Very soon it will be exactly one year since graduation Windows 10- relevant operating system Microsoft, with which the company's gaming department pins its future. And, I must say, for good reason - according to last month, Windows 10 is installed on three hundred million devices, and in March Phil Spencer, head Xbox- a division of Microsoft, reported that 40% of OS owners run games on it. In addition, Windows 10 is the most popular operating system on Steam - it was chosen by 39.7% of service users.

We have written about the “ten” more than once - look for analytical materials on the website and in the magazine. Let us briefly recall it key features: the good old “Start” has returned to its rightful place; standard software has been improved - from mail to photo viewer; the interface was adapted for tablets; minimalist, neat and nimble Edge replaced grandpa Explorer; virtual desktops appeared...

After the release of Windows 10, Windows 7 remained the most popular OS among Steam users until April 2016. In the confrontation with the new operating system, it lasted only eight months.

We could go on for a long time, but the main thing here is this - Microsoft has relied on cross-platform, since its release it has positioned Windows 10 as a universal system for computers, phones and tablets. Over time Universal Windows Platform has acquired more obvious outlines, and the “friendship” between Windows 10 and Xbox One has strengthened much more than was stated at the start (at that time the strange idea of ​​​​streaming games from a console to a computer was voiced).

In this article we will tell you what marked the gaming industry the arrival of Windows 10 and whether it’s worth installing this operating system at all. There is little time left to “think” - from July 29, you will have to pay $119 to switch from Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 to the current system.

Tandem Windows 10 and Xbox

As we already said, only in March the Redmond giant opened up about the Universal Windows Platform. According to Microsoft, PCs running Windows 10 should eventually merge with Xbox One into a coherent ecosystem. On both platforms, as well as on smartphones and tablets, it will be possible to run Universal Windows Applications.

The benefit for developers is obvious - they no longer need to make significant changes to the program code to make them work on PC, phone and console. The reality is still harsh: for example, Instagram only supports Windows 10 Mobile, and Facebook only supports Windows 10 desktop. However, as Microsoft assures, sooner or later, thanks to UWP, the interface of the most popular applications will be unified for different types of devices .

From TV DVR function for Xbox One Microsoft eventually refused. Its essence is simple - record TV broadcasts on the external hard drive of the set-top box. Right now, Microsoft is focused on games for Xbox One and Windows 10 rather than additional multimedia features.

Let's leave cell phones aside and move on to more serious things. UWP will allow the Redmond giant to update its console more often, while its latest variations will be compatible with older software. Phil Spencer has already expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that generations of consoles are slowing down technical progress. And if you separate the hardware and software components of the Xbox One and its successors, then you can keep up with the times.

So there is nothing to be surprised by the news about the compact Xbox One S (40% smaller and an order of magnitude cheaper) and powerful Xbox Scorpio with 4K support and Oculus Rift. It sounds tempting - console hardware is updated at a speed familiar to the smartphone market, and backward compatibility remains in effect.

All this, as you might guess, is being done with an eye to merging Xbox and PC. Cross-platform games will be available on both platforms after a one-time purchase, and shared multiplayer will bring the community together. Plans are quickly being implemented: one of the first projects with cross-platform multiplayer was Rocket League.

No one is complaining about cross-platform multiplayer in Rocket League. In the near future, the function will be implemented in another fifty projects.

Ex-exclusives

To please the new policy, Microsoft transferred from Xbox One to PC running Windows 10 Killer Instinct and, released simultaneously on computers and consoles, announced for both platforms Halo Wars 2 And ReCore and confirmed that future Forza will not be exclusive. After E3 it became clear that the same thing was expected Scalebound, Crackdown 3 , Forza Horizon 3, and, it seems, all the games that Microsoft announces.

