v0.9.0: fullscreen hotkeys and a self-contained build

The ship-quality release. Hotkeys now work even in the fullscreen games that used to swallow them, the download is a single self-contained file, and there is a real icon, first-run guidance, a crash dialog, and docs written for people who did not build it.

Highlights

• Hotkeys work in exclusive fullscreen. Some raw-input engines (DOOM Eternal was the reported case) swallowed registered hotkeys entirely. A low-level keyboard-hook fallback now catches the same combos, so play/pause, skip, and the rest work even there. Resolves #3; windowed and borderless were never affected.
• No runtime to install. The build is now a self-contained single-file executable. Unzip and run GameDeck.exe; you no longer need the .NET Desktop Runtime.
• First-run onboarding. On the first launch a tray balloon points you at the overlay hotkey and settings, and the overlay pops once to show what is playing (or a friendly hint when nothing is). It never nags again.
• A real app icon across the executable, tray, Alt-Tab, and notifications, with the overlay accent recolored to match.
• Crash dialog. If something goes unexpectedly wrong, GameDeck now tells you and offers an "Open logs folder" button instead of just vanishing.
• Docs for newcomers. The README is rewritten install-first, with a SmartScreen walkthrough, a hotkey table, the security model, and an FAQ, plus a new architecture doc.

Installing

Unzip and run GameDeck.exe. It lives in the system tray; play something and press Ctrl+Alt+O. Windows SmartScreen may warn you on an unsigned new app: click More info, then Run anyway (details in the README).

Full change list in the CHANGELOG. Windows 10 19041+ or Windows 11. No .NET runtime required.

This is a pre-release on the way to v1.0; a demo GIF and a wider compatibility pass are still to come.

v0.5.0 — Overlay placement, settings window, polish

The polish release. The overlay now remembers where you put it, everything is configurable from a real settings window, and the app behaves on high-DPI setups and second launches.

Highlights

• Settings window (tray icon, right click, "Settings"): overlay opacity with live preview, auto-hide delay (or always visible), corner presets, hotkey rebinding with a key recorder and conflict warnings, media source pinning, extension token and connection status, start with Windows, and an animations toggle.
• The overlay stays where you drag it: move it in interactive mode (Ctrl+Alt+I) and it snaps to the nearest corner margin, then comes back there on the next launch, per monitor. If that monitor is unplugged, it falls back to the primary.
• Per-monitor DPI awareness (V2), so the overlay lands exactly where it should on mixed-DPI setups.
• Quality of life: launching GameDeck twice now points you at the tray icon instead of silently doing nothing, and a pinned media source that isn't running shows grayed as "(not running)" instead of disappearing from the pickers.

Verified against a 14-scenario game-compatibility matrix (windowed, borderless, exclusive fullscreen, raw-input, topmost-stealing, lock/unlock — see docs/testing/testing-matrix.md).

Known issue

Some raw-input engines swallow registered hotkeys in exclusive fullscreen (seen with DOOM Eternal — windowed and borderless are unaffected). Tracked in #3 with a fix planned for the next phase.

Full change list in the CHANGELOG.

Needs the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime. Windows 10 19041+.

v0.3.0 — overlay + YouTube ad-skip

The overlay and the ad-skip release. Change songs, watch what's playing, and skip YouTube ads without leaving your game.

Highlights

• In-game overlay: a translucent now-playing card (album art, title, artist, progress) that fades in on track changes and hides itself. Click-through by default, so your game never loses input. Ctrl+Alt+O toggles it, Ctrl+Alt+I makes it draggable.
• YouTube ad-skip: pair the GameDeck Companion browser extension (in the repo's extension/ folder; Chrome Web Store listing under review) and the overlay shows an amber strip when an ad plays in a background tab, green when it becomes skippable. Press Ctrl+Alt+S and keep playing.
• Everything stays on your machine: the extension talks to the app over a token-authenticated WebSocket bound to 127.0.0.1 only. No telemetry.

Setup for ad-skip

1. Load extension/ unpacked via chrome://extensions (Developer mode) until the store listing is live.
2. Tray icon, right click, "Copy extension token".
3. Paste into the extension's options page and save. Dot turns green.

Full details in the README and bridge protocol doc.

Needs the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime. Windows 10 19041+.

v0.1.1 - hardening pass

Hardening pass from a design review of Phase 1. No new features; this is the recommended build for daily use while the overlay (Phase 2) is developed.

Improvements

• Hotkeys and the media connection now survive workstation lock/unlock; both re-register automatically on unlock
• File logging to %APPDATA%\GameDeck\logs (7-day retention) so problems are diagnosable; no data leaves your machine
• Track-change notifications no longer fire on playback-position ticks, and progress is interpolated locally between the coarse updates some players emit
• The single-instance guard is per-user, so another account on the same PC can run its own copy
• "Start with Windows" lives only in the registry Run key, matching what Task Manager's Startup tab shows

Fixes

• Session bookkeeping no longer accumulates entries for media apps that have closed

Install steps are the same as v0.1.0. Full details in the CHANGELOG.

v0.1.0 - invisible MVP

The "invisible MVP": full media control without a visible window. Control Spotify, YouTube, or any media source with global hotkeys that keep working while you game — no alt-tabbing.

What's in it

• Global hotkeys (work over fullscreen games): Ctrl+Alt+Space play/pause, Ctrl+Alt+Right next, Ctrl+Alt+Left previous
• Tray icon with now-playing tooltip, playback menu, media-source picker, and opt-in "Start with Windows"
• Works with any media source via Windows SMTC — no accounts, no API keys, nothing leaves your machine

Install

1. Install the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime if you don't have it
2. Unzip, run GameDeck.App.exe, look for ♪ in the system tray
3. Windows SmartScreen may warn on first run (unsigned binary): More info → Run anyway

Known limitations

• No visual overlay yet — that's Phase 2, in progress
• Windows 10 19041+ only

Full details in the CHANGELOG.