Makes the in-game developer console available, opened with the ~ key.
Debug-Dev
UniversalAdded Jun 27, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
-highCopy
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 Aug 21, 2026
Safe
-threadsCopy
Set the size of the engine thread pool (Source engine games)
Effect
Takes a thread count; the default is 3. Setting it above the number of cores available does not help.
Example
-threads 4
Performance
UniversalAdded Jun 27, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
-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.
Performance
Source EngineAdded Jul 8, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 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.
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 Aug 21, 2026
Safe
-hCopy
Set the window height in pixels
Effect
Forces the game to start at the given vertical resolution instead of the saved or auto-detected one.
Example
-w 1920 -h 1080
Display
UniversalAdded Jun 27, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
+fps_maxCopy
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.
Example
+fps_max 144
Performance
Source EngineAdded Jul 8, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
gamemoderun %command%Copy
Run the game under Feral GameMode (Linux)
Effect
Applies temporary host optimisations (CPU governor, I/O and process priority) for the game's lifetime, then restores them on exit. GameMode runs the game, so %command% is what it runs.
Proton-Deck
Feral GameModeAdded Jun 29, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
mangohud %command%Copy
Show the MangoHud performance overlay (Linux)
Effect
Draws FPS, frame timing and CPU/GPU load over Vulkan and OpenGL games. MangoHud runs the game, so %command% is what it runs.
Proton-Deck
MangoHudAdded Jun 29, 2026Last checked Aug 21, 2026
Safe
How to apply a launch option on Steam
Open Steam and go to your Library.
Right-click the game and choose Properties.
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.
