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Proton Experimental for Steam Deck & Linux upgraded with Proton 8

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As expected after the recent big release of Proton 8, Valve has now also upgraded Proton Experimental which is now based on Proton 8 plus a whole bunch more. This is the extra special version of Proton, where Valve put in features and improvements before they're ready to be rolled out to the majority of Windows games running on Steam Deck and Linux desktop.

Here's all that's changed in the April 20th update:

  • All changes from Proton 8.0-1.
  • Now playable: Propnight, Combat Mission Battle for Normandy, Bloodrayne Terminal Cut 1/2, Breakout 13, Murasaki Tsurugi, PooShooter: Toilet Invaders, Purgo Box, Olympia Rising, Summoners War: Chronicles,
  • Fixed various Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty issues around video playback.
  • Fixed game launcher DC Universe Online.
  • Fixed audio controls and spatialization in VRChat with AVPro.
  • Fixed the key presses registering weirdly in Wild Hearts.
  • Fixed video playback in Nioh: Complete Edition.
  • Fixed Pentiment not being playable on desktop.
  • Improved cutscene desync in Immortals Fenyx Rising.
  • Fixed Witcher 3 launcher rendering issues.
  • Fixed Call of Duty: Black Ops III graphical glitches when loading Hex Tower.
  • Fixed video playback speed issues in METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN.
  • Fixed Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut hanging on exit.
  • Fixed connection error at the end of Chapter 2 in Life is Strange Remastered.
  • Fixed EOS error message with Returnal and other EOS games.
  • Fixed intermittent hangs with Prototype.
  • Updated file distribution method to save disk space.
  • Updated dxvk to include the latest development work.
  • Updated vkd3d-proton to include the latest development work.

All can be seen in the official changelog.

For an explanation of all the different Proton versions see my original guide on Proton. Proton Experimental gets automatically installed if Valve set it on a game, or you can just search for Proton Experimental in your Steam Library (not the Steam Store) to install it. 

Need to know how to change the Proton version used? See the below video:

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Text guide

Change it per game (Steam Deck)

  • Pick a game and head to the little cog icon on the right.
  • Click Properties, then Compatibility on the left.
  • Make sure the tickbox is done, then select Proton Experimental from the dropdown.

On a Linux desktop:

  • Right click a game, go to Properties.
  • Compatibility on the left.
  • Make sure the tickbox is done, then select Proton Experimental from the dropdown.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
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9 comments

CatKiller Apr 21, 2023
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QuoteFixed video playback speed issues in METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN.

FINALLY. It never should have had the green tick before they'd done that.
FredO Apr 21, 2023
A monumentally important day for Linux gaming and a true sign that Valve have their priorities in good order: PooShooter: Toilet Invaders is playable in Proton.
riusma Apr 21, 2023
Also [edit: latest experimental Proton] fixed (at least for me) Ray Tracing that was crashing Cyberpunk 2077 since 1.62 update (game was running without Ray Tracing but was a bit unstable)! :)


Last edited by riusma on 21 April 2023 at 10:22 am UTC
Pengling Apr 21, 2023
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Quoting: FredOA monumentally important day for Linux gaming and a true sign that Valve have their priorities in good order: PooShooter: Toilet Invaders is playable in Proton.
Yeah! Who wants any of that other crap?!
ExpandingMan Apr 21, 2023
I wish these change logs had a little more detail on what the *general* issue was fixed that resulted in a particular game being fixed. The idea that all these little tweaks have to be done for every specific game is terrifying, and makes proton seem totally unsustainable, but I know the real situation must be better than that because of all the non-"playable", never mentioned, and even "unsupported" games that run just fine.
Pengling Apr 21, 2023
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Quoting: ExpandingManI wish these change logs had a little more detail on what the *general* issue was fixed that resulted in a particular game being fixed. The idea that all these little tweaks have to be done for every specific game is terrifying, and makes proton seem totally unsustainable, but I know the real situation must be better than that because of all the non-"playable", never mentioned, and even "unsupported" games that run just fine.
This would be VERY handy.

As it stands currently, for the one or two games I own that have issues under Proton (granted, one of them is a bad port that I'm told is also terrible on Windows, but on Linux it has a few additional issues), I just occasionally check to see if a new Proton release has improved things. Sometimes that's exactly what happens, which tells me that at least some of these fixes (I would actually guess quite a lot of them) have positive knock-on effects for multiple titles.
FredO Apr 22, 2023
Quoting: riusmaAlso [edit: latest experimental Proton] fixed (at least for me) Ray Tracing that was crashing Cyberpunk 2077 since 1.62 update (game was running without Ray Tracing but was a bit unstable)! :)

Even RT Overdrive (Pathtracing) is working in Cyberpunk 2077 with this Proton Experimental verson and it's stable using these start options:

VKD3D_CONFIG=dxr11,dxr,force_static_cbv PROTON_ENABLE_NVAPI=0 PROTON_HIDE_NVIDIA_GPU=0 VKD3D_FEATURE_LEVEL=12_2 %command% --intro-skip -skipStartScreen --launcher-skip
riusma Apr 22, 2023
Quoting: FredOEven RT Overdrive (Pathtracing) is working in Cyberpunk 2077 with this Proton Experimental verson and it's stable using these start options:

VKD3D_CONFIG=dxr11,dxr,force_static_cbv PROTON_ENABLE_NVAPI=0 PROTON_HIDE_NVIDIA_GPU=0 VKD3D_FEATURE_LEVEL=12_2 %command% --intro-skip -skipStartScreen --launcher-skip

Thx! :) Just performed a quick test... it's indeed even nicer (and more realistic) than Ray Tracing lightnings and reflections (I was at night in front of the Lizzie's Bar), but in 1440p it's far more than what my RTX 3070 can handle (and using the NVIDIA enhanced images by IA I need to go to "Ultra performance" setting that just blurs everything with a lot of artifacts) (I don't use the same exact start options but I doubt that I can get the game playable on a 3070 nonetheless)... but it's a nice look at what is possible to achieve technically! ^^'
kazlehoff Apr 23, 2023
I always hope I'm going to see legend of Mana comparability. And I'm always disappointed.
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