gamescope

Wayland gaming micro-compositor

TLDR

Run a program inside gamescope

$ gamescope -- [program]

Use it as a Steam launch option

$ gamescope -- %command%

Render at one resolution and output at another

$ gamescope -w [1280] -h [720] -W [2560] -H [1440] -- [program]

Upscale with AMD FidelityFX

$ gamescope -F fsr -- [program]

Tune how sharp that upscaling looks

$ gamescope -F fsr --sharpness [5] -- [program]

Use integer scaling, which keeps pixel art crisp

$ gamescope -S integer -- [program]

Cap the refresh rate of the nested display

$ gamescope -r [60] -- [program]

Cap the frame rate without changing the refresh rate

$ gamescope --framerate-limit [60] -- [program]

Drop to a lower refresh rate when the window loses focus

$ gamescope -r [144] -o [30] -- [program]

Enable variable refresh rate

$ gamescope --adaptive-sync -- [program]

Enable HDR output

$ gamescope --hdr-enabled -- [program]

Choose which display to open on

$ gamescope -O [DP-1] -- [program]

Overlay MangoHud statistics

$ gamescope --mangoapp -- [program]

Launch Steam Big Picture inside gamescope

$ gamescope -e -- steam -tenfoot

SYNOPSIS

gamescope [options] -- command [arguments]

gamescope is a Wayland micro-compositor developed by Valve for gaming. It acts as an intermediary layer between games and the display server, providing features like resolution scaling, frame limiting, HDR support, and improved game compatibility.Key features include FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution) upscaling, integer scaling for retro games, independent refresh rate control, and seamless fullscreen management. It's the basis for the Steam Deck's gaming mode compositor.When used with Steam (-e flag), it integrates directly with Steam's overlay and game management features.

PARAMETERS

-h, --nested-height HEIGHT

Set internal (nested) resolution height

-H, --output-height HEIGHT

Set output resolution height

-w, --nested-width WIDTH

Set internal (nested) resolution width

-W, --output-width WIDTH

Set output resolution width

-r, --nested-refresh RATE

Set internal refresh rate (FPS limit for vsync games)

-S, --scaler SCALER

Scaling filter: auto, integer, fit, fill, stretch

-e, --steam

Enable Steam integration mode

-O, --prefer-output OUTPUT

Preferred display output

-f, --fullscreen

Start in fullscreen mode

-b, --borderless

Start in borderless windowed mode

-F, --filter FILTER

Upscaler filter: linear, nearest, fsr, nis, pixel.

--hdr-enabled

Enable HDR output (requires compatible display and hardware).

--mangoapp

Launch MangoHud overlay (mangoapp) alongside gamescope.

--force-grab-cursor

Always use relative mouse mode instead of flipping between relative and absolute.

--adaptive-sync

Enable adaptive sync / VRR on the output if supported.

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

Super+F - Toggle fullscreenSuper+S - Take screenshotSuper+G - Toggle FPS limiter

INSTALL

sudo dnf install gamescope

sudo pacman -S gamescope

sudo apk add gamescope

sudo zypper install gamescope

nix profile install nixpkgs#gamescope

CAVEATS

Requires Vulkan support. Some games may have compatibility issues. HDR support requires appropriate hardware and display. Performance overhead is minimal but present.

HISTORY

gamescope was developed by Valve Software and first released in 2020. It was created primarily for the Steam Deck handheld gaming PC, providing the foundation for SteamOS 3.0's gaming compositor. The project evolved from earlier work on the steamcompmgr compositor.