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Game Settings ​

GenHub provides comprehensive management of game settings through the Options.ini file, supporting all configuration options for Command & Conquer Generals and Zero Hour. Settings are profile-specific, allowing each game profile to have its own custom configuration.

NOTE

Tool Profiles: For profiles identified as IsToolProfile, game settings (Options.ini) are neither loaded nor applied, as these profiles launch standalone tools that do not rely on the base game configuration.

Overview ​

The game settings system handles:

  • Video Settings: Resolution, windowed mode, texture quality, anti-aliasing, shadows
  • Audio Settings: Volume levels for SFX, music, voice, and 3D audio
  • Network Settings: GameSpy IP address for online/LAN play
  • Profile-Specific Configuration: Each profile maintains its own settings
  • Validation: Ensures settings are within valid ranges
  • Preservation: Unknown settings are preserved for game-specific configurations

Settings Categories ​

Video Settings ​

Controls visual quality and display options.

csharp
public class VideoSettings
{
    public int ResolutionWidth { get; set; } = 800;
    public int ResolutionHeight { get; set; } = 600;
    public bool Windowed { get; set; } = false;
    public int TextureReduction { get; set; } = 0;
    public int AntiAliasing { get; set; } = 1;
    public bool UseShadowVolumes { get; set; } = false;
    public bool UseShadowDecals { get; set; } = true;
    public bool ExtraAnimations { get; set; } = true;
    public int Gamma { get; set; } = 100;
}

Key Settings:

  • Resolution: Screen width and height in pixels

    • Common values: 800x600, 1024x768, 1920x1080, 2560x1440
    • Must match supported display modes

  • Windowed Mode: Run game in a window instead of fullscreen

    • true: Windowed mode
    • false: Fullscreen mode (default)

  • Texture Reduction: Controls texture quality (inverse scale)

    • 0: Highest quality (no reduction)
    • 1: Medium quality
    • 2: Low quality
    • 3: Lowest quality

  • Texture Quality Enum: GenHub uses a more intuitive enum

    csharp
    public enum TextureQuality
{
    Low = 0,
    Medium = 1,
    High = 2,
    VeryHigh = 3  // TheSuperHackers client only
}

    NOTE

    The VeryHigh texture quality option is only available when using TheSuperHackers game client. Other clients support Low, Medium, and High.

  • Anti-Aliasing: Smooths jagged edges

    • 0: Disabled
    • 1: 2x MSAA (default)
    • 2: 4x MSAA
    • 4: 8x MSAA

  • Shadow Volumes: Enables volumetric shadows (performance impact)

    • false: Disabled (default, better performance)
    • true: Enabled (higher quality)

  • Shadow Decals: Enables shadow decals

    • true: Enabled (default)
    • false: Disabled

  • Extra Animations: Enables additional visual effects

    • true: Enabled (default)
    • false: Disabled (better performance)

  • Gamma: Brightness correction

    • Range: 50 (darker) to 150 (brighter)
    • Default: 100 (neutral)

Audio Settings ​

Controls sound and music volume levels.

csharp
public class AudioSettings
{
    public int SFXVolume { get; set; } = 70;
    public int SFX3DVolume { get; set; } = 70;
    public int VoiceVolume { get; set; } = 70;
    public int MusicVolume { get; set; } = 70;
    public bool AudioEnabled { get; set; } = true;
    public int NumSounds { get; set; } = 16;
}

Key Settings:

  • SFXVolume: Sound effects volume

    • Range: 0 (muted) to 100 (maximum)
    • Default: 70

  • SFX3DVolume: 3D positional sound effects volume

    • Range: 0 to 100
    • Default: 70

  • VoiceVolume: Unit voice lines and dialogue volume

    • Range: 0 to 100
    • Default: 70

  • MusicVolume: Background music volume

    • Range: 0 to 100
    • Default: 70

  • AudioEnabled: Master audio toggle

    • true: Audio enabled (default)
    • false: All audio disabled

  • NumSounds: Maximum simultaneous sounds

    • Range: 2 to 32
    • Default: 16
    • Higher values improve audio quality but increase CPU usage

