A fast, highly configurable "digital rain" screensaver for Windows 10 and 11, with multi-monitor support and an optional hidden image that slowly emerges from the falling code.
- Film-style rain. Mirrored katakana, digits and symbols with a bright leading character, fading trails and shimmering glyphs.
- Highly configurable. Color (presets, custom color, or rainbow), speed, character size, width and stroke weight, column spacing, density and trail duration.
- Hidden image. A picture fades in and out of the rain, visible only if you stare. Choose a built-in image (the 1730 silhouette, a skull, an alien or the Triple Zero mark), your own image, or a random image from a folder.
- CRT scanlines for an old-TV look.
- Multi-monitor. Independent rain on every monitor, or only on the primary one.
- Sharp on every display. Per-monitor DPI aware, so mixed 1080p, 1440p and 4K setups all render at native resolution.
- Lightweight. About 1–2 ms per 4K frame, and a single
.scrfile with no runtime to install — the WPF theme used by the settings window is embedded in it.
| Hidden image: the 1730 silhouette at 40% strength | Amber with CRT scanlines |
|---|---|
 |
 |
- Download
MatrixScreensaverSetup-<version>.exefrom the Releases page. - Run it. Windows SmartScreen may warn about an unrecognized app because the installer is not code signed. Choose More info → Run anyway.
- Optionally tick Make Matrix my screen saver.
The installer places Matrix.scr in C:\Windows\System32 so it always appears in Windows'
Screen Saver Settings. It also adds Start menu shortcuts for the settings and a preview. Uninstall
from Settings → Apps.
Without the installer: download Matrix.scr, right-click it and choose Install. You can also
copy it to C:\Windows\System32 yourself (requires admin).
Requirements: Windows 10 version 1903 or later (including Windows 11), x64 or Arm64. It uses the .NET Framework 4.8, which is built into these versions of Windows.
Open the settings in any of these ways:
- Start menu → Matrix Screensaver Settings
- Windows Screen Saver Settings → select Matrix → Settings…
- Right-click
Matrix.scr→ Configure
The settings window has a live preview. Test full screen runs the screensaver on all monitors with your unsaved settings; move the mouse or press a key to return.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Color / Rainbow | Rain color, or a different hue per column |
| Speed | How fast the drops fall |
| Character size | Glyph height in pixels at 100% display scaling (scaled per monitor) |
| Character width | Horizontal stretch of each glyph |
| Column spacing | Gap between columns, as a percentage of the character size |
| Stroke weight | Thickens character outlines (0 = the font's natural weight) |
| Density | How many drops fall at once |
| Trail duration | How long each character stays visible after the leading character passes |
| Bright white leading character | Highlights the head of each drop |
| CRT scanlines / strength | Darkened horizontal lines across the characters |
| Hidden image / strength | Turns the effect on, and how visible it is |
| Image | Which picture to reveal: 1730 (default), Skull, Alien, Triple Zero, or Custom… (your own file, or a folder to pick from at random) |
| Show rain on all monitors | Otherwise only the primary monitor shows rain and the others go black |
Settings are stored per user in HKCU\Software\MatrixScreensaver.
Tips for hidden images: high-contrast pictures with a bright subject on a dark background work best. Each character acts as one "pixel", so fine detail is lost. Bold shapes and dark holes come through well; thin outlines (like the Triple Zero mark) need a higher strength to read.
The built-in images are drawn by tools/generate-assets.py and embedded
in the executable.
Matrix.scr follows the standard Windows screensaver conventions:
| Argument | Mode |
|---|---|
/s |
Run full screen |
/c or no argument |
Settings dialog |
/p <hwnd> |
Preview inside the given window (used by Screen Saver Settings) |
You need the .NET SDK (8 or later) on Windows. It is only used to build; the output targets .NET Framework 4.8.
.\build.ps1 # builds dist\Matrix.scr
.\build.ps1 -Installer # also builds dist\MatrixScreensaverSetup-<version>.exeBuilding the installer also needs Inno Setup 6
(winget install JRSoftware.InnoSetup). The version number comes from <Version> in
MatrixScreensaver.csproj.
See CONTRIBUTING.md for how the code is organized and how to test changes, and docs/ARCHITECTURE.md for how the renderer works.
- Characters show as Latin letters instead of katakana. No installed font has Japanese katakana. Add the Japanese Supplemental Fonts optional feature (Settings → System → Optional features).
- The screensaver isn't in the Screen Saver Settings list. It must be in
C:\Windows\System32. Use the installer, or copyMatrix.scrthere manually. - The hidden image never appears. Make sure Hidden image is ticked. The first reveal starts a few seconds after the screensaver starts, and each image fades in over about 10 seconds.
- SmartScreen warning. The installer and
.scrare not code signed. Builds from this repository's source are safe to run; verify the release checksum if in doubt.
The settings window is styled with TripleZeroLabs.Os2,
a WPF theme by Triple Zero Labs, LLC (MIT + Commons Clause). It is embedded in Matrix.scr at build
time. See THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md.
Bug reports, ideas and pull requests are welcome. Please read CONTRIBUTING.md and the Code of Conduct. To report a security issue, see SECURITY.md.
This is an independent fan project inspired by the "digital rain" effect from The Matrix. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. or the film's creators. The Matrix is a trademark of its respective owner. The project contains no footage, images, fonts or other material from the films.