Does XP mode effect games

Question

I know in the Professional version of Win 7 there is an XP mode. This is said to be able to help run old business software not compatible with Win 7. Will XP mode also effect games?

Answer 1

Hi,

Windows XP Mode was primarily designed to help businesses move from Windows XP to Windows 7. It isn't optimized for graphic-intensive programs such as 3D games, nor is it well suited for programs with hardware requirements such as TV tuners.

However you may install old games which are not compatible with Windows 7. Some games which do not require high resources may work.

Check the links:

“Install and use Windows XP Mode in Windows 7” http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/install-and-use-windows-xp-mode-in-windows-7

“Using Windows XP Mode” http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/help/videos/using-windows-xp-mode

DianaMicrosoft Answers Support Engineer

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Answer 2

Another option for better hardware support (game pads, tuners, etc), though still with the graphical limitation, is VMware. VMware will import the Windows XP-mode native-ly and run it with better external hardware support; and VMware player, like XP-mode, is free (VMware Workstation is considerably more than free; however it allows the creation of virtual machines beyond the typical Windows-only-supported Microsoft VirtualPC, which is free).

It all boils down to what you need it for. I have played Quake III in Windows XP mode and VMware, they both seem to perform the same (Advantage: VMware. Reason: better networking support), not great.

If your looking for compatibility of older games that worked great in XP, then XP mode should suit you. if you need to go back further, try DOSbox. If you are looking for anything beyond Quake III era gaming, I'd look into keeping an XP machine around, as Diana said, Virtual Machine software is more of a business app with minimal graphic compatibility at the current moment. With the advent of VMware Fusion, I suspect there will be a much bigger push for graphical emulation through virtualization as more people try to play games in Windows on their Mac.

To be fair, Windows Virtual PC is free, and has very little to no external hardware support while VMware Workstation is about $180, but has much better hardware support. VMware Player is free, but cannot create the virtual machine ("XP-Mode" if you will) and must use one already created by either VMware Workstation (free trial available) or Virtual PC.