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In-game console (tilde)

Crimsonland includes a developer-style console that appears in-game and accepts commands and cvar assignments. This page summarizes the static findings that back the tilde/backquote console behavior.

Open / close (runtime)

  • The console is toggled in-game with the tilde/backquote key (~ / `).

  • The open flag is console_open_flag (0x0047eec8); when set, many gameplay update loops early‑out and input is redirected to the console.

  • console_set_open (0x004018b0) sets the open flag and toggles input capture:

  • Writes console_open_flag (0x0047eec8) via the console state struct.
  • Writes console_input_enabled (0x0047f4d4).
  • Calls Grim2D vtable +0x4c to flush input.

  • Runtime capture shows the tilde hotkey path calls console_set_open from 0x0040c39a (call stack: 0x0040c39a -> console_set_open -> DINPUT8::GetDeviceState -> grim).

  • The containing per-frame input/update function starts at 0x0040c1c0 (no EBP frame; begins with sub esp, 0x28).

Hotkey check (runtime)

The hotkey check is performed via Grim2D key polling:

0040c36d 6a29            push    29h              ; DIK_GRAVE
0040c37d ff5248          call    dword ptr [edx+48h]  ; grim key-down check
0040c380 84c0            test    al,al
0040c382 7416            je      0040c39a
0040c384 8a15c8ee4700    mov     dl,[console_open_flag]
0040c38f 3ad3            cmp     dl,bl
0040c391 0f94c0          sete    al               ; al = (open_flag == 0)
0040c394 50              push    eax
0040c395 e81655ffff      call    console_set_open

Additional context:

  • The hotkey check sits inside a larger per-frame input/update block that also polls DIK_F12 (0x58).

  • The block is gated by audio_suspend_flag (0x004aaf84): when non-zero it calls audio_resume_all (0x0042a5f0) and returns early (skipping the tilde toggle).

Input handling (static)

  • Text input is polled via Grim2D get_key_char (vtable +0x50) in console_input_poll (0x00401060).

  • Enter (0x0d) sets console_input_ready and NUL-terminates the buffer.

  • Backspace (0x08) deletes one char.
  • The input buffer is capped at 0x3ff chars.

  • Navigation/selection keys are handled in the console update loop (0x00401a40) via Grim2D key checks (vtable +0x44 and +0x48):

  • Up/Down (0xC8 / 0xD0) browse history.

  • Left/Right (0xCB / 0xCD) move the caret.
  • PageUp/PageDown (0xC9 / 0xD1) adjust scroll.
  • Home (0xC7) and End (0xCF) jump to start/end.
  • Tab (0x0F) triggers autocomplete (cvars first, then commands).
  • Ctrl (0x1D / 0x9D) modifies some history/scroll actions.

Relevant globals (see analysis/ghidra/maps/data_map.json):

  • console_input_enabled (0x0047f4d4)
  • console_input_ready (0x0047ea58)
  • console_input_buffer (0x0047e448) + length (0x0047ea54)
  • console_prompt_string (0x004712c0, prompt format "> %s")
  • console_height_px (0x0047eeb8)

Command / cvar dispatch (static)

console_exec_line (0x00401940) tokenizes the input and then:

1) If the first token matches a cvar, it either: - Prints current value when invoked with no value. - Updates the value when called with exactly one argument (parses float and stores both string + float).

2) Else if the token matches a command, it calls the command handler. 3) Otherwise it prints Unknown command "%s".

The cvar paths emit:

  • "%s" is "%s" (%ff)
  • "%s" set to "%s" (%ff)

Built-in commands (static registration)

console_init (0x00401560) registers the core commands below. The handlers have been mapped:

  • cmdlist → console_cmdlist (0x00401370): prints each command name and a summary line ("%i commands").

  • vars → console_vars (0x004013c0): prints each cvar name and a summary line ("%i variables").

  • set → console_cmd_set (0x00401510): expects 2 args (set <var> <value>); otherwise prints usage. Uses console_register_cvar and prints "'%s' set to '%s'".

