Game settings.tbl

This feature requires FreeSpace Open

Revision information.....

FSO Git Commit: Date: 2023-11-15 SHA: bcae459b56f3c6fdb8468f720210bac2865a4809

Note: Please update the revision information when the page is updated. If your edit had nothing to do with new code entries then please do not edit the revision information

List of Tables and related code files
* Notes Modular Tables
** Notes tables which only use modular tables
Ai.tbl*	/ai/aicode.cpp
Ai_profiles.tbl*	/ai/ai_profiles.cpp
Animation.tbl**	/model/modelanimation.cpp
Armor.tbl*	/ship/ship.cpp
Asteroid.tbl*	/asteroid/asteroid.cpp
Autopilot.tbl*	/autopilot/autopilot.cpp
Cheats.tbl*	/cheats_table/cheats_table.cpp
Colors.tbl*	/globalincs/alphacolors.cpp
Curves.tbl*	/math/curves.cpp
Controlconfigdefaults.tbl	/controlconfig/controlsconfigcommon.cpp
Credits.tbl*	/menuui/credits.cpp
Cutscenes.tbl*	/cutscene/cutscenes.cpp
Decals.tbl**	/decals/decals.cpp
Fireball.tbl*	/fireball/fireballs.cpp
Fonts.tbl*	/graphics/font.cpp
Game_settings.tbl*	/mod_table/mod_table.cpp
Glowpoints.tbl*	/model/modelread.cpp
Help.tbl*	/gamehelp/contexthelp.cpp
Hud_gauges.tbl*	/hud/hudparse.cpp
Icons.tbl*	/mission/missionbriefcommon.cpp
Iff_defs.tbl*	/iff_defs/iff_defs.cpp
Keywords.tbl*	Not In Codebase
Lighting_Profiles.tbl*	/lighting/lighting_profiles.cpp
Lightning.tbl*	/nebula/neblightning.cpp
Mainhall.tbl*	/menuui/mainhallmenu.cpp
Medals.tbl*	/stats/medals.cpp
Messages.tbl*	/mission/missionmessage.cpp
Mflash.tbl*	/weapon/muzzleflash.cpp
Music.tbl*	/gamesnd/eventmusic.cpp
Nebula.tbl*	/nebula/neb.cpp
Objecttypes.tbl*	/ship/ship.cpp
Options.tbl*	Not In Codebase
Particle effects(-part.tbm)**	/particle/effects...
Post_processing.tbl	/graphics/gropenglpostprocessing.cpp
Rank.tbl*	/stats/scoring.cpp
Scpui.tbl*	Not In Codebase
Scripting.tbl*	/parse/scripting.cpp
Ships.tbl*	/ship/ship.cpp
Sexps.tbl**	/parse/sexp/sexp_lookup.cpp
Sounds.tbl*	/gamesnd/gamesnd.cpp
Species_defs.tbl*	/species_defs/species_defs.cpp
Species.tbl*	/menuui/techmenu.cpp
Ssm.tbl*	/hud/hudartillery.cpp
Stars.tbl*	/starfield/starfield.cpp
Strings.tbl*	/localization/localize.cpp
Tips.tbl*	/menuui/playermenu.cpp
Traitor.tbl*	/stats/scoring.cpp
Tstrings.tbl*	/localization/localize.cpp
Virtual_pofs.tbl*	/model/modelreplace.cpp
Weapon_expl.tbl*	/weapon/weapons.cpp
Weapons.tbl*	/weapon/weapons.cpp

The game_settings.tbl, also known as mod.tbl, defines options that can be changed globally. All settings are optional.

This table is one of the Modular Tables and can be extended with xxx-mod.tbm

If the version targeted in target version is equal to or later than these listed, the following options are enabled by default:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Fixed Turret Collisions
• Fixed Missile Detonation
• Shockwaves Damage All Object Types Once
• AI use framerate independent turning
• Use host orientation for set-camera-facing

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Shockwaves Inherit Parent Weapon Damage Type
• Fixed Chaining To Repeating Events

FS2 Open, 24.0:

• Calculate subsystem hitpoints after parsing

#GAME SETTINGS

Contains settings that affect how the engine works.

$Target Version:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Specifies the minimum version of FreeSpace Open that this mod supports. If the version specified here is greater than the version of the current build, an error message is displayed.

FS2 Open, 19.0:

The $Minimum version option has been renamed to $Target Version. The old name is kept with the same functionality for backwards-compatibility.

The target version specifies what version of the FSO engine this mod was created for. It will be used by the engine to enable or disable backwards-incompatible changes by default. The default value is 2.0 which specifies that the mod targets the retail engine version.

+Major:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Required. Sets the major component of the target version.

• Syntax: Integer
• Example: 3 (for a minimum version of 3.7.3.20151121)

+Minor:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Required. Sets the minor component of the target version.

• Syntax: Integer
• Example: 7 (for a minimum version of 3.7.3.20151121)

+Build:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Required. Sets the build component of the target version.

• Syntax: Integer
• Example: 3 (for a minimum version of 3.7.3.20151121)

+Revision:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Sets the revision component of the target version. If no revision is given then all builds of that release are supported (even nightly builds if there are any). For nightly builds this is the date in YYYYMMDD format.

• Syntax: Integer
• Example: 20151121 (for a minimum version of 3.7.3.20151121)

$Window title:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Specifies the name of the FSO window when this mod is running. If blank or unspecified, the window will have the default title of "FreeSpace 2".

• Syntax: String

$Window icon:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Specifies the icon filename of the FSO window when this mod is running. If blank or unspecified, the window will have the default icon.

• Syntax: String

$Mod title:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Specifies the title of the mod and will be displayed at the mainhall near the FSO version.

• Syntax: String

FS2 Open, 25.0:

It is now possible to display the mod title on its own. Previously, the mod version was also required.

$Mod version:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Specifies the version of the mod and will be displayed at the mainhall near the FSO version. Can be a string or it can be semantic versioning such as 2.0.0.

• Syntax: String

FS2 Open, 25.0:

It is now possible to display the mod version on its own. Previously, the mod title was also required.

$Unicode mode:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Enabled the Unicode text mode for this mod. In Unicode mode all text is assumed to be UTF-8 encoded Unicode and certain features are disabled if they do not have full Unicode support. Most notably, if this is enabled then the engine will no longer support the old bitmap fonts that were used by Retail FreeSpace. Only the newer TrueType fonts will be supported.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Splash screens:

FS2 Open, 23.2: Defines a list of splash screens that FSO can display upon game startup. The actual image displayed is chosen at random from the applicable entries. Entries with exact aspect ratio matches will be prioritized first, followed by aspect ratio ranged matches, followed by entries without an aspect ratio specified.

+Bitmap:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

The name of the bitmap to use as a splash screen. Extension will be removed if included.

• Syntax: +Bitmap: String

+Aspect Ratio:

FS2 Open, 24.0:

Only consider this bitmap to be an applicable entry if the user's screen aspect ratio matches the specified number within +/- 0.01.

• Syntax: +Aspect Ratio: Float

+Aspect Ratio Min:

FS2 Open, 24.0:

Only consider this bitmap to be an applicable entry if the user's screen aspect ratio is at least the specified number.

• Syntax: +Aspect Ratio Min: Float

+Aspect Ratio Max:

FS2 Open, 24.0:

Only consider this bitmap to be an applicable entry if the user's screen aspect ratio is at most the specified number.

• Syntax: +Aspect Ratio Max: Float

$Splash fade in time:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

Sets the time in milliseconds it takes for a splash screen to fade in.

• Syntax: Integer
• Default Value: 0

$Splash fade out time:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

Sets the time in milliseconds it takes for a splash screen to fade out.

• Syntax: Integer
• Default Value: 0

$Center splash logo:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

Sets whether the splash logo will be displayed in the middle of the screen. If this is false (the default), it will be displayed at the top-left.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Disable FSO Internal Loadout Restoration System:

FS2 Open, 24.0:

When the player configures the ships and weapons of the wings in the loadout screen, FSO will remember these settings and attempt to apply them again if the player quits the mission and comes back to it later. FSO will only remember the most recent mission's loadout, so it will not attempt to restore the loadout if the player loads a different mission. It will also not attempt this if the mission's $Modified: date has changed. This flag can be used to prevent FSO from attempting restoration even if it normally would.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

#LOCALIZATION SETTINGS

Contains various settings related to localization and language support.

$Use tabled strings for the default language:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

Causes the game to use the text in strings.tbl and tstrings.tbl even when the current language is English. By default, the game will use the literal text in the source code and the data files (tables and missions) and will not look up the entry when the language is English. For other languages, the translation is always used, if it exists, regardless of this setting.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Don't pre-empt training message voice:

FS2 Open, 21.4:

Prevents training messages from being interrupted by other training messages. If a training message has a voice file associated with it, or simulated speech is active, the next message will not be played until the current message has finished.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

#CAMPAIGN SETTINGS

This group contains various Campaign related settings and overrides.

$Default Campaign File Name:

Defines which campaign will be selected by default for new pilots. A file extension is not needed and, if present, is removed by the code.

• Syntax: String

#Ignored Campaign File Names

Defines which campaigns, if present, will not appear in the Campaign Room. In the original implementation, only single-player campaigns could be ignored and file extensions were required, but see below.

FS2 Open, 3.7.2: As of 3.7.1, file extensions are not required and, if present, are removed by the code.

FS2 Open, 19.0: As of 3.8.2, file name comparisons are not case sensitive and multiplayer campaigns can be ignored.

$Campaign File Name:

File name of the campaign to ignore. Multiple entries may exist.

• Syntax: String

#Ignored Mission File Names

FS2 Open, 19.0: Defines which standalone missions, if present, will not appear in the Tech Room or Multiplayer Lobby. Both single-player and multiplayer missions can be ignored, but missions which appear in a campaign cannot. File extensions are not required and, if present, are removed by the code. File name comparisons are not case sensitive.

