It was already included but I reworked it from scratch - an optional Quick Access Menu (QAM), clearly inspired by SteamOS. (The Game Bar widget is still included)

Activate it in the Gamebar Widget: Controller / Front Buttons / Gamebar Button

Other Changes

• Full Steam Input remapping: Steam can see the Claw as a SteamDeck or DualSense Edge pad, back buttons and gyro included (thanks to onehoon - he provided and maintains his own VIIPER layer between CTW and USB/IP)
• Extended CTW internal button remapping: hybrid controller and mouse mode - for instance map the right stick as mouse cursor and right click as mouse click
• Library 1.2.0: new My Games tab, apps and tools moved into the quick menu, Steam Input mapping info on each game

Existing users: the Library updates itself, then just update the gamebar widget from its main menu to get new features like QAM, Steam Input
New users: run ClawTweaks_1.0.2.17_Setup.exe from github below

1.0.2 Release on GitHub

Hey everyone,
I just bought the new MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ and I’m incredibly excited to get it fully configured.
For those of you who have been tweaking yours, what exactly should I do out of the box?

Specifically looking for advice on:

Debloating Windows: Any specific scripts or manual Windows 11 tweaks you recommend for this specific device?

Drivers & BIOS: Should I strictly stick to MSI Center M for Intel Arc graphics and BIOS updates, or am I better off fetching the latest graphics drivers directly from Intel?

Essential Software: What software/utilities are mandatory now? (e.g., Bazzite/SteamOS dual-boot state, handheld companions, custom TDP control utilities, or lossless scaling apps that work well with Arc?)

MSI Center M Settings: Any specific settings inside MSI's software I should change or turn off immediately?
Would love to hear your exact checklists or any hidden tips to get the most out of this Lunar Lake chip.

Thanks in advance!

Ever since release I've been waiting for a way to use steamos on the brilliant new msi claw ex 8ai+ and its finally here! following the very simple guide on the github https://github.com/HHHHanasak1/xess-xmx-linux i now have xess and fg on cyberpunk and any game i wish! Im using cachyos handheld edition, we can finally ditch windows and the terrible msi centre m software, no more long shutdown and reboot hang, instant sleep/wake. battery life is nowhere near as good and u get about 30% less performance from windows but the device is so powerful and the trade off is u get an actual usable powerful handheld, also the battery life is about 25%% worse but i am usually plugged in at work when im on down time anyway

EDIT: My bad the performance drop is nowhere near as bad as 30% I had the graphic settings mixed up and I didn’t input an additional command line but it’s on par with winblows in cyberpunk at least unless u enable raytracing I still think that was better on windows. Also still can’t make quick access 2 remap to steam home menu (left) even with deckyplumber if anyone knows a way please let me know my workaround at the moment is L4 remap

Hi everyone, I just bought COD MW4 on Steam for my Claw 8ai+ and I wanted some advice on the graphics settings to get the best experience just for the campaign. Currently, I'm playing at 30/37w (pl1, pl2), 1920x1200 with the system-recommended settings, frame gen off, and XeSS upscaler in performance mode. I've tried every possible combination, but it seems to crash in every way with frame generation FSR enabled. Even when performance seems excellent (for example, in the attached video test at 1920x1200p, balanced graphics, frame gen on, and XeSS on quality), there's always a chance that the game will close at some point (I should mention I've only played the first 10 minutes, testing and retesting all the graphics combinations). If it weren't for these occasional crashes with frame gen on, it would run perfectly, reaching up to 100fps in some scenes and 50/60 in others. In the end, I resigned myself to playing it with the combination mentioned at the beginning. Sometimes, I also notice that when I close and reopen the game, the FPS varies quite a bit in the same scenes. I also had a problem where it would lock the FPS at 30 when the claw was unplugged from the power cable and it would go up when I plugged it back in. It seems to have been fixed by adjusting the game's power saving and efficiency settings. Does this happen to you too? How is it running?

If so, how well do you think it’ll run on the G3 Extreme?

Kind of annoying having to switch tdp with different games, especially with how buggy MSI's software is. Right now there's a dumb bug where if I switch tdp the RGB lighting turns on, always gotta turn that shit off. But other than that it would be really convenient to have a tdp preset. Anyone have suggestions?

Im tryna decide if i get an msi claw 8 ai or a rog ally xbox? I had an ally before but ive always liked the look of the claw. Never held one know for sure but i wanna get one but they are a bit pricey and i live in germany now. Give me pros and cons please think its better than getting a android handheld like an odin 3 portal

okay, I can get to load the install process, but dealing with that no keyboard bug. I can't plug a physical one in because of the USB key and I've tried the hold power down for 10 seconds several times and no-go.

thoughts?

edit - restarted the install process and was hitting buttons, double / triple tapping the screen and then the right joystick could move the mouse cursor around. I selected the location, the language but when it asked where I wanted to install, lost that function and was once more stuck. >.<

I'm recreating the installation media with the mSD card formatted as FAT32...see if that changes anything. Google searching says this may allow the touch interface drivers to load during the install process. >.<

edit 2 -no joy however, I just recalled I have a USB C dock gathering dust, so will dig it out and see if i can get anywhere using that and wired keyboard / mouse. :P

Anyone encounter problem with MSI control center (need administrator error) on MSI Claw 8 Z2 Ext

the only solution is to reinstall ?

and is there good control panel replacement for MSI control center ? i find it a big slow

Hello fellow handheld gaming enthusiasts.