It would seem that there are only advantages for PC owners - firstly, they get blockbusters from Xbox One without delay, and secondly, ideally, cross-buy assumes that you won’t have to pay for both copies of the game (again, at E3 Redmond , that having started the game on one platform, nothing prevents you from continuing from the same place on another), and thirdly, DirectX 12, supported only by the “ten”, promises a significant increase in application performance. In fact, the potential of DirectX 12 has not yet been fully revealed, and the Windows Store scares off those who are accustomed to the functionality of Steam, GOG or Origin, honed over the years.

Some people believe that Phil Spencer failed the war against PS4. But he still has a lot of trump cards in stock, and most importantly, Spencer has Windows 10 on his side.

Let's say there's a PC version coming out Quantum Break(it was supposed to show the world the power of DirectX 12) was disappointed with poor optimization, which caused it to slow down on machines with the latest processors, video cards and 16 GB of RAM. In theory, DirectX 12 promises high performance and smooth images at lower speeds. system requirements by providing developers with low-level access to hardware. Meanwhile, the requirements for the filling, judging by Quantum Break, Forza Motorsport 6: Apex and even Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, cannot be called gentle.

The Windows Store has yet to gain strength. This applies to both small things (sluggish download speed from the network) and serious mistakes (weak social functionality). And the games bought here have enough technical problems- take the same Quantum Break.

Let's give Microsoft credit - it is slowly correcting the shortcomings of UWP. For example, a recent Windows 10 update introduced support NVIDIA G-Sync And AMD FreeSync(both technologies synchronize the monitor refresh rate with the number of frames produced by the video card), and 60 frames per second is no longer the ceiling for UWP applications.

The third season of Killer Instinct, released simultaneously on PC and Xbox One, became a kind of response from Microsoft to Sony, which supported the development of Street Fighter 5 for PC and PS4.

The Phantom Menace

Microsoft's initiatives were met with a barrage of criticism, including from former partners and colleagues. No, we're not talking about Gabe Newell, who anathematized Windows 8. Tim Sweeney, CEO Epic Games, published an open letter in early spring in which he called UWP a closed platform. The fact that UWP games are distributed only through the Windows Store harms both ordinary consumers and large publishers. The picture is gloomy: between the player and the developers there is an eternal intermediary who retains a considerable percentage of sales.

Doesn't remind you of anything? To us - the situation with Nintendo from the eighties and nineties, when the company, after the collapse of the video game industry, took tough measures, trying to protect the market from re-saturation, and itself from bankruptcy, forced developers to buy cartridges from it and controlled the circulation of games.

What is it that runs Microsoft? Probably the desire to create as much excitement around the Windows Store as possible, manipulating with tempting slogans about the breakthrough power of DirectX 12 and a promising PC-Xbox hybrid that can satisfy the most demanding player.

Microsoft did not release Halo 5: Guardians on PC. Only as an exception did I agree to send the Forge editor to Windows 10 to create levels. Of course, it will be free.

Kevin Gallo, general manager of Microsoft, responded to Sweeney's emotional statement: they say, Windows was and remains an open system. And Phil Spencer said the same thing about the Xbox. Epic boss questioned Spencer's words: to get to Xbox, you need to send a concept Microsoft games and achieve approval, where is the “openness” here?..

Because of UWP, we have no doubt, a lot more copies will be broken. But what the American corporation announced at a recent conference Build, makes you take a closer look at the platform. Windows 10 is coming in the coming weeks major update, which expands the functionality of Xbox One: for example, the console will learn to play music in the background and make friends with Cortana. And by the end of the year Xbox Marketplace will merge with the Windows Store.

Microsoft is determined to seriously compete for the audience at the same time as Steam and Sony. The focus on online sales and promotion of Windows PC should not be surprising - over the past year, according to the company Superdata, digital versions of games earned thirty-two billion dollars on PCs, twenty-five billion on phones, and just four billion on consoles.

The American corporation, apparently, intends not to disperse itself anymore between platforms and give up on exclusives. Its goal is a unified ecosystem that allows you to run one application on either Xbox or HoloLens. And the cornerstone of UWP is, of course, Windows 10.

