Playing Deep Rock Galactic on Steam Deck & Linux

A simple step-by-step guide explaining how to play DRG on Linux and eventually the Steam Deck via the Proton compatibility layer. I will also explain how to download and install Proton Glorious Eggroll which is a custom version of Proton generally based on the latest release of WINE.

What is Proton and why is it required?

Can Deep Rock Galactic run on the recently announced Steam Deck?

Yes, by using proton it's able to run on SteamOS 3.0 (the OS used by the Steam Deck). I have been playing DRG via Proton since mid March.

What is Proton?

Proton is a compatibility layer which actively translates between the language Windows speaks and the language that Linux speaks. This effectively enables almost any Windows only game to also run on Linux. There are some caveats to this that will be addressed in a later section.

Why is Proton required?

The Steam Deck runs SteamOS 3.0 which is based on Arch Linux. The Arch part isn't as important, all you need to know about that is it's generally more configurable than other Linux distributions based on Ubuntu and Debian. As a result it can be a much leaner OS resulting in fewer system resources utilized compared to Windows or even other Linux distributions. Actual performance of SteamOS won't be known until it's released.

Because Linux isn't able to speak in the language that Windows based games do (Direct3D), it needs to be able to translate it into a language it does speak (Vulkan). This includes several libraries of translations from DirectX11 and DirectX12 to give a couple examples. This is the magic of Proton, it's able to translate on the fly and, in some cases, result in better performance than on Windows.

How is performance under Proton

All performance statements are based on my experience playing DRG on my computer. Under Proton 6.10-GE-1 (a custom build of proton) performance was on par with the Windows version. Using Proton 5.13-6 (integrated directly with steam) performance is a little lower compared to Windows. Performance in other games may vary. As for bugs, there aren't any new bugs that aren't already in the Windows version. There are a couple launch issues in certain Proton versions that I'll cover in a later section.

I should add that with newer versions of proton leveraging the latest versions of VKD3D and DXVK, performance is likely to increase. A good example of this would be Elden Ring. It released with performance all over the place. Some people experienced smooth gameplay while others experienced some significant stuttering. This was(is?) an issue with shader streaming. Valve compiled their own shaders and distributed them to players utilizing Proton. This has essentially eliminated stuttering when playing the game via Proton. I'm writing this in 22 March 2022 and Elden Ring has received a patch to address performance, but the stuttering is still far lower on Linux via Proton.

Selecting a Proton version for DRG (simplified)

This section will follow formatting such that the text for images will be displayed above the image. These images are high resolution. At any time if you're unable to clearly see what's displayed in them, simply click on them and they'll expand to full size.

Why do I want to select a specific Proton version?

Every version of proton includes slightly different approaches at translating between Direct3D and Vulkan. Some games run extremely well on older versions, but are broken on newer versions of Proton and vice versa. Knowing how to change versions will benefit you should DRG experience issues with a later version of Proton.

1. Install DRG on your Linux system (Steam Deck included). This is done the same way you'd install games on windows. Skip this step if the game is already installed.

   
   

2. Navigate to the top left of Steam and click on the Steam icon.

   
   
   

3. Click on Settings.

   
   
   

4. Click on Steam Play and check both boxes. Click OK.

   
   
   

5. You're all finished! Start DRG like you normally would.

Selecting a Proton version for DRG (complex)

This section will follow formatting such that the text for images will be displayed above the image. These images are high resolution. At any time if you're unable to clearly see what's displayed in them, simply click on them and they'll expand to full size.

1. Install DRG on your Linux system (Steam Deck included). This is done the same way you'd install games on windows. Skip this step if the game is already installed.

   
   
   

2. Once installed, right click the game in your library and select properties.

   
   
   
   

3. Left click on COMPATIBILITY.

   
   
   
   

4. Check the box for forcing a specific proton version.

   
   
   
   

5. Select the proton version you want to use.

   I recommend using anything greater than 5.13-6 (using 5.13-6 is fine too and it's known to work well)
   

Downloading and installing custom versions of Proton

This section will follow formatting such that the text for images will be displayed above the image. These images are high resolution. At any time if you're unable to clearly see what's displayed in them, simply click on them and they'll expand to full size.

Why would I want to install a custom version of Proton?

Custom versions of Proton are generally built on newer versions of WINE and may include fixes not currently present on the version of Proton offered by Steam.

An example of this would be when Mass Effect Legendary Edition launched on May 14th. It would install and launch, but would immediately crash on every current proton version. GloriousEggroll released Proton-6.8-GE-2 on May 16th, two days after the launch and completely resolved this issue.

For this section I'm going to walk you though how to install Proton GloriousEggroll (also known as Proton GE).

1. Completely close steam. We don't want it running during this process.

   You won't damage anything if it is running, but closing it now will make this process a lot easier.
   
   
   

2. Navigate to this github

   https://github.com/GloriousEggroll/proton-ge-custom
   
   
   

3. You should see something like this. Click on Releases in the right hand column.

   
   
   
   

4. Select the custom Proton version you want to download.

   Generally I recommend the latest one. In this case that will be Proton-6.12-GE-1. So left click on it.
   
   
   
   

5. Scroll down and left click on Proton-6.12-GE-1.tar.gz to download it.

   Think of a .tar.gz as similar to a .zip file on Windows.
   
