Windows 11 gaming bugs get worse for testers as Microsoft struggles to fix the OS

Microsoft just released a new preview of Windows 11 for the earliest testing channel, and acknowledged that gaming bugs affecting preview builds have recently got worse.

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Gamers are facing some frustrations with the earliest test builds of Windows 11 (Image Credit: Microsoft)

The bad news comes with the release of preview build 26020 for the Canary channel, with Microsoft admitting that existing issues with bugs hitting PC games have got worse.

Microsoft told us:

"Some popular games may not work correctly on the most recent Insider Preview builds in the Canary Channel. Starting with Build 26016, more games have been impacted by several bugs - if you're having any issues please submit feedback in Feedback Hub."

These bugs affecting PC gamers have been hanging around for months now, so it's disheartening to see that they're getting worse, rather than better.

Of course, if you're testing Windows 11 - and especially the Canary builds - you must accept that there are problems that are bound to impact your experience. (And you certainly don't want a Canary preview on any PC that's intended for serious use, and not just messing around with, naturally).

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So, as you might expect, there are a bunch of other known issues flagged up with build 26020. That includes an error with printers (where the print queue is showing a weird message about not finding an app when it's opened) and a more serious gremlin in the works whereby testers can't open the Settings app.

Those who can successfully dive into the Settings panels may also find that there are minor errors in terms of incorrect fonts and spacing with text in the app.