You still have about a month to decide who to support.

Games and programs for Windows XP run without problems in new version OS. But not all old programs can work the first time. In this case, the recommendations described below will help you understand how to run old games on Windows 10 or other builds.

Running as administrator

Most games and programs for Windows XP were developed taking into account the fact that the user works with the computer under the Administrator account. Therefore, if the application does not start, right-click on. exe file and select "Run as administrator".

Debugging Compatibility Mode

Windows has a built-in utility that performs compatibility debugging for legacy programs.

RMB on .exe file→ Properties → Compatibility tab → Click the “Run Compatibility Troubleshooter” button.

If the application ran without problems in more than early version OS, but does not work in Windows 10, in the “Compatibility Mode” block, check the box “Run the program in compatibility mode for:” and select one of the operating systems that are in the list.

Another option is to set special program launch settings. This can be done in the “Parameters” block by checking the box on one of the items:

• low color mode;
• use screen resolution 640 x 480;
• disable image scaling at high screen resolutions;
• run this program as an administrator.

Games with DRM protection installed

Games that have SafeDisc and SecuROM DRM protection do not run on Windows 10. In this case, the user has several options to solve the problem:

1. Use the “no CD” patch, which allows you to run the game without a disc. But this method is the most unsafe. Such patches are developed by third parties, so they often contain a virus that harms the OS.
2. Reorder the game from a digital distribution service.
3. An official patch that removes DRM protection may be available for download on the game manufacturer's website.

Good to know! A difficult option for running such applications is to install more than one in parallel with Windows 10 old version operating system and run such games on it, or open the application on a virtual machine.

DOS Applications

Old DOS applications can be run in a Windows desktop window. DOSBox is used for this (you can find out how to run Android applications on Windows in the article “”). Compared to this application, it handles older DOS applications much more efficiently.

16-bit applications

Windows 10 64-bit does not support running 16-bit programs because it does not have the WOW16 compatibility layer. If the user launches such an application on a new OS, a warning appears indicating that it cannot work.

To open such applications, install 32-bit Windows 10 on your computer (read how to do this in the article “”) or run virtual machine with this OS version. Another option is to install Windows 3.1 in DOSBOX.

Sites requesting Java, Silverlight, ActiveX

Microsoft's new built-in browser, Edge, does not support Java, Silverlight, ActiveX and other technologies. To run applications that require the use of such technologies, you will need the Internet Explorer browser. Also use the Mozilla Firefox Internet browser.

Internet Explorer can be found using the search bar by entering the name of the browser in it, or in the Edge menu, where there is an option “Open in Internet Explorer”.

Conclusion

There are several ways to open old applications or games in Windows 10. But best option– find a similar application that works with modern OS.

One of the newest operating systems, Windows 10, confidently occupies a leading position in terms of prevalence on home computers. The main reason is the free automatic update from older versions, which does not require user intervention, distribution kits or special knowledge. Many have already appreciated the convenience of the tenth version in work and web surfing. It's time to have fun and find out how to install games on Windows 10.

The mechanism will evaluate the performance of the equipment and determine its capabilities. IN game mode there is one drawback. Every other version of friendly games is safe to change the system until at least a few months after launch, when all the major bugs have been found and fixed, and there are accessibility issues software. I hope they help you make this important decision! They returned to a form close to the classics or mixed with tiles. This doesn't change the fact that Tiles is faster, more convenient, and nicer than the previous interface.

Using installation files to install games on Windows 10

• If your game is on a disk or flash drive, there should be a file called setup.exe or install.exe in its folder. If there are none, then find a file with the name of the game and the extension .exe or .msi. In most cases, all you need to do is run this file and answer a few questions to install the game and start playing.
• When you download a game from the Internet (usually a client online games), there will be one file. Launch it. The operating system will warn you that programs downloaded from the Internet may be dangerous. Confirm the program if you are sure that the file does not pose a threat to your computer.