$Mission File Name:

File name of the mission to ignore. Multiple entries may exist.

• Syntax: String

$Red-alert applies to delayed ships:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2: Controls whether red-alert saved statistics (hitpoints, weapons, subsystem strengths) will be restored for ships that are not present at mission start.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

#HUD SETTINGS

This group contains various HUD behavior settings and overrides

$Directive Wait Time:

• Defines how long the game will wait before displaying a directive.
• Syntax: Integer
• Values: Greater than or equal to 0 ms

$Cutscene camera displays HUD:

Show the HUD when the cutscene camera is enabled.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

In earlier versions of the code, this option was controlled by $Cutscene camera disables HUD: and had a default of YES.

$Full color head animations:

Enables full-color head ANIs. Normal head ANIs will appear in gray.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

In earlier versions of the code, this option was controlled by $Color head animations with hud colors: and had a default of YES.

$Don't automatically select a turret when targeting a ship:

FS2 Open, 22.0: Uses FS1 behavior where targeting a new ship did not target any turrets. In FS2 a turret is automatically targeted.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Supernova hits at zero:

FS2 Open, 22.2:

Adjusts the HUD timer so that the timer reaches zero when the supernova hits the player. The actual timing is not affected -- whether the flag is enabled or not, the supernova will always hit the player when 5 seconds remain in the time specified in the sexp.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Always warn player about unbound keys used in Directives Gauge:

FS2 Open, 22.2:

Ensures that the "Key Unbound" message will pop up for a directive with an unbound key in any single-player mission, not just a training mission. Note, that the default string (index 426) will still say "Warning\nYou have no control bound to the action \"%s\". You must do so before you can continue with training." Thus, it is advised to change the string at index 426 using the -lcl.tbm to "Warning\nYou have no control bound to the action \"%s\". You must do so before you can continue with this mission."

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$HUD drop shadows enabled by default:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

If this flag is active, certain elements displayed on the HUD (all text, the main targeting reticle, and the background of the ETS gauges) will have a "drop shadow" effect. Note that whether or not the flag is active, the player can set this using the "Toggle HUD Drop Shadows" control.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Unify scanning behavior:

FS2 Open, 24.2:

Unifies scanning behavior between subsystem, regular, and cargo allowing missions to use all scan types in all situations. Also allows changing the "Cargo:" text line in a mission by adding "$Cargo Title: STRING" after the "$Cargo 1:" or "$Cargo 2:" lines in the mission file. FRED UI support not yet added for $Cargo Title so you have to do it manually.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Don't show callsigns in the escort list:

FS2 Open, 24.2:

By default, callsigns are shown in the escort list using the same format as in the target box. If this flag is active, callsigns will not be displayed.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

#SEXP SETTINGS

This group contains SEXP settings and overrides.

$Loop SEXPs Then Arguments:

Flips how when-argument settings loop. See: SEXP Argument changes via mod.tbl

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Use Alternate Chaining Behavior:

When set, this allows all events in a chain to repeat, instead of only the last one. It makes the event chaining behavior act as people expected it to be in Mantis #82.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Fixed Chaining To Repeating Events:

FS2 Open, 23.0: When set, this makes event chaining to repeated events work as designed - that is, the chained event will only be evaluated after the chain delay. If the repeating event's interval is shorter than the chain delay, then the delay countdown will continually be restarted until all repetitions have completed. Without this flag, FSO will emulate retail behavior which, due to a bug, allowed chained events to be evaluated immediately after a repeating event is first evaluated.

NOTE: Although the name does not reflect it, the same issue affects repeating events that are evaluated by is-event-true-delay and is-event-false-delay. Without this flag, FSO will emulate retail behavior which causes these SEXP operators to ignore any delay when evaluating repeated events. With this flag, the delay will be measured from when the final repeat iteration occurs.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Use host orientation for set-camera-facing:

FS2 Open, 22.0: When set, this will take into account the host orientation for cutscene cameras. This is a bugfix for GitHub issue #3889.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Show-subtitle uses pixels:

FS2 Open, 22.2: When set, SEXPs which display subtitles will read their arguments as pixels, not percentages. If $Show-subtitle base resolution: is set, these pixels will be scaled up or down as needed.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Show-subtitle base resolution:

FS2 Open, 22.2: When set, subtitles are assumed to display at the appropriate size in the specified resolution, and will be scaled up or down if the current screen resolution is different. If this is not set, or is set to a resolution less than (640, 480), subtitles will not be scaled.

• Syntax: (Integer, Integer)
• Default Value: (-1, -1)

$HUD-set-coords base resolution:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The hud-set-coords SEXP has always used exact pixels, without regard for the current screen resolution. This setting enables a similar scaling mechanism as $Show-subtitle base resolution:.

• Syntax: (Integer, Integer)
• Default Value: (-1, -1)

#GRAPHICS SETTINGS

This group contains settings related to graphics.

$Enable External Shaders:

Enables the use of external shader files. By default, the engine will use the built-in shaders.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Default Detail Level:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

Determines which graphics detail level preset (low, medium, high, very high) acts as the default for new pilots.

• Syntax: Integer (0-3)
• Default Value: 3 (very high)

$Briefing Window FOV:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

Determines the FOV in the briefing Icon window. Retail default for this is 0.29375; some previous versions of FSO used a value of 0.5.

• Syntax: Float (0.0 to 1.0)
• Default Value: 0.29375

$Generic Pain Flash Factor:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Determines the intensity of the pain red flash when the player is hit.

• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.0

$Shield Pain Flash Factor:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

Determines the intensity of a pain flash when the player's shields are hit. Color will match the current ships shield color defined in ships.tbl. A value of 0 will give retail behavior (no shield effect). Positive values will cause the effect to start at full intensity at full shields and go to next to no intensity at zero shields. Negative values will cause no effect at full shields and full effect at no shields. Values should be kept between -1.0 and 1.0 for good pilot visibility.

• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$EMP Pain Flash Factor:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Determines the intensity of the flash when the player is hit by an EMP blast or weapon.

• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.0

$EMP Pain Flash Color:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Determines the RGB color value of the flash when the player is hit by an EMP blast or weapon.

• Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
• Default Value: (255, 255, 127)

$BMPMAN Slot Limit:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Determines the maximum number of textures that can be loaded simultaneously. This includes every frame of an animation, unless that animation is streaming (e.g. command briefing animations, message talking heads, etc). Also includes dynamically-created textures (used internally for various functions).

• Syntax: Int
• Values: Greater than or equal to 3500
• Default Value: 4750

$EMP Arc Color:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Allows custom RGB color values to be set for the EMP lightning arc effect.

• +Primary Color Option 1:
  • The RGB color of the first primary color for the EMP lightning arc effect.
  • The actual lightning arc color shown in-game is randomly selected between the first and second primary color.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (64, 64, 5)
• +Primary Color Option 2:
  • The RGB color of the second primary color for the EMP lightning arc effect.
  • The actual lightning arc color shown in-game is randomly selected between the first and second primary color.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (128, 128, 10)
• +Secondary Color Option 1:
  • The RGB color of the secondary color for the EMP lightning arc effect.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (255, 255, 10)

$EMP Arc Width:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Allows setting how the width is calculated for the EMP lightning arc effect.

• +Width Default:
  • The default width of the arc. This value will be multiplied by `+Width Radius Multiplier:` if the radius of the ship is less than or equal to `+Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:`.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.9
• +Width Radius Multiplier:
  • The value that the width is multiplied by if the radius of the ship is less than or equal to `+Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:`.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.01
• +Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:
  • If the object is larger than this radius, the `+Width Default:` value is used.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 500
• +Width Radius Minimum:
  • Minimum width that the arc can be. Any calculated widths lower than this value will be set to this value.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.2

$Damage Arc Color:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

Allows custom RGB color values to be set for the damage lightning arc effect.

• +Primary Color Option 1:
  • The RGB color of the first primary color for the damage lightning arc effect.
  • The actual lightning arc color shown in-game is randomly selected between the first and second primary color.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (64, 64, 255)
• +Primary Color Option 2:
  • The RGB color of the second primary color for the damage lightning arc effect.
  • The actual lightning arc color shown in-game is randomly selected between the first and second primary color.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (128, 128, 255)
• +Secondary Color Option 1:
  • The RGB color of the secondary color for the damage lightning arc effect.
  • Syntax: Color, (red, green, blue) respectively, integer value from 0 to 255
  • Default value: (64, 64, 5)

$Damage Arc Width:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Allows setting how the width is calculated for the EMP lightning arc effect.

• +Width Default:
  • The default width of the arc. This value will be multiplied by `+Width Radius Multiplier:` if the radius of the ship is less than or equal to `+Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:`.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.9
• +Width Radius Multiplier:
  • The value that the width is multiplied by if the radius of the ship is less than or equal to `+Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:`.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.01
• +Do Not Use Width Multiplier Over Radius:
  • If the object is larger than this radius, the `+Width Default:` value is used.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 500
• +Width Radius Minimum:
  • Minimum width that the arc can be. Any calculated widths lower than this value will be set to this value.
  • Syntax: Float
  • Default value: 0.2

$Requires Rendering Feature:

FS2 Open, 21.0: Needs description

$Render player muzzle flashes in cockpit:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

Determines whether muzzle flashes will be shown within the cockpit view.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Glowpoint nebula visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which glowpoints are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.2

$Shield nebula visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which shield effects are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.2

$Thruster nebula visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which thruster flares are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.5

$Beams affected by nebula visibility:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

Determines whether beam weapons will be faded by nebula fog.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

+Constant visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which beam effects are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 4.0