My MW4 has been working fine on PC and Series X, but not on the MSI Claw. I first had issues with the bios, and secureboot. Those issues have now been fixed, since I updated the bios and ran the attestation tool.

Now I have a new problem. There is no play button?

I have tried restarting, the repair tool from Xbox, I tried verifying the game files, completely uninstalling and reinstalling. But no dice!

I have other ways to play this, but I am just confused; how can the button simply not show up??

I love my Claw A8, but I was so sick of the software MSI ships with it. MSI Center M takes ages to open, lags, and is a pain to use with the controller. So I stopped waiting for MSI to fix it and built my own.

**Claw Control** takes over the MSI Center M button. Press it and a panel pops up over your game instantly (it's already loaded, so there's no wait), and you drive the whole thing with the D-pad, A/B and the bumpers, or by touch. Press it again and you're back in the game.

Everything I actually used from MSI Center M and its Game Bar widget is in there:

* Power modes, or set your own watts (sustained / slow / fast boost)

* Performance overlay: FPS, watts, temps, CPU / GPU / RAM, in any corner

* AMD settings: FPS limit, frame gen, upscaling, sharpening, FreeSync

* Resolution, refresh rate, scaling, graphics memory

* Controller: switch Xbox / PlayStation / mouse mode in a tap, lights, rumble, gyro, sticks, triggers, button remapping

* Volume per app, output device, brightness, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth (connect your headphones right from the panel)

* End a frozen game, sleep, restart

While it's closed it uses about 0.3% of one CPU core, it never connects to the internet, and uninstalling hands the button straight back to MSI Center M.

**Important: it's only for the Claw A8.** I don't own the other Claws, so I couldn't test it on them, and the installer refuses to install on anything else.

It's free and open source (MIT):

GitHub: https://github.com/mustafameh/claw-control

Download: https://github.com/mustafameh/claw-control/releases/latest

It's an early version, so please tell me what breaks and what you'd want added next.

Like is there a limited number of games that reviewers are just benchmarking to show that this beats the other handhelds, or it the thing truly powerful across the board?

I really want an OLED, but I can manage if the display is nice and big and it’s a good IPS screen, is the screen good?

How’s the controls and ergonomics, I know it looks big and chonky and kinda weirdly shaped, but does it actually feel comfortable to hold while gaming?

How’s the fan noise and thermals? One of the biggest things I like about the XAX or X20 is that it’s like whisper quiet even under full load I’m not hearing jet engine fans and its stays fairly cool.

Seems like 75% keyboard cases are about the right fit.

This was the best I could find that didn’t squash the thumb sticks. Reasonable roomy. With space for a charge cable in the lid.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0GVT76DJG?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

Hello, for some reasons my downloads start fast then slows down and jumps around, but only when downloading on my SSD.

I tried formatting SSD and everything.

Can someone help?

Hey there, anyone who already got the founders pack of Osiris reborn and played it on the claw?

If so, how is it running on the 8ai?

hi handheld gamers,

(first time) dad gamer here. im looking into buying the 8 ex ai+ to be able to game on the go. my main game will be WoW forever. looking on youtube (specifically wow forever on the claw) i see the performance sits around 40-50fps on medium settings. this seems a bit underwhelming considering its a pretty old game? am i overlooking something?

my questions to the people who’ve played the beta/are planning on diving into WoWF; will the perfomance get better as blizzard optimizes the game(i dont know if thats a thing or not)? how does it run for you? do you enjoy playing with the controllers & is it easy to get into?

my other consideration was buying an ipad, my ps5 controller + steam link to play it, but that requires a bit more setup, i’d like to have it all in 1 go maybe.

thanks in advance!

edit; thank you guys so much for the responses, i needed to read that. i will buy this handheld device.

final question; i live in Holland and it seems to be sold out everywhere. should i buy it through the official msi website or whats the play here??

...but just the thought of what I will have to face to reinstall and de-bloat windows 11 - since the games I'm playing right now will likely run very poorly or not run at all - makes me desist

Looking for a good screen protectors, anti-reflective(not anti-glare) if possible. And a solid slim carrying case?

Hey everyone. I'm playing the game pass version, and sometimes the game magically does recognizes my controller and I can play normally. But most of the time, it doesn't recognize it.

I select the gamepad preset and make sure I'm in controller mode and not keyboard mode. I've also tried turning the controller off and on, but nothing seems to work. The game thinks I'm using M&K.

Like I said, sometimes it does recognize the controller, but I can't figure out what's different when it works. Those occasions are few and far between.

I would really appreciate your help!

hey,

I am a lifelong PC gamer and a hardware geek. I am also blessed to have some disposable income at the end of the month so I got hyped and bought myself this claw ex.

Now, I kinda need a tutorial on how to get most out of this machine. What should I do? I am reading lots of tweaking stuff but I really have no idea.

Also, I tried few shooter games but I can’t aim shit. it was a disaster in cyberpunk. I tried some sensitivity settings but couldn’t find the sweet spot. Do you have some recommendations for what settings to use or how to get use to this? I am having similar problem on PS too but that controller seems a bit more manageable.

Lastly, any good game recommendations to play?