Installing games on Windows 10 from the Windows Store library

If there is an Internet connection, a computer running Windows 10 has access to the online library of Windows Store applications from Microsoft. It becomes possible to download many different applications for work, study, maintenance of the computer itself and, of course, games. Before downloading, you can study the ratings and reviews of other users, as well as see screenshots and detailed information.

How to add a game shortcut to your desktop

There is no easy answer to this question. It's also best for synthetic tests - if that's important to someone important. It's also a little less stable, but it can match it. In fact, the system is a copy of key things. The only thing that matters is the drivers. In theory, the transmission should be 100% fluid, in practice this is different.

A good change after driver problems. Basically it's faster than single frames. Older generation green cards cannot be considered asynchronous at all, and new ones in turn cannot be considered a replacement for queuing software. There's nothing special at this point, but the likes of Quantum Break or Forza Apex don't walk. It doesn't work either in functionality or in terms of appearance. Probably the hottest of all questions. Not everyone likes it.

Install games on Windows 10 using a Microsoft account

Purchasing a game for Windows 10

Progress in the field of personal computers is amazing! Relatively recently, computer games were sold on tape cassettes and required periodic copying to protect the tape from abrasion. I still remember the times when installing a game involved unpacking an archive split into several floppy disks. Now CDs have hopelessly sunk into oblivion, giving way to network technologies. Today, the global Internet allows you to choose, purchase and receive any game you like in a matter of minutes, find out what other players think about it and leave feedback, which will certainly reach the developer, allowing him to improve the product. On the other hand, the installation process is becoming easier and now anyone knows how to install games on Windows 10.

When answering the question about what games will run on Windows 10, you can safely answer: the same ones that came with previous versions, starting with XP. The fact is that the main set of API commands has not changed for more than 15 years, which means that a program that worked great in Windows 2000 will also work well in Windows 10.

Pirates will remain pirates even if they can download updates. Soon after the release it was already installed. These flawed decisions were a big threat. What once prevented copying of optical media and ultimately only got on the nerves of the original purchasers of the products, now provides a lock that cannot be missed without secrecy. Basically, we're talking about hundreds of classics that are no longer in order. It's just a drop in the bucket.

We live in a time of increasing virtualization of all computer services. You won't care about the beard if you pay for it in the future. Finally one important point for an explanation. You are still missing the famous sticker code that is assigned to the computer.

There are no exceptions to this issue, except that occasionally you will have to run an application in compatibility mode, however, this will be required extremely rarely - you can easily use your new PC with Windows 10 for several years and never come across such an application.

So, it’s worth noting right away that almost any game from previous years will run on Windows 10. This is especially true for modern high-quality games that were fully functional on the seventh and eighth versions of Windows.

Unfortunately, you will not be able to play these classic games like Quake and Wolfenstein 3D, since the system does not have a program capable of supporting older applications. But such restrictions are not uncommon, because back in 2009, with the release of 64-bit versions, these games could no longer be launched.

What games will work on Windows 10

As mentioned above, any modern games. But there are some disadvantages here, for example, small errors when launching 2015 applications. To completely prevent any errors, the developers optimized some popular games. Below are a few computer games, which are already optimized for the new operating system and do not have any errors:

• Portal 2
• Dying Light
• Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
• Grand Theft Auto V
• Titanfall
• Dark Souls
• XCOM: Enemy Unknown
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• Alien: Isolation
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Now you know what games will run on Windows 10. At the moment, more and more new games are being released exclusively for Windows 10. If you install latest games on older versions of the OS, then endless crashes and errors cannot be avoided.

Of particular note are such modern games as: Asphalt and Age Of Empires: Siege Defense. Over time, the list of games and programs that cannot run on older OSes will only increase, so it is better to switch to Windows 10 in advance and save yourself from the impending problems with optimization.

