How to make War Thunder fullscreen [Solved]

Can’t play War Thunder in fullscreen? For some players, War Thunder only stays in Windowed Mode. Let’s fix that with our guide with 3 easy troubleshooting solutions for Mac OS, and 2 additional more for Windows PC.

Keep reading if you want to learn how to:

• Update War Thunder to Fullscreen Mode using in-game or Launcher settings
• Force launch War Thunder in fullscreen or Borderless Windowed mode using Steam
• Fix stuttering, partial fullscreen, black screen and aspect ratio

For Mac and Windows: Toggle War Thunder to go Fullscreen with Keyboard Shortcuts

On Microsoft Windows, you can use a few keyboard shortcuts to force most games to go fullscreen. Try all three options and see which one works for you.

1. Start War Thunder.
2. Press [Alt] [Enter] at the same time to enter fullscreen.
3. The second option is to press [F11].
4. If that didn’t work, hold down [Fn] and then press [F11] to trigger full screen mode.

For Mac OS:

For Mac users, you can go fullscreen with 3 simple keyboard shortcuts:

1. Tap on the green buttonon your top bar.
2. Press [Command] [Ctrl] [F] to go fullscreen.
3. Hold your function key [Fn] and press [F11].

If all options did not work for your device, skip over to Solution 2.

For Mac and Windows: Change War Thunder in-game & Launcher settings

This solution will take advantage of the game's built-in settings you can customize through the War Thunder Launcher or in-game graphics options. We'll also cover how to fix the partial full screen error, whereby the game doesn't cover your entire screen, even though you already changed your settings.

First, let's start with the configurations you should be make to play War Thunder in a full screen experience.

How to change settings with War Thunder Launcher:

1. In the War Thunder launcher, press the cogwheel or gear icon.
2. Set your window mode to [Fullscreen].
3. Set your [Resolution] to 1920 x 1080 OR your native resolution settings.

How to change full screen settings in-game:

1. In War Thunder’s home menu, click the top left button(3 stripes). This will create a drop down menu, select [Options].
2. Navigate to [Graphics].
3. Set your window mode to [Fullscreen] or [Fullscreen Window].
4. Set your [Resolution] to 1920 x 1080 OR go with your native resolution.

How to fix Partial Fullscreen Error:

Second, let's address how you can fix the partial fullscreen error. If you've been following instructions so far, then War Thunder should already be playing in true fullscreen mode. As long as your [Resolution] settings are equal to your monitor's native or recommended resolution, the partial fullscreen bug can be avoided.

But if you don’t know how to find those settings for your display, here's how to do it.

Find Your Windows PC Native Resolution:

1. Right click on your desktop and open [Display Settings].
2. Scroll down and open [Advanced Display Settings].
3. Check [Display information] and set War Thunder to the same resolution.

Find Your Mac OS Native Resolution:

1. Click on the Apple icon on the top left of your screen.
2. Select [About this Mac].
3. Now select [Display].
4. Find your current display settings under [Built-in Display].
5. Set War Thunder to the same resolution.

For Mac and Windows: Use Steam Launch Options to open War Thunder

If changing your in-game settings or War Thunder Launcher settings didn't work, the workaround you can apply here is Steam. If War Thunder is already in your Steam games library, simply login and follow these steps.

To force launch War Thunder in full screen mode, do this:

1. Find War Thunder in your Steam games library.
2. Right click and Select [Properties].
3. In the launch options text zone, type -fullscreen to launch War Thunder in fullscreen mode. For borderless windowed mode, type -popupwindow.
4. Close the menu to apply settings.

When starting the game using Steam, make sure to select [Play War Thunder] and not the option to launch War Thunder manually. The latter opens the War Thunder launcher instead which may bypass the Steam Launch Options you just configured.

What to do if you don't have War Thunder in your Steam Library:

1. We will add War Thunder to your Steam Library to bypass this issue.
2. In Steam, go to your top bar then select [Games]. Click [Add a Non-Steam Game to My Library].
3. Search for War Thunder's application file.
4. After adding it to your library, search for the keyword “Game” or “War Thunder” to find it. Then apply your Launch Options.
5. Run War Thunder and select [Play War Thunder] to open without its native launcher.

For Windows: Edit War Thunder's file settings to reduce crashes or stuttering

War Thunder is an older game, so it's not surprising that bugs will crop up from time to time. This solution is for Windows PC users only, and essentially is about toggling on [Compatibility Mode] and [Disable fullscreen optimizations] in your file settings.

To do this, find the War Thunder's application file:

1. Locate your game file.

• Steam: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\WarThunder
• War Thunder: C:\Warthunder or C:\Program Files (x86)\Warthunder

1. Right click exe file and select [Properties].
2. Click on the [Compatibility] tab.
3. Tick the box for [Compatibility Mode], then select Windows 8.
4. Next, tick the box for [Disable fullscreen optimizations].
5. Hit [OK] to save settings.

After applying the settings, open War Thunder as you would and try playing in fullscreen. There should be reduced instances of stuttering, crashing, and black screen. This is because War Thunder was initially released in 2012, making it a more compatible software with older Microsoft Windows operating systems.

For Windows: Turn off GPU Scaling in Nvidia Control Panel or AMD Radeon Software

If you are still facing occasional black screens even after our solutions, then it's likely caused by your graphics driver softwares. To fix this, you can simply update driver or turn off GPU Scaling in your Nvidia Control Panel or AMD Radeon Software. We'll go over the latter option.

Instructions for NVIDIA Control Panel

If your PC uses an Nvidia graphics card, try configuring your NVIDIA Control Panel. First, right click on an empty space on your desktop and select [NVIDIA Control Panel].

After your NVIDIA Control Panel interface pops up, follow these steps:

1. Select [Display].
2. Find [Adjust desktop size and position].
3. Set scaling to [No scaling].
4. Next, click on [Manage 3D Settings] in the left bar.
5. Make your preferred Graphics Processor [High-performance NVIDIA processor].

Instructions for AMD Radeon Software

For devices running on AMD graphics, right click your desktop and select [AMD Radeon Software] from the menu.

After your AMD software interface pops up, follow these 3 steps:

1. Click on the gear icon on the top right, then navigate to the [Display] tab.
2. Once at the Display tab, click on GPU Scaling node to turn it off.
3. Start EVE Online and try going full screen again, it should work this time.

Did our troubleshooting solutions eliminate your fullscreen problems? If you're a fan of games similar to War Thunder, where you can pilot a military vehicle, check out our How to make EVE Online fullscreen guide as well. We offer a variety of solutions in each guide, best suited to the most amount of players.

Optimize your War Thunder experience right away with our guides here:

• How to improve your FPS in War Thunder
• How to fix High Ping in War Thunder