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Bulletstorm

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games

This page is for the original release. For the remastered edition, see Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition.

Bulletstorm
Bulletstorm cover
Developers
People Can Fly
Epic Games
Publishers
Electronic Arts
Engines
Unreal Engine 3
Release dates
Windows February 22, 2011
Reception
Metacritic 82
IGDB 87
Taxonomy
Monetization One-time game purchase, DLC
Microtransactions None
Modes Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing Real-time
Perspectives First-person
Controls Direct control
Genres Action, Shooter
Art styles Realistic
Themes Sci-fi
Series Bulletstorm
Bulletstorm on HowLongToBeat
Bulletstorm on IGDB
Bulletstorm on MobyGames
Bulletstorm on Wikipedia
Bulletstorm
Duty Calls: The Calm Before the Storm 2011
Bulletstorm 2011
Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition 2017
Bulletstorm VR 2024

Warnings

For Games for Windows - LIVE on Windows 8 or later, install the latest Games for Windows - LIVE software.

General information

Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
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CD key
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Windows
Origin (unavailable)
Origin
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Windows
Games for Windows Marketplace (unavailable)
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[1]
Windows
Steam (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
Icon overlay.png
Icon overlay.png
Windows
As of Nov 12, 2022, original owners were given the "Lite" edition.
All versions require Games for Windows - LIVE DRM.[Note 1]
No longer sold digitally due to the release of Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition.
Zero Day Protection software in place can have issues connecting on Windows 10, making the game impossible to launch. Go to the game install location, bulletstorm\bin\win32\ and delete the ZDP folder along with ShippingPC-StormGame.exe.zdp, ShippingPC-StormGame.exe.cat, and ShippingPC-StormGame.exe.cfg. Then install the patches to fix this lockout.[2]

Demo

A free demo is still available on Steam: steam://install/99870.

Monetization

Type Notes
DLC DLCs include new missions and maps.
One-time game purchase The game requires an upfront purchase to access.

DLC and expansion packs

Name Notes
Blood Symphony Adds 2 new Echoes missions and 3 Anarchy maps.
Windows
Gun Sonata Adds 2 new Echoes missions, 3 Anarchy maps, and 2 Leash colors.
Windows
DLC is no longer sold (could only be purchased through the Games for Windows Marketplace).

Essential improvements

Patches

You need to have GFWL client installed in order to apply Title Updates 2–3.

Download Title Updates 1-3 for Bulletstorm here.

Skip intro videos

Instructions[3]
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\StormGame\Movies\.
  2. Delete or rename LoadingMovieStartup.bik.

Play without Games for Windows - LIVE

Play without GFWL[4]
  1. Download the replacement xlive.dll.
  2. Extract into <path-to-game>\Binaries\Win32.

Notes:

Only single-player can be played by using this fix.
Installing the patches beforehand is recommended.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config
<path-to-game>\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config[Note 2]
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/99810/pfx/[Note 3]
Configuration files are encrypted; edit with Bulletstorm INI Editor.

Save game data location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\BulletStorm\StormGame\SaveData\
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/99810/pfx/[Note 3]

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
Origin
OneDrive
Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud

Video

In-game general settings.
In-game general settings.
In-game video settings.
In-game video settings.

Graphics feature State WSGF Notes
Widescreen resolution
4:3 and 16:10 are letterboxed; use Flawless Widescreen or Widescreen Fixer.
Multi-monitor
Use Flawless Widescreen or Widescreen Fixer.
Ultra-widescreen
Use Flawless Widescreen or Widescreen Fixer.
4K Ultra HD
Subtitles do not scale with resolution and are extremely small.
Field of view (FOV)
Default FOV is 85°. See Field of view (FOV).
Windowed
Set in options or use -windowed parameter.
Borderless fullscreen windowed
See Borderless fullscreen windowed.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Default is 4x. See Anisotropic filtering (AF).
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Up to 8x MSAA.
Vertical sync (Vsync)
60 FPS
120+ FPS
Capped at 62 FPS by default; see High frame rate.
High dynamic range display (HDR)
See the glossary page for potential alternatives.

Field of view (FOV)

3rd party fixes[3]
Change FOV manually[5]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormCamera.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Change these values to the desired world and aiming FOV, respectively.
[StormGame.BSPlayerCamera]
DefaultCameraFOV=85
TargetingFOV=45

Borderless fullscreen windowed

Force borderless[citation needed]
  1. Download and run GeDoSaTo.
  2. Edit the ShippingPC-StormGame profile.
  3. Add forceBorderlessFullscreen true.
  4. Launch the game in fullscreen mode.

Anisotropic filtering (AF)

Change AF samples[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormEngine.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Change MaxAnisotropy=4 to MaxAnisotropy=16.

High frame rate

High frame rate[3]
  1. Open %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config\StormEngine.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  2. Change MaxSmoothedFrameRate to a higher cap; alternately, remove the frame rate cap entirely by setting bSmoothFrameRate to false.
  3. Save the changes and close the editor.

