diff --git a/dialogs.cpp b/dialogs.cpp
index be4b385f..852a7f5c 100644
--- a/dialogs.cpp
+++ b/dialogs.cpp
@@ -405,6 +405,8 @@ EX namespace dialog {
     bool autoval = cmode & sm::AUTO_VALUES;
     rightwidth = 0;
     if(!autoval) rightwidth = textwidth(dfsize, "MMMMMMMM") + dfsize/2;
+    if(cmode & sm::DIALOG_WIDE)
+      innerwidth = textwidth(dfsize, "MMMMM") * 7;
 
     for(int i=0; i<N; i++) {
       if(items[i].type == diListStart)
@@ -1396,7 +1398,7 @@ EX namespace dialog {
   void handleKeyFile(int sym, int uni);
 
   EX void drawFileDialog() {
-    cmode = sm::NUMBER | dialogflags;
+    cmode = sm::NUMBER | dialogflags | sm::DIALOG_WIDE;
     gamescreen();
     init(filecaption);
 
diff --git a/graph.cpp b/graph.cpp
index 093e922b..2f75c241 100644
--- a/graph.cpp
+++ b/graph.cpp
@@ -5733,6 +5733,7 @@ namespace sm {
   static const int NARROW_LINES = (1<<24); // do make the lines narrower if we needed to reduce width
   static const int EDIT_BEFORE_WALLS = (1<<25); // mouseover targets before walls
   static const int EDIT_INSIDE_WALLS = (1<<26); // mouseover targets inside walls
+  static const int DIALOG_WIDE = (1<<27); // make dialogs wide
   }
 #endif