Apex Legends | Useful Launch Options for Steam

In this guide, we will show a list of Useful, and other Apex Legends launch options/commands, for Steam. You can use these launch options for the Origin launcher as well, but these are mainly for steam users.

If during or after any of the launch options, you face any issues, remove it from the command line and play as it was before.

Apex Legends Launch Options

Apex Legends Useful Launch Options for Steam

How To Use Apex Legends Commands⇓

A list of all (known) launch options and their usefulness in the game are listed below for Apex Legends. We will see if these commands are supported in the current version of Apex Legends (Season 7 – v3.02.267) or not.

Take note to disable any launch options that you suspect might cause an issue. It can result in a crash or performance problem. Here is How to set/use the Apex launch options:

  • Go to the game launcher in Steam. Right, Click on Apex Legends and select properties.
  • Now go to set launch options and set the parameters as you like from below.
  • Right-Click on Apex Legends from Steam Library and under the “GENERAL” tab,
  • You can put the launch commands in the “Launch Options” Field as shown in this image:

apex legends how to remove fps cap

Working Apex Legends Launch Options (Commands)⇓

These Apex Legends Launch options have been tested and are all working:

apex legends best launch options steam

-full / -fullscreen – The game will always launch in Fullscreen Mode. This is recommended if your windows keep re-adjusting to borderless Fullscreen or any other setting.

-window / -windowed – The game will always launch in Windowed Mode. This is up to preference. I personally do not use this command line.

+cl_showfps 4 – Shows FPS in-game. This can also be achieved with steam overlay settings, NVIDIA, or FRAPS. You can also find this setting inside the game options of Apex Legends. If you want to use this, go for it by all means.

+cl_showpos 1 – show Name, Position, Angle, and Velocity in-game. Important information can be used for a number of reasons to record data and stats.

+fps_max (Your preferred number) – Limit FPS to the given number. Set to “1” to set the fps to the monitor’s refresh rate and set to “0” for unlimited Frame Rates. The values 0 and 1 are binary and can be called OFF and ON. Any custom number will set the highest FPS to that number. Super useful command option to have.

-high – Sets the game thread priority to high. This could lead to a performance increase but also system instability. Use at your own risk. This can also be done by the Task Manager.

-dev – Animations won’t be there anymore but can cause issues in performance. Disable/Remove this if you encounter problems. I personally do not recommend this setting. You should use this one at your own risk.

Unsupported Commands⇓

These are some of Apex Legend’s unsupported or removed launch options:

-novid – Does not work as of now. You can skip videos using this.

-threads (number) – Number of CPU threads to allocate. Does not work since the game controls this.

-freq / -refresh (number) – The settings manage this so this command does not work.

-console – Disables developer console in public builds of Apex Legends.

Commands needing Confirmation⇓

These apex legends launch options will need confirmation from a mass number of players:

-forcenovsync – Game settings manage this option.

-dxlevel – DirectX API version of rendering Determination option.

-preload / -cl_forcepreload – Enables preloading of textures at game start. Since preloading is handled by the game, this option seems obsolete.


Some Popular Games and Their options

Defense Of The Ancients (DOTA) 2⇓

  • Enable Console: -console OR con_enable 1
  • Turn off intro videos: -novid
  • High CPU priority: -high
CommandEffect
+con_enable 1Enables the console in-game.
-consoleEnables the console in-game.
-highGives Dota 2 priority CPU usage.
-useforcedmparmsAllows the use of -noforcemspd and -noforcemaccel.
-noforcemaccelUse the Windows mouse acceleration settings. Only works if -useforcedmparms is set.
-noforcemspdUse the Windows mouse speed settings. Only works if -useforcedmparms is set.
+fps_max #Set the maximum frame per second to the number that has been assigned.
-fullscreendisplay mode to full-screen mode.
-noborderSet display mode to borderless window mode.
-swSet display mode to windowed mode.
-480Forces the engine to start with a 480p resolution.
-h <height>Forces the engine to start with resolution set to <height> value in pixels. Ex: -h 768
-w <width>Forces the engine to start with resolution set to <width> value in pixels. Ex: -w 1024
-x <position horizontal>Place the borderless window along the horizontal axis. Useful for multiple monitor desktops. Ex: -x 1921 (With three monitors, it will place it on the middle screen.)
-y <position vertical>Place the borderless window along the vertical axis. Useful for multiple monitor desktops. Ex: -y 0 (Places game window at the top of the monitor, over the taskbar.)
-autoconfigRestores video and performance settings to default for the current hardware detected. Ignores settings inside any .cfg files until this parameter is removed.
-safe_modeRestores rendering API used (DirectX 9, OpenGL) to the default choice. Ignores settings inside any .cfg files until this parameter is removed.
-override_vpkForces the engine to search for custom game content placed inside the game’s installation directory instead of using the default game content packed inside VPK files. Cannot be used in matchmaking games.
-enable_addonsForces the engine to search for white-listed (by Valve) custom game content placed inside the game’s installation directory instead of using the default game content packed inside the VPK files. Can be used in matchmaking games. Current white list: Minimap, HUD, icons, custom cursor images, all sound directories, flash videos.
-nomousegrabEnables alt-tab function in some Linux desktop environments (such as XFCE) where Dota 2 is running fullscreen and grabbing the mouse wouldn’t allow users to alt-tab out of the game.
-phased_window_createForces dota to open in the same window as steam. Especially useful in Linux environments with multiple monitors. Also fixes the problem when using the chat wheel would force the cursor to be stuck in one direction
-language <code>Changes the language of the game strings and menu, e.g. “-language italian”.
-nod3d9exDisables Windows Aero DirectX extensions; may improve performance in certain cases.
-nomicsettingsStops Dota 2 from changing microphone output values upon launching the game. May help people with issues in third-party communication software, such as Skype, in which their microphone volume would get maxed upon launching the game.
-nosoundTurn off in-game sound.
-nexonAdds the South Korean server to your search options if you have a Korean Nexon account.
-perfectworldAllows you to play on Chinese Perfect World servers.
-map dotaLoads the Dota 2 map right when you launch the game. Helps load times after you find a game since you no longer have to load the map then.
-dx9Force run on DirectX 9.
-dx11Force run on DirectX 11.
-glForces Dota to run on OpenGL. On Windows, the OpenGL DLC is necessary to run this.
-vulkanApply for Vulkan support.
-vulkan_disable_steam_shader_cacheDisable steam from precaching the shaders before Dota 2 launches. Useful when the game fails to launch on Linux with Vulkan.
-sdl_displayindex #Decides the screen data will run on in Linux. Uses a 0-based index from the primary monitor.
-nogammarampForces Dota to use a desktop color profile. This also applies to other source games (ex. F.lux will be applied in Fullscreen)
-32bitForce run on 32bit client. (default 64bit)
-antiaddiction_testAdds an uptime clock.
-cursor_scale_percent #Able to change cursor size. Default 100. Overrides the setting in the in-game options if used.
-novidAutomatically skips the introduction video.

PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS⇓

  • Force the refresh rate: -refresh [0 – 260 and above] | example: -refresh [144]
  • Utilize all CPU cores available: -USEALLAVAILABLECORES
  • Maximise memory usage: -maxMem=[0 – 64000(bytes)] | example: -maxMen=[11000]
  • Enable console: -console
  • Turn off intro videos: -novid
  • Set refresh rate: -refresh | example: -refresh

GRAND THEFT AUTO V⇓

  • Startup in safe mode: -safemode
  • Start benchmark: -benchmark
  • Launch into multiplayer free mode: -StraightIntoFreemode

Troubleshooting

  • -verify
    • Check game installation for problems and repair any issues found. (Disc and non-Steam digital versions only. For Steam versions, you can verify game cache to accomplish the same check.)
  •  -safemode
    • Start settings a minimum but don’t save it
  • -ignoreprofile
    • Ignore the current profile settings
  • -useMinimumSettings
    • Reset settings to the minimum
  • -UseAutoSettings
    • Use automatic generated settings
  • -DX10
    • Force 10.0 feature set
  • -DX10_1
    • Force 10.1 feature set
  • -DX11
    • Force 11.0 feature set
  • -noChunkedDownload
    • Forces patches to be downloaded all at once instead of in chunks.

