Linux Gaming @ Linux Guide:
It is critical you know that gaming on Linux is not a smooth experience and will require manual intervention at some points. The developers behind Proton, Wine and etc work tirelessly to make the experience as best as they can make it but bugs, crashes and issues are inevitable.
None-Steam Games:
If you seek to play a game that is NOT on Steam please use the software listed below:
Installing Steam
To install you can install it from your distro's app store (package manager). Or you can do it via the command line.
Debian Based Systems (Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Zorin, etc):
- Type the following in your command line/terminal:
sudo apt install steam
Arch Linux:
- Type the following in your command line/terminal:
sudo pacman -S steam - You can also use the Steam DEB file. Type the following in your command line/terminal:
sudo dpkg -i steam.deb
RPM-based distributions (Fedora, openSUSE)
- Type the following in your command line/terminal:
sudo dnf install steam - You can also use the Steam RPM file. Type the following in your command line/terminal:
sudo rpm -i steam.rpm
Other:
Please refer to your distro's website and guidance on how to install software. Once installed login and follow the prompts given to you by Steam.
Enabling Steam Play (Proton)
To Enable Proton / Steam Play. Go into your Settings (by clicking on "Steam" in the top left of the Steam client). Once in Settings, find Compatibility. Then tick both boxes. The first box enables Proton to be run. The second box allows it to be run all games.
- Find out more about what Proton is here, click here.
Optional Step:
- Check if your graphic drivers are all up to date.
Nvidia:
Users with NVIDIA graphics cards should install the latest NVIDIA proprietary drivers. 418.49.04 or newer is required by Steam. Open your terminal and type the following commands.
Please note you will be asked to enter your password and carry out a reboot of your system.
PPA: Personal Package Archive You can find further details about this specific PPA by Clicking Here.
AMD & Intel
AMD & Intel Graphic Card Users should install the latest versions of Mesa and LLVM. To do this open your terminal and type the following:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:kisak/kisak-mesa
sudo apt dist-upgrade
sudo apt install mesa-vulkan-drivers mesa-vulkan-drivers:i386
If you use a AMD Radeon R9 200/300 add the following parameters:
echo "blacklist radeon" | sudo tee --append /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
echo "options amdgpu si_support=1 cik_support=1" | sudo tee --append /etc/modprobe.d/amdgpu.conf
sudo update-initramfs -u
Please note you will be asked to enter your password and carry out a reboot of your system.
This also is a PPA. You can find further details about this specific PPA by Clicking Here.
VR is currently not supported on Intel Graphics!
How do I check if Proton is installed?
It should be done automatically by Steam. To check search Proton in your Steam Library. It should come up with all the recent & installed versions of Proton. You should also check you have the "Steam Linux Runtime" and "Steam Linux Runtime - Soldier" installed. Search for them in your Steam Library and ensure they are installed. Updates to Proton are done like Games on Steam. They will appear on in your Steam Downloads.
What is DXVK and VKD3D-Proton?
- DXVK - DXVK translates Direct3D 8, 9, 10 and 11 into Vulkan. Vulkan's Website
- VKD3D-Proton - VKD3D-Proton translates Direct3D 12 into Vulkan.
Why is translation needed? Well Microsoft created its technology just for Windows. So for it to work on Linux, we need to covert to something Linux works with (Which is Vulkan).
What is Proton and Wine?
Wine and Proton are called compatibility layers. Wine funny enough stands for Wine is not an Emulator. Wine allows Windows software on Linux.
Info
Proton is folk of Wine. It is maintained by Valve for Steam and usage for Steam's ongoing project to improve and mainstream Linux Gaming.
Valve (Steam) since 2013 has been invested in Linux Gaming due to the ongoing "monopoly" Microsoft has over the PC Operating System Market. Valve saw the threat that Microsoft may pose to its existence if they did not work on adding more supported platforms. They saw Linux as a unique open place for them to invest in that is not controlled by a big corporate company.
Valve then released a closed source native linux client for Steam. Dedicated teams to help improve linux gaming. Work with Nvidia and AMD to improve the graphics situation Linux had. And work on other community projects to improve the Linux experience. Valve even made their own Linux Distro and named it: SteamOS.
After the failure of Steam Machines (Steam Machines ran Linux specifically Steam OS) they saw Linux had a massive game compatibility issue. This is due to Linux only having a small market share in the Desktop OS Market. Developers will only support Operating systems that can provide profits to them or that are easy to support. This issue led Valve to making Proton. A fork of Wine to allow Windows Software to run on Linux. Valve also works on graphic translation software.
What does Wine and Proton do?
For Windows Software to work on Linux, Linux must be able to answer and respond to every API call from the software. Wine basically translates those API calls to Linux supported APIs that can respond back. This extra work for the software to work may cause performance degradation.
Translation of Windows API Calls:
Proton translates Windows application programming interface (API) calls into Linux-compatible Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX) calls. There's no emulation or virtualization, which makes it quite fast for running Windows applications on Linux.
Direct3D to Vulkan Translation:
A significant part of Proton's functionality is its ability to translate Direct3D API calls, which are used by Windows games, into Vulkan API calls that Linux can natively use. This is achieved through tools like DXVK for Direct3D 9, 10, and 11 and VKD3D-Proton for Direct3D 12.
What is Proton Experimental, Hotfix and Next?
- Proton Next - Is the next and new stable version of Proton that needs testing. Sometimes not available.
- Proton Experimental - Gets regular updates, with features and fixes not ready for everyone and can include some breaking changes that need new driver versions. Its like the continuous Beta version of Proton. Use it at your own risk.
- Proton Hotfix - Contains extra fixes and etc.
Need Help?
If you need help head over to the Linux Gaming subreddit. Click Here for the Linux Gaming Subreddit
Note
This docs is not maintained by the people who own / moderate the Linux Gaming Subreddit.