Games on Xiaomi Redmi smartphones are often a source of irritation: they take up memory, consume battery power in the background and constantly send notifications. Even after standard removal, some games (especially pre-installed system) continue to recover after rebooting. In this article, we will analyze 5 proven ways – from simple disconnection to complete removal through ADB, including the nuances of working with the Game Turbo and Game Center in MIUI 12-14.
It's important to understand that not all methods are equally effective. For example, hiding an icon does not stop the background processes of the game, and forced stop through settings is reset after restarting the phone. We tested each method on the Redmi Note 10/11/12 Pro, Redmi 9/10 and POCO X3/X4 models, the results are summarized in a comparative table below.
1. Standard removal through settings
The most obvious, but not always working, method is suitable for custom games (installed from Google Play or APK), but useless for system applications like Game Center or Mi Game Turbo.
How to delete:
- 📱 Open the Settings. → Annexes → Application management.
- 🔍 Enter the name of the game in the search bar (for example, PUBG Mobile or Call of Duty).
- 🗑️ Click Delete (if the button is active) If it is not activated, then the game is system (see method 3).
- 🔄 Confirm the action and restart the phone.
⚠️ Note: After removal, some games (such as Genshin Impact) are left to play. 1-2 GB cache in a folder /Android/obb/. To clear them, use the file manager or Settings. → Memory. → Cleanup.
If the Remove button is inactive and the game is pre-installed (e.g. Mi Game Center), move to the next method. Also check if the game is hidden in Settings → Screen → Hidden applications – sometimes it is just hidden, but continues to work.
2. disable the game without deletion
If you can't delete a game (like Game Turbo or Mi Video), you can turn it off, which will stop background processes and notifications, but won't free up memory.
Instructions:
- Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
- Select the game from the list or search through search.
- Click Disable (if the button is grey – ADB rights are required, see Method 5).
- Confirm the action in the dialog window.
After the shutdown:
- ✅ The game icon will disappear from the desktop.
- ✅ Notifications and background activity will cease.
- ❌ Memory will not be released (game files will remain in the system).
- ❌ After updating MIUI playback may be activated again.
☑️ Preparing for the game shutdown
⚠️ Note: Disabling system games like Game Center can cause errors in the Game Turbo (gamer mode). If you use this mode, use method 4 (hiding through the gamer mode). MIUI Hidden Settings).
3. Remove system games via MIUI Hidden Settings
To remove pre-installed games (such as Mi Game Center or Mi Pay), you will need a hidden MIUI menu.This method works without ADB, but requires activation of the developer mode.
Steps:
- Activate Developer Mode: Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version (click 7 times)
- Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and enable USB debugging.
- Install QuickShortcutMaker from Google Play.
- In QuickShortcutMaker, search for com.android.settings and select Hidden Settings (or com.android.settings/.HiddenSettingsActivity).
- In the menu that opens, go to Manage applications and find the game.
- Click Uninstall for all users (if available).
If the uninstall option is not available, the game is firmware-protected, in which case only the ADB method will help.
What if Hidden Settings doesn’t open?
4. Hiding the game without deletion (for Game Turbo)
If you want the game to run the Game Turbo (like Mi Game Center) but you don't want to see its icon and notifications, you can hide it without completely removing it. This method doesn't stop the background processes, but removes the annoyance from the constant reminders.
How to hide it:
- 📂 Open the Settings. → Screen. → Hidden applications.
- 🔍 Find the game in the list and activate the switch.
- 🔄 Restart your phone (the icon will disappear from your desktop).
To completely hide the notifications:
- Go to Settings → Notifications → Notifications Management.
- Find the game in the list and turn off all switches.
- In the Notification Categories section, turn off Sound, Vibration, and Pop-ups.
| Method | Suitable for | Deletes files. | Stops background processes | Requires root/ADB | Restored after update |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard removal | Customized games | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. | ❌ No. |
| Shutdown | System games | ❌ No. | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. | ✅ Yes. |
| MIUI Hidden Settings | System games (not all) | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. | ❌ No. |
| Hiding | Any games. | ❌ No. | ❌ No. | ❌ No. | ❌ No. |
| ADB | Any games. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ✅ Yes. | ❌ No. |
💡
Hiding a game does not free up memory or stop its background activity, but only use this method if other options are not available or you do not want to risk the stability of the system.
5. Complete removal via ADB (for experienced)
This method allows you to permanently delete any game, including system, but requires a computer connection and basic knowledge of ADB. Incorrect use of commands can lead to a failure of MIUI - make a backup copy of the data before starting.
Step-by-step:
- Download and install Platform Tools (includes ADB).
- Turn on USB debugging on your phone (Settings → Developer).
- Connect Redmi to your computer and confirm your trust in the device.
- Open the command line (Win + R → cmd) and type: Adb devices Make sure the device is defined.
- Get a list of packages: adb shell pm list packages | grep 'game' (replace the game with a part of the game name, such as pubg or com.tencent).
- Delete the game by the team: adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 name.pack Example for Mi Game Center: adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.xiaomi.gamecenter
If the team returns the error DELETE_FAILED_INTERNAL_ERROR, The game is secure:
- 🔧 Use it. --user 0 Instead of deleting completely (removed only for the current user).
- 🔧 Shut down. MIUI Optimization (requires root): adb shell settings put global miui_optimization_disabled 1 Then repeat the removal command.
⚠️ Note: Removing system packages (e.g. com.xiaomi.gamecenter.sdk) may disrupt Game Turbo. If you use this mode for other games, it is better to disable unnecessary game rather than delete it completely.
adb shell dumpsys package name.packetThis will show which services are using the game, such as the Mi Game Center, which may be linked to the Game Turbo or the Mi Account.-->
6 Recovery of Remote Game
If you find that you needed the game after deleting it (for example, for the Game Turbo), you can restore it.
If the game was off:
- 🔄 Go to Settings. → Annexes → Application management → Disconnected.
- 🔧 Find the game and click Enable.
If the game was removed via Hidden Settings or ADB:
- 📥 Reset your phone to factory settings (Settings) → The phone. → Resetting settings).
- 🔧 Or set the game manually from APK (For example, download from APKPure).
- 🔄 System games (such as Game Center) may require firmware replay MIUI.
If the game does not recover after the reset, check the version of MIUI. In some firmware (for example, MIUI 13 for Redmi Note 11), system games are not automatically restored - they must be installed separately.