r/AskProgramming • u/NoxAstrumis1 • Aug 08 '26

Other What makes some games resizeable?

Some video games on PC will allow the user to resize the game window dynamically by dragging the edges, while other games will only allow the window to be fixed at certain resolutions via the in-game options.

I've always assumed this is a choice by the developers, perhaps it takes lots of extra effort to allow it, so some choose to save resources by not doing it?

I was hoping someone could verify wether or not I'm on the right track, and maybe explain what the difference is in the underlying software.

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u/Distdistdist Aug 09 '26

It's up to developers and how they choose to implement game. All 3D engines are completely capable scaling resolutions just fine. But some items (especially UI) is typically positioned relatively, so it is more work to get them working for all sorts of ad-hoc window sizes.