+Scaled visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which the size of a beam effect affects its visibility. This is multiplied by the radius of the beam and added to the above for the final value. This results in larger beams being visible from farther away.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.1

$Weapons affected by nebula visibility:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

Determines whether lasers, missiles, countermeasures, etc will be faded by nebula fog.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

+Weapon visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which laser-type weapons are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.3

+$Trail visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which trails (weapon and ship contrails) are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.0

+Shockwave visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which shockwave effects are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 2.5

$Particles affected by nebula visibility:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

Determines whether particle effects, including impact effects, will be faded by nebula fog.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

+Constant visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which particle effects are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.0

+Scaled visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which the size of a particle effect affects its visibility. This is multiplied by the radius of the particle and added to the above for the final value. This results in larger particles being visible from farther away.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.08

$Fireballs affected by nebula visibility:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

Determines whether fireballs from ship explosions will be faded by nebula fog.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

+Constant visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which fireballs are affected by nebula fog. 1.0 is exactly the same as regular ship hull obscurity, higher means they stay visible for longer.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.2

+Scaled visibility factor:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the degree to which the size of a fireball affects its visibility. This is multiplied by the radius of the fireball and added to the above for the final value. This results in larger fireballs being visible from farther away.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.08

$Shadow Quality Default:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

Sets the default level for shadow quality if the 'enable_shadows' command line is used and 'shadow_quality' is not used. By default, the FSO will set the shadow detail level to 2. Valid values are 0 (shadows disabled), 1 (Low, 512x512 shadow map), 2 (Medium, 1024x1024 shadow map), 3 (High, 2048x2048 shadow map), or 4 (Ultra, 4096x4096). Note, the command line 'shadow_quality' will override any value set here.

• Syntax: Integer
• Default Value: 2

$Shadow Cascade Distances:

FS2 Open, 21.4:

Sets the distances that the shadow map for the game scene uses. Float values must all be greater than 0 and successively larger than each consecutive value.

• Syntax: List of floats
• Default Value: (200.0, 600.0, 2500.0, 8000.0)

$Shadow Cascade Distances Cockpit:

FS2 Open, 21.4:

Sets the distances that the shadow map for the cockpit pass scene uses. Will only shadow the cockpit model, and does not interact with the external game scene shadow map. Float values must all be greater than 0 and successively larger than each consecutive value.

• Syntax: List of floats
• Default Value: (0.25, 0.75, 1.5, 3.0)

$Shadow Disable Techroom:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Disables shadows on ships in the techroom.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Shadow Disable Cockpit:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Disables shadows on the player cockpit in mission.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Shadow Disable Mission Brief Weapons:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Disables shadows on weapons in the mission briefing.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Shadow Disable Mission Brief Ships:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Disables shadows on ships in the mission briefing.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Show Ship Casts Shadow:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

When cockpit shadows are enabled, enabling this setting will cause the players ship model shown with "show ship" to cast shadow onto the cockpit.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Ship Model And Cockpit Share Coordinate Space:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

When having the "show ship" flag enabled and cockpit models for a ship, this flag should be on if the cockpits can fit into the actual geometry of the ship model. Disable this flag if this is not the case and the cockpit needs to be rendered on top of the ship regardless of actual coordinates. If this can be enabled, the external show ship model can be rendered using deferred rendering.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Minimum Pixel Size Thrusters:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the smallest pixel size that thrusters will be rendered. Setting this > 0 can be expensive in larger missions.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$Minimum Pixel Size Beams:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the smallest pixel size that beams will be rendered. Setting this > 0 can be expensive in larger missions.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$Minimum Pixel Size Muzzle Flashes:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the smallest pixel size that muzzle flashes will be rendered. Setting this > 0 can be expensive in larger missions.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$Minimum Pixel Size Trails:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the smallest pixel size that trails will be rendered. Setting this > 0 can be expensive in larger missions.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$Minimum Pixel Size Lasers:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Specifies the smallest pixel size that lasers will be rendered. Setting this > 0 can be expensive in larger missions.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$Thruster Easing Value:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• Smooths out the behavior of maneuvering thruster flares the higher above 0 it is.
• This is the exponential time constant for the visual flare length to reach it's true length.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.0

$SCPUI attempts to load hires animations:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Prevents SCPUI from trying to load anims prefixed with "2_"
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: true

FS2 Open, 23.0:

$Max draw distance:

$Min draw distance:

• These values do more than just cutoff the visuals at certain distances, and they must be adjusted carefully to ensure unintentional rendering artifacts are not introduced.
• The rendering engine has limited amount of 'depth resolution', the degree to which it can tell a certain polygon is closer or farther away than another. When two polygons are too close, they will Z-fight, picking arbitrarily which is closer. It is the span between the min and max draw distance that determines how well the engine can determine depth, if they are too far from one another, the Z-fighting will become more common as it has to spread its resolution over a wider range. If they are close, Z-fighting will be lessened at the cost of a smaller range of distance able to be rendered.
• Syntax: Float, meters
• Default Values: 10,000,000,000 and 1, respectively