Network Settings ​

Controls online and LAN play configuration.

csharp
public class NetworkSettings
{
    public string? GameSpyIPAddress { get; set; }
}

Key Settings:

  • GameSpyIPAddress: IP address for GameSpy/networking services

    • Used for LAN and online multiplayer
    • Format: IPv4 address (e.g., 192.168.1.100)
    • Default: null (auto-detect)

    Use Cases:

    • LAN Play: Set to local IP address for LAN games
    • Online Play: Set to server IP for custom online services
    • GenPatcher Integration: Used by community patches for online functionality

    Example:

    csharp
    profile.GameSpyIPAddress = "192.168.1.100"; // LAN IP
profile.GameSpyIPAddress = "server.example.com"; // Online server

IMPORTANT

The GameSpyIPAddress setting was added to support community online services and LAN play. It is stored in the Options.ini file and persisted per-profile.

Options.ini Structure ​

The Options.ini file is an INI-format configuration file located in the user's Documents folder:

  • Generals: Documents\Command and Conquer Generals Data\Options.ini
  • Zero Hour: Documents\Command and Conquer Generals Zero Hour Data\Options.ini

Example Options.ini:

ini
Resolution = 1920 1080
Windowed = 0
TextureReduction = 0
AntiAliasing = 1
UseShadowVolumes = 0
UseShadowDecals = 1
ExtraAnimations = 1
Gamma = 100

SFXVolume = 70
SFX3DVolume = 70
VoiceVolume = 70
MusicVolume = 70
AudioEnabled = 1
NumSounds = 16

GameSpyIPAddress = 192.168.1.100

Core Services ​

GameSettingsService ​

Handles parsing and serialization of Options.ini files.

Location: GenHub.Features.GameSettings.GameSettingsService

Key Methods:

csharp
public interface IGameSettingsService
{
    // Load settings from Options.ini
    Task<OperationResult<IniOptions>> LoadSettingsAsync(
        GameType gameType,
        CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);

    // Save settings to Options.ini
    Task<OperationResult> SaveSettingsAsync(
        IniOptions options,
        GameType gameType,
        CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);

    // Get default settings
    IniOptions GetDefaultSettings();
}

Responsibilities:

  • Parse INI file format into structured IniOptions model
  • Serialize IniOptions back to INI format
  • Preserve unknown settings via AdditionalProperties
  • Validate setting ranges and formats
  • Handle missing or corrupted files

GameSettingsMapper ​

Maps settings between GameProfile and IniOptions.

Location: GenHub.Core.Helpers.GameSettingsMapper

Purpose: Ensures profile-specific settings are correctly applied to the game's Options.ini file.

csharp
public static class GameSettingsMapper
{
    public static void MapProfileToIniOptions(GameProfile profile, IniOptions options);
    public static void MapIniOptionsToProfile(IniOptions options, GameProfile profile);
}

Mapping Example:

csharp
// Profile → Options.ini
if (profile.GameSpyIPAddress != null)
{
    options.Network.GameSpyIPAddress = profile.GameSpyIPAddress;
}

// Options.ini → Profile
profile.GameSpyIPAddress = options.Network.GameSpyIPAddress;

GameSettingsViewModel ​

Provides UI binding and validation for game settings.

