Microsoft will finally let you turn off Quick Resume for individual games

Microsoft is introducing a series of updates for its Xbox Series X|S consoles to members of the Xbox Insiders program, notably including a feature long requested by the gaming community. Soon, players will gain the ability to deactivate the Quick Resume function for specific titles, ensuring those games initiate from a fresh start every time they are launched.

Quick Resume, a flagship feature introduced with the current generation of Xbox consoles, allows users to suspend numerous games concurrently. These games remain active in the background, even when the console is powered off. Upon returning to a Quick Resume-enabled game, players are instantly dropped back into their precise last location within mere seconds, a capability that remains impressive even over five years after the Series X|S debut.

However, over time, players have identified scenarios where Quick Resume proves less than ideal, particularly for titles requiring a constant online connection. When these games are brought back from a suspended state, they frequently display disconnection errors, necessitating a full manual shutdown and subsequent relaunch. Other games simply exhibit compatibility issues with the feature for various reasons. While manual game closure is always an option, it involves more steps than the quick resume process, making it prone to being forgotten.

The latest Xbox system update provides a solution by enabling users to manage Quick Resume settings on a game-by-game basis. By navigating to 'More Options' and then 'Manage Quick Resume' from a game's tile, players can selectively disable the feature. This allows them to ensure Quick Resume is only active for single-player experiences where the convenience of immediate pickup is highly valued. This enhancement has been met with positive feedback, including from former Xbox personality Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb, who publicly noted he had requested this functionality five years prior during his tenure at Microsoft.

Beyond Quick Resume, Microsoft is also enhancing the customization options for the Xbox dashboard in the upcoming update. Users will be able to design custom background colors, moving beyond the existing predefined color palette. Furthermore, the capacity for creating Groups on the Home screen has been expanded significantly, from two to ten, and these groups can now be reordered in the same manner as individual game tiles.

These new functionalities are currently accessible to selected Xbox Insiders and are slated for a broader release to all users in due course.