I would expect the Steam Deck announcement timed with the latest LTTs video, probably has something to do with it.

I also fully expect we will see more months of 'less than 1%', since we're 'well above the trend line' right now, but that's nothing to feel bad about. What matters is that the trend is good, we're inching higher. Eventually it will be normal to see months above 1%.

Next milestone: 2%!

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In fact (without actually trying the native versions on modern Linux distro) I would recommend Proton emulation

That part in the quotes tells you everything you need to know.

They're not recommending Proton because they think it's better than anything they could do. They're recommending Proton because they don't care. Proton is the solution for game developers who don't care about whether or not their games run on Linux.

As the article said earlier:

If you're not aware, Frozenbyte did previously have their games ported over to Linux but they eventually stopped after the release of Shadwen in 2016.

They stopped porting their games to Linux 5 years ago, well before Proton existed, let alone 'got good'.

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Oh very nice. Nice to hear a third party confirm this is something that's actually happening. Can't wait. Hopefully the AntiCheat solution extends beyond just the Steam Deck, but even if it doesn't, it'll be a great step forward.

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but there is generally less demand for native titles since Valve’s launch of Proton.

Here's what I read..

How well this game runs in Proton already represents more then the amount of effort that can be justified putting into a native port for Linux right now.

If Linux had more than 0.9% market share, this wouldn't happen.

Because if Linux had more than 0.9% market share, Feral would very much so care how well their game runs on Linux, enough to want to control the experience by developing a native version and offering the best experience possible, rather than just settling for whatever works via Proton.

This doesn't harm the goal of growing the Linux marketshare, it's just an acknowledgement of how small our marketshare is.

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Valve could make a game but also make it free for Steam OS Deck users.
Turn on your Deck, login, and bam, get the game for free as a bonus.
Much like how Valve Index buyers received Half Life Alyx for free.

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Quoting: finaldestThere is only one way to ensure that Ubi and other big publishers bring over their games and that is to support Valve and Linux by doing the following:-

Buy the Steam Deck.

I am doing my part, I have pre-registered for the top tier unit with a Q2 2022 order/delivery estimate. Cannot wait to get my hands on one. I have heard on the web that over 100k units have already been ordered. If this is true then this is an brilliant start.

Gonna buy mine the very moment it's available in my region.

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Well they're not ruling it out but by the sounds of it they won't be jumping on it at launch either. Not quite the reaction I'd hope for but also not completely negative either.

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Sorry just, as a graphic designer, seeing something I hate so close to something I love, I panicked for a moment there.

Well, another day, another Blender victory, Blender is OP!

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My view on the dilemma of "native or Proton?" is this:

In the end, it doesn't matter.

What matters is "support".

When a company makes a software based product, the most important thing for that company, is to ensure their product works on the devices that their users are using.

Because if the customers can't use the product - the company can't make money off it.

Native or Proton doesn't matter - what matters is getting gamers on Linux.

Because once gamers are on Linux, then game developers will do anything necessary to ensure their games run well on Linux. Whether it means porting the game to run natively on Linux, or just testing the game via Proton and ensuring it always works well.

It's the chicken and egg.
Game devs don't support Linux because 'no one games on Linux'.
Players don't game on Linux because 'no games on Linux'.

Proton has always been about short circuiting that feedback loop.
Steam Deck has MASSIVE potential to dramatically improve the situation and get what technically counts as a Linux gaming PC in the hands of MILLIONS of PC gamers. This is potentially very huge and very important.

Will you be buying one?

I live in Australia and it won't be launching in my region.
Yes. By any means necessary.

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Proton running on a handheld device like this has a lot of advantages that Proton doesn't have running on the average Linux desktop.

Every Linux desktop varies wildly and that makes trying to make Windows games run reliably on such wildly varying Linux environments is certainly a challenge. There are so many variables. What Linux kernel is the user running? What GPU? What driver? What driver version? What level of vulkan support is available? The exact fix for some machines may be a few command line options, other PCs might run the game out of the box without any help, other PCs might not be able to run the game at all.

But with the Steam Deck, here you have a rare opportunity: The only 'variable' is the game.

If Valve can get a game to run, via any means, on the Steam Deck, they can put out an update to Proton/SteamOS/etc, that ensures that game runs on every Steam Deck. Even if behind the scenes there are per game tweaks and other stuff happening, all that matters from the end users perspective is that they can hit play and the game runs. No fiddling involved.

This presents an enormous opportunity to increase the Linux player base on Steam, and puts a lot more pressure on game devs to ensure their games at least run well via Proton, if not natively on Linux.

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