Location: GenHub.Features.GameProfiles.ViewModels.GameSettingsViewModel

Key Properties:

csharp
[ObservableProperty]
private string? _gameSpyIPAddress;

[ObservableProperty]
private int _resolutionWidth;

[ObservableProperty]
private int _resolutionHeight;

[ObservableProperty]
private bool _windowed;

[ObservableProperty]
private int _sfxVolume;

// ... other settings

Responsibilities:

  • Expose settings as observable properties for UI binding
  • Validate user input (e.g., resolution ranges, volume 0-100)
  • Load settings from profile or Options.ini
  • Save settings back to profile and Options.ini
  • Provide default values

Profile Integration ​

Game settings are stored at two levels:

  1. Profile-Level: Settings specific to a game profile

    • Stored in GameProfile model
    • Persisted in profile database
    • Applied when profile is launched

  2. Options.ini: Game's configuration file

    • Updated when profile is launched
    • Read by the game executable
    • Shared across all profiles (overwritten on launch)

Launch Flow ​

When a profile is launched:

  1. Load Profile Settings: Retrieve settings from GameProfile
  2. Map to IniOptions: Convert profile settings to IniOptions model
  3. Write Options.ini: Serialize IniOptions to game's Options.ini file
  4. Launch Game: Game reads Options.ini on startup

Settings Persistence ​

csharp
// Creating a profile with custom settings
var createRequest = new CreateProfileRequest
{
    Name = "My Profile",
    GameSpyIPAddress = "192.168.1.100",
    // ... other settings
};

// Updating profile settings
var updateRequest = new UpdateProfileRequest
{
    GameSpyIPAddress = "192.168.1.200",
    // ... other settings
};

UI Integration ​

GameSettingsView ​

Location: GenHub.Features.GameProfiles.Views.GameSettingsView.axaml

Provides UI controls for editing game settings:

  • Video Tab: Resolution, windowed mode, texture quality, anti-aliasing, shadows
  • Audio Tab: Volume sliders for SFX, music, voice, 3D audio
  • Network Tab: GameSpy IP address input field
  • Advanced Tab: Additional game-specific settings

Example XAML (Network Settings):

xml
<TextBox
    Text="{Binding GameSpyIPAddress}"
    Watermark="192.168.1.100 or server.example.com"
    ToolTip.Tip="IP address for GameSpy/networking services (LAN or online play)" />

Validation ​

Settings are validated on input:

csharp
// Resolution validation
if (ResolutionWidth < 640 || ResolutionWidth > 7680)
{
    errors.Add("Resolution width must be between 640 and 7680");
}

// Volume validation
if (SFXVolume < 0 || SFXVolume > 100)
{
    errors.Add("Volume must be between 0 and 100");
}

// IP address validation (optional)
if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(GameSpyIPAddress) && !IsValidIPAddress(GameSpyIPAddress))
{
    errors.Add("Invalid IP address format");
}

Best Practices ​

For Developers ​

  1. Always Validate Settings: Check ranges and formats before saving

    csharp
    if (volume < 0 || volume > 100)
    throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException(nameof(volume));

  2. Preserve Unknown Settings: Use AdditionalProperties to maintain game-specific settings

    csharp
    foreach (var kvp in additionalSettings)
{
    options.Video.AdditionalProperties[kvp.Key] = kvp.Value;
}

  3. Handle Missing Files: Provide sensible defaults if Options.ini doesn't exist

    csharp
    if (!File.Exists(optionsPath))
{
    return GetDefaultSettings();
}

  4. Log Setting Changes: Track when settings are modified for debugging

    csharp
    logger.LogInformation("Updated GameSpyIPAddress from {Old} to {New}",
    oldValue, newValue);

For Users ​

  1. Test Settings: Verify settings work before saving
  2. Backup Options.ini: Keep a backup of working configurations
  3. Use Presets: Start with default settings and adjust as needed
  4. Profile-Specific Settings: Create separate profiles for different configurations (e.g., LAN vs Online)

Future Enhancements ​

Potential improvements under consideration:

  • Setting Presets: Pre-configured settings for Low/Medium/High/Ultra quality
  • Auto-Detection: Automatically detect optimal settings based on hardware
  • Setting Profiles: Save and load named setting configurations
  • Validation UI: Real-time validation feedback in settings UI
  • Import/Export: Share settings between profiles or users

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