Compatibility mode for games in Windows 10

To configure the appropriate settings, follow a few simple steps:

1. Right-click on the file that launches the application or game.
2. Select “Properties” from the menu.
3. Move to the “Compatibility” tab.
4. You can trust the system to do the dirty work by clicking the “Run troubleshooter” button. After certain manipulations, the utility will offer the optimal solution. You will need to accept the changes and check the result.
5. You can do all this manually by selecting the desired mode from the list. For example, if the game worked perfectly on Windows XP with the third service pack, then you need to specify this option and save the new settings.
6. For very “ancient” games, you can use the “Low Color Mode”. Sometimes it really helps.
7. If the image is stretched to fill the entire screen and does not look very good, then you can try the disable scaling function to high resolution monitor.

After installing or updating the operating system to a new version, users may encounter a problem when games do not launch on Windows 10 or there is a need to install old software. To solve problems with installing, launching and running games on Windows 10, you need to initially determine the cause of the problem and choose the right method to solve it.

Why won't games install, launch or work on Windows 10?

Games not installing on Windows 10 OS is a common problem faced by many PC users. There are many reasons why software refuses to work. Among them, we highlight the most common:

• Installer damage;
• Incompatible with Windows 10;
• Blocking installer launch antivirus program;
• Outdated, damaged drivers or no software at all;
• Lack of administrator rights;
• Incorrect DirectX version;
• Lack of the required version of C++ and NetFramtwork;
• Invalid path to installation file;
• Lack of DLLs.

Since the Windows 10 operating system itself takes up a lot of hard drive space, the game may not launch due to insufficient free space or due to inconsistency technical requirements software

What to do if games do not work on Windows 10?

If the game does not install or does not launch on Windows 10, you should check the integrity of the installer or download the file again. It is possible that while downloading an archive or exe file, the antivirus interrupted the operation or lost communication with the server.

If the file is intact, you may be trying to install the game from a user account that has limited rights. Some games require administrator rights to run. So try two ways:

• Find the installation file and right-click on it. Select "Run as administrator".

• If the launch was successful, the game will install. If your account does not have administrator rights, you need to get them. To do this, press “Win ​​+ R” and enter “secpol.msc”.

• The Local Security Policy window will open. Select the branch “Local Policies”, “Security Settings”. In the right menu, select the option “ Accounts: Administrator status.

• Double-click to open the parameter and check the “Enabled” box.

• We try again to launch the game using administrator rights.

If the game is installed but does not start, the Net Framework may be missing on your PC. Microsoft NET Framework is a platform that ensures compatibility of programs written in different languages. Initially, Windows 10 comes with NET Framework 4.5.1. However, for installation individual games you need a specific version of the NET Framework, and it can be installed additionally. To do this, you need to go to the Microsoft website and download additional versions of the frameworks.

Exactly the same actions need to be done with the C++ and DirectX libraries. It is often impossible to install or run a game without the components of these libraries.

Also, if the game does not work on Windows 10, we recommend updating the drivers for the video card. For information on how to update video card drivers to the latest version on Windows 10, please follow the link.

Ways to run old games on Windows 10

If old games do not play on your PC after upgrading the operating system to Windows 10, you should follow a few simple steps.

Method No. 1. Compatibility Mode

• Right-click on the exe file of the game and select “Properties”.

• A new window will open. Go to the “Compatibility” tab. Click on the “Run the Compatibility Troubleshooter” button.

• Or you can check an additional box and select the version of the operating system on which the game previously ran without problems.

• If your PC is old, you should additionally set some settings in the “Options” block, namely: low color mode, administrator mode, screen expansion at 640x480 and disable scaling.

• Once you have checked all the settings, troubleshooting will begin. The game will start.

It is worth noting that the 64-bit version of Windows 10 does not support older 16-bit games as it does not have the wow16 compatibility layer. If you want to run such a game, you will have to create a second virtual OS or reinstall the system to the 32-bit version.

To learn how to run games on Windows 10 without problems, watch the video: