Doom 3 Tweak Guide

[Page 9] Advanced Tweaking (Pt.3)



Demo Commands


recordDemo [demoname] - Records a demo of your current gameplay with the name specified. The demo is placed in your \Doom 3\base\demos\ directory by default. This directory is created the first time you record a demo.


stopRecording - Stops recording the current demo.


PlayDemo [demoname] - Plays back a demo with the name specified.


compressDemo [huffman, demoname] - Compresses a demo file of the name given using the 'huffman' compression scheme (the only one currently available in Doom 3), creating a new, smaller version of it with the extension .demo.huff in the \demos\ directory.


com_preloadDemos [0,1] - Preloads all demos. Set to 0 will reduce memory usage, which is recommended.


com_compressDemos [0,1] - If set to 1 will compress demo files recorded, reducing their size. These files may take longer to load.


demoShot [demoname] - Creates a screenshot for the demo file specified.


avidemo [demoname] - Creates an AVI from an existing demo.


avigame - Creates an AVI from your current gameplay.


com_aviDemoHeight [pixels] - Determines the resolution height in pixels for AVI demos generated through the avidemo command. The greater the size, the larger the resulting file.


com_aviDemoWidth [pixels] - Determines the resolution width in pixels for AVI demos generated through the avidemo command. The greater the size, the larger the resulting file.


com_aviDemoSamples [samplerate] - Determines the sample rate for AVI demos generated through the avidemo command. The higher the rate, the larger the resulting file will be, but the smoother it will play.


roq [filename] - Encodes a roq file, but requires the name of, and path to, the roqParam file.


Benchmarking Commands


benchmark - Runs a benchmarking procedure which uses progressively less pixels for the current image (screen size shrinks) until a result is provided at the end in the console.


timeDemo [demoname] - Runs a timedemo on the demo name provided. If no demos exist, you can use the default demo1 built into Doom 3. See the Neat Stuff & Conclusion section for more details.


timeDemoQuit [demoname] - Runs a timedemo using the demo specified, and then exits the game completely when done.


Control/Movement Commands


sensitivity [value] - This value represents your mouse sensitivity, as set by the slider in the in-game menus (See In-Game Settings). Raising the value increases the mouse's sensitivity to movements in the game. You can make subtle adjustments here if the slider is too awkward.


pm_crouchrate [seconds] - This setting controls the time it takes for the player to switch from standing to crouching. The higher the setting, the longer it takes.


pm_normalviewheight [value] - Determines the height of the player's view when standing.


pm_crouchviewheight [value] - Determines the height of the player's view when crouching.


pm_staminarate [value] - Determines the rate at which the player regains Stamina points. Divide the pm_stamina value by this rate to calculate how long it takes for the player to fully regain all his stamina.


pm_staminathreshold [value] - When stamina falls below this value, the player slows to a walk.


pm_stamina [value] - Determines the length of time a player can run.


pm_runspeed [value] - This setting determines how fast a player can run. Higher values result in a faster running speed.


pm_walkspeed [value] - This setting determines how fast a play can walk. Higher values result in a faster walking speed.


pm_crouchspeed [value] - This setting determines how fast a player can move while crouching. The higher the value, the faster a crouching player can move.


pm_stepsize [value] - This is the maximum height over which a player can step without having to jump. Lower values may result in players not being able to climb stairs without jumping for example.


pm_jumpheight [value] - This setting is the approximate height a player can jump. Higher values will result in a higher jump height.


[Disabling Bobbing Tweaks]


The variables below control the slight bobbing movements your player has when moving around, such as when he is running (runroll, runpitch, runbob), walking (walkbob, bobroll, bobpitch, bobup) and crouching (crouchbob). These bobbing, pitching and rolling movements are all quite realistic, but may be annoying to some people. Raising the values increases the bobbing and pitching, while reducing the values lessens the intensity of these movements. Setting all of them to 0 will completely remove any bobbing and pitching motions for your character.


pm_bobroll [value]

pm_bobpitch [value]

pm_bobup [value]

pm_runroll [value]

pm_runpitch [value]

pm_runbob [value]

pm_walkbob [value]

pm_crouchbob [value]


View Commands


pm_thirdPersonDeath [0,1] - If set to 1, enables third person view when the player dies. Note this command may force third person view even during normal gameplay, so disable it if this is not to your liking.


pm_thirdPerson [0,1] - If set to 1, shows the player in third person view.


pm_thirdPersonAngle [angle] - If third person view is being used (i.e. pm_thirdPerson is set to 1), this determines the angle of the third person camera view. 0 (the default) is behind the player, while 180 is looking directly at the player's face. Other values view the player from various angles.


pm_thirdPersonHeight [value] - If using third person view, this determines the height of the camera from normal view height. Positive values raise the camera above normal view height, negative values below normal view height.


pm_thirdPersonRange [value] - If using third person view, determines the distance of the camera from the player. 80 is the default, and 0 is right inside the players head.


pm_maxviewpitch [angle] - This setting determines the maximum angle a player can look down. Higher positive values will result in the player overshooting his own feet. Negative angles will result in the player looking up when attempting to view downwards.


pm_minviewpitch [angle] - This setting determines the maximum angle a player can look up. Higher negative values will allow the player to look up and over the back of their own head. Positive values will result in the player looking downward when attempting to look up.


