Return to Castle Wolfenstein


⤏ Go to series page
Castle Wolfenstein	1981
Beyond Castle Wolfenstein	1984
Wolfenstein 3D	1992
Spear of Destiny	1992
Return to Castle Wolfenstein	2001
Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory	2003
Wolfenstein	2009
Wolfram (unofficial game)	2012
Wolfenstein: The New Order	2014
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood	2015
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus	2017
Wolfenstein: Youngblood	2019
Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot	2019
RealRTCW (unofficial mod)	2020

Warnings

The Mac OS X release of this game does not work on Mac OS X Lion (version 10.7) or later due to the removal of support for PowerPC apps.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a singleplayer and multiplayer first-person action, FPS and shooter game in the Wolfenstein series.

Like with most id Tech 3 games, the source code was released to the public. Several source ports were also developed by the community.

General information

Singleplayer source code

Multiplayer source code

Official support knowledgebase

GOG.com Community Discussions for game series

GOG.com Support Page

Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail
GamersGate
GOG.com		Not available for purchase in Germany.^[2]
Green Man Gaming
Humble Store
Microsoft Store		Xbox Game Pass for PC. Not available in Germany.
Steam		Not available for purchase in Germany.
Amazon.com (unavailable)
Bethesda.net (unavailable)

Monetization

Type	Notes
One-time game purchase	The game requires an upfront purchase to access.
Subscription gaming service	Available via Xbox Game Pass for PC.

DLC and expansion packs

A standalone follow-up, Enemy Territory, is available as freeware.

The PS2/Xbox port of the game included a prequel mission, Cursed Sands. Additionally the Xbox port featured a new gun (Shotgun) and DLC maps. Currently, there is no known way to play this content on the PC version. See here for more info.

Name	Notes
GOTY Map Pack	Sold with the Game of The Year Edition or downloadable as freeware. Not officially packaged for Mac, though can still be used on it by manually installing PK3 files. Already included in the Steam Version.

Essential improvements

Patches

Both the singleplayer and multiplayer version are separate; versions 1.33 and newer are exclusive to for multiplayer.

v1.32 for singleplayer and multiplayer - available from GameFront and Wolfenstein4Ever

v1.4 for multiplayer - available from GameFront and Wolfenstein4Ever

v1.41B for multiplayer (incremental) - available from GameFront and 1.41B

Unofficial patches

Knightmare's 1.42d. Fixes various crashes and adds native widescreen support. It is only applied to the single-player version of RtCW.

Bradman's Mac OS X GPL port. A GPL port fixs that allowed the game to be played on OS X 10.7 "Lion" or later, due to the removal of Rosetta. It's designed to get around the fact that the original game was PowerPC only.

Source ports

Since the source code for Return to Castle Wolfenstein was released in August 2010, various engine overhauls and source ports have been created to enhance or modify the game in different ways.

Name	Description
iortcw	Based on ioquake3; adds modern features like VOIP and OpenAL, whilst being faithful to traditional gameplay. Commonly known source port in the community.
Bibendovsky's RtCW	A custom source port that's designed to play all RtCW games (single-player, multiplayer, Enemy Territory) into one.

Skip intro videos

Edit autoexec.cfg^[3]
Open `<path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg` with a text editor. Add the following line to the file: `seta com_introplayed "1"`. Save the changes.

Game data

In-game HUD settings.

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Windows	<path-to-game>\Main\wolfconfig.cfg^{[Note 1]} <path-to-game>\Main\wolfconfig_mp.cfg^{[Note 1]} %USERPROFILE%\Documents\RTCW\main\
Mac OS (Classic)
macOS (OS X)
Linux
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/9010/pfx/^{[Note 2]}

wolfconfig.cfg contains single player settings.

wolfconfig_mp.cfg contains multiplayer settings.

It's unknown whether this game follows the XDG Base Directory Specification on Linux. Please fill in this information.

Save game data location

System	Location
Windows	<path-to-game>\Main\save\^{[Note 1]} %USERPROFILE%\Documents\RTCW\main\save\
Mac OS (Classic)
macOS (OS X)
Linux
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/9010/pfx/^{[Note 2]}

Save game cloud syncing

System	Native	Notes
GOG Galaxy
OneDrive		Requires enabling backup of the Documents* folder in OneDrive on all computers.*
Steam Cloud
Xbox Cloud

Video

In-game general video settings.

In-game advanced video settings.

