A guide on how to play Train Simulator 2019 on Linux.

[Goliathfan]

It seems from Proton 4.2-7 the game might just work for you without workarounds. So try the game first, if that doesn't work check the guide.

Also the rendering issues are seemingly resolved from Proton 4.11-2.

The guide can be found at:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1537164153

[skinnyraf]

I wonder if anyone in the modding community is both knowledgeable in TS and Wine, and willing to investigate the issue with .ap files. With 100+GB installation I don't have enough space to increase its size significantly :(

[Goliathfan]

You can remove the .ap files afterwards, it's listed in my guide. But if things go wrong with unpacking, you would need to re-download the .ap files again by verifying the game's integrity again in Steam.

I do hope somebody can fix the .ap file problem yeah. It would be way handier if you could just install and play, like you can in many other Steamplay games. :)

[Nexus]

Proton Engine 4.2 - unzip ap files is still needed and water is still broken.. maybe next version : )

[76561198848642519]

Pinned so users who may need to update from Windows XP and Windows 7 can find this easily as an alternative.

[Goliathfan]

@DTG-Daniel, thank you for pinning it. I'm glad even the developers think it's handy to have a guide. :)

[skinnyraf]

@DTG-Daniel: any ideas why Wine might be unable to unpack .ap files from within the game?

[Nexus]

UPDATE: I've just drove AC4400CW in Train Sim World under Linux using the new Proton engine : ))

a little buggy (crashes !!) but it works : )))) but it's much easier than TR 2019 (no need to do any file manipulations - works out of the box - only requirement is to switch to the new Proton engine)

[Adam Beckett]

Oh, that's nice (getting pinned)

FYI, if you are using "Steam Play" (incl. "Proton" = Valve's enhanced WINE version), everything 'just works' without any issues. No trickery needed.

The ONLY thing you need to do is:

1. unpack the .ap files. Use 7zip for Linux or just the default archiver from your Distro/OS.
2. Replace OpenAL32.dll with the one in /Install/OpenAL/64bit/ (if you are using 64bit)

Also, check (and add your experience to) ProtonDB (a database like WINEHQ, to stay informed of hardware/software related issues and workarounds after updates).

https://www.protondb.com/app/24010

Performance is the same-ish, until you go triple-monitor and/or use 3x3 SSAA. (G-Sync/FreeSync issues with Linux and all games though?) In-game rendering is en par with Windows version, but my favorite PP Shaders won't work (ReShade) - nor does Stereoscopic 3D (Nvidia 3D Vision), which makes the game look amazing, despite 10-year old Assets/2D sprites.

[defiant]

Working really well. By the way, if you add the "-o" option to overwrite All if you're re-running the script.

There is probably a better way of aiming to just unzip the new routes you may require to be unzipped...

Use Wineconsole for Armstrong Powerhouse, I had to create s symlink from Games to ~/.steam/ etc to be able to find the correct path, but once that's done it installs great.

[Nexus]

YES YES YES

Latest proton engine (4.2-6) and current Train Simulator version works without that annoying unpacking of all .ap files : )))))))

I tested this on: Marias Pass, Canadian Mountain Passes, Feather Canyon, Stevens Pass, UP Gas Turbine, F45, DD40X (each routes with a few career, standard and workshop scenarios)

Before my tests I completely remove my Train Simulator folder and then reinstall it from scratch and fix ONLY that OpenAL 64bit file

Could anyone else test it?

p.s. Water is still broken for me : ( and there are some glitches near the horizon..

[skinnyraf]

Nice, my Steam Machine connected to an overhead projector and a 100'' screen is ready.
I've basically stopped playing Train Simulator, because I no longer boot into Windows with all those awesome Linux and Proton games.

Edit: Train Sim World is the next step!

[Nexus]

Looks like even that openAL file isn't needed anymore (but I need to do a full verify to be sure so this could take some time) - anyone with a fresh install and 64bit system could check this?

[Nexus]

Początkowo opublikowane przez skinnyraf:

Edit: Train Sim World is the next step!

TSW works more or less fine for me (some crashes but beside that everything works ok)

[Nexus]

and that Water/Horizon Gliches - anyone could check those routes?

Looks like there are two different methods of placing water - one works fine (so on some routes there are a correct water) the second one didn't (yet) ale we have something like those screenshots below:

Canadian Mountain Passes:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768102803

Feather River Canyon:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768102837

Norfolk Southern Coal District:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768109369

[Goliathfan]

Well, I tested a fresh install of TS2019 version 66.1b with Proton 4.2-7, and I'm missing a lot of my DLCs. The DLCs that are visible in-game don't launch.

So it seems there's still a need to unpack the .ap files.