PC gamers are reporting substantial performance drops in popular titles following Microsoft’s October 2025 windows 11 update (KB5066835), prompting a swift response from NVIDIA with an emergency driver release [[1]]. The issue, affecting systems with windows 11 24H2 and 25H2, has seen frame rates plummet by as much as 50% in some cases [[2]], and currently appears isolated to NVIDIA graphics card users while AMD and Intel users await a potential OS-level fix from Microsoft [[2]]. NVIDIA’s hotfix driver, v581.94,released November 19th,aims to restore performance levels,but the underlying cause of the degradation remains under investigation [[3]].
PC gamers have reported significant frame rate drops in several titles, including Assassin’s Creed Shadows, after installing the Windows 11 October 2025 Update (KB5066835). The performance issues are directly impacting gameplay for affected users.
Players experiencing the problem say that games previously running at a stable 120-140 FPS have seen performance plummet to 40-70 FPS, accompanied by noticeable stuttering. Reverting to a previous version of Windows resolves the issue, according to user reports.
NVIDIA addressed the issue on November 19 with the release of GeForce Driver v581.94, a hotfix specifically designed to resolve “performance decreases observed in some games after updating to Windows 11 2025 October KB5066835.”
Early feedback indicates that installing the new driver fully restores frame rates, with some users reporting performance improvements of up to 5%.
The performance problems appear to be concentrated on systems running Windows 11 24H2/25H2. Windows 10, Linux, and Steam Deck are not affected. The issue primarily impacts users with NVIDIA graphics cards, including the RTX 50 series (5070, 5080, 5090, 5060 Ti) as well as the RTX 4080 and 4090.
The root cause of the frame rate drops remains undetermined. Microsoft has not yet acknowledged the reports or issued a formal fix.
The reported issues highlight the complexities of maintaining optimal performance across diverse hardware and software configurations as operating systems evolve. As gaming continues to push the boundaries of PC hardware, ensuring seamless compatibility remains a critical challenge for both software and graphics card manufacturers.
