Display options

The display options menu in Heretic.

The display options menu allows to tailor how the game is displayed. Its MENUDEF name is VideoOptions and it can be summoned with the menu_display console command.

Note: Because of the recent menu system rewrite, some of the options listed here may now be in a different place or removed altogether. The (deprecated) notice indicates that a option is no longer to be found in SVN builds. Likewise, the presence of (development version only) tags does not necessarily mean the feature itself is new, but its presence in this menu is.

• Message options

menu_messages

Opens the Message options menu. This submenu has been moved to HUD options during the menu system rewrite. (deprecated)

• Automap options

menu_automap

Opens the Automap options menu. This submenu has been moved to the Options menu during the menu system rewrite. (deprecated)

• OpenGL options (OpenGL only: not supported by ZDoom)

Opens the OpenGL options menu.

• Scoreboard options

menu_scoreboard

Opens the Scoreboard options menu.

• Screensize (3—12)

screenblocks

This is the same as using the + and - keys from the original game. The maximal size (screenblocks 12) corresponds to full-screen without the HUD, then below that are full screen with HUD (11) and normal statusbar (10). Values lesser than that display the statusbar and shrinks the size of the view window, bordering it with a flat; the minimal size is screenblocks 3, at this size the actual view window is less than one-tenth of the entire game screen area.

• Brightness/Gamma correction (1.0—3.0, by 0.1 increments)

Gamma

The degree of gamma correction. In GZDoom, this option is called "Gamma correction" rather than brightness; brightness is a separate setting.

• Brightness (-0.8—0.8, by 0.05 increments) (OpenGL only: not supported by ZDoom)

vid_brightness

The brightness level. This is not to be confused with gamma correction, which is called brightness in ZDoom.

• Contrast (0.1—3.0, by 0.1 increments) (OpenGL only: not supported by ZDoom)

vid_contrast

The contrast level.

• Vertical sync (On/Off)

vid_vsync

Turns vertical synchronization on or off.

• Crosshair

crosshair

Which crosshair to use, if any. ZDoom comes with a selection of predefined crosshairs, see the XHAIRS lump page for more information. In SVN builds, this option has been moved to the HUD options menu instead. (deprecated)

• Column render mode (Original/Optimized)

r_columnmethod

Chooses whether using the method from the original games or an optimized method.

• Screen wipe style (None/Melt/Burn/Crossfade)

wipetype

Chooses how the screen transitions between different images, such as between the game and an intermission. The original games used Melt for Doom, Crossfade for Strife, and None for Heretic and Hexen.

• Show ENDOOM screen (Off/On/Only modified) (Win32 only)

showendoom

Whether to show the ENDOOM text screen after leaving the game. In the original game, they were displayed above the command line and had no other effect; however in a windowed environment they require closing the window even after having left the game and can be considered annoying for this reason.

• DirectDraw palette hack (On/Off) (Win32 only)

vid_palettehack

If on, the game will refresh the palette every time the screen is drawn. This slows down the game slightly, but might fix palette issues with some bugged drivers. This option is considered "hopefully obsolete" since July 2004. (deprecated)

• Use attached surfaces (On/Off) (Win32 only)

vid_attachedsurfaces

Chooses how ZDoom running on Windows NT 4 allocates video memory. It is ignored on all other OS, including other Windows versions. Setting it to true might fix graphical glitches that result in empty patches of black or white pixels in the screen. (deprecated)

• Stretch short skies (On/Off)

r_stretchsky

Whether short skies (less than 240 pixel tall) should be stretched or not. If they are not stretched, they are tiled vertically, which will look bad for any sky texture with a horizon.

• Stretch status bar (On/Off)

st_scale

Whether the status bar is displayed in its original pixel size or its original proportions. If the status bar is not scaled, it is centered and bordered on both sides with the same border flat as if screenblocks are less than 10. This option has been moved to HUD options during the menu system rewrite. (deprecated)

• Alternative HUD (On/Off)

hud_althud

Shows the alternate HUD created by Graf Zahl. Screenblocks of 10 or less are not affected. This option has been moved to a dedicated Alternative HUD menu contained in HUD options during the menu system rewrite. (deprecated)

• Use fuzz effect (Translucent/Fuzz/Shadow)

r_drawfuzz

If this option is set to its default value of Fuzz, actors with the "Fuzzy" RenderStyle uses the fuzz effect from Doom's spectres. If set to Translucent, they are instead treated as being translucent.

If set to Shadow, the "shadow" render style is used. This emulates the rendering of fuzz in GZDoom when not using one of the pixel shaders. (development version r3076+ only)

• Lost Soul translucency (0.25—1.0, by 0.05 increments) (development version only)

transsouls

This commands the alpha value of actors drawn with the SoulTrans RenderStyle, such as the LostSoul.

• Use fake contrast (Off/On/Smooth) (development version only)

r_fakecontrast

Determines the default setting for fake contrast: on (as in vanilla Doom), off (also called "flat lighting" or "even lighting"), or smooth.

• Rocket trails (Off/Particles/Sprites/Sprites & Particles)

cl_rockettrails

If on, actors with the ROCKETTRAIL or GRENADETRAIL flag will leave a trail, and the nature of the trail (particles, sprites, or both). If off, they do not.

• Blood type (Sprites/Sprites & Particles/Particles)

cl_bloodtype

Chooses whether actors "bleed" sprites, particles, or both when they are hurt.

• Bullet puff type (Sprites/Particles)

cl_pufftype

Chooses whether bullet impacts result in sprite or particle puffs.

• Number of particles (100—10000, by 100 increments) (development version only)

r_maxparticles

Selects the maximum number of particles displayed at once on the screen.

• Show player sprites (On/Off) (development version only)

r_drawplayersprites

Turns the drawing of player HUD sprites (such as those from the weapons) on or off.

• Death camera (On/Off) (development version only)

r_deathcamera

If on, the camera changes to third-person view when the player avatar dies, letting the player see the death animation.

• Teleporter zoom (On/Off) (development version only)

telezoom

This option allows to enable or disable the subtle zooming effect that happens in the fraction of second after a teleport.

• Interpolate monster movement (No/Yes) (development version only)

nomonsterinterpolation

Chooses whether monster movement is interpolated when playing with uncapped framerate.

• Display nametags (None/Items/Weapons/Both)

displaynametags

Chooses whether to display weapon or inventory item names when using the previous and next commands. Possible choices are "none", "items", "weapons" and "both". The name of an inventory item or weapon is set with the Tag property. This option has been moved to HUD options during the menu system rewrite. (deprecated)