10 Best Game Recording Software for Windows

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Ever considered about capturing your favorite game pictures or activities on your desktop? Well, of course, we have the inbuilt screenshot tool in our system for this, but who doesn’t want extra something? So, for this you need to use best screen capture software for it.

10 Best Screen Capture Software for Windows

They can be independent on their own or can be a part of the screen recording programs too. If you need to use them for more professional use then I would recommend you to use them independently or with studio grade package. However, if you cannot decide which one to pick then you can go through the details of various programs enlisted below.

1. Snagit

Website: https://www.techsmith.com/

SnagitSnagit is the first option under this list of best screen capture software powered by popular company TechSmith. This powerful screen capture software eliminates all the hassles and makes the process as simple as taking screenshots with mobile phones.

SnagIt is a paid program and after the registration, you get 15 days of free trial after which you can buy it for $49.95 for two machines per user. Also if you are an existing user, you can upgrade for $24.95.

Instantly capture screens and edit images and once you are satisfied with final results, share them on various platforms. You can use arrows and highlight something in the images, add shapes and callouts, high-quality images and video recordings.

So apart from screen capture, you can use Snagit for screen recording too and that too in great quality. The advanced built-in image editing software allows you to create professional quality images and add annotations and texts in them too. You can use Snagit for capturing entire screen, region, window or even scrolling screen too.

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2. TinyTake

Website: https://tinytake.com/

TinyTakeTinyTake is not just another option for the list of best screen capture software but it is widely used for screen recording, editing, and streaming purposes too. Powered by MangoApps, you can use this tool for absolutely free especially when it comes to using just the Screen capture utility.

Although the basic plan is available for free other paid upgrades are 1-week pass for $9.95, Standard plan for $39.95/year, Plus for $79.95 per year, Jumbo for $149.95 per year and Business plan for $399.95 per year.

For Screen Capture you are provided features like full screen/regional screen capture, text addition, annotation, direct sharing, arrow, highlighting and adding picture caption, capture from webcam, drag and drop picture from local drive, complete toolset for drawing and editing etc.

Not only for taking snapshots but TinTake is also known as one of the best screen video capture software too providing variety of features of recording and video editing. TinyTake is highly preferred for the editing purposes as it can turn a simple snapshot into a totally professional picture.

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3. Bandicam

Website: https://www.bandicam.com/

BandicamA highly recommended screen recorder from my side which is also able to capture images too. Be it in the midst of webcam streaming or some screen recording, you can capture whatever image you want and that too with just a single click.

The free version is not consisted of all the features and hence you can upgrade to the paid license which is available for $39 per PC and $59 for 2 PC.

In the list of best screen capture software, Bandicam stands out as a really lightweight program which is capable to capture high-quality images. It captures gameplays too very well with high compression ratio. Other features which comes handy with Bandicam are draw and outline the screenshot, mouse effect, highlighting, put your own logo on image/video etc.

Bandicam is mostly used for video recording purposes but can also serve as a good screen capture program too. However, it does not offer as many features for screenshots as other programs.

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4. ActivePresenter

Website: https://atomisystems.com/

Active Presenter is counted amongst the best screen capture software for windows. The current version AP7 offers the services of screen recording, video editing and e-Learning authoring software along with the usual application of screen capture with it.

You can download ActivePresenter for absolutely free and if you want to upgrade to advanced features then you have paid plans licenses like Standard Edition for $149 and Pro Edition for $299.

Although highly used for mainly screen recording and video editing, ActivePresenter 7 provides various features of screen capture too. It offers screen capture with just one click of mouse or another hotkey, full screen/region capture, color and text effects, webcam capture, shapes and freeform addition in the images etc.

The quality of images generated with the help of ActivePresenter are quite great and can be used for professional purposes too. AP7 is one of the best screen capture software whose free edition is somewhere enough to fulfill your image editing needs however it is restricted to personal use only.

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5. Ashampoo Snap 10

Website: https://www.ashampoo.com/

Ashampoo Snap 10Now you can capture and edit your screen content with a really fast and easy process and you have Ashampoo Snap 10 by your side for this process. Ashampoo has a lot of products to offer and Its Snap 10 is just perfect to fit in the category of best screen capture software.

