Console (computer games): History and Key Facts

A console is a command line interface where the personal computer game's settings and variables can be edited while the game is running. Consoles also usually display a log of warnings, errors, and other messages produced during the program's execution. Typically it can be toggled on or off and appears over the normal game view.

The console is often accessed by pressing the backtick key ` (frequently also called the ~ key; normally located below the ESC key) on QWERTY keyboards or the ² on AZERTY keyboards, and is usually hidden by default. In most cases it cannot be accessed unless enabled by either specifying a command-line argument when launching the game or by changing one of the game's configuration files.

Some games integrate the console with the in-game chat, and in this case usually allow running commands by prefixing them with a forward slash /.

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