How to play stretched 4:3 in CS2 on NVIDIA

Step-by-step setup of stretched 4:3 (1280×960) in CS2 through the NVIDIA Control Panel.

20 October 2026 1 min read 19

#cs2 #stretched #4-3 #nvidia #resolution #guides

Stretched 4:3 makes enemy models look wider. Many players got used to it in CS:GO. For the image to fill the whole screen, you need to enable scaling in the driver.

🔧 Step 1. NVIDIA Control Panel

Right-click the desktop → NVIDIA Control Panel.
On the left, choose Display → Adjust desktop size and position.
Scaling mode: Full-screen.
Perform scaling on: GPU.
Tick "Override the scaling mode set by games and programs".
Click Apply.

📌 Step 2. CS2 settings

Settings → Video → Display Mode: Fullscreen.
Aspect Ratio: Normal 4:3.
Resolution: 1280×960 (or 1024×768 for more FPS).

🎯 If you see black bars

Make sure CS2 is in Fullscreen, not windowed.
Make sure scaling is performed on the GPU, not on the display.
Restart the game after changing NVIDIA settings.

⚠️ Keep in mind

Stretched is a matter of habit. Models are wider, but you see less on the sides than on 16:9.

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