watts.
But the benefits of Linux on ROG Xbox Ally aren’t limited to raw performance numbers. Cyber Dopamine points out that stable frame rates represent perhaps the most tangible benefit to the daily gaming experience. While on Windows the FPS graphs show frequent and irregular oscillations, on Bazzite the lines remain almost flat, guaranteeing a more fluid and pleasant visual experience even when the absolute number of frames is similar between the two operating systems.
An often overlooked but fundamental aspect for a portable device concerns standby management. On Bazzite, ROG Xbox Ally wakes up instantly from sleep mode, just like Valve’s Steam Deck. By contrast, Windows takes up to 40 seconds to actually go to sleep with the fans off, and then takes another 15 seconds or so to get back up and running. Cyber effectively compares a portable device to a book: you should be able to pick it up and use it immediately, without having to wait or worry about technical issues such as controllers occasionally becoming unresponsive on Windows.
The most fascinating aspect that emerged from the tests, however, concerns Bazzite’s development process itself for this device. During the testing phase, Cyber was able to interact directly with a member of the development team called \
