I recently came across a relatively new browser (tentatively created in 2019), or more like a special version of the main Opera browser, called Opera GX.
It claims to be a “browser for gamers” and although it’s obviously a bit of an exaggeration, it has a lot of features that gamers will benefit from. Not to mention that the interface alone bears a strong resemblance to anything you find in Cyberpunk 2077.
From controlling how much resource websites can use to its built-in ad blocker to its subtle integrations with Discord, YouTube Music and more right through the browser interface, there are countless ways users can increase their experience with Opera GX. You can even customize browser backgrounds and music.
With such a wide range of options and improvements, everyone, especially players who are clearly targeted by Opera, should give Opera GX a try. After all, if a loyal supporter Mozilla Firefox As impressed as I am, you may find yourself as pleasantly surprised as I did.
GX control
One of the main features of Opera GX is the CPU, RAM, network limiters, and hot tab killer that allow users to control how much of these resources are affected by the browser, even allowing you to automatically close certain tabs that consume a lot of these values. It’s a simple set of features that provide expert control over your internet experience that you can’t get from even the best Google Chrome extensions, at least not easily.
Being able to put this kind of limit on the browser is crucial, as they can quickly start taking up an amazing amount of your system resources. Opera GX has a soft and toggle option for the selector, with the soft option meaning there’s room to maneuver within the limit you’ve set while the hard edge means tabs will be dropped once they reach that specific limit.
This is something that gamers who have browsers open in the background that they might turn to for walkthroughs or any number of gaming related topics can seriously benefit by preventing the browser from affecting gaming performance. If you’re a gamer and find that keeping Google Chrome open in the background reduces frame rates, Opera GX might be the solution you never knew you needed.
GX . Cleaner
Most browsers have options for you to clean up caches, cookies, and other “backlogs” that build up over time, but they tend to be buried deep within options menus and aren’t particularly user friendly. However, Opera GX has the front and center feature in its sidebar, where the GX control and social media integration also live.
Simply click on the icon and then choose from three options, which control what needs to be purged, or customize it yourself including the lifespan of those junk files. It’s a great tool that makes browser cleaning a lot easier, especially since it can have a huge impact on how fast your browser runs and how much memory it takes up.
AdBlock and VPN combined
Internet privacy is becoming more and more important in our lives as it has become difficult to enforce. While Opera GX runs on Chromium and not the main privacy-first class browser (That would be Mozilla Firefox), it still offers a variety of tools that you can use to customize your privacy experience.
Inside the browser are both VPN and AdBlock, which you can toggle on and off via the sidebar menu as well as customize which sites are exceptions to these tools. In my experience, both work well, blocking some of the biggest online bots while allowing you to choose the region where your IP address is registered.
Of course, this is not ideal, as both VPN and AdBlock can interfere with websites as well as other GX features, but the fact that they are fully integrated and – and in the case of a VPN – completely free – is an absolute blessing.
You also have the option to download your own tools like uBlock Origins, as well as plenty of other add-ons and add-ons that protect your privacy. And while these options aren’t quite as robust as Firefox offers, it’s still a healthy amount that allows you to better customize your experience.
The aforementioned sidebar features some great integrations built into it, such as instant access to several sites like Twitch, Discord, Twitter, different messaging apps, Instagram, and more.
There is also a music player that works similarly and allows you to play music from sites like YouTube Music, Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud, Tidal and Spotify directly from the browser.
In any of these cases, you can use these sites by watching, listening to, or viewing content while using the main browser. And none of these use additional tabs either, which leads to resource savings. As I’m writing this, I’m using the YouTube Music player to listen to a video game music playlist as I type away and it works perfectly.
Other great features
There are some other great features that let you level up Opera GX to your exact visual and audio specifications.
For example, you can run RGB lighting With Razer Chroma, Logitech G Lightsync RGB, and Corsair iCue, as well as choose from many user-made wallpapers (including animated ones!) to make your browser your own. You can also set sound effects for typing, as well as choose background music to play while browsing.
You can organize your tabs into groups or workspaces, which is especially useful for tabs you may need to keep open and keep track of long-term tasks such as work or school tasks. There’s also Opera Flow, which syncs content between the Opera GX desktop browser and mobile versions. It is basically an instant messaging program that allows you to share links, files, or texts between your computer and phone.
All in all, Opera GX is a browser that hasn’t gotten much attention, but it’s probably the best web browser for gamers and a great alternative to Google Chrome if you’re not quite ready to ditch the Chromium-based browser just yet.