FS2 Open, 23.2:

$Randomize particle rotation:

• Particle bitmaps are typically screen-aligned; the upper portion of the bitmap will always be mapped to the upper portion of the particle, from the point of view of the camera. Enabling this option makes all particles have a random 'tilt' in an arbitrary direction when created.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: false

#NETWORK SETTINGS

This group contains network-related settings

$FS2NetD port:

• (description required)

$Default object update level for multiplayer:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

Sets the distances default object update rate for multiplayer matches. By default, the FSO will set the object update level to 2. Valid values are 0 (Low), 1 (Medium), 2 (High), 3 (LAN). FSO caps the bandwidth it uses based on these settings, but they were designed for connections from 1999. LAN has the least restrictive limits and does not require an actual LAN connection. Also, if a player's connection is within the dial-up speed range then game auto force the use of the lowest level during a match.

• Syntax: Integer
• Default Value: 2

#SOUND SETTINGS

This group contains sound-related settings

$Default Sound Volume:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Defines the default sound fx volume for new pilots.
• Syntax: Float, between 0.0 and 1.0
• Default Value: 1.0

$Default Music Volume:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Defines the default music volume for new pilots.
• Syntax: Float, between 0.0 and 1.0
• Default Value: 0.5

$Default Voice Volume:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Defines the default voice volume for new pilots.
• Syntax: Float, between 0.0 and 1.0
• Default Value: 0.7

$Use weapon class impact sounds for hits to player:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Allows weapons that hit the player to play their specific impact sounds, not the hard-coded default sounds.

• Syntax: Boolean

$Play thruster sounds for the player:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

If the player's ship has thruster sounds defined, this will ensure they are played like normal, since they are typically suppressed.

• Syntax: Boolean

#FRED SETTINGS

This group contains settings for FRED.

$Disable Hard Coded Message Head Ani Files:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

If set, FRED will not fill the head ani selection in the Event Editor with the retail head ani filenames.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Add Message Head Ani Files:

FS2 Open, 23.0: FRED will append each +Head entry listed below to the head ani selection list in the Event Editor.

+Head:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

The head ani filename to add. Extensions will be stripped if included.

• Syntax: +Head: String

$Enable scripting in FRED:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

If set, scripting will be enabled in FRED. Use with extreme caution. The effects of scripts on FRED have not been fully tested. You can check if a script is running in FRED by using ba.inMissionEditor().

• Default Value: NO

$FRED Briefing window resolution:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

The width and height of the briefing window in FRED. Defaults to 888x371. Note that changing this only affects FRED and can cause a mismatch to the ingame briefing view which defaults to 888x371 (or 555x232 for 640 base res).

• Syntax: integer, integer
• Default Value: 888,371

$Ignore Music Files In Music Player:

FS2 Open, 23.2: Music files in this section will not be added to FRED's built-in music player.

+File:

FS2 Open, 23.2: Specifies a file

• Syntax: string

$FRED spacemouse nonlinearities:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

Allows setting custom nonlinearities and scaling for controlling FRED with a spacemouse.

+Sideways exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

The exponent for input for Sideways spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Sideways scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Sideways spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Forwards exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The exponent for input for Forwards spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Forwards scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Forwards spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Upwards exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The exponent for input for Upwards spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Upwards scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Upwards spacemouse motion.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Pitch exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The exponent for input for Pitch spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Pitch scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Pitch spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Bank exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The exponent for input for Bank spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Bank scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Bank spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Heading exponent:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The exponent for input for Heading spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

+Heading scale:

FS2 Open, 23.2: The multiplier for input for Heading spacemouse rotation.

• Syntax: float
• Default Value: 1

#OTHER SETTINGS

This group contains miscellaneous settings.

$Fixed Turret Collisions:

Makes all hits to a turret's barrels count as hits to the turret subsystem. By default, this does not happen unless the point of impact falls inside the model radius of the turret's base.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Fixed Missile Detonation:

FS2 Open, 22.0:

• When this flag is set, missiles which reach the center of a submodel will not detonate immediately; they will delay detonation until they have traveled another radius of the submodel. This fixes missile impacts to submodels whose center lies outside the geometry of the submodel. In other words, without this flag, a missile might detonate in the middle of the "bowl" of a concave submodel; with this flag, the missile will travel to the other side of the submodel before it detonates.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Damage Impacted Subsystem First:

If set, a hit to a physical subsystem will always deal damage to that subsystem first, even if another subsystem is closer to the point of impact. By default, the closest subsystem will always receive damage first.

• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Use 3d ship select:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to use 3D models for ship select instead of animations
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Default ship select effect:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• This specifies which effect to use for ship select animations when no .ani can be found, or the 3d ship select effect is active. This will default to the FS2 effect.
• Syntax: String
• Possible options are "FS2", "FS1", and "off"

$Use 3d ship icons:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to use 3D models for ships in ship/weapon select instead of icons
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Use 3d weapon select:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to use 3D models for weapon select instead of animations
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Default weapon select effect:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• This specifies which effect to use for weapon select animations when no .ani can be found, or the 3d weapon select effect is active. This will default to the FS2 effect.
• Syntax: String
• Possible options are "FS2", "FS1", and "off"

$Use 3d weapon icons:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to use 3D models for weapons in weapon select instead of icons
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Use 3d overhead ship:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to use 3D models for ship overhead view instead of a bitmap in weapon select
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Default overhead ship style:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• This specifies which style of overhead view to use if 3d overhead view is active
• Syntax: String
• Possible options are "ROTATE" or "TOPVIEW"

$Always refresh selected weapon when viewing loadout:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

• When set to true, this always refreshes the weapon shown in view box on the right side of the screen when opening the weapon loadout view. This ensures the viewed weapon is one that can actually be on the selected ship when first clicking on the weapon loadout screen.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Weapons inherit parent collision group:

FS2 Open, 3.6.16:

• When set to true, Weapons fired by a ship will inherit their parents' collision group setting.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Flight controls follow eyepoint orientation:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Specifies that if the player ship's eyepoint happens to rotate into a non-standard orientation, pitch and yaw axes should stay relative to the eyepoint orientation, not the ship. Note that this does not affect the pitch/yaw turning speed, which always remains relative to the ship.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Beams Use Damage Factors:

FS2 Open, 3.7.2:

• Specifies that beam weapons will use the tabled damage factors for Armour, Shields and Subsystems. Default is false (i.e. all factors are treated as 1.0)
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Default fiction viewer UI:

FS2 Open, 3.7.4:

• Specifies which fiction viewer layout to use in missions that don't specify one. Possible values are as follows:
  • "FS2": Standard layout. Requires (2_)fictionviewer and (2_)fictionviewer-m to be present in data\interface.
  • "WCS": Moves the "Accept" button to the lower-left corner of the screen. Requires (2_)fictionviewerb and (2_)fictionviewer-mb to be present in data\interface.
  • "auto": Selects "WCS" if the appropriate files are present; otherwise, selects "FS2". This is the default setting.

$Movie subtitle font:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Specifies which font should be used for displaying subtitles in the cutscene player. This should be the name given to this font in the fonts table. Since movie subtitles can contain Unicode text it is a good idea to enable Unicode mode when movie subtitles are used but this is not enforced by this option.
• Syntax: String

$Disable built-in translations:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Turns off hard-coded translations, e.g. Transport -> Transporter in German. All strings will either use their XSTR entry or else not be translated.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Weapon shockwave damage respects huge ship flags:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Controls whether weapon shockwaves will respect the huge/supercap ship flags. In retail they do not.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Enable external default scripts:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Enables the loading of external scripts with the same name as a built-in script. Otherwise, uses the version of the script included in the executable (currently, just cfile_require.lua).
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Player warpout speed:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Defines the speed the player must reach to warp out.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 40.0

$Target warpout match percent:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Defines how close to the warpout speed the player needs to be to actually warp out.
• Syntax: Float, between 0.0 and 1.0
• Default Value: 0.05 (5%)

$Minimum player warpout time:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• The default amount of time, in seconds, warping out will take before actually starting to check whether the player is the right speed.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 3.0

$Enable in-game options:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Experimental mode whereby various settings can be modified by FSO while it's still running, rather than being set by the launcher before execution. Requires custom assets for the in-game options menu to actually be able to change the settings.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Dinky Shockwave Default Multiplier:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Amount of damage, as a multiple of normal shockwave damage, assigned to a weapon's dinky shockwave by default. To get the same behavior FSO had from 2005-2019, set this to 0.25.
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 1.0

$Shockwaves Always Damage Bombs:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Enables all bombs being damaged by shockwaves. Previously only those marked with flags could be damaged.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Shockwaves Damage All Object Types Once:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Keeps any object from being damaged more than once by a shockwave. The default behavior is for asteroids and flagged missiles to be damaged every frame by the shockwave.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Shockwaves Inherit Parent Weapon Damage Type:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• When enabled, the shockwaves of weapons that have a defined damage type automatically inherit that damage type, rather than dealing "typeless" damage. As this behavior is more intuitive than when this flag is disabled, mods targeting 22.4 or newer versions of FSO will have it enabled by default.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: True for mods targeting 22.4 or newer versions of FSO, otherwise False

$Inherited Shockwave Damage Type Added Suffix:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• When combined with "$Shockwaves Inherit Parent Weapon Damage Type:", this string is added to the inherited damage type to define the shockwave's damage type. For example, if a weapon has the damage type "heavy" and the provided suffix is "-shock", then that weapon's shockwave's damage type would default to "heavy-shock".
• Note: When defined, this also implicitly sets the equivalent value for dinky shockwaves, below.
• Syntax: String

