Overview
This guide will show you how to easily increase the font size if you are having trouble reading the microscopic UI text as well as show you how to reset your end turn hotkey to a simple space bar press.As neither of these count as a “mod” they should not affect achievements in any way.
Prologue
Just to make this clear, I did not “invent” either of these fixes. I found the font size one by searching around with google and the space bar ‘fix’ is simply an update to the same method used in Civ V vanilla.
Fix #1: Font Size Adjustment
I find the older I get, the harder it is to read fine print and even though I have a large monitor, I still have trouble reading a lot of the text on Steam. So it was rather irksome to find that I could barely read any of the civilopedia text and much of the UI data inside Sid Meier’s Civilization: Beyond Earth.
If you’re experiencing these same issues, rest easy as there Is an easy fix:
You’ll need some very basic text editing skill to pull this off..
1) First thing you need is to find the game file called “Styles.XML” located inside your assetsUI folder. The default location of this file is probably going to be C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteamappscommonSid Meier’s Civilization Beyond EarthassetsUI. If it isn’t there, you may need to look around or use search to find the proper location of your steam games files.
2) Once you locate the file Styles.XML, Stop. Before you do ANYTHING else, back this file up. Backing it up is as simple as right clicking on it and choosing “copy” and then pasting it right back into the same folder where you found the original. It will probably call the duplicate, “Styles – Copy.XML“.
(It’s always a smart idea to back up any file before you alter it, as it will save you a ton of time deleting and redownloading the game if you screw up..)
3) Okay, you’ve got a backup. Now right click on the original Styles.XML file. Select “Open With” from the popup menu and pick “notepad“. You will have a new popup full of ASCII text.
4) Hold down the ctl key and press “F”. This will open a small search search window. Enter “fontsize” in that and click “find next”.
It should scroll down to an area that looks like:
<!– Custom: NimbusSansNovus –>
<FontNormal14 Font=”n023014t.ttf” FontSize=”12“/>
<FontNormal15 Font=”n023014t.ttf” FontSize=”13“/>
<FontNormal16 Font=”n023014t.ttf” FontSize=”14“/>
… etc …
… etc …
… etc …
To increase the size of the text inside the game, you need to change the second number on the first few lines to a higher font size. for example:
<FontNormal14 Font=”n023014t.ttf” FontSize=”12“/>
becomes
<FontNormal14 Font=”n023014t.ttf” FontSize=”20“/>
Be careful not to alter any of the other text on a given line, only the second number. You should only need to change the first few lines up to the size you want to try. 20 is a good place to start., but experiment to find the one that suits you best
5) Once you’re done making adjustments, go up to the upper left corner of the notepad popup and click “file”. You’ll get a drop down menu, just pick “Save” and the modified file will overwrite the original. The UI text should now be larger (and more legible) the next time you start your game.
****Note**** If you screw something up, just go back into this folder and delete the original “Styles.XML” file, rename the file “Styles – Copy.XML” to “Style.XML” and try again from step 2.
Screenshot Examples of Larger Fonts
Note: Each set has an example of the Default font (smallest), minimum size 18 (middle), and minimum size 20 (larger):
Fix #2: Space Bar to End Turn
This was a selectable hotkey in Civ IV and it put me off of Civ V until I learned how to “fix” it.
All this fix does is add the functionality for you to hit the space bar to end your turn. You’ll still be able to manually click end turn or use the enter key as well.
1) Locate the game file called “CivBEControls.XML“. This is usually located in default folder, C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteamappscommonSid Meier’s Civilization Beyond EarthassetsGameplayXMLUnits. If it isn’t there, you may need to do a search for your steam game files.
2) Backup this file, Always backup files before you mess with them! Just right click on the CivBEControls.XML file and pick “copy“. Then right click inside the same folder and pick “paste“. It will create a duplicate called “CivBEControls – Copy.XML”
3) Go back to the original CivBEControls.XML and right click again. Select “open with” and pick “notepad“. You should have a popup window that shows ASCII text.
4) Hold down the ctl key and hit F. Type “space” and pick “find next“. You should come to an area of the ascii that looks like this:
<Type>CONTROL_ENDTURN_ALT</Type>
<Description>TXT_KEY_ACTION_ENDTURN_ALT</Description>
<Help>TXT_KEY_ACTION_ENDTURN_ALT_HELP</Help>
<DisabledHelp/>
<HotKey>KB_SPACE</HotKey>
<AltDown>0</AltDown>
<ShiftDown>0</ShiftDown>
<CtrlDown>1</CtrlDown>
<HotKeyPriority>0</HotKeyPriority>
<HotKeyAlt/>
<AltDownAlt>0</AltDownAlt>
<ShiftDownAlt>0</ShiftDownAlt>
<CtrlDownAlt>0</CtrlDownAlt>
<HotKeyPriorityAlt>0</HotKeyPriorityAlt>
You will only be modifying the line “<CtrlDown>1</CtrlDown>” and all you have to do is change that “1” to a “0“. It should then look like this:
<Type>CONTROL_ENDTURN_ALT</Type>
<Description>TXT_KEY_ACTION_ENDTURN_ALT</Description>
<Help>TXT_KEY_ACTION_ENDTURN_ALT_HELP</Help>
<DisabledHelp/>
<HotKey>KB_SPACE</HotKey>
<AltDown>0</AltDown>
<ShiftDown>0</ShiftDown>
<CtrlDown>0</CtrlDown>
<HotKeyPriority>0</HotKeyPriority>
<HotKeyAlt/>
<AltDownAlt>0</AltDownAlt>
<ShiftDownAlt>0</ShiftDownAlt>
<CtrlDownAlt>0</CtrlDownAlt>
<HotKeyPriorityAlt>0</HotKeyPriorityAlt>
5) Go up to the file dropdown in the upper left corner of the popup and pick “save” to write over the file. Remember you have the – Copy file to use as a backup if you screw up. To restore that, just delete the original file “CivBEControls.XML” and rename the backup copy to “CivBEControls.XML“.
6) The game will now accept a simple space bar tap to end your turn. Awesome! 😀
Conclusion
This was my first guide, and I know it’s probably wordier than I intended..
Still, I hope it helps some of you overcome a couple minor annoyances that I’ve experienced.
Please feel free to comment and rate this up if it proved useful. Thanks!
-Elgalad