From screen/webcam capture to making recordings, Snap 10 can be used for all the purposes of preparing tutorial projects and videos easily.

However, this product is available for free but with limited use only and you can but it for only $39.99. Snap 10 brings you features like superior quality images and videos, screenshots of 3D full-screen games, color picker to capture colors, timed captures, collage creation with multiple images, auto-insert watermarks etc.

Snap 10 offers the OCR feature under which you can recognize text and extract it from the snapshots taken and it supports 6 languages too. You can also add URLs to the images, animated GIFs creation, export objects to photoshop, movable editing window, highlight effect and many more.

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6. FastStone Capture

Website: www.faststone.org/

Be it image editing or capturing, FastStone Capture turn out to be an amazing option as best screen capture program. Despite being a lightweight program, it is quite powerful and fully features with various capturing tools and services.

Under the free version of FastStone Capture you do not get complete features and hence you can buy Personal license for $19.95 per user and Family license for $49.95 for 5 computers.

Apart from taking screenshots, it is effective in capturing videos too. The features and tools which can help you in improvising your images are annotating, full screen/rectangular/region based/freehand image capturing, built-in image editor, direct output for file sharing and print out etc.

FastStone Capture is the most recommended program from my side amongst all the other best screen capture software mainly because of the editing options. From image sharpening to cropping, auto-correction, watermarking, text addition etc. it allows you to do everything related. It also supports various file formats too which makes it compatible to various other relevant platforms too.

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7. Screenshot Captor

Website: https://www.donationcoder.com/

A completely free to use program, Screenshot Captor is another option under the list of best screen capture software. It is not just a tool but a complete package comprising of all the services like picking, manipulating, improvising, annotating and finally sharing with the help of advanced features used.

If you are still thinking that it reflects the traditional form of taking screenshots then you are totally wrong because the current Screenshot Captor 4 you can do way more than just taking snapshots.

The features offered by Screenshot Captor are lot of screenshots with minimum intervention, special effects for editing, pixelation, text removal, edge splicing, enhancement, scrolling capture tools, snapshots from webcam, video recordings and gaming sessions as well.

Apart from the editing features, Screenshot Captor also provides services like drag and drop support, right click for screenshot, scrolling capture, thumbnail and watermark maker, adding attractive captions and other texts, smart auto naming, renaming etc. It is not just a simple software but instead a complete package for capturing as well as editing.

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8. SnapDraw Free

Website: http://www.snapfiles.com/

SnapDraw FreeSnapDraw Free is a free to use software available for using the utilities of screen capture and then screenshot enhancement and editing. It is counted amongst the top screen capture software which are available for free to provide their services and features.

Their main motive is to provide high-quality screenshots to the users which can further be used for tutorials, learning programs, educational and other purposes.

All the screenshots are prepared with alpha transparency and also maintains great quality throughout the process. SnapDraw Free also provides features like adding annotations, reflections, 3D perspective effects, various screenshot options like windows/fullscreen/region etc.

The process is quite simple for this best screen capture software, you just need to press the hotkey and the screenshot is taken instantly. You can add texts/shapes/freehand shapes and other annotations in the images too. Watermark and background color can also be added which adds a personalized touch to the screenshots effectively.

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9. FlashBack

Website: https://www.flashbackrecorder.com/

FlashBack ProAlthough you have FlashBack Express Edition for screen capture and recording purposes but because of being a free program it provides limited features only. Hence, you can download FlashBack Pro which is highly recommended program for professional grade screen capturing and editing.

You can buy the personal license for $49 and Business license for $99 of FlashBack Pro. As compared to Express edition, it offers better functions and advanced features too. However, if you are using it for personal and low-level use then you can use FlashBack Express Edition too.

FlashBack Pro comes with features like webcam/game/screen/windows/region based capturing, add text and other annotations in the image, area highlighting, zoom/pan and magnifier effects, direct sharing to other platforms, GIF creation, password protection etc.

This best screen capture software also offers major formats support, add watermark, image enhancing, drawing etc. However, this program is more preferred for screen recording rather than capturing. Still, when compared to the basic screenshot option of windows, this program is way advanced than it.