Graphics feature	WSGF	Notes
Widescreen resolution		See Widescreen resolution.
Multi-monitor		See Widescreen resolution.
Ultra-widescreen		See Widescreen resolution.
4K Ultra HD		See Widescreen resolution.
Field of view (FOV)	Default is 90º. See Field of view (FOV).
Windowed
Borderless fullscreen windowed	See Borderless fullscreen windowed.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)	See Anisotropic filtering (AF).
Anti-aliasing (AA)	See Anti-aliasing (AA).
High-fidelity upscaling	AMD Dev is working on a pathtracer mod with FSR 2, DLSS 2, and XeSS support, Release date is unknown
Vertical sync (Vsync)	See Vertical sync (Vsync).
60 FPS
120+ FPS	Capped at 91 FPS. See Frame rate (FPS).
High dynamic range display (HDR)	See the glossary page for potential alternatives.
Color blind mode	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.

Widescreen resolution

Configure with iortcw and autoexec.cfg^[3]

Download and install iortcw.
Open <path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following lines to the file, and save.

seta r_customwidth "1920"
seta r_customheight "1080"
seta r_mode "-2"
seta cg_fixedAspect "2"

Edit the configuration file

Launch the game at least once then close it.
Go to the configuration file(s) location.
Open wolfconfig.cfg with a text editor.
Change the following lines to set the resolution.
- seta r_customaspect "1"
- seta r_customheight "XXXX" (where XXXX is the desired vertical resolution)
- seta r_customwidth "XXXX" (where XXXX is the desired horizontal resolution)
Change the following line to this value.
- seta r_mode "-1"

Notes

This solution is Vert- (FOV will need to be increased to compensate), but does not require downloading 3rd party software.

Field of view (FOV)

Configure with iortcw^[3]
Download and install iortcw. Open `<path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg` with a text editor. Add the following lines, and save the file. Change `110` to the desired FOV. `seta cg_fixedAspectFOV "0"` `seta cg_fov "110"`

Edit the configuration file

Launch the game at least once then close it.
Open <path-to-game>\Main\wolfconfig.cfg with a text editor.
Change the following line to set the FOV.
- seta cg_fov "XX" (where XX is the desired FOV)
Add +set sv_cheats 1 to the game's launch options to prevent the custom FOV from being overwritten on a new level load.

Notes

This solution does not affect the weapon model FOV, but does not require downloading any 3rd party software.

Starting the New Game overwrites the sv_cheats and cg_fov parameters. Workaround: Start a New Game, make a save, type "sv_cheats 1" in to the console, load the save, type "cg_fov 110" in to the console.

Borderless fullscreen windowed

Configure with iortcw and autoexec.cfg

Download and install iortcw.
Open <path-to-game>\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following lines and save the file.

seta r_mode "-2"
seta r_noborder "1"
seta r_fullscreen "0"

Anisotropic filtering (AF)

Set with iortcw and autoexec.cfg

Download and install iortcw.
Open <path-to-game>\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following lines to the file and save it.

seta r_ext_texture_filter_anisotropic "1"
seta r_ext_max_anisotropy "16"

Anti-aliasing (AA)

Set with iortcw

Download and install iortcw.
Go to the configuration file(s) location.
Open wolfconfig.cfg.
Set seta r_ext_multisample "4".
Set seta r_ext_framebuffer_multisample "4".

Notes

MSAA values can range from 1 to 16. Going above 16 won't give any noticeable improvements.

Nvidia users can achieve SGSSAA using the "enhance" mode.

Force with Nvidia Profile Inspector

Get Nvidia Profile Inspector.
Select Return to Castle Wolfenstein profile.
Set "Antialasing - Mode" to Override any application setting.
Set "Antialasing - Setting" to 32xS [Combined: 2x2 SS + 8x MS].

Notes

This will also apply anti-aliasing to transparency.

Vertical sync (Vsync)

Edit config file
Go to the configuration file(s) location. Open `wolfconfig.cfg`. Find `seta r_swapInterval "0"` and change the value to `"1"`.

If seta r_swapInterval is missing, simply add it.

Frame rate (FPS)

Set with iortcw and autoexec.conf^[3]

Download and install iortcw.
Open <path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following line to the file, with the desired number:
- seta com_maxfps "125"
If experiencing issues, it's recommended to also add these lines below, with the same number:
- seta com_maxfpsUnfocused "125"
- seta com_maxfpsMinimized "125"

Notes

Without the last two lines, the frame rate will temporarily drop to the default value while the game is minimized or unfocused.

Stamina, weapon overheating bars logic and scoped weapons recoil are tied to the frame rate. Player movement becomes jittery at very high frame rates.

Input

In-game general control settings.

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping
Mouse acceleration		Disabled by default. Use `cl_mouseAccel 1` in the console to enable. If mouse acceleration is still present with `cl_mouseAccel 0`, disable "Enhance pointer precision" in Control Panel - Mouse - Pointer Options.
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus
Keyboard and mouse prompts
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support

Toggle crouch

Edit autoexec.cfg^[4]

Go to <path-to-game>\Main\.
Open autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following lines (change c to whichever other key if desired):

set duck "+movedown; set crouchToggle vstr stand; echo ^3Crouching...^7"
set stand "-movedown; set crouchToggle vstr duck; echo ^2Standing...^7"
set crouchToggle "vstr duck"
bind c "vstr crouchToggle"

Audio

In-game audio settings.

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound		Stereo output only.^[5] 7.0 with iortcw.
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost		For iortcw, see Mute on focus lost.
EAX support		iortcw has support for OpenAL Soft, which can be used for binaural HRTF mixing.^[6]
Royalty free audio

Mute on focus lost

Set with iortcw
Download and install iortcw. Open `<path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg` with a text editor. Add the following lines. They are similar, so both are recommended. Mute the game when minimized: `seta s_muteWhenMinimized "1"`. Mute the game when focus lost: `seta s_muteWhenUnfocused "1"`.

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English
Czech				Fan translation; text, dub, Time Gate mod
French				Retail only.
German				Retail and GOG.com only; download for Steam release.
Hungarian				Fan translation; download.
Italian				Retail only; download for digital releases.
Polish				Fan translation; download.
Brazilian Portuguese				Fan translation by GameVicio; download.
Russian				Unofficial translation by Fargus Multimedia; text, sound.
Slovak				Fan translation; download.
Spanish				Retail only; download for digital releases.

Network

Multiplayer types

Type	Native	Players	Notes
LAN play		32
Online play		32	The official multiplayer master server was shut down in February 2012; use S4NDMoD as a community alternative, which also fixes some known exploits. Use rtcwcoop for co-op.

Connection types

Type	Native	Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Direct IP		Use `connect [IP address here]` in the console.

Ports

Protocol	Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP	28960
UDP	27960

Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes	State	Notes
vorpX		G3D, DirectVR Officially supported game, see official vorpx game list.

Issues unresolved

Setup won't install the game

For the retail version, setup won't install the game if the selected disk drive has a capacity of more than 2TB.

Secrets and/or treasures not registered as found

Occurs with GOG version using iortcw 64-bit. Loading the autosave from the beginning of the level and starting over, can help.

Issues fixed

Enlarged upper left corner of screen

Increasing the game resolution above 800x600 causes the upper left corner of the game to take up the entire screen.
One reason is that game detects a 3dfx driver (possibly caused by nGlide).

Edit wolfconfig.cfg^[7]
Go to the configuration file(s) location. Open `wolfconfig.cfg`. Change `seta r_glIgnoreWicked3D "0"` to `seta r_glIgnoreWicked3D "1"`. Save the changes.

Frame rate drops on modern machines

This game is not coded/optimized to run on modern graphics cards, resulting in frame rate drops on some modern machines.

Edit autoexec.cfg

Open <path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following line: seta r_primitives "2".
Save the changes.

Notes

This fix changes the method used to submit rendering draw calls.^[8]

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
OpenGL	1.1

Executable	PPC	16-bit	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows
macOS (OS X)
Linux
Mac OS (Classic)

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Cutscenes	RoQ	^[9]
Anti-cheat	PunkBuster

Modifications

These mods are made by the RtCW community to enhanced the gameplay with modern improvement.

Modernized mods

RTCW Venom Mod - general graphic and AI update with unchanged gameplay; restores unused assets and AI actions. Gives the choice of playing against an overhauled or corrected vanilla AI. Compatible with every OS version of the game and mods.

RealRTCW - overhaul based on iortcw source port. Provides QOL features including new and rebalanced weapons, overhauled AI, new textures, sounds and models, as well as restored cut content. As of September 2, 2025, an official GOG.com distribution exists.

Remade Weapons - Adds realism to weapons.

Realistic Sound Mod - Adds new sounds to weapons so that they're sounded accurately to their real-life counterpart.

Remade Icons - Updates UI and fixed icons windows.

Remade Hints - Updates UI and fixed hints windows.

Ps2 Hud - HUD from PS2 RTCW Operation Resurrection.

WPK 2020 - HD Weapon texture pack.

Disable view bob

Edit wolfconfig.cfg
Go to the configuration file(s) location. Open `wolfconfig.cfg`. Change `seta cg_bobup "0.005"` to `seta cg_bobup "0.000"`. Change `seta cg_bobpitch "0.002"` to `seta cg_bobpitch "0.000"`. Change `seta cg_bobroll "0.002"` to `seta cg_bobroll "0.000"`.

Display current frame rate

Edit autoexec.cfg^[10]

Open <path-to-game>\Main\autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
Add the following line: seta cg_drawFPS "1".
Save the file.

Notes

To disable, either remove the line or set the number to 0.

