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Ubisoft just broke their games on Linux desktop and Steam Deck

By - | Views: 127,950

Update 21:17: Looks like Proton developers have updated the "bleeding-edge" Beta for Proton Experimental, that works around the issue. Note: using it can cause other issues, the Beta doesn't have a lot of testing, you've been warned.

If you go into the Properties on Proton Experimental in your Steam Library, and opt into the "bleeding-edge" Beta, then set your Ubisoft games to use Proton Experimental it will fix it for now until a proper Proton update is out. 

Update 22:11: Valve released a Proton Experimental (no Beta needed) fix for this.


Original article below

Third-party launchers on Steam are once again being a massive nuisance. First it was EA breaking everything on Linux and Steam Deck and now it's Ubisoft telling everyone to hold their beer.

Valve fixed the EA App in Proton after a while, and it's likely we're going to need to wait on a fix from Valve again for whatever Ubisoft changed in the latest Ubisoft Connect update.

When you go to launch any game on desktop Linux or Steam Deck that uses Ubisoft Connect, it will do an update and then you'll be greeted with this:

That picture above is from my Fedora Linux desktop trying Ghost Recon Breakpoint today.

After testing The Division 2, Watch Dogs Legion, Assassin's Creed Valhalla and Ghost Recon Breakpoint on my Steam Deck too, they all also gave the exact same problem as you'll see in the screenshot below from my Steam Deck:

So it seems that every title that uses Ubisoft Connect, is now left broken on Linux desktop and Steam Deck. This comes only two weeks after Ubisoft fixed The Division 2 for Steam Deck / Linux. Meanwhile, Breakpoint still needs manual fixes.

Why do developers and publishers keep forcing these absolutely useless third-party launchers on us? Never once have I, or anyone I've spoken to, actually wanted them. They only ever cause problems and solve basically nothing that Steam cannot already do directly.

I've logged an official bug report with Valve and notified their developers about it.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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Purple Library Guy Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: scaineThe ONE time I bought an Ubisoft title, they do this. With their resources, not a single person at Ubi thought to QA this on a Deck?? It beggars belief. They are utterly inept. Beneath contempt. No more money from me, likely ever.
Is it even just on Deck/Linux? If Freejack (first comment page) is right, this may be a fail for everyone. So, even more inept than utterly.
tpau Feb 1, 2023
On Windows the Ubi Connect app is still running here.
Maybe a bad interaction of their antidebugger virtual machine protection and wine
christofin Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: Dribbleondo
Quoting: christofinCase in point: The racing game they just announced yesterday has a nice little EGS logo at the end of the trailer. Ubisoft doesn't give a single crap about their Steam customers.

"Grrr, EOS is bad?" Last I checked, EOS has been working for ages with Proton and Wine, so this just comes off as an odd complaint.

Not really? My point is that Ubisoft doesn't care about their Steam customers. If they did, they wouldn't be holding back their new releases specifically from Steam. I never said anything about EGS working or not working.
Da_Big_Boo Feb 1, 2023
Uplay/Ubisoft Connect has been hated by EVERYONE since it's inception.
Ubisoft's is only contuining this becuase of that sweet, sweet data and control the launcher provides them.
I would argue, alongside EA and sadly every single AAA dev studio/publisher, they are an enemy of gaming and gamers as a whole.

Oh yeah and it runs like complete tosh on linux and feels super flimsy and feature incomplete.
At least EA has the common sence to eventually ditch origin and build somthing new that acually functions very well dispite the obvious beta quirks. Ubisoft connect is just building on a moldy foundation and stuff like this shows.
drjoms Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: basedPointless launchers are convenience for the publisher, not the user
I wouldn't argue, if Windows users were affected too. But it is not the case...

Linux users who depend on proton, MUST remember, that at any time their fav game can be broken for any reason.(unless dev specifically supports proton, which I don't know how many such devs are out there)
STiAT Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: drjoms
Quoting: basedPointless launchers are convenience for the publisher, not the user
I wouldn't argue, if Windows users were affected too. But it is not the case...

Linux users who depend on proton, MUST remember, that at any time their fav game can be broken for any reason.(unless dev specifically supports proton, which I don't know how many such devs are out there)

Quite some actually. The bigger publishers wouldn't give a wet fart though. Those are mostly the ones with the launchers ;-).

But you're right of course, we can not expect support but from Valve, and they only can react and not act proactively.
kaiman Feb 1, 2023
Good I've been boycotting Ubisoft (and EA) for the past 15 years or so.

Though, I would have been really, really hard pressed to keep it up, had Ubisoft released the new Settlers as originally announced. Luckily, they botched that, too!
mr-victory Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: FreejackThis also breaks it across every platform not just Linux.
I searched the error on the internet and filtered results to last day. I got only 6 hits, all of which are from Steam Deck.
https://start.duckduckgo.com/?q=ubisoft+connect+has+detected+an+unrecoverable+error+and+must+shut+down&df=d&ia=web
dgw Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: EhvisWaaaay back in the early days of Steam on Linux, I decided to not spend money on anything with 3rd party dependencies. In the years since then it has been made clear many times that this was the right decision. So happy to say that this does not affect me.
Even games that I bought years ago, with no launcher, have later been updated to add one. Sadly, what (anti)features exist at the time of purchase is not set in stone.

Looking at you, Paradox.


Last edited by dgw on 1 February 2023 at 8:52 pm UTC
Klaas Feb 1, 2023
Quoting: dgwLooking at you, Paradox.
Even worse when a game did not start as a Paradox game. I'm looking at Prison Architect. That was a bad surprise.
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