Deadlock Linux Central Guide

Centralizing all of the info known about running the game on Linux and Steam Deck.

Game crashing on map load

Virtual memory mapping might be too low below is the provided solution

Background Info

As of right now Source 2 in Proton exceeds Linux's default limit for per process memory mapping which is 65530 memory map areas. This is probably a bug and this fix might become irrelevant soon.
For now the limit is just too low. We can confirm this if we run the command sudo sysctl vm.max_map_count or cat /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count and we should get a value of 65530.
Our goal here is to allow the game to utilize more memory map areas.

Solution

For this solution we will use a limit of 1048576 of memory map areas as it's the becoming the new default on many Linux Systems.
To permanently change your memory mapping limit you must edit a system file that you will need escalated privileges for.
We will be editing sysctl.conf but depending on your system's configuration you might need to change a different file.

Open the file via the editor of your choice with sudo. For example sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf and add the line vm.max_map_count=1048576 to the bottom of the file and reboot your machine. If it doesn't work, check if you have another configuration file that could be causing conflicts. As the higher the number in the config name, the later it makes the change to your system. So sysctl.conf will run before 99-sysctl.conf.

Notes​

• We can temporarily achieve the same result with the following command sudo sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=1048576.
  
• You can read about max_map_count and memory mapping in the documentation provided in the sources.
  
• As per this message from Yoshi, information about a proper Linux build or further Proton support is unknown at this time.
  
  
• As per this message from Yoshi, the Steam Deck might receive further support.
  

Additional Info

This section of the guide was copied over from the official discord as we wanted the information to be more accessible.

Credits

Basic launch options with gamemodedrun

Make sure to have Gamemode[github.com] installed before running:

gamemoderun

Steam Deck

Steam Deck matchmaking unavailable?? currently you have to use

SteamDeck=0 %command%

in the launch options. (Warning: SteamDeck is case sensitive!) It's also best to use the lowest settings possible as the game is still unoptimized in the beta.

Notes

As per this message from Yoshi, the Steam Deck might receive further support.

AMD Section

Currently not much is needed to improve the performance on AMD.
Best bet is to use the following launch options:

gamemoderun %command% -nojoy

Advanced and experimental launch options:

RADV_FORCE_VRS=2x2 RADV_PERFTEST="dccmsaa,sam,nircache,transfer_queue" gamemoderun %command% -nojoy -threads <number of threads>

Notes

• Replace <number of threads> with your CPU's thread count
  
• -nojoy disables your controller and joystick

Nvidia Section

1. Game not launching on a NVIDIA GPU? try adding this command in the launch options:

PROTON_HIDE_NVIDIA_GPU=1 %command%

2. Advanced, experimental launch options:

gamemoderun %command% -high -nojoy -threads <numer of threads> +engine_low_latency_sleep_after_client_tick true

Notes

• Replace <number of threads> with your CPU's thread count
  
• -nojoy disables your controller and joystick

Valve Proton or GloriousEggroll (Proton-GE)

What's better to use: GE Proton or Valve Proton?
Based of my own research on my all AMD setup and the research of similar Linux users, it seems it's currently better to use GE Proton[github.com] over Valve Proton.

DXVK or Vulkan

General conclusion in testing from the community members:

If you have an RTX card, do your own testing between DXVK and VK and please submit.
If you have a GTX card, use VK.
If you have an AMD card, use DXVK.
Findings from one of the Discord community members below (thanks @Miuzu):

Running Arch linux, kernel version 6.10.6-arch1-1 with Wayland + sway as window manager.
CPU: Ryzen 5 1600x, GPU: AMD Radeon RX 6600, RAM: 16GB, game installed on SSD
RADV_FORCE_VRS=2x2 vk_radv gamemoderun mangohud %command% -high -nojoy -threads 12 +engine_low_latency_sleep_after_client_tick true +mat_queