Learning how to fullscreen a game on PC is a fundamental skill for any gamer. Many PC games can be set to fullscreen mode through an in-game settings menu, often under ‘Display’ or ‘Graphics’. This simple change can dramatically improve your immersion and performance.
Yet, it’s not always a one-click solution. Sometimes the option is missing, or the game stubbornly launches in a window. This guide will walk you through every method, from basic settings to advanced fixes.
We’ll cover in-game menus, keyboard shortcuts, graphics driver controls, and solutions for common problems. By the end, you’ll know exactly how to get any game running perfectly on your entire monitor.
How To Fullscreen A Game On Pc
The most reliable way to fullscreen a game is almost always found within the game itself. Developers know players prefer fullscreen, so they usually make the option easy to find.
You should start here before trying any external fixes. The process is generally similar across most modern titles.
Navigating The In-Game Display Settings
When you launch a game, your first stop should be the Options or Settings menu. Look for tabs labeled “Display,” “Graphics,” or “Video.” This is the control center for how the game renders on your monitor.
Inside, you’ll typically find a setting called “Display Mode,” “Window Mode,” or “Screen Mode.” The exact name varies, but the function is the same. Clicking on it will usualy present you with three main choices.
- Fullscreen: This is the ideal mode. The game takes over your entire monitor, often leading to the best performance and stability.
- Windowed: The game runs in a resizable window, like any other application. This is useful for multitasking but can hurt performance.
- Borderless Windowed (or Fullscreen Windowed): A popular hybrid. The game covers the whole screen but acts like a window, making alt-tabbing faster. Performance can be slightly lower than true fullscreen.
Simply select “Fullscreen” and apply the changes. The game may stutter briefly as it switches modes. If the option is grayed out, you might need to adjust the resolution first to match your monitor’s native setting.
Essential Keyboard Shortcuts For Fullscreen
Sometimes you need a quicker method. Several universal and game-specific keyboard shortcuts can toggle fullscreen mode instantly.
The most common shortcut is Alt + Enter. This works in a huge number of PC games and applications. If a game is running in a window, pressing Alt + Enter will often switch it to fullscreen and vice versa.
It’s always worth trying this first if you can’t find the setting. Other games might use F11 or F for fullscreen. Older titles, especially those using DOSBox emulation, frequently use Alt + Enter or Ctrl + Enter.
Always check a game’s control settings menu under “Keyboard” or “General” for a listed fullscreen toggle. You can sometimes even remap it to a key you prefer.
Common Game Engine Shortcuts
Many games share shortcuts because they’re built on the same engine. For example, numerous Unity games use Alt + Tab to switch windows, but the fullscreen toggle is often still Alt + Enter.
Unreal Engine games typically respect the standard Alt + Enter command as well. Knowing the engine can give you a good guess if the standard shortcuts will work.
Using Graphics Driver Control Panels
If the in-game setting is missing or broken, your graphics card software can force the issue. Both NVIDIA and AMD provide powerful control panels that override application settings.
This is a more advanced method, but it’s very effective for stubborn games. You’ll need to have your graphics drivers updated to access these features.
For NVIDIA GPU Users
- Right-click on your desktop and select “NVIDIA Control Panel.”
- Navigate to “Display” > “Adjust desktop size and position.”
- Select the “Full-screen” option under “Scaling.”
- More importantly, go to “Manage 3D settings” on the left.
- Click the “Program Settings” tab and select your game from the list (or add it).
- Scroll to find the setting “DSR – Factors” or “Image Scaling,” but primarily look for options related to display mode. Some driver versions allow you to force fullscreen overrides here.
For AMD GPU Users
- Right-click on your desktop and choose “AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition.”
- Click on the “Gaming” tab and select your game from the profile list.
- Look for “Display” settings within the game profile.
- You may find options like “GPU Scaling” or “Scaling Mode.” Set this to “Full Panel” or “Preserve Aspect Ratio” to ensure the image fills the screen.
- The “Integer Scaling” option should typically be off for modern games unless you’re playing at very low resolutions.
These driver-level changes can compel a game to use the entire screen, even if its own menus don’t cooperate.
Solving Common Fullscreen Problems
Even with the right settings, things can go wrong. Games might launch minimized, show black bars, or crash when switching to fullscreen. Here are solutions to the most frequent issues.
Game Launches In A Window Or Minimized
This is a common frustration. The game seems to ignore your preferred setting. First, always save your configuration after changing the display mode in-game. Some games have separate “Apply” and “Save” buttons.
If that fails, try these steps:
- Check the game’s shortcut properties. Right-click the shortcut on your desktop, select “Properties,” and look at the “Run” option. Try setting it to “Maximized.”
- For Steam games, you can add launch commands. Right-click the game in your Steam Library, go to “Properties,” and in the “LAUNCH OPTIONS” field, try commands like `-fullscreen` or `-windowed -noborder`. The correct command varies by game; a quick web search for “[Game Name] launch commands” can help.
- Verify the game’s configuration files. Sometimes settings are stored in `.ini` files in your “Documents” folder. You can open these in Notepad and look for lines like “Fullscreen=False” and change them to “True.” Be sure to make a backup first.
Black Bars Or Incorrect Aspect Ratio
If your game is fullscreen but has black bars on the sides or top, the aspect ratio is wrong. This means the game’s resolution doesn’t match your monitor’s shape.
The fix is usually in the same in-game Display settings. Manually select a resolution that matches your monitor’s native aspect ratio (like 1920×1080 for 16:9 or 2560×1440 for 16:9). Avoid resolutions like 1280×1024 if you have a widescreen monitor, as that’s a 5:4 ratio.
Also, check your graphics driver control panel (as described above) for “Scaling Mode.” Set it to “Full Panel” or “Scale to full size” to let the GPU handle the stretching, though this may cause some image distortion.
Performance Issues Or Stuttering In Fullscreen
Paradoxically, fullscreen can sometimes cause problems. If you experience stuttering or lower FPS in fullscreen compared to windowed mode, a few settings could be to blame.
First, ensure your monitor’s refresh rate is set correctly in both Windows and the game. In Windows, go to Settings > System > Display > Advanced display settings and check the refresh rate. Then, match that rate in the game’s video settings if an option is available.
Disable “Fullscreen Optimizations” for the game. This is a Windows feature that can interfere. Find the game’s main `.exe` file, right-click it, select “Properties,” go to the “Compatibility” tab, and check “Disable fullscreen optimizations.”
Also, check for conflicts with background recording software like Xbox Game Bar, NVIDIA ShadowPlay, or Discord overlay. Temporarily disable these to see if performance improves.
Advanced Techniques And Considerations
For multi-monitor setups, ultrawide screens, or legacy games, standard methods might need extra steps. Here’s how to handle more complex scenarios.
Fullscreen On Multiple Monitors
Using fullscreen across multiple monitors (spanning) is rarely supported natively by games. However, you can achieve it through your graphics driver settings or third-party tools.
In your NVIDIA or AMD control panel, look for “Surround” or “Eyefinity” settings. These allow you to combine multiple physical monitors into one large virtual display. Windows will then see them as a single screen, and games can run in fullscreen across them.
Be aware this requires powerful hardware to drive the high total resolution. Also, the bezels between your monitors will interrupt the image.
Ultrawide Monitor Support
Ultrawide monitors (21:9 or 32:9 aspect ratio) offer incredible immersion. Most modern games support them natively. Simply select your monitor’s native resolution (e.g., 3440×1440) in the game’s display settings and choose Fullscreen mode.
For older games, you may need to mods or community patches to add ultrawide support. Websites like PCGamingWiki are invaluable resources for finding these fixes. Sometimes, using borderless windowed mode with a correctly set Windows resolution can also work as a stopgap.
Handling Older Or Legacy Games
DOS games or very old Windows titles often have trouble with modern monitors. Tools like DOSBox are essential for these. Within DOSBox, you can usually cycle through output modes with Ctrl + F11 or Ctrl + F12.
For classic Windows games, a utility called “DxWnd” can force windowed applications into fullscreen, handle resolution scaling, and fix refresh rate problems. It’s a powerful tool for reviving games that otherwise wouldn’t run properly on Windows 10 or 11.
Always run older games as an administrator and try different compatibility modes (right-click .exe > Properties > Compatibility tab) if they crash in fullscreen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Does My Game Keep Switching To Windowed Mode?
This is often caused by an interruption that steals “focus” from the game. Common culprits are notifications from applications like Discord, Steam, or your antivirus software. The game interprets this as a command to minimize and may revert to windowed mode. Try disabling pop-up notifications or running the game in “Borderless Fullscreen” mode, which is more resistant to focus loss.
What Is The Difference Between Fullscreen And Borderless Windowed?
True Fullscreen gives the game exclusive control of your display output, which usualy provides the highest frame rates and lowest input lag. Borderless Windowed runs the game in a borderless window that covers the screen, making it much faster to switch to other applications (alt-tab), but can introduce slight performance overhead and vsync issues depending on your system.
How Do I Make A Game Fullscreen On Startup?
Ensure the in-game setting is set to Fullscreen and that you properly save the configuration, often by clicking “Apply” or “Save Profile.” If the game supports launch commands, adding `-fullscreen` to its Steam or shortcut properties can force it. Checking the “Disable fullscreen optimizations” box in the .exe’s compatibility properties can also prevent Windows from altering its behavior on launch.
Can I Force Fullscreen For A Game That Has No Setting?
Yes, you can try the universal Alt + Enter keyboard shortcut. If that fails, use your graphics driver control panel (NVIDIA Control Panel or AMD Adrenalin) to adjust scaling settings to “Full Panel.” For very stubborn applications, third-party tools like “Borderless Gaming” (available on Steam or GitHub) can force any window into a borderless fullscreen state.
Why Is My Fullscreen Game So Blurry?
Blurriness in fullscreen typically means the game is running at a lower resolution than your monitor’s native resolution. Go into the game’s display settings and select the highest resolution available that matches your monitor’s aspect ratio. Also, check that any “Resolution Scale” or “Render Scale” setting is at 100%. Driver-level scaling options set to “Perform scaling on: GPU” can also help sharpen the image.