Information/Diagnostic Commands


com_showMemoryUsage [0,1] - If set to 1, shows the amount of memory allocated to the game and various assets.


com_memoryMarker [Megabytes] - This marker shows the approximate amount of memory (in MB) used by Doom 3 in its last run. Don't alter this value, just see what it is.


game_memory - Displays the amount of game memory allocated, and to how many objects.


showTriSurfMemory - Shows the amount of memory used for polygon surfaces.


com_showSoundDecoders [0,1] - If set to 1, shows all the currently loaded sounds, how large they are and how far through playback (in %) they are.


g_showPVS [0,1] - If set to 1, shows a wireframe border around all portals such as doors and passageways.


r_showSurfaceInfo [0,1] - If set to 1, shows the surface material name when a cursor is pointed at a surface.


r_showTris [0,1] - Enables wireframe mode. If set to 1, shows all visible geometry in wireframe. If set to 2, it only draws front-facing geometry in wireframe. If set to 3, shows all geometry (visible or not) in wireframe. Interesting to see how many polygons are being used for certain effects, like smoke and steam.


r_showLightCount [0,1,2,3] - If set to 1, colors each surface based on the light count, if set to 2 also counts everything through walls, and if set to 3 also prints overdraw.


r_showShadowCount [0,1,2,3,4] - If set to 1, colors the screen based on shadow volume depth complexity, if set to 2 prints overdraw count based on stencil index values, if set to 3 only shows turboshadows, and if set to 4 only shows static shadows.


r_showSilhouette [0,1] - If set to 1, highlights every edge which casts a shadow.


gfxInfo - Displays a dump of graphics information, including graphics card model, driver version, supported paths etc.


listSounds - Lists all sounds currently loaded and the amount of memory they are using.


listImages - Lists all images currently loaded and the amount of memory they are using.


listCvars [-help] - Lists all cvars, and if the -help switch is used, help text is also provided.


listCmds - Lists all commands with current values.


[Reload Commands]


The following commands all reload particular aspects of the game, such as sounds, images, decals and Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs). Using these commands at any point can help resolve any anomalies or glitches you are experiencing with these particular aspects of the game by reloading them from scratch. Note, some aspects take a while to reload (e.g. reloadImages and reloadEngine can take quite a while), so be careful if using such commands in an online game.


reloadEngine

reloadSounds

reloadModels

reloadImages

reloadSurface

regenerateWorld

reloadGuis

reloadDecls


reloadCgPrograms - Reloads CG programs. This can help resolve graphical anomalies during gameplay on Nvidia cards.


reloadARBprograms - Reloads ARB programs. This can help resolve graphical anomalies during gameplay on ATI cards.


cvar_restart - Restarts the cvar system.


s_restart - Restarts the Doom 3 sound system.


vid_restart - Restarts the video rendering system, which essentially reloads Doom 3. You must use this command to implement certain changes, such as changed resolution.


developer [0,1] - If set to 1, enables Developer mode, which allows certain other console commands to work such as the freeze, god, crash, error and gameerror commands.


devmap [mapname] - Loads a map in Developer mode.


noclip - Toggles clipping on/off. By default clipping is on. When clipping is turned off, you can walk through solid objects, useful for troubleshooting.


god - Enables God mod, useful for troubleshooting.


Multiplayer/Server Commands


connect [servername] - Connects to a multiplayer server with the given name


disconnect - Closes the current game map. Also used for skipping the introductory movie by appending +disconnect to the Doom 3 icon Target box (See Neat Stuff & Conclusion).


reconnect - Reconnects to the last server connected to successfully.


ui_name [string] - This is your character name as set in the in-game menus. The only reason you may want to edit it using this command rather than the in-game menus is if you want to insert special characters in your name, or use color codes in front of letters. The color codes are ^1 Red ^2 Green ^3 Yellow ^4 Blue ^5 Aqua ^6 Purple ^7 White ^8 Grey ^9 Black. E.g. ^5Persian^1Immortal provides the text PersianImmortal when my online name is displayed in multiplayer games. Don't go nuts with this, it can be very annoying.


serverNextMap - Changes to the next map on your server.


serverMapRestart - Restarts the current map on your server.


serverForceReady - Forces all players on your server to be ready for match start.


say [text] - Says the provided text in Global Chat in multiplayer.


sayTeam [text] - Says the provided text in Team Chat in multiplayer.


gameKick [playername] - Kicks the specified player from the server.


serverInfo - Shows information about the current server when in multiplayer.


rcon [command] - Sends the command specified to the remote console.


net_clientMaxRate [Bytes] - This setting controls the maximum amount of data in bytes per second you can receive from a server every second. By default, servers will only provide 16000 bytes per second at most (as set in the net_serverMaxClientRate setting), but you can try lowering this value to reduce your ping and stabilize it when playing Doom 3 online. Try values such as 10000 or 12000. Note that values which are too low will cause problems, as Doom 3 multiplayer is not designed for dialup speeds (i.e. 6000 or less).


net_serverMaxClientRate [Bytes] - If running a server, this setting determines the maximum amount of data which can be sent to each player in bytes per second. The default setting should be fine, however if you find your server struggling, or you have a limited bandwidth connection, you can try lowering this setting slightly. Once again, keep the value reasonably high, as too low a rate will result in packet loss, ping spikes and unplayable multiplayer for all who join the server.


si_maxPlayers [value] - This setting determines the maximum number of players on your multiplayer server. Unfortunately at the moment it cannot be set higher than 4 here or in the in-game settings.



That's the current list of the more useful Doom 3 command variables which I know. Once again I really need knowledgeable readers to send me better descriptions for any of the above commands which are not completely clear, and also any additions you feel need to be made. So please, if you genuinely know what something does (no guesses please), Email Me. This section can then serve as a central resource for Doom 3 players to refer to for command tweaking.



The next section has a few neat tweaks and wraps up the entire guide.