(Updated) How to play Bully on Linux + How to fix RightAlt problem in Music Class

Seeing the lack of Linux tutorials for this game around here, I'll try to show some of the workarounds that I did to make my game work, and hopefully not make any of you all actually have to dual boot Windows (ew, right?)

Proton has been updated to version 6.3 a while ago. So, now, the game works as intended! cut-scenes are finally working as well. I'm still using the same launch arguments and the same method to uncap the game's fps, by the way.

Also, even though it works now on 6.3, this tutorial might still be useful to you, because I'm not sure if for someone launching the game for the first time, if it would've worked if you started it straight up on Proton 6.3 instead of doing the steps listed in this guide.

TL;DR:
You can start the game on version 6.3 with cut-scenes working now, but you might have to first start it on version 3.16 then 4.11 to make it work.

Before we start, let me thank this guide down below (made for Windows) for being the start for the fixes on this god awful port, and also remind you that you might need to test several workarounds listed here, so don't get hang up on the amount of "mights" that are here, I tried to list as many problems and fixes as possible.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=603470623&searchtext=how+to+play+the+damn+game

Download Silent Patch and Bully FPS Cap Remover exe

First of all, download both of them. You'll need to first install Silent Patch and if that doesn't work, you'll need the other solution. Please note that you DO NOT need to install the Bully FPS cap remover exe if Silent Patch already works and that the game might crash around the Hattrick vs. Galloway (Chapter 2) mission because of the uncapped FPS, in which case, you might need to play the game in Windows XP compatibility mode or deactivate the FPS Limit (both solutions are shown here).

Silent Patch
GitHub Link [github.com]
Direct Link Download [github.com]


Bully FPS Cap Remover
Download [community.pcgamingwiki.com]

Install Silent Patch or Bully FPS Cap Remover

To install Silent Patch, extract all the files to the install folder.

You can edit the SilentPatchBully.ini to turn off the FPS limit by changing:
FPSLimit=30 to FPSLimit=0

To install Bully FPS Cap Remover, first back up your original Bully.exe, then copy and paste the exe on the zip file to the game folder. If you need to turn it off, rename the files to its original names, and please note that you might need to turn off VSYNC for the game to run at +30fps and that this might break the game speed.

Enabling SteamPlay/Proton

Go to Steam > Settings











Then Steam Play > ☑ Enable Steam Play for supported titles > ☑ Enable Steam Play for all other titles














Then select the latest Proton Version and please note that you might need to also download version 3.16 and 4.11.

ProtonTricks (Optional)

You may need ProtonTricks to fix alt-tab issues or if your game only launches with Windows XP compatibility mode. I would recommend always having ProtonTricks around, in case you need to delve deeper into Proton to solve some issues.

To Install it follow the instructions on the GitHub page right here [github.com]

First of all, you're gonna try to run the game with the latest Proton version (currently 5.13) with only the Silent Patch installed after doing this:

Go to the game in your library > Properties












Then copy the text below in Launch Options:
PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=90 PROTON_USE_D9VK=true PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 %command%

(You might need to change 'PROTON_USE_D9VK=true' to 'PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1')














If that works then congrats! that was easy! but stick around to fix the RightAlt key problem on Music Class if you're gonna play on mouse and keyboard.

If that didn't work... Well, don't worry, there's still the rest of the tutorial.

Also, please note that the intro for the story will probably not work, but you can watch it on Youtube or by going to your game's install location and watching the 'AttractMode.wmv' file in the Movies folder.

If that didn't work, then that probably means that you got either a black screen (that occurs more specifically if you try to launch it directly with version 4.11) after the initial splash screen or this:

Solving This

You'll need to install the Bully exe that was mentioned earlier here if you want to uncap the FPS. You can probably keep Silent Patch installed because it's most likely not gonna work with what we're gonna be doing right now. In case Silent Patch somehow works, undo the exe method.

You're gonna have to change Proton's version to 3.16 by:

Going to your library > finding your game > going to properties
















Navigating to Compatibility > ☑ Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool > select version 3.16














Now comes the real fun part. You're gonna start the game in 3.16, and hopefully it will be working now. If the game seems stuck while loading, just press space/alt/click and the game will continue.
It will probably be lagging, like a lot, but don't worry, you won't be playing in this version.

You can now exit the game and go change the version to 4.11, then you can start the game again and it will hopefully be working without all those stutters that you experienced in 3.16!

Ok, so you've tried everything and the game still doesn't work or you're still having some issues? Well, follow these last resorts:

ProtonTricks

After you've installed protontricks, launch it by going to your terminal and typing 'protontricks --gui' then select Bully like so:







Select the default wineprefix









Run winecfg










Change the Windows 7 compatibility to Windows XP
(This can solve the crash around Chapter 2, other than turning the FPS limit back to 30)























Emulate a virtual desktop with your current native monitor resolution
(This can solve the issue where the game will crash/get a black screen after you alt-tab)

Open Tweaks, go to Keyboard & Mouse > Additional Layout Options > Key to choose the 3rd level > ☑ Right Alt never chooses 3rd level.

Well, I hope something in this guide worked for you! Please feel free to comment if you have other fixes and other issues that you would like to discuss and I'll try to update things here!

[Ribeiro]

I can't find the saves folder. My steam is located inside snap folder.
snap/steam/common/.steam/steam/steamapps/

Inside of it doesn't have the 'compatdata'

I saved my game to create a new save folder and place the old one therem but I can't find it :(

[satan]

Hi, Prism! You can find the save game on windows on "C:\Users\{your-username}\Documents\Bully Scholarship Edition". Then you can copy that folder, go on your Linux machine here: "~/.steam/steam/steamapps/compatdata/{steam-game-number}/pfx/" and follow the same path you did on Windows until you reach the same Documents folder, then you can paste it there.

[Prism]

hi, i'm trying to get my save game from windows onto steam os and was hoping you knew how

[ionstream]

This worked well - for me, I had to set PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1, go into the games video settings and increase the resolution drastically, then I could exit and use PROTON_USE_D9VK=true. There is some stuttering but I suspect that is an issue with the game itself and not the Proton/Wine layer.

[satan]

Nice to know that the game is now working for you, Boris! I'll update the tutorial rn with the new information you showed. Cheers!

[Boris.Boridou]

In my case, "PROTON_USE_D9VK=true" didn't work, I think because my pc is fairly old (2013). Instead, I used "PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1", and it worked very well. The resulting command I am using: "PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=90 PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1 PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 %command%"

[Boris.Boridou]

Man, I can't thank you enough!