GODOT(6)

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💖 GODOT(6) — the godot manual, but make it a group chat 💖

okay bestie, sit DOWN, because we're doing the godot man page and it's giving main character energy. this is section 6 of the manual (games, obviously, what else would it be), and the whole vibe is: multi-platform 2D and 3D game engine with a feature-rich editor. yes. that's the whole brand. we ate. 💅

✨ NAME ✨

godot — multi-platform 2D and 3D game engine with a feature-rich editor

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

godot [options] [path to scene or 'project.godot' file]

that's it. that's the whole summoning ritual. options, then optionally a scene or a project.godot file, and godot does its thing. 🦋

👑 DESCRIPTION 👑

Godot Engine is an advanced, feature-packed, multi-platform 2D and 3D game engine. no cap. it literally runs everywhere and does both 2D and 3D and it does NOT play about either one.

It provides a huge set of common tools, so you can just focus on making your game without reinventing the wheel. which is the whole point, bestie — the wheel has already been invented, it's been invented gorgeously, go make your game instead. 🫶

🎀 General options 🎀

the basics. the little guys. the ones you'll actually type.

  • -h, --help — Display this help message. (hi. hello. here's how to use me.)
  • --version — Display the version string. (which godot are you even running, babe)
  • -v, --verbose — Use verbose stdout mode. it will simply Not Stop Talking and honestly, same.
  • --quiet — Quiet mode, silences stdout messages. Errors are still displayed. so it's not fully silent, it's just ✨selectively✨ silent. errors will absolutely still show up and read you to filth.

🌈 Run options 🌈

the "what am i actually launching today" section. pick your fighter.

  • -e, --editor — Start the editor instead of running the scene.
  • -p, --project-manager — Start the project manager, even if a project is auto-detected. it will NOT be ignored. it insists.
  • -q, --quit — Quit after the first iteration. one and done. bloop. 💀
  • -l, --language <locale> — Use a specific locale (<locale> being a two-letter code).
  • --path <directory> — Path to a project (<directory> must contain a project.godot file). if it doesn't have one, that's not a project, that's just a folder. 🙈
  • --main-pack <file> — Path to a pack (.pck) file to load.
  • --render-thread <mode> — Render thread mode ('unsafe', 'safe', 'separate').
  • --remote-fs <address> — Remote filesystem (<host/IP>[:<port>] address).
  • --remote-fs-password <password> — Password for remote filesystem.
  • --audio-driver <driver> — Audio driver ('PulseAudio', 'ALSA', 'Dummy').
  • --audio-output-latency <ms> — Override audio output latency in milliseconds (default is 15 ms). Lower values make sound playback more reactive but increase CPU usage, and may result in audio cracking if the CPU can't keep up. > ⚠️ so like — lower = snappier but riskier, and your CPU WILL be the one taking the fall. don't come for me when it crackles. 😭
  • --video-driver <driver> — Video driver ('Vulkan', 'GLES2').

🦋 Display options 🦋

window behaviour. the ~aesthetic~ of your rectangle.

  • -f, --fullscreen — Request fullscreen mode.
  • -m, --maximized — Request a maximized window.
  • -w, --windowed — Request windowed mode.
  • -t, --always-on-top — Request an always-on-top window. it's above everyone else. main character window. periodt.
  • --resolution <W>x<H> — Request window resolution.
  • --position <X>,<Y> — Request window position.
  • --low-dpi — Force low-DPI mode (macOS and Windows only).
  • --no-window — Disable window creation (Windows only). Useful together with --script. no window, just vibes. ✨

🔥 Debug options 🔥

for when it's Not Working and you need to find out why. we've all been there.

