Screen Flickering to Desktop while playing Xbox App Games

Brandon Espiritu · Jan 6, 2024

There's a weird graphical issue I'm having when playing games through the Xbox app on Windows 11. When clicking or pressing any buttons in the game, the screen briefly flickers and shows the desktop for a split second before going back into the game.

This flickering is very brief, but happens consistently with mouse clicks or controller input during gameplay. The flicker only displays the desktop screen beneath the game. It does NOT happen when simply moving the mouse around, only during clicks.

I have tried extensive troubleshooting without success:

Updated Windows 11 and all drivers to latest versions

Tried older graphics driver versions - no improvement

Enabled/disabled Vsync, reduced FPS cap - issue persists

Disabled Xbox Game Bar and Xbox Game Mode

Reset and reinstalled the Xbox app and game

The issue only happens with games launched through the Xbox app. Games played through other launchers like Steam do not have this flickering problem.

Things I've ruled out:

Not a hardware or refresh rate issue - flickering only occurs with Xbox app games during clicks/input

Not a game-specific issue - persists across multiple games from the Xbox app

Not an app conflict - disabled background apps, overlays, recording software etc.

This looks to be some kind of conflict between the Xbox app and Windows probably. Please let me know if there's any solutions to this.

Thank you!

:)

Tomm_A

Hello Brandon,

We haven't heard from you, so we assume that your issue has already been addressed. We will not be monitoring this thread moving forward so, if you need further assistance, please create a new thread to discuss these concerns by clicking this link: Create a new question (microsoft.com)

Thank you for your understanding.

Respectfully,

Tomm_A

Hello Brandon,

Greetings!

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community.

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft customer support. I understand that you are experiencing screen flickering while playing games through the Xbox app on Windows 11. I apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. We will help find the possible solution to help address your concern.

We would like to ask few questions to help us isolate the issue further.

1. When did the issue start?

2. Has there been any changes with the device before this issue happen?

Based on the information you have provided, it seems that you have already tried several troubleshooting steps to resolve the issue. However, I would suggest trying the following steps:

1. Try to enable again Xbox Game Bar and Xbox Game mode.

2. Disable any third-party antivirus software temporarily and check if the issue persists.

3. Try running the Xbox app in compatibility mode for Windows 10.

4. Try running the game in windowed mode instead of full screen.

click on the Windows icon to open start menu > %LocalAppdata% on the search bar and open it
go to the %LOCALAPPDATA% folder > Search for the ‘Prospect’ folder
open the folder and to the Saved > Config > WindowsNoEditor directory.
Under the WindowsNoEditor folder, you’ll find a file called ‘GameUserSettings’
Open the user settings file using any text editor > Set ‘FullscreenMode=1’ to ‘FullscreenMode=0’ to save changes.
then try to launch the game again.

We look forward to your response. Kindly let us know, if there is any misunderstanding or clarifications of our description by sending us a reply.

Sincerely,

Juan RODRIGUEZ B.

what is your Problem?

Flickering Screen on Xbox

Flickering Screen on Xbox with HDR

Screen goes Black on HDR with Xbox ?

You talk about going black but have flickering on Topic.

There was an official Problem with HDR Flickering on that TVs and Xbox but that should be fixed a time ago

The screen flickers when HDR or HDMI ULTRA HD Deep Colour is on in the TV, after a while of flickering it goes black, then the TV loses the signal from the Xbox. That's
my problem.

If I deactivate HDMI ULTRA HD Deep Colour, then there's no more flickering and no more black screen.

Well it isn't fixed yet, I'm 100% sure I am on the latest firmware on both the LG C9 and the Xbox One X.

CyTeK1978

what is your Problem?

Flickering Screen on Xbox

Flickering Screen on Xbox with HDR

Screen goes Black on HDR with Xbox ?

You talk about going black but have flickering on Topic.

There was an official Problem with HDR Flickering on that TVs and Xbox but that should be fixed a time ago

RAIDEN496

not sure if the flickering is the same. But i have a sony 4k with HDR and when ever i am playing games i will get flickering., The screen does no flicker as in a HDMI problem as in turning on and off. It's more like the color flickering from dark to light
really fast. But If I turn off 4k on the Xbox it will correct the problem.

Screen Flickering to Desktop while playing Xbox App Games