Steam now lets you play Windows games in Linux

Discussion in 'all things UNIX' started by ronjor, Aug 22, 2018.

  1. ronjor

    ronjor Global Moderator

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    By Mark Wycislik-Wilson
     
  2. Joxx

    Joxx Registered Member

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    This could be big, really big.
    It's impossible to predict how it'll evolve, obviously, but right now I'm excited :)
     
  3. oliverjia

    oliverjia Registered Member

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    LOL, don't be too hopeful. It's just the same old trick - Wine
     
  4. Joxx

    Joxx Registered Member

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    Nope, it's the same old trick made easy, and that changes everything.
     
  5. elapsed

    elapsed Registered Member

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    It really doesn't, not until the issues inherent with Linux distros are gone e.g. never needing to open the command line for anything at all.

    The lack of apps is just one of the issues Linux distros have, among many. Look at Google's Android and ChromeOS for how to do Linux correctly.
     
  6. Becho

    Becho Registered Member

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    And this is how I got my WoW account perma banned. Playing Windows games with Wine on Linux. So how will they stop the bans from game devs like Blizzard who do not allow Linux.
     
    Last edited: Aug 24, 2018
  7. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    Steam Play – Let the games begin

    Cape Good Hope: Improved Steam Play for Linux (beta) that can run Windows games through a compatibility layer is here. The big question is, how well does this work? My latest OCS-Mag article explores this wonderful snippet of news in detail. Come along.

    http://www.ocsmag.com/2018/08/27/steam-play-let-the-games-begin/


    Cheers,
    Mrk
     
  8. Infected

    Infected Registered Member

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    This happened to a lot of people.
     
  9. Joxx

    Joxx Registered Member

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    Thanks for the review.
     
  10. SuperSapien

    SuperSapien Registered Member

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    @ Becho

    That and WINE/Proton can leave you more vulnerable to Windows malware.
    Thats why I wish Steam/Valve would offer a streaming service like Parsec Gaming, much more secure and no worries about violating any UELAs.
     
  11. korben

    korben Registered Member

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    I can sense the wind of changes....now!
     
  12. sukarof

    sukarof Registered Member

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    I have just played on hour Skyrim on Linux with this Steam Proton. I enabled the option "Enable Steam Play for all titles" so I could install any of the games I have on steam and tried Skyrim. It downloaded and installed, although it took a while for it to be installed. But no tweaking was necessary. Just download, install and play :)
    I could pick up where I stopped playing in Windows back in Mars earlier this year.
    Playing went as if I was in windows! It did however lock when I tried to exit from the game, I guess such things are expected in early beta. But WOW! It wont be long until I can reclaim the space Windows has on my computer. The games are the only reason I still have Windows installed.
    Next project will be No man's sky and then maybe good old Call of Duty 2 that I have not played since Windows blocked old games from installing thanks to the DRM incompatibility.
     
    Last edited: Sep 23, 2018
  13. Beyonder

    Beyonder Registered Member

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    Does modding work?
     
  14. sukarof

    sukarof Registered Member

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    I don't know really. I did have some mods in my Windows installation of Skyrim. I installed them years ago so I don't remember which ones. If they don't need to be installed again in linux then they work I guess. But I haven't yet done any modding in Linux. When I do, I'll let you all know.
     
  15. sukarof

    sukarof Registered Member

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    I have installed No Man's sky today on Linux with Steam Proton, played 3 hours straight, and it works fine. No problems installing, just install and play.
    One thing that I notice is how much faster games load in Linux than in Windows. Like No man's sky, it takes well over a minute to get to play after it loads in windows, in Linux it just takes 25 seconds. I noticed the same thing in Skyrim and Civilization V.
    I would like to install and play WoW, but I've heard that Blizzard bans people on Linux (some kind of bug they say)
    Have anyone tried?
     
  16. Eggnog

    Eggnog Registered Member

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    Linux games are working great for me so far. I run Manjaro Gnome on three machines and Manjaro Xfce on a fourth, and I've discovered that almost all my games are available to run natively on Linux. I gave it a shot recently with Crusader Kings II and Stellaris. It went without a hitch. CK2 ran fine and loaded quickly. I did notice that Stellaris opens and starts quicker, and it's silky smooth, much smoother than when I ran it in Win 10. I'm going to try Tyranny and Pillars of Eternity later this week, as well as Torment: Tides of Numenera. Both CK2 and Stellaris have mods installed from the Steam workshop.

    I understand Manjaro has the latest and greatest PlayonLinux in the repositories, updated regularly unlike some of the point release options. I'm at work but I'm going to check it out when I get home. I don't know if it's in the main repository or the AUR, though. Either way, I don't care. A buddy runs Battle.net with it just fine, including Diablo III, and has no problems.

    I'm very glad to see the number of games on Steam now available on Linux, which includes nearly all of the ones I enjoy. A lot of new games seem to have Linux clients as well. I hear it's north of 2000 games now on Steam. GOG has linux installations, too. This bodes well for the future of LInux.

    I still have one Win 10 laptop and one of my desktops is a dual boot with Manjaro and Win 10. I only really kept Win 10 around for gaming and the odd application I might need here and there. Otherwise, I use Win less and less as time goes on, mostly at work, and don't miss it at all really. I've found Linux has a lot of applications these days that work really, really well, and are pretty compatible with their Win counterparts like, for example, Softmaker Office and Master PDF Editor. Etcher is one of the best ISO burning apps around for a USB stick, and it works on Win, too, if I recall correctly.
     
    Last edited: Nov 14, 2018
  17. Joxx

    Joxx Registered Member

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    Do you have an AMD GPU/open source driver on any of those ?
     
  18. Eggnog

    Eggnog Registered Member

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    I'm running an nVidia 960 on the main machine (Gnome desktop), which is running a non-free driver (410-something I think), and two older Radeons in the other two but I can't remember the drivers off hand. None of them have an on board GPU except the laptop which is Intel.
     
  19. Eggnog

    Eggnog Registered Member

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    Installing Divinity Original Sin 2 (with the definitive edition) now using Steam Play/Proton. Crossing my fingers. If it works, then this changes everything.
     
  20. Eggnog

    Eggnog Registered Member

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    I managed to get Banished and Skyrim Special Edition installed through Steam Play/Proton and working great. Unfortunately, DOS:2 was still installing after an hour so I cancelled it. This weekend I might try again. Maybe it just takes longer. It's a pretty big game.
     
  21. Amanda

    Amanda Registered Member

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    Could anyone clarify....

    It's not a system-wide thing, then, right? Meaning Proton is a self-contained program that runs if Steam/user wants it to, and has nothing touching the base OS.
     
  22. Joxx

    Joxx Registered Member

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    Yes, you activate it on the Steam client and it's part of it.
     
  23. guest

    guest Guest

    Linux gaming is on a life-support system called Steam
    Valve's video game marketplace has the power to keep Linux alive
    February 19, 2019

    https://www.engadget.com/2019/02/19/linux-gaming-steam-valve-epic-games-store/
     
  24. guest

    guest Guest

    Valve proposes changes to Linux kernel to make it more 'game-friendly'
    Early tests show modest performance improvements
    August 1, 2019

    https://www.techspot.com/news/81254-valve-proposes-changes-linux-kernel-make-more-game.html
     
  25. guest

    guest Guest

    Valve's Proton project has brought 6,500 Windows games to Linux so far
    April 21, 2020
    https://www.techspot.com/news/84909-valve-proton-has-brought-6500-windows-games-linux.html
     
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