  • -d, --debug — Debug (local stdout debugger).
  • -b, --breakpoints — Breakpoint list as source::line comma-separated pairs, no spaces (use %20 instead). > 🚨 no spaces, bestie, i'm serious, use %20. the spaces will NOT be forgiven.
  • --profiling — Enable profiling in the script debugger.
  • --remote-debug <address> — Remote debug (<host/IP>:<port> address).
  • --debug-collisions — Show collisions shapes when running the scene.
  • --debug-navigation — Show navigation polygons when running the scene.
  • --max-fps <fps> — Set a maximum number of frames per second rendered (can be used to limit power usage). A value of 0 results in unlimited framerate. 🔥 zero means GO. unlimited. no ceiling. your fan will hear about it.
  • --frame-delay <ms> — Simulate high CPU load (delay each frame by <ms> milliseconds). Do not use as a FPS limiter; use --max-fps instead. > 💀 do NOT use this as an FPS limiter. it is literally the opposite of that. it's a stress tool. use --max-fps, i am begging.
  • --time-scale <scale> — Force time scale (higher values are faster, 1.0 is normal speed).
  • --disable-render-loop — Disable render loop so rendering only occurs when called explicitly from script.
  • --disable-crash-handler — Disable crash handler when supported by the platform code.
  • --fixed-fps <fps> — Force a fixed number of frames per second. This setting disables real-time synchronization.
  • --print-fps — Print the frames per second to the stdout.

🧚 Standalone tools 🧚

the side quests. the little utility guys that do very specific things and do them well.

  • -s, --script <script> — Run a script.
  • --check-only — Only parse for errors and quit (use with --script). just a vibe check, no actual execution. 🎀
  • --export-release <preset> <path> — Export the project in release mode using the given preset and output path. The preset name should match one defined in export_presets.cfg. <path> should be absolute or relative to the project directory, and include the filename for the binary (e.g. 'builds/game.exe'). The target directory must exist.
⚠️ the target directory MUST already exist. godot will not make it for you. it is not your mom.
  • --export-debug <preset> <path> — Export the project in debug mode using the given preset and output path. The preset name should match one defined in export_presets.cfg. <path> should be absolute or relative to the project directory, and include the filename for the binary (e.g. 'builds/game.exe'). The target directory must exist.
same deal, bestie. directory first. it must exist. 🫶
  • --export-pack <preset> <path> — Export the project data only using the given preset and output path. The <path> extension determines whether it will be in PCK or ZIP format. the file extension is doing the deciding here. iconic behaviour honestly.
  • --doctool <path> — Dump the engine API reference to the given <path> in XML format, merging if existing files are found.
  • --no-docbase — Disallow dumping the base types (used with --doctool).
  • --build-solutions — Build the scripting solutions (e.g. for C# projects). Implies --editor and requires a valid project to edit.
  • --dump-gdextension-interface — Generate GDExtension header file 'gdextension_interface.h' in the current folder. This file is the base file required to implement a GDExtension.
  • --dump-extension-api — Generate JSON dump of the Godot API for GDExtension bindings named 'extension_api.json' in the current folder.
  • --test <test> — Run a unit test ('string', 'math', 'physics', 'physics_2d', 'render', 'oa_hash_map', 'gui', 'shaderlang', 'gd_tokenizer', 'gd_parser', 'gd_compiler', 'gd_bytecode', 'ordered_hash_map', 'astar'). pick one, run it, slay. ⭐

🌸 FILES 🌸

where godot keeps its stuff. know your paths, bestie.

  • XDG_DATA_CONFIG/godot/ or ~/.config/godot/ — User-specific configuration folder, contains persistent editor settings, script and text editor templates and projects metadata.
  • XDG_DATA_HOME/godot/ or ~/.local/share/godot/ — Contains the default configuration and user data folders for Godot-made games (user:// path), as well as export templates.
  • XDG_DATA_CACHE/godot/ or ~/.cache/godot/ — Cache folder for generated thumbnails and scene previews, as well as temporary location for downloads.
  • /usr/share/doc/godot/ — Additional documentation files.
  • /usr/share/licenses/godot/ — Detailed licensing information.

💜 SEE ALSO 💜

See the project website at <https://godotengine.org> and the source code repository at <https://github.com/godotengine/godot> for more details. go look, the docs are right there, iykyk. 🦋

😭 BUGS 😭

Godot Engine is a free and open source project and welcomes any kind of contributions. In particular, you can report issues or make suggestions on Godot's issue tracker at <https://github.com/godotengine/godot/issues>. found a bug? tell them! they literally want to know! it's a whole community thing and it's lowkey beautiful. 🫶

✨ AUTHOR ✨

Man page written by Rémi Verschelde <remi@godotengine.org> on behalf of the Godot Engine development team. thank you for your service, king. 👑

and that's the whole page, bestie!! this was godot version 4.0, dated January 2020, section GODOT(6) of the manual, and honestly? she ate. 💅💖✨

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