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Forspoken needs desktop Linux to spoof being a Steam Deck to work

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Update 25/01/23: Valve are now forcing the spoofing of a Steam Deck server-side, so the workaround is no longer needed.


In a case of what the heck? Square Enix and Luminous Productions just released Forspoken, which works on Steam Deck but it won't run on desktop Linux without spoofing it being a Steam Deck. One of those moments where I had to blink a good few times, wipe my glasses and let out a big sigh. 

To run it on desktop Linux you can either load launch Steam directly with "-steamdeck" or by setting "SteamDeck=1 %command%" as a launch option for the game itself. No this isn't a joke. It's not entirely clear why but I'm not going to say the developer or publisher actively chose to block Linux desktop, it's more likely they just didn't think about what they were doing outside of letting it run on Steam Deck specifically (which runs SteamOS Linux).

Without that workaround, launching it on desktop Linux gives you this:


It "didn't be installed" on my Windows Linux.

But when launching with the workaround, well it's a different story. 

Doesn't exactly seem very stable either, it would completely crash if I picked a different overall graphics preset. Some individual graphics settings made it completely crash too. I also couldn't get it to go above 30FPS, with Vsync off and a limit set to 120FPS it just wanted to stay at 30FPS (and plenty below that).

Looks like a rough launch with it being Mixed on Steam so far and plenty of critic reviews have not been particularly kind on it either. At £64.99 it just doesn't seem worth the price.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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32 comments
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libgradev Jan 25, 2023
Stupid price.
whatever Jan 25, 2023
€80 eh? triplehey games finally reached the price of early 90s games (adjusting for inflation). but at least back then they used to give you a boxed version with lot of stuff like manuals, maps, and various trinkets.
omer666 Jan 25, 2023
It seems Square can't do well rounded ports...
tohur Jan 25, 2023
Quoting: jordicoma
Quoting: tohurSteamDeck=1 only applies if you are using a Nvidia GPU I think as my game launches just fine without it. also highly suggest using gamemode with gamemoderun %command% . I got this thing included with the GPU I bought over the summer so if you do not own the game yet I would wait TBH for a sale or after some updates because the game is poorly optimized on PC as it runs like crap on both Linux and Windows for me
I have a rx6600xt and yesterday I tried the demo. It doesn't launch.
I'm sure with this parameter it uses dx11 or a version with less features with dx12 (wine can emulate/adapt many dx12 features but not all).
It's not worth it 80€ for a game. For me I think 60€ it's the maximum for a AAA game.
We are on a recession plus inflation and they are increasing the price.
For me it's a pass even if it were a native game.
Hope they fix it for the next update. It's not complicated to make a function if(linux) then, else other.

Funny considering I own a 6600 XT and do not need the SteamDeck=1 idk weird
Pengling Jan 25, 2023
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Quoting: Guest
Quotedidn't be installed
how and why such people get jobs in software development?
To be fair, English isn't their native language, though.
Lofty Jan 25, 2023
Quoting: whatever€80 eh? triplehey games finally reached the price of early 90s games (adjusting for inflation). but at least back then they used to give you a boxed version with lot of stuff like manuals, maps, and various trinkets.

Reminds me of when Starfox64 came out and was selling for around £90 - £110 in stores. But at least then you got a physical cart with a literal system upgrade by way of the SuperFX Chip.
Ehvis Jan 25, 2023
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Quoting: Liam Dawe
Quoting: gabber- Protondb is more like steamdeckdb now. Only showing "Deck Verified Games"
Just factually false.

It would be nice if they separated the deck and general reports though. It's really annoying to have to search for where the desktop reports begin. Something tabbed or folded that is remembered between pages.
Liam Dawe Jan 25, 2023
Quoting: Ehvis
Quoting: Liam Dawe
Quoting: gabber- Protondb is more like steamdeckdb now. Only showing "Deck Verified Games"
Just factually false.

It would be nice if they separated the deck and general reports though. It's really annoying to have to search for where the desktop reports begin. Something tabbed or folded that is remembered between pages.
Agreed. ProtonDB doesn’t seem to have a lot of active development on it but it’s an invaluable resource for many but not a whole lot support their Patreon, which is probably a big part of the issue.
Nick Jan 26, 2023
I was able to get the demo running pretty well (minus some stuttering, which gets especially bad when jumping down from high areas) with using custom graphics mode. Looks like changing the "Clouds" settings to anything but the lowest crashes the game, but everything else (except ray tracing settings) could be set to their highest values and I seemed to be getting at least 60 FPS on my RX 6900XT under Garuda Linux. The price definitely feels too steep for me to get the full game, for now.
vipor29 Jan 26, 2023
the steam deck is pretty much a linux handheld, like how the heck did the devs manage to cause that problem haha. when i see deck verified i just assume it works on the desktop.
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