Notes

There are two instances of these settings, one under [Engine.Engine] and again under [Engine.GameEngine].

Input

In-game key map settings.
In-game key map settings.
In-game control settings.
In-game control settings.
In-game gamepad button layout settings.
In-game gamepad button layout settings.
In-game gamepad stick layout settings.
In-game gamepad stick layout settings.

Mouse smoothing

Disable mouse smoothing[3]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormInput.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Change bEnableMouseSmoothing=true to bEnableMouseSmoothing=false.

Notes

This also disables the delayed movement of the player weapon model while looking around.

Mouse sensitivity

Change mouse sensitivity[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormInput.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Change MouseSensitivity=60 to the desired value.

Notes

Change applies to base sensitivity as well as ADS, however changing the value to ~10 makes both sensitivities feel similar.

Toggle aim down sights

Toggle ADS[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormInput.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Find the group [StormGame.BSPlayerInput].
  4. Locate
    Bindings=(Name="BSBA_Target",Command="ButtonPress L2 | OnRelease ButtonRelease L2",Control=False,Shift=False,Alt=False,bIgnoreCtrl=False,bIgnoreShift=False,bIgnoreAlt=False)
  5. Replace it with the following:
    Bindings=(Name="BSBA_Target",Command="setbind RightMouseButton ToggleAimOn",Control=False,Shift=False,Alt=False,bIgnoreCtrl=False,bIgnoreShift=False,bIgnoreAlt=False)
    • If you wish to use a different button, replace RightMouseButton with an alternative keybind.
  6. Beneath that line, insert the following three lines:
    Bindings=(Name="ToggleAimOn",Command="ButtonPress L2 | setbind RightMouseButton ToggleAimOff")
    Bindings=(Name="ToggleAimOff",Command="ButtonRelease L2 | setbind RightMouseButton ToggleAimOn")
    Bindings=(Name="RightMouseButton",Command="ToggleAimOn",Control=False,Shift=False,Alt=False,bIgnoreCtrl=False,bIgnoreShift=False,bIgnoreAlt=False)
  7. Save the file.

Audio

In-game audio settings.
In-game audio settings.

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound
Auto configures up to 7.0 output[6]
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
French
German
Hungarian
Fan translation.
Italian
Japanese
Polish
Brazilian Portuguese
Fan translation, download.
Russian
Spanish

Network

Requires a Microsoft account.

Multiplayer types

Type Native Players Notes
LAN play
Online play
4 Co-op
Anarchy mode.

Connection types

Ports

Protocol Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP 53, 80, 3074
UDP 53, 80, 3074
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes State GG3D Notes
Native 3D
Nvidia 3D Vision
Use Helix Mod: Bulletstorm to improve 3D support.
TriDef 3D
iZ3D
vorpX
G3D
Officially supported game, see official vorpx game list.
Devices
3RD Space Gaming Vest
Novint Falcon
The official game-specific 3D Touch Add On is required.

Issues fixed

Turn off texture streaming

Edit configuration file[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  2. Open StormEngine.ini with Bulletstorm INI Editor.
  3. Change these lines:
UseBackgroundLevelStreaming=False
MipFadeInSpeed0=0
MipFadeOutSpeed0=0
MipFadeInSpeed1=0
MipFadeOutSpeed1=0
OnlyStreamInTextures=True
PoolSize=0
LoadMapTimeLimit=999
LightmapStreamingFactor=0 
ShadowmapStreamingFactor=0
bAllowSwitchingStreamingSystem=False 
UseDynamicStreaming=False
  1. Save the file as read-only.

Glitchy shadows and other graphical issues

Some GPUs are not supported by the default configuration files which causes strange graphical errors (black bar shadows, blocky shadows, low texture resolution on all settings, and 16-bit colors). This method is used to fix these errors.
Replace DefaultCompat.ini[citation needed]
  1. Download the modified DefaultCompat.ini.
  2. Make a backup of DefaultCompat.ini in <path-to-game>\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config.
  3. Replace DefaultCompat.ini with the modified file.
  4. Delete %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Bulletstorm\StormGame\Config\StormCompat.ini.
  5. Start Bulletstorm and change any graphical setting to apply the change.

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 9.0c
Shader Model support 3
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Physics PhysX
Audio XAudio2
Cutscenes Bink Video
Multiplayer Games for Windows - LIVE

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) XP SP3
Processor (CPU) 1.6 GHz Dual Core
System memory (RAM) 1.5 GB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 9 GB
Video card (GPU) ATI Radeon HD 2400 Pro
Nvidia GeForce 7600 GS
256 MB of VRAM
DirectX 9.0c compatible


Notes

  1. Games for Windows - LIVE DRM features: SSA+ZDPP activation, requires a Microsoft account - local profiles are not supported.
  2. When running this game without elevated privileges (Run as administrator option), write operations against a location below %PROGRAMFILES%, %PROGRAMDATA%, or %WINDIR% might be redirected to %LOCALAPPDATA%\VirtualStore on Windows Vista and later (more details).
  3. 3.0 3.1 File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/99810/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (99810) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References