Feral GameMode vs Magpie

Feral GameMode is a free Linux daemon and library that lets games request temporary optimisations to the host operating system or game process. It can adjust the CPU governor, I/O priority, process niceness and scheduler policy, inhibit the screensaver, change GPU performance mode, pin or park CPU cores, and run custom scripts. Games and launchers with built-in support can activate GameMode automatically; other games can be launched with the gamemoderun command or a Steam launch option. GPU performance mode is supported for NVIDIA and AMD, while GPU overclocking is listed for NVIDIA. The project lists packages for Ubuntu, Debian, Solus, Arch, Gentoo, Fedora, OpenSUSE and Mageia, with possible availability elsewhere. Configuration uses a gamemode.ini file with options for GPU and CPU settings, filters, supervisor access and scripts. GameMode is maintained by Feral Interactive and is available under the BSD 3-Clause License (Revised). Its build depends on Meson, internal communication uses systemd, and development requires a C environment. For hybrid GPU commands such as optirun, automatic integration after game startup is unavailable; a wrapper with gamemoderun is described instead.

Magpie is a free Windows tool for scaling windowed or fullscreen content with built-in algorithms and filters. These include Anime4K, FSR, CRT shaders, and other effects. Effects can be combined, most have adjustable parameters, and users familiar with HLSL can add effects. The WinUI-based interface supports light and dark themes, and the tool supports multiple monitors. Release notes describe a screenshot hotkey that defaults to Alt+Shift+S, with customizable filenames, and SGSR, a lightweight upscaling algorithm designed for 3D content. The FAQ says frame generation is not planned because Magpie focuses on visual quality and post-processing, which can add latency when used for frame generation. Magpie requires Windows 10 version 1903 or later, or Windows 11, and DirectX feature level 11. It is licensed under GPLv3, and downloads are linked from GitHub Releases. The repository says it has no SECURITY.md file and no published security advisories. Magpie is associated with a maker founded in 2021.