Free up storage by compressing games safely on Windows.
Compact Games helps you reclaim disk space from large game libraries using Windows NTFS compression. It finds your installed games, shows how much space you may be able to save, and lets you compress or decompress games with simple controls.
Modern games can take up a huge amount of storage. Compact Games makes it easier to reduce that footprint without manually running command-line tools or hunting through install folders.
With Compact Games, you can:
- Automatically find games from supported launchers
- Compress selected games to save disk space
- Decompress games later with one click
- See progress while compression is running
- Track how much space you have saved
- Avoid compressing games that may not be safe to compress
Download the latest Windows release from:
After downloading, run the installer or .exe file and follow the on-screen steps.
Compact Games is built for Windows PCs.
You need:
- Windows 10 or Windows 11
- An NTFS-formatted drive
- Enough free space for normal Windows operation
- Game folders that your Windows account can access
Compact Games is not intended for macOS or Linux.
Compact Games can detect games from common launchers and folders, including:
- Steam
- Epic Games
- GOG
- Xbox Game Pass
- Custom game folders
You can also add your own paths if a game is installed somewhere else.
Launch Compact Games after installation.
The app will look for supported game libraries and list the games it finds.
Each game will show information such as its location, size, compression state, and estimated savings when available.
Select the game or folder you want to compress.
Compact Games will compress the selected game using Windows NTFS compression and show live progress.
You can restore a compressed game back to its original uncompressed state from inside the app.
Compact Games uses Windows NTFS compression, which does not rewrite or modify the contents of your game files. Windows transparently decompresses files when games read them.
The app also includes safety checks such as:
- Skipping games that appear to use DirectStorage
- Avoiding games that are currently running
- Compressing only when it is safe to do so
- Allowing one-click decompression
That said, every PC setup is different. If you are unsure, start with one game and test it before compressing a large library.
For many games, the performance impact is small or unnoticeable because modern CPUs can decompress files quickly. Some games may even load similarly depending on your drive and system.
However, compression may not be ideal for every game. Games that rely heavily on DirectStorage, very high-speed asset streaming, or unusual file layouts may not be good candidates.
Compact Games tries to detect and avoid risky cases, but you can always decompress a game if needed.
Savings depend on the game.
Games with many text files, scripts, uncompressed assets, or loose files often compress well. Games that already use compressed archives may save less space.
Typical savings can vary widely, so the app shows estimates and actual saved space where possible.
Compact Games supports multiple Windows compression algorithms:
- XPRESS4K - Fast compression, good default choice
- XPRESS8K - Balanced speed and savings
- XPRESS16K - Better compression, slower than XPRESS4K
- LZX - Maximum compression, usually not recommended for games
Most users should use the default setting unless they know they want a different mode.
No. NTFS compression changes how files are stored on disk, but it does not change the game files themselves.
Yes. Game launchers should still be able to update compressed games normally.
Usually yes. Compression is transparent to Windows, the game, and most mods.
NTFS compression does not alter game file contents, so it is generally safe. If you run into issues with a specific game, decompress it.
Yes. You can decompress any compressed game from inside the app.
No. Some games are better left uncompressed, especially games that use DirectStorage or stream large assets aggressively. Compact Games helps you identify safer choices.
Try adding its install folder manually through custom paths.
Check that:
- The game is not running
- You have permission to access the folder
- The drive uses NTFS
- Your antivirus or security software is not blocking the app
Decompress the game from inside Compact Games, then restart the game launcher and verify the game files if needed.
Compact Games is built with:
- Flutter for the interface
- Rust for performance-sensitive Windows functionality
- flutter_rust_bridge for Dart/Rust communication
To build from source:
git clone https://github.com/g1mliii/compact-games.git
cd compact-gamesInstall the required Rust and Flutter toolchains before building.
Before contributing, please:
- Run
cargo clippy - Run
flutter analyze - Add tests for new functionality where appropriate
Compact Games is inspired by tools like CompactGUI.
Optional runtime compression estimates may use community data from CompactGUI by IridiumIO. That data is GPL-3.0 licensed and fetched at runtime rather than bundled directly in the app binary.
Cover art may be provided by SteamGridDB through the built-in cover service or through your own optional SteamGridDB API key.
MIT License. See LICENSE for details.
- Report bugs through GitHub Issues
- Request features through GitHub Discussions
- Check the project wiki for additional documentation