$Inherited Dinky Shockwave Damage Type Added Suffix:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• The same as "$Inherited Shockwave Damage Type Added Suffix:", except specifically for "dinky" shockwaves.
• Syntax: String

$Default Shockwave Damage Type:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• If a weapon's shockwave doesn't have a damage type set, it will have this damage type instead (when "$Shockwaves Inherit Parent Weapon Damage Type:" is enabled, this will only be used if the weapon itself also doesn't have a damage type set).
• Note: When defined, this also implicitly sets the equivalent value for dinky shockwaves, below.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Default Dinky Shockwave Damage Type:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• The same as "$Default Shockwave Damage Type:", except specifically for "dinky" shockwaves.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Use Engine Wash Intensity:

FS2 Open, 19.0:

• Allows the game to use the Intensity value when calculating Engine Wash effects.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Apply HUD shudder to chase view:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

• Applies hud shudder (afterburner and engine wash) also to chase view. Does not override the command line toggle.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Swarmers Lead Targets:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Causes swarm missiles to lead their targets by default, and will make use of Target Lead Scaler if specified, like normal aspect seekers.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: NO

$Damage Threshold for Weapons Subsystems to Trigger Turret Inaccuracy:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Specifies the damage threshold for when turrets become less accurate due to weapon subsystem damage. In other words, how damaged do a ship's aggregated weapons systems have to be before the turrets become inaccurate? Value must be between 0.0-1.0 (includes 0.0 and 1.0).
• Syntax: Float
• Default Value: 0.7

$AI use framerate independent turning:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Without this flag, missiles turn rate is directly dependent on the current framerate. When enabled their turn rate will be consistent, with the "true" turning taken to be observed turning at 60fps. This flag also affects ships, but the instability is only apparent at extremely low framerates, and so the change will not be apparent.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: True

+AI respect tabled turn time and rotdamp:

FS2 Open, 21.0:

• Due to complicated physics issues caused by retail not using the above method, tabled turn times on ships and missiles are not representative of actual observed turn times. The above flag makes it consistent, but this flag will make it accurate to what is actually listed in the table.
• Additionally, rotdamp is now used properly by the AI in a similar manner to players. More rotdamp will result in slower rotational acceleration, and less results in faster acceleration.
• NOTE: BEWARE OF ADDING THIS FLAG TO AN EXISTING MODPACK. NEARLY EVERY SINGLE TURN TIME WILL NEED TO BE CHANGED.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Player starts in third person/chase view by default:

FS2 Open, 21.2:

• When this flag is set, a player will start the mission in the chase view, not in the cockpit view.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Custom briefing icons always override standard icons:

FS2 Open, 21.4:

• Custom ship briefing icons will always be shown when the briefing icon is a ship, but not when it is a non-ship icon such as a planet. Set this flag to use custom briefing icons in all cases.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Lead indicator behavior:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

Changes how Lead Indicators behave when multiple weapon banks are linked and in range. When set to default, if you have linked weapons, only the indicator for the one with the farthest range will be drawn. When set to multiple, a lead indicator is drawn for all primary weapons in range when you have them linked. When set to average, a single lead indicator is drawn in the average of the position where each of them would usually be drawn.

• Syntax: String
  • Valid options are default, multiple and average
• Default Value: default

$Use distant firepoint for all turrets:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Causes the game to use firepoint-based target leading calculations for all turrets. This is useful if all or most turrets in a given mod has firepoints that are distant from their center-point.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Enable discord rich presence:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Enables or disables the built-in Discord game-status reporting.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: True

$Always hide hidden ships in hotkey list:

FS2 Open, 23.0:

• Whether or not to always hide ships with HIDDEN hotkey (set in FRED), even in the in-mission hotkey menu.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Allow automatically assigning personas:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

• Whether or not the game will automatically assign personas to ships that have no persona set.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: True

$Countermeasures use capacity:

FS2 Open, 23.2:

• Whether or not Countermeasures use tabled capacity.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Calculate subsystem hitpoints after parsing:

FS2 Open, 24.0:

• Causes subsystem hitpoints to be calculated after all ships.tbl and -shp.tbm files have been parsed. This allows subsystem percentages to correctly reflect the final hull value rather than the first hull value encountered.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

$Fix scripted velocity:

FS2 Open, 24.2:

• If this setting is enabled, object velocity set via script will wholly determine the change in position for that frame, ignoring all other in-engine concerns. Otherwise, the game engine will likely overwrite/ignore any changes, depending on when the changes were made in the frame.
• Syntax: Boolean
• Default Value: False

#END

Required. The last line of the table must be #END

Sample Entry

   #CAMPAIGN SETTINGS
   $Default Campaign File Name: NewCampaignFile
   
   #Ignored Campaign File Names
   $Campaign File Name: FreeSpace2.fc2
   
   #HUD SETTINGS
   $Directive Wait Time: 5000
   
   #SEXP SETTINGS
   $Loop SEXPs Then Arguments: True
   
   #OTHER SETTINGS
   $Fix Turret Collisions: True
   
   #END