   
   
   

6. Once downloaded, double click to open it.

   Once opened there will be a folder called Proton-6.12-GE-1 we're going to extract that to the downloads folder (extract the folder, not its contents otherwise you'll make a mess). The specific software used to open it will vary based on your desktop environment (DE). I'm on the Gnome DE so the application used is called Archive Manager and comes pre-installed. Plasma KDE (which is the DE used for the Steam Deck) will have its own software for this process.
   
   
   
   

7. Next we need to navigate through the file directory to install our custom Proton version.

   Navigate to /home/COMPUTER-USERNAME/.local/share/Steam/compatibilitytools.d
   As you can see, I already have various other custom proton builds installed.
   
   
   
   

8. We'll paste the Proton-6.12-GE-1 folder directly into the compatibilitytools.d folder.

   
   
   
   

9. Relaunch steam

   Your custom Proton version will appear in the list when selecting a proton version to use for a specific game
   

Steam Deck Specifics

The Steam Deck has launched. I do not have a steam deck and I won't have one until Q3. For now I can't provide specifics for optimum performance on the Deck.

I have my steam deck. It runs the game as I expected it to. I have experienced no issues unique to running the game via proton. Unfortunately I do not have the time to do any thorough testing to determine optimal settings for performance or battery life.

What I can say though is that DRG is Steam Deck Playable. What does that mean? Well first lets start with Verified, the top tier. Verified games are a single click to play and work with virtually no issues. DRG complies with every criteria for Verified bar one; text legibility. If you crank UI scale up to 150%, it will improve, but I can't say by how much.

DRG should run near flawlessly on the Steam Deck. I just can't tell you how to get the most out of the battery.

Known Bugs

I had mentioned in the first section that there were some minor bugs. Those mostly extend to the intro videos. There are others that I'll cover below too.

In Proton 5.13-6 intro videos simply wouldn't play and you wouldn't notice anything beyond that.

Proton 6.3-5 tried to address this unsuccessfully. Ultimately it made the videos play, but in a stuttering mess so you'd be better off deleting the videos or not using Proton 6.3-5.

Additionally in Proton 6.3-5 there may be an issue with mfplay.dll. If crashing is experienced when loading into a mission, placing the following command into steams launch options will resolve that issue:

WINEDLLOVERRIDES="mfplay.dll=d" %command%

This extends to some custom proton builds as well, but isn't required for Proton-6.10-GE-1 onward.

The issues above this line appear to be resolved with later versions of Proton 6 and 7. Use of the latest version of Proton (at the time of writing, 7) is recommended.

Connecting and contributing to the Interplanetary Miners Union isn't something that can be done on Linux. The game is unable to talk to Discord. As a result it's also unable to use discord rich presence. Joining a lobby via a discord invite link isn't doable and neither is providing your own invite link.

Other Guides

Check out my other DRG Linux guides:

Playing DRG with AMD's Fidelity Super Resolution

Closing Thoughts & Comments

It's generally recommended to check the following site for the status of games running Proton. Users post their experience with various Proton builds including if any tweaks are required.

ProtonDB-DRG[www.protondb.com]
This site is community run and unofficial. They have a disclaimer at the bottom of their webpage.

Regarding Steam Deck specifics. I don't have a steam deck and I will not have one for some time. When I do I will update this guide to reflect the information I learn.

If you have any questions regarding DRG on Linux, feel free to ask. I will do my best to answer them.

[TheToric]

it even has an AUR package! https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/wine-discord-ipc-bridge-git

[TheToric]

under known bugs, you may want to mention https://github.com/0e4ef622/wine-discord-ipc-bridge , it allows you to use the discord rich presence.

[Are you lost?]

Hello again.

Thanks for mentioning about proton GE, otherwise I might have given up. Even though the guide for it here is bit outdated by now, it fixed the FPS drops from the ESC menu I mentioned earlier. If anyone else is experiencing similar problems, I recommend trying it out. Game now runs without any problems, feels like magic!

[Are you lost?]

(1/2) Anyone had a huge drop in FPS when opening the ESC menu?
Closing it improves things but it still slightly reduces the in-game FPS, and a weird part is that this effect stacks the more times you do it, eventually making the FPS unbearable. Restarting the game is the only way to reset this.

[Are you lost?]

(2/2) I've been considering moving to linux, so I got windows and linux mint dual-booted on the same PC.
Strange thing is that on windows such an weird FPS drop from the esc menu never happened. I have no idea what could be causing this.

[EnderBaig]

Holy $hit. Thanks, bro.

[The Loan Ranger]

Perhaps, but the guide is about using these technologies for DRG. In order to do that I have to explain the general operation. If I didn't then it wouldn't be a very good guide.

[BottomScorer]

Post guides in https://steamcommunity.com/app/221410/guides .
Not about Deep Rock Galactic.

[Zyph]

actually, i checked and you're right. The intro launch videos don't play with Proton 6.3-5, instead of the logos, i get a brief freeze and little window "steamapp ... is not responding" but then it"s fine.
Using Proton-6.14-GE-2 fixed fixed the logo videos at startup but seems to be less stable, had several crashes and went back to 6.3-5 where i never have crashes..

[hauser]

Extremely based and redpilled.