Shortcuts

Create per-game launch configurations that override container defaults for graphics, audio, controls, and more — all from the Winlator home screen.

A shortcut is a saved launch configuration for a specific Windows executable inside a container. Shortcuts appear on the Winlator home screen and let you launch a game with a single tap, using settings that may differ from the container’s defaults.

Try running games using shortcuts on the Winlator home screen — there you can define individual settings for each game without affecting other games in the same container.

Shortcuts vs. container settings

Every container has a set of default settings (graphics driver, DX wrapper, screen size, etc.). A shortcut can inherit all of those defaults or override any subset of them on a per-game basis. This means you can:

• Run two games from the same container, each with a different graphics driver
• Assign a game-specific on-screen controls profile per game
• Force a different screen resolution for a single title without changing the container
• Set extra command-line arguments for one game only

When a shortcut setting is left at its default (i.e. not overridden), Winlator uses the container’s value at launch time. Changes to the container later propagate automatically to all shortcuts that have not overridden that field.

Shortcut structure

A shortcut is stored as a .desktop file inside the container’s shortcut directory. It follows the XDG Desktop Entry format with an additional [Extra Data] section for Winlator-specific overrides:

Field (.desktop key)	Description
Filename stem	The display name shown on the home screen — derived from the .desktop filename (without extension) via FileUtils.getBasename()
Exec	The Wine command line; the .exe path is extracted from the last wine argument in this line
Icon	Base name of the icon file (looked up in the container’s icons directories at 16, 32, 48, and 64 px)
StartupWMClass	X11 window class hint used for window management

Winlator-specific overrides are written under [Extra Data]:

Extra Data key	Description
execArgs	Additional command-line arguments appended to the Wine invocation
screenSize	Override the container’s screen resolution (e.g. 1280x720)
graphicsDriver	Override the graphics driver (e.g. virgl, turnip)
dxwrapper	Override the DirectX wrapper (e.g. dxvk, wined3d)
dxwrapperConfig	Override the DX wrapper configuration string
audioDriver	Override the audio driver
forceFullscreen	Set to 1 to enable Force Fullscreen mode
box86Preset	Override the Box86 compatibility preset
box64Preset	Override the Box64 compatibility preset
wincomponents	Override the enabled Wine components
envVars	Additional environment variables specific to this shortcut
controlsProfile	ID of the on-screen controls profile to load for this game
dinputMapperType	DirectInput mapper type (XInput or legacy)

Only fields that differ from the container defaults are written, keeping shortcut files minimal.

Creating a shortcut

1. Open a container

   From the Winlator home screen, tap a container to open it, or create a new one if you have not set one up yet.

2. Browse to the executable

   Use the built-in file manager inside the container to navigate to the Windows application’s .exe file (typically inside drive_c/).

3. Create the shortcut

   Long-press the .exe file, or tap the context menu icon, and select Create Shortcut. Winlator generates a .desktop file and adds the shortcut to your home screen.

4. Open shortcut settings

   On the Winlator home screen, tap the menu icon (⋮) next to the shortcut and select Settings to open the ShortcutSettingsDialog.

5. Configure per-game overrides

   Adjust any settings you want to override for this specific game (see the section below). Leave settings unchanged to inherit the container’s defaults.

6. Save

   Tap OK. Changes are written to the shortcut’s [Extra Data] section immediately.

Shortcut-specific settings

The ShortcutSettingsDialog exposes the following overridable settings:

General

Name — rename the shortcut. The underlying .desktop file is renamed to match.

Extra arguments — additional arguments passed to Wine when launching this executable. Use the quick-insert menu (the arrow button) to add common flags.

Graphics

Graphics driver — select a renderer (e.g. Turnip/Adreno Vulkan, VirGL, Software). Overrides the container default for this game only.

DX wrapper — choose how DirectX calls are translated (DXVK, WineD3D, CNC DDraw, etc.). Each wrapper has its own configuration button.

Screen size — set a custom resolution for this game. Useful for older titles that run poorly at the container’s default resolution.

To display low-resolution games correctly, try enabling the Force Fullscreen option. It stretches the game window to fill the screen without changing the internal rendering resolution.

Force Fullscreen — forces the game window to fill the entire display surface regardless of the resolution it requests.

Audio

Audio driver — override the audio backend (PulseAudio, ALSA, etc.) for this shortcut.

Compatibility

Box86 preset — select a Box86 compatibility profile tuned for this 32-bit game’s requirements.

Box64 preset — select a Box64 compatibility profile tuned for this 64-bit game’s requirements.

DirectInput mapper type — switch between XInput mapping (default, works with most modern games) and legacy DirectInput mapping for older titles.

Win Components

Override which Wine components (DirectX DLLs, runtime libraries) are enabled for this game without affecting the container’s component list.

Environment variables

Add or remove environment variables that are set only when this shortcut is launched. Container-level variables remain active unless overridden here.

Controls profile

Controls profile — assign an on-screen input controls profile to this shortcut. The chosen profile’s virtual overlay loads automatically when the game starts.

Set to None to launch without any on-screen controls (useful for games where you always use a physical controller).

Managing shortcuts

All shortcuts across all containers are visible in the Shortcuts tab of the Winlator main navigation. From there you can:

• Launch a shortcut by tapping its row
• Open settings to edit overrides via the context menu
• Remove a shortcut by selecting Remove from the context menu — this deletes the .desktop file and its icon asset

Removing a shortcut does not uninstall the Windows application. The .exe and game data inside the container remain intact. You can recreate the shortcut at any time by browsing to the executable again.

Tips and common patterns

Per-game controls

Assign a custom on-screen profile to each game shortcut. This way the correct button layout appears automatically without you having to switch profiles manually.

Low-resolution games

Enable Force Fullscreen for older games that run at 640×480 or 800×600. The image is upscaled to fill your screen, preventing a small window in the corner.

Troubleshooting a single game

Use the extra arguments field to pass Wine-specific flags (e.g. -opengl) or game launch options without affecting anything else in the container.

Testing multiple wrappers

Duplicate a shortcut and give each copy a different DX wrapper setting. Compare performance and compatibility without changing the container’s default.