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10. Easy Screen Capture

Website: http://www.mindgems.com/

The last option under the list of best screen capture software is Easy Screen Capture. Main purpose of using this software is to speed up the process of screen capturing and editing much faster and efficient. As the name say, this lightweight program is quite easy to use. Most of the functions are performed through automation which saves a lot of time of the users.

You can download the free version and for better high-end features you can upgrade to the paid version for $29.95 per user as the lifetime fee.

Regarded as one of the simplest and the best screen capture for windows, Easy Screen Capture offers a number of various features to its users. These are multiple capture options like full screen/active window/rectangle/scrolling windows/window without borders, text annotations with different styles, highlight special areas and many more.

The cutting-edge technology of image editing used in it makes it quite efficient as compared to traditional snipping tool/screenshot option of Windows platform. The additional features like comprising multiple captures in single image, multiple image format support, editing tools like crop, sharpening, auto-correction etc. makes it a complete capturing suit.

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11. iSpring Cam Pro

Website: https://www.ispringsolutions.com/ispring-cam

best Screen Capture Tool

iSpringPro is probably the most expensive option on this list of best screen capture software for Windows and costs USD $227.00/year. Although there’s a 14-day free trial as well. Additionally, discounted quotes can be obtained for Students, Non-Profits and Govt. organizations.

It’s a professional video and screen capture tool which is primarily targeted towards Businesses and organizations. The option to either capture the entire screen, a specific area, a specific monitor or even a specific application is available.

Videos synced with mic and Voice-overs for explaining videos better are possible as well. Got nothing to say? You can simply record the system audio, or add in music to the videos as well. It also can record the Webcam and facilitate Picture-in-Picture videos to bring in that touch of professionalism and personalization simultaneously.

Annotations, indicators, as well as Slides and Titles too can be embedded to make the video more understandable. Does offer a ton of transition effects. Trimming, Merging, and other video-editing related features available as well.

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Most of the Interface is “Drag & Drop” making it easier to use and newbie-friendly. The videos can be pushed directly to multiple video platforms (including YouTube) and shared with the world. Due to the advanced features, the system requirements are a bit needy and if you’ve an extremely low-end PC the tool may not function properly.

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12. Action!

Website: https://mirillis.com/en/products/action.html

Best game recording software for Windows

Action! is one of the few options on this list made specifically with “game recording” in mind. Though a high spec computer is required to run it at its full potential as it uses GPU for Hardware acceleration, less straining the CPU. Yet if you’ve got 512 MB RAM and a 1.4 GHz processor Action! can still be run on your system.

It features all the important settings including webcam-microphone support which allows adding live commentary for tournaments, Custom rooms and servers,  screen resizer, camera crop, etc.

My personal favorite feature with the application is its green-screen mode coupled with automatic background removal perfect for game-streaming. With its ability to record high framerate up to 120 fps and 4k resolution compatibility it’s quite popular among gameplay streamers on YouTube,Twitch, Livestream, etc.

Though Action! lacks frame-rate controller for game mode, it won’t be a problem as most modern games have FPS adjustment settings. Some other useful features that it offers are temperature controller for GPU and CPU, live preview of video composition, advanced benchmarking, on-screen/in-game drawing panel, time shift.

Also when playing intense games such as PUBG, Counter Strike, NFS and others, there are moments which are just breathtaking. Action! understands that and offers in-built “slow motion” effects to spice up those exact moments.

It also has an android app to control the recordings. Action! offers 30-day trial period after which a user can choose the premium versions based on usage, Home (from $19.77-lifetime) and commercial (from $32.95-lifetime).

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13. xSplit Game Caster

Website: https://www.xsplit.com/

10best game recording software

It’s important for the options on this list to be tailored towards “Game Recording” and not just capturing the screen. What goes hand in hand with Game-recording? Live-streaming or later uploads of the game ofcourse.

xSplit Game Caster is a software designed exclusively for that very purpose, recording and live-streaming games. It’s capable of recording games not just on Windows, but even on Consoles!

Most of the settings is auto-adjusted, making it very friendly even for first-timers and new users. Does offer in-game stream controls. Gamers and Streamers can control the stream without leaving the game-screen.

Although my personal favorite feature is its hundreds of available themes and overlays. Nothing of your taste? Even allows customizing the themes manually.

The Superchats, new subscribers and other interactions from the audience can be highlighted and customized to suit your overall theme as well. Wish to make it more engaging? You can even add Subscriber goals, trains for donations and subscribers and customized Gifs.

The  free version is completely usable, and doesn’t show a watermark for videos lower than 720P. Advanced features such as Green-screen edit, annotations and commercial use etc. however are for paid-only. Can be bought for USD $199.00 one-time fee, or monthly subscriptions cost USD $8.32/month for 3 months or USD $5.00 if paid for each month individually.

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14. ShadowPlay

Website: https://www.nvidia.com/de-de/geforce/geforce-experience/shadowplay/

best game recording software

ShadowPlay from Nvidia is truly one of the best game recording software for Windows. Let’s start with the fact that it supports not just recording, but also screenshots as well as live-streaming! It’s capable of capturing 4K Videos at 60FPS!

Most background best game recording software result in a laggy gameplay however low that effect is, not ShadowPlay. It uses Hardware Acceleration to make sure the CPU isn’t completely juiced off.

Although my favorite feature with ShadowPlay is its “Instant Replay Mode“. So whenever my car flies off a cliff, or I make an impossible headshot (or basically anything else which is breathtaking), I can instantly make ShadowPlay save the last 30 seconds of the video to the HDD.

Not just that, you can share these clips to Social Media, Video Streaming sites and more! It allows live-streaming, but what’s impressive is custom overlays and themes too are included! The games can be streamed to Twitch, Facebook Live or even Youtube.

Not just “Videos” you want to create? How about Gifs? It allows creating Gifs for upto 15 seconds. Is completely free and that’s what makes it all the more appealing.

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15. AMD Relive

Website: https://www.amd.com/en/technologies/radeon-software-gaming-media

best game recording software

Just like ShadowPlay is crafted for Nvidia, AMD Relive is for AMD cards. As the name suggests, it helps gamers relive their moments of glory in a very broad explanation.

The application allows gamers to not only record gameplay, but also take screenshots. Moreover, you can also instantly create a video into a Gif. Instant replay is available as well making sure you do not miss those single-shot kills.

The UI is extremely simple, everything that you can do with the application has been hoarded at one place. It also supports direct sharing of the recorded content on social media for added exposure. Are you more of a live-streamer? AMD Relive not only supports streaming but also has that as one of its prime benefits and goals!

Moment of truth, it isn’t as feature-rich as some other game recording software on this list. Yet, it totally fits the bills as one of the ,if not the best game recording software. Also note that it’ll only work if you’ve AMD-backed hardware.

16. Loilo

Website: https://loilo.tv/us/product/game_recorder

best game recording software

Loilo is an absolutely free screen recorder made specifically for games. It prides itself on its “Motion-JPEG” format, which it claims balances quality and file-size perfectly.

It also scored (surprisingly) better than Bandicam and some of its other competitors at a Benchmark test. It claims being the game recording software with the least performance loss.

The interface is pretty straight-forward, infact probably one of the simplest on this list. It also is one of the very few options actually offering a “game-selector”. It’s totally capable of recording system sound, as well as sound from a mic.

Automated uploading to Youtube is another one of the possibilities it offers. There are absolutely no limitations on the software. It’s completely free because it’s primary product is a video editing software through which they generate revenue. Loilo game recorder is more of an upsell strategy.

A number of games have been tested such as GTA, Minecraft, Dota 2, COD: Ghosts etc. and have been found to work well. Most other games are supported as well (if it supports Minecraft, it can handle anything don’t you agree?). Has low system requirements and is pretty lightweight. Is Windows-only.

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17. D3D Gear

Website: https://www.d3dgear.com/

D3D gear isn’t just any screen recording software, but a specialized game recording solution. It markets itself with the tagline “Very fast game recording software”. One of its primary selling points is its low CPU-consumption. While games by default eat up quite a bit of system resources, this makes sure that the application doesn’t hoard up whatever’s left hence offering a lag-free gaming experience even while recording.

It further controls the recorded video size. Meaning, you wouldn’t get videos which weight a ton rather the video sizes are always acceptable. It also offers a webcam recording with overlay and Chroma-key background removal perfect for streamers.

Taking of streaming, it’s fully and directly compatible with Twitch, Youtube, Facebook and other streaming platforms. You can not only stream, but also stream simultaneously to multiple platforms using D3D Gear. The stream can even be recorded locally!

Gamers can also set the audio source manually, do you wish to capture microphone or just the game audio? Custom recording areas can be selected as well.

Games ranging from 15 to 60 FPS can be recorded with ease. Moreover, even Oculus rift VR games can be recorded. There’s a 15-day trial, however the fully featured tool costs USD $29.85.

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18. Fraps

Website: https://www.fraps.com/

Fraps isn’t the absolute best game recording software out there, but it sure gets the job done. In the least, it’s made specifically for recording games although sure non-game screens too can be recorded. It’s capable of capturing video up to 7680 X 4800.

It’s perfect for game recording due to its capability of recording games from 1 to 120FPS. It’s commendable, considering how some other best game recording software can only capture upto 60FPS. This makes it perfect for recording very demanding games such as Far Cry, as well as basics such as Ballance.

Need to capture a screenshot during gameplay? It also doubles as a screen capture software, It also displays the FPS which can be used for a number of different reasons. This data can be saved locally for future references.

It’s largely free, however purchasing the paid plan costs USD $37.00. This offers additional features such as no-limit recording, and no watermark outputs. Payments can easily be made using PayPal.

The official website also provides a number of samples which are available on the homepage. These can be played/downloaded to get an idea of the quality offered by the tool.

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19. Elgato Game Capture

Website: https://www.elgato.com/en/gaming/game-capture-software

Elgato is literally one of the pioneers in the gaming industry. They primarily sell the Elgato streaming devices for the esports community however their game recording software is no less impressive.

For starters, know that it’s “made” for recording games and that’s its primary purpose, it’s not one of your everyday screen recording software. 

One of its game-centric features is that the game-audio automatically lowers when you use your mic. This makes live-streams and recording extremely easy.

Heard of time-travel, well Elgato Game Capture lets you do it, technically anyway. Even if you forgot to click on the capture button for your gameplay, it has this “Flashback” feature which temporarily stores your gameplay so you can go back and capture what you earlier didn’t!

It also is the perfect live-streaming partner. You can change your stream title mid-session, choose a bitrate, and basically just stream in seconds. Additionally, you can install “Sound Capture” this tool needs to be installed independently, but once done allows you to pull sound from any app on your system, including Discord, skype, or just a music player.

Text, alerts (new subscribers, donations) and other elements can be added to the videos as well which pack that professionalism punch your videos may need.

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Difference between a Game Recording Software and a normal Screen Capture Software

Even though these two may seen synonymous, they’re not so. The differences will be most visible if you read the above list from bottom to top.

So a normal screen capture software will only allow you to record your screen, period. Maybe sprinkles a dash of video editing capabilities. But a game recording software is more game-centric.

The first difference is most game recording software allow high FPS recording, that’s the only way a game can be enjoyed. They either allow 60 FPS or 120 FPS games to be captured smoothly. A normal screen-capture software may not yield similarly impressive results and resolution.

Secondly, these game recording software often support Hardware acceleration. As a result of which, the games aren’t laggy despite being recorded simultaneously. A normal screen capture software on the other hand increases CPU load and may result in a not as good gaming experience.

And finally, most tools made exclusively for game recording offer instant-replays and detection of “glory-moments”. This is achievable manually with normal recorders but isn’t automated.

However, not everything is rainbows and unicorns with the game recording software. In most cases, they do not compress the video resulting in massive video-sizes. So if you’re low on space, normal recorders may actually be a better bet.

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Conclusion

You can now kiss goodbye to the traditional method of pressing PrtScn and then pasting it into Microsoft paint. With the help of these best screen capture software, you can not only grab a picture at any instant but can also improvise and edit it too.

In fact, you can directly share it from the program to whichever social media platform you want. This not only saves a lot of time of yours but also maintains the workflow and its efficiency too. Adding annotations and performing tasks over custom hotkeys are something you should get habitual of with the use of these programs.

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Nagama Ansari is a well-known blogger and digital marketer, working in the industry from several year, and has written more than 1000+ well-researched information guides and product testing review articles..