System requirements

Windows
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)	95 OSR2	NT 4.0 SP6, 98, ME, 2000, XP
Processor (CPU)	AMD Athlon Intel Pentium II 400 MHz
System memory (RAM)	128 MB	256 MB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)	1.1 GB
Video card (GPU)	16 MB of VRAM DirectX 8.0a compatible

Supported chipsets: 3dfx Voodoo 3 or higher, ATI Rage 128/128 Pro, ATI Radeon, Matrox G400, Nvidia Riva TNT and TNT2, all Nvidia GeForce chips

Mac OS
	Minimum
Operating system (OS)	9.2
Processor (CPU)	PowerPC 750 (G3) 500MHz
System memory (RAM)	128 MB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)
Video card (GPU)	ATI Radeon Nvidia GeForce

macOS (OS X)
	Minimum
Operating system (OS)	10.1
Processor (CPU)	PowerPC 750 (G3) 500MHz
System memory (RAM)	128 MB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)
Video card (GPU)	ATI Radeon Nvidia GeForce

Notes

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 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).
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1
Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:
- File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.
- Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/9010/.
- Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.
- The app ID (9010) may differ in some cases.
- Treat backslashes as forward slashes.
- See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 Aspyr: Return to Castle Wolfenstein goes Gold | Macworld
↑ RELEASE: QUAKE II + III, WOLFENSTEIN 3D, RETURN TO CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN - GOG.com News - last accessed on May 2023
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 ^3.3 Verified by User:Mazky on 2020-10-24
↑ Toggle Crouch for RTCW, page 1 - Forum - GOG.com - last accessed on May 2023
↑ PC Gaming Surround Sound Round-up - last accessed on May 2023
↑ Return to Castle Wolfenstein w/ 3D spatial sound in iortcw 🎧 (OpenAL Soft HRTF audio) - last accessed on 2024-04-04
↑ SOLVED: Can't run the game above 800x600. Upper left corner of the screen enlarged - Steam Community Discussions - last accessed on May 2023
↑ RTCW-SP/src/renderer/tr_init.c at 70951bc71b730efe6bcb07db7ae76ef0c4ae7c14 · id-Software/RTCW-SP · GitHub - last accessed on 2025-08-07
↑ RoQ - MultimediaWiki - last accessed on 2024-04-27
↑ cg_drawFPSetconfig | etconfigm Verified by User:Mazky on 2020-10-25

[gamedir-4] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 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).

[Proton_path_note-5] 2.0 ^2.1 Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:
File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.
Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/9010/.
Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.
The app ID (9010) may differ in some cases.
Treat backslashes as forward slashes.
See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

[3] File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.

[4] Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/9010/.

[5] Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.

[6] The app ID (9010) may differ in some cases.

[7] Treat backslashes as forward slashes.

[8] See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

[Westlake-1] 1.0 ^1.1 Aspyr: Return to Castle Wolfenstein goes Gold | Macworld

[2] RELEASE: QUAKE II + III, WOLFENSTEIN 3D, RETURN TO CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN - GOG.com News - last accessed on May 2023

[ReferenceA-3] 3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 ^3.3 Verified by User:Mazky on 2020-10-24

[6] Toggle Crouch for RTCW, page 1 - Forum - GOG.com - last accessed on May 2023

[7] PC Gaming Surround Sound Round-up - last accessed on May 2023

[8] Return to Castle Wolfenstein w/ 3D spatial sound in iortcw 🎧 (OpenAL Soft HRTF audio) - last accessed on 2024-04-04

[9] SOLVED: Can't run the game above 800x600. Upper left corner of the screen enlarged - Steam Community Discussions - last accessed on May 2023

[10] RTCW-SP/src/renderer/tr_init.c at 70951bc71b730efe6bcb07db7ae76ef0c4ae7c14 · id-Software/RTCW-SP · GitHub - last accessed on 2025-08-07

[11] RoQ - MultimediaWiki - last accessed on 2024-04-27

[12] _drawFPSetconfig | etconfigm Verified by User:Mazky on 2020-10-25

[1]

[2]

[3]

[Note 1]

[Note 2]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

Developers

	Gray Matter Interactive
	id Software
Multiplayer	Nerve Software
Multiplayer	Splash Damage
Mac OS (Classic)	Westlake Interactive^[1]
macOS (OS X)	Westlake Interactive^[1]
Publishers
	Activision
Mac OS	Aspyr Media
Engines
	id Tech 3
Release dates
Windows	November 19, 2001
Linux	March 16, 2002
Mac OS (Classic)	April 29, 2002
macOS (OS X)	April 29, 2002
Reception
Metacritic	88
IGDB	68
Taxonomy
Monetization	One-time game purchase, Subscription gaming service
Microtransactions	None
Modes	Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing	Real-time
Perspectives	First-person
Controls	Direct control
Genres	Action, FPS, Shooter
Art styles	Realistic
Themes	Europe, World War II, Sci-fi, Fantasy
Series	Wolfenstein