Forces the game to start at the given horizontal resolution instead of the saved or auto-detected one. Pass -h as well to set height explicitly; on its own, height is derived from the aspect ratio.
Example
-w 1920 -h 1080
Display
UniversalAdded Jun 27, 2026Last checked Sep 24, 2026Also documented for this game on PCGamingWiki · checked Sep 27, 2026
Safe
PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1 %command%Copy
Use wined3d (OpenGL) instead of DXVK (Linux, Proton)
Effect
Routes d3d11, d3d10 and d3d9 through OpenGL-based wined3d rather than Vulkan-based DXVK. Usually slower; a fallback where DXVK fails.
Proton-DeckDisplay
Valve ProtonAdded Jul 9, 2026Last checked Sep 13, 2026Also documented for this game on ProtonDB · checked Nov 9, 2026
Safe
-freqCopy
Force a specific refresh rate (Source engine games)
Effect
An alias for -refresh; the wiki lists the two as the same option. Takes a rate in Hz.
Run the game at High process priority (Source engine games)
Effect
Raises the OS scheduling priority of the game process. It does not add CPU capacity, so it helps only where something else is competing for the processor.
Performance
UniversalAdded Jun 27, 2026Last checked Sep 24, 2026
Caution
-nojoyCopy
Disable joystick support (Source engine games, except Left 4 Dead 2)
Effect
Skips joystick initialisation, which can shorten startup. The wiki notes it does NOT apply to Left 4 Dead 2.
Cap the frame rate (GoldSrc, Source and Source 2 games)
Effect
Default 300 (400 in CS:GO and the TF2 branch). Match your refresh rate, or a little above it. Do NOT use 0 on GoldSrc — it uncaps Source and Source 2 but runs GoldSrc at 1 FPS. Above ~1000 (100 on GoldSrc) the engine develops timing bugs.
On the General tab, find the Launch Options field.
Type or paste the option (e.g. -windowed) into the field. To use several at once, separate them with spaces (e.g. -windowed -novid).
Close Properties. Steam saves automatically, and the option applies next time you launch the game.
To remove one, reopen the same field and delete the text. Options are game-specific; an option that helps one game may do nothing (or misbehave) in another.
Worth knowing: a launch option can break a game's rendering, reset local settings, or trip anti-cheat in multiplayer. Read the description first, add one at a time, and treat anything rated above Safe as a deliberate experiment.
