What just happened? Microsoft has acknowledged that the Windows 11 22H2 update is causing game performance issues for some users. The company says it is working on a solution for the stuttering, framerate drops, and screen tearing. Until a fix is ready, it will be pausing the update for affected devices.

The Windows 11 2022 update, also known as the 22H2 update, started rolling out in 190 countries in September, bringing with it a slew of upgrades for Microsoft's latest operating system. As is often the case with updates of this size, it also added several unwanted bugs.

Reports that 22H2 was causing game performance issues and blue screens of death arrived quickly. In the case of the former, complaints ranged from just one game being affected, G-Sync and the audio also experiencing problems, and only Nvidia GPU users being impacted.

One user said the only game experiencing issues after the 22H2 Update was Battlefield 2042

Soon after those reports landed, Nvidia said that upgrading its GeForce Experience app would resolve the game performance-related issues. Now, over a month later, Microsoft has finally acknowledged the problem. It explained that the Windows update has caused some games and applications to inadvertently enable GPU performance debugging features not meant to be used by consumers.

The Redmond firm says that it has now paused the 22H2 rollout to those devices it believes will be impacted by the performance issues. The company advises those affected by the safeguard not to manually upgrade using the Update Now button or the Media Creation Tool.

Microsoft notes that if you've already installed 22H2, the tearing, stuttering, etc., in games might be fixed by updating games and gaming-related apps (such as Nvidia GeForce Experience) to their latest versions. Microsoft adds that it is working on a resolution, which will be included in an upcoming release.

For those who find updating their games/apps has no effect, the only solution guaranteed to work is the most obvious: rolling back Windows 11 to its previous version.

Microsoft lists several other issues caused by the Windows 11 22H2 update, including printer, audio, and sign-in bugs. You can check out the complete list here.

h/t: Windows Central