Microphone and Open Mic
Asking by mic (push-to-talk)#
Hold the mic — the widget or its hotkey — ask your question, and release to send. It sends automatically the moment you let go; there's no review step to edit the transcript first. Push-to-talk always works, with or without Open Mic. Don't want to hold a key every time? Turn on the "Hey Wingman Wake" switch on the mic widget and start your question with "Hey Wingman" instead.
Hey Wingman: ask without pressing a key#
You don't have to hold the mic key every time: turn on the "Hey Wingman Wake" switch on the mic widget (in Settings → Voice & audio it's called "Open Mic" — the same setting). Then just say "Hey Wingman" (or "Hi Wingman") and your question — for example "Hey Wingman, what counters Void?". A tiny pause after "Wingman" helps it catch the question. You'll hear a soft chime, the mic turns green while it takes your question, and WingHUD answers once you stop talking. It works with the overlay closed too, in the middle of a game. While it's waiting for the wake word, the mic looks the same as usual (hover it to see "Say "Hey Wingman" to ask"), and clicking it or holding the mic key works as normal.
What Open Mic sends, and what it doesn't#
Open Mic listens for the wake word on your own PC. Nothing you say — and nothing your game, teammates or anyone in the room says — leaves your PC until it hears "Hey Wingman". After the wake word, only that one question is sent to the speech service to be transcribed, and then Open Mic goes back to waiting. It never streams your mic continuously.
Open Mic and push-to-talk together#
Once Open Mic is on (the "Hey Wingman Wake" switch on the mic widget), push-to-talk keeps working beside it. The mic hotkey is always push-to-talk: hold it, ask, release. On the mic widget, a quick click pauses or resumes listening for "Hey Wingman" — it doesn't turn Open Mic on or off, the switch does — and holding the widget down is push-to-talk. If you press the hotkey while Open Mic is already taking a question, the hotkey wins and that question is dropped.
Open Mic isn't available in every language#
Open Mic depends on continuous speech detection that isn't accurate in every language yet, so the option is hidden entirely for a few reply languages where it wouldn't transcribe reliably. If you don't see it in Settings → Voice & audio, it's because of your current reply language, not a bug — switch to a supported one to get it back. The wake word itself is always the English "Hey Wingman", whatever language you ask in.
Open Mic doesn't hear me, or wakes on its own#
If it doesn't react, check that the right microphone is selected in Settings → Voice & audio (its level meter should move when you talk), and say "Hey Wingman" clearly with a short pause before your question — "Wingman" on its own doesn't wake it. If it wakes on its own, game sound is probably reaching your mic — use headphones or your headset's noise suppression, or turn Open Mic off and hold the mic key instead. Open Mic needs Windows' English speech recognizer; if yours doesn't have it (some non-English Windows installs), WingHUD says so and keeps Open Mic off, and push-to-talk works as usual.
The mic in a party#
While the party is your active chat, holding the mic hotkey (or saying "Hey Wingman") asks the party's wingman, and the answer is spoken to the whole room. Talking to your friends is separate: party voice uses Open mic or push to talk (Ctrl+K (default — change it in Settings → Hotkeys)), set in the party's mic bar. See Friends & party → Party voice.