  • echo → console_echo (0x00401410): echo on / echo off toggles console_echo_enabled; otherwise prints args back to the console.

  • quit → console_cmd_quit (0x00401240): sets the quit flag (0x0047ea50).

  • clear → console_clear_log (0x004011a0): clears the console log list and resets scroll state.

  • extendconsole → console_cmd_extend (0x00401340): sets console_height_px (0x0047eeb8) to ~480.

  • minimizeconsole → console_cmd_minimize (0x00401360): sets console_height_px (0x0047eeb8) to 300.

  • exec → console_cmd_exec (0x00401250): loads a script file and feeds each line into console_exec_line; prints Executing '%s' or a “cannot open” error.

Startup commands (registered in crimsonland_main)

crimsonland_main registers several additional commands during startup:

  • setGammaRamp → console_cmd_set_gamma_ramp (0x0042c3d0).
  • snd_addGameTune → console_cmd_snd_add_game_tune (0x0042c360).
  • generateterrain → console_cmd_generate_terrain (0x0042a970).
  • telltimesurvived → console_cmd_tell_time_survived (0x0042a860).
  • setresourcepaq → console_cmd_set_resource_paq (0x0042a7c0).
  • loadtexture → console_cmd_load_texture (0x0042a780).
  • openurl → console_cmd_open_url (0x0042a890).
  • sndfreqadjustment → console_cmd_snd_freq_adjustment (0x0042a930).

Command implementation status (rewrite)

Tracking which console commands are implemented in src/ vs still partial.

Command Origin Status Notes
cmdlist core implemented Prints registered commands.
vars core implemented Prints registered cvars.
set core implemented set <var> <value> with console log.
echo core implemented echo on/off or echo args.
quit core implemented Sets quit flag.
clear core implemented Clears console log.
extendconsole core implemented Expands console height to 480.
minimizeconsole core implemented Restores console height to 300.
exec core implemented Executes scripts; ignores // comment lines.
setGammaRamp startup implemented Applies gamma gain in draw path via shader and logs updated scalar.
snd_addGameTune startup implemented Loads music/<name> and queues.
generateterrain startup implemented Requests terrain regeneration for menu and active gameplay terrain.
telltimesurvived startup implemented Reports active gameplay elapsed time (seconds).
setresourcepaq startup implemented Validates path and swaps resource paq entries.
loadtexture startup implemented Loads from current resource paq; logs ok/failed.
openurl startup implemented Launches browser.
sndfreqadjustment startup implemented Toggles runtime flag with native-style enabled/disabled log text.

Known console variables (cvars)

Core cvars are registered in register_core_cvars (0x00402c00) and during startup. These can be used for debugging or tweaking engine behavior:

Cvar Role (inferred)
cv_showFPS Displays framerate counter
cv_verbose Enables verbose logging (useful for debugging)
cv_friendlyFire Toggles friendly fire
cv_silentloads Suppress loading screen text/transitions
cv_bodiesFade Controls corpse fading time
cv_terrainBodiesTransparency Controls corpse transparency on terrain
cv_terrainFilter Texture filtering setting for terrain
cv_uiTransparency HUD transparency
cv_uiPointFilterPanels UI filtering mode
cv_uiSmallIndicators Use smaller UI elements
cv_enableMousePointAndClickMovement Click-to-move (accessibility/debug)
cv_aimEnhancementFade Aim assist visual feedback
cv_padAimDistMul Gamepad aiming sensitivity/distance
v_width Viewport width (registered after autoexec)
v_height Viewport height (registered after autoexec)

Scripts and logs

  • exec is used to run scripts such as autoexec.txt and music\\game_tunes.txt.

  • Console output can be flushed to console.log via console_flush_log (0x00402860), which uses game_build_path to resolve the filename.

Open questions

  • None for the console hotkey path right now; the function entry at 0x0040c1c0 is confirmed in WinDbg.