How to launch Steam games in windowed mode

Publish date: 2024-07-30

Because they need to run dual displays without any trouble, some users are wondering how to launch Steam games in windowed mode.
Checking the game settings is the first thing you should try.
To easily fix this issue, we suggest changing Steam launch parameters.
If you want to open Steam games in windowed mode, you can adjust game launch parameters.

How to launch Steam games in windowed mode

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The windowed mode feature in Steam can help the users run some legacy games on their computer which otherwise won’t run. It is also helpful in playing certain games with high system requirements on a low-end PC.

When launching certain games you may encounter errors like being out of range. This issue can be fixed by launching the game in windowed mode.

Other reasons for running the game in windowed mode can be to fix performance issues that occur when launching the game in full screen.

In this article, we have listed the different methods to launch Steam games in Windowed mode to help you resolve performance issues and run legacy games.

Why should I run Steam games in windowed mode?

If you’re still wondering how the windowed mode can help you while playing your favorite Steam games, keep in mind that it allows you to switch to other tasks with no delay, or even multitask.

Windowed mode also seems to be better for using dual displays. In Maximized Fullscreen mode, the game is in windowed mode, but the borders and title bar are removed and the resolution matches your desktop’s.

Now, let’s discover what steps you must follow to get this feature on your screen.

How do I launch Steam games in windowed mode?

1. Check game settings

Launch the game that you want to launch in windowed mode.

Go to display/video settings.

Check if the game has a Display mode option.

Click the drop-down menu and select windowed mode instead of fullscreen.

Save the changes and relaunch the game.

Some games offer in-game settings that change the display mode. If your game has in-game settings to change the display mode, you need not alter the launch parameters to open the game in windowed mode.

Before proceeding with other steps, make sure you check the game settings and apply the changes.

2. Change Steam launch parameters

Press on the Windows key, type Steam, and open the first result.

Click on Games.

Choose to View Games Library.

Right-click on your game and select Properties.

Click on the Set Launch Options button.

It will open a new window with advanced user warning.

Enter the following parameters to open the game in windowed mode.

–windowed

Click OK to save the changes and close the Properties window.

Try launching the game and check if the game launches in windowed mode.

If not, open the Launch Options window again and type the following parameters:

–windowed -w 1024

Click OK to save the changes.

The above parameter will force the game to launch in windowed mode with a set resolution.

Some games may not allow you to change the video settings or switch between the display modes. However, you can bypass this striction by changing the launch option parameters in Steam launch options.

3. Change game launch parameters

Right-click on the game desktop shortcut, then select Properties.

In the opened window, open the Shortcut tab.

You should see a field called Target. The target field contains the original location of the shortcut with other parameters.

Add the following parameter to the end of the target after the quotation mark: –windowed

Click on Apply, then on OK to save the changes.

Launch the game using the desktop shortcut and it should open in the windowed mode.

Changing the game shortcut properties and adding the windowed parameter should open the game in Windowed mode.

If you are still unable to open the game in windowed mode, try the following.

Launch the game that you want to open in windowed mode.

Use the following keyboard shortcut while in-game: Alt + Enter.

This should open the game in Windowed mode.

While using the Alt + Enter keys is more of a workaround, it seems to have fixed the issue for some users with certain games.

Launching certain Steam games may allow you to fix some performance and incompatibility issues with the game. Follow the steps in this article to launch Steam games in windowed mode. Let us know which method worked for you in the comments.