Benchmarking

  • -benchmark
    • Starts the benchmark test from the command line
  • -benchmarkFrameTimes
    • Optionally output the individual frame times from the benchmark
  • -benchmarkIterations
    • Specifies the number of iterations to run the benchmark for
  • -benchmarkPass
    • Specifies an individual benchmark scene test should be done, and which test should be
  • -benchmarknoaudio
    • Disable audio processing for graphics benchmark purposes

Game Preferences

  • -goStraightToMP
    • Jump straight to MP while loading
  • -scofflineonly
    • Launch the game in offline mode
  • -StraightIntoFreemode
    • If present the game will automatically launch into the multiplayer game in free mode.
  • -mouseexclusive
    • The game uses a mouse exclusively.
  • -cityDensity
    • Control city density (0.0 – 1.0)

Localization

  • -uilanguage
    • Set language game uses. Supported values are “american” (for American English),”french”, “german”, “italian”, “spanish”, “portuguese”, “polish”, “russian”, “korean”, “chinese”, “chinesesimp”, “japanese”, “mexican” (for Mexican Spanish)
  • -keyboardLocal
    • Sets the keyboard layout to the specified region.

Window Preferences

  • -windowed
    • Force windowed mode
  • -fullscreen
    • Force fullscreen mode
  • -borderless
    • Set the main window to be borderless
  • -disallowResizeWindow
    • Do Not allow the window to be resized
  • -width
    • Set width of main render window (default is 640)
  • -height
    • Set height of main render window (default is 480)

Other Technical Performance

  • -adapter
    • Use the specified screen adapter number (zero-based)
  • -anisotropicQualityLevel
    • Set anisotropic Filter Quality Level (0-16)
  • -disableHyperthreading
    • Don’t count hyperthreaded cores as real ones to create tasks on
  • -fogVolumes
    • Enable lights volumetric effects in foggy weather
  • -fxaa
    • Set FXAA quality (0-3)
  • -frameLimit
    • number of vertical synchronizations to limit game to
  • -GPUCount
    • Manual override GPU Count
  • -grassQuality
    • Set grass quality (0-5)
  • -hdr
    • Set the whole rendering pipeline to 16-bit
  • -HDStreamingInFlight
    • Enable HD streaming while in flight
  • -ignoreDifferentVideoCard
    • Don’t reset settings with a new card
  • -lodScale
    • Set LOD Distance Level (0.0-1.0f)
  • -multiSample
    • Number of multisamples (1, 2, 4, 8, or 16)
  • -noInGameDOF
    • Disable In-game DOF effects
  • -noquattransform
    • Don’t use quaternion transforms for placed entities
  • -shadowSoftness
    • Selects between linear, rpdb, box 4×4, soft 16
  • -particleQuality
    • Set particle quality (0-2)
  • -particleShadows
    • Enable particle shadows
  • -pedLodBias
    • Set Pedestrians LOD Distance Bias (0.0-1.0f)
  • -postFX
    • Set postFX quality (0-3)
  • -reflectionBlur
    • Enable reflection map blur
  • -reflectionQuality
    • Set reflection quality (0-3)
  • -SSA
    • Enable SSA
  • -SSAO
    • Set SSAO quality (0-2)
  • -shaderQuality
    • Set shader quality (0-2)
  • -shadowLongShadows
    • Enable shadow rendering for dusk and dawn
  • -shadowQuality
    • Set shadow quality (0-3)
  • -tessellation
    • Set tessellation on or off (0-3)
  • -textureQuality
    • Set texture quality (0-2)
  • -txaa
    • Enable NVIDIA TXAA
  • -vehicleLodBias
    • Set Vehicles LOD Distance Bias (0.0-1.0f)
  • -waterQuality
    • Set water quality (0-1)

That is all we are sharing in this guide for useful commands or launch options for Apex Legends. As you can see, there are launch commands for other games as well.

If you require a detailed list of launch commands for any specific game, do let me know in the comments below. Also, leave your thoughts in the comments below, and I will see you in the next guide.

You can follow us on Twitter and drop a like on Facebook to get the latest update on guides for Mobile Games, PC Games, Fixes, and Settings.

I also have a youtube channel where I upload the latest gaming content for PC and Android. Feel free to check that out at your own leisure. Got specific Suggestions? You can submit them here. Thanks for reading!

7 thoughts on “Apex Legends | Useful Launch Options for Steam”

  1. How do you string multiple commands in the one launch option line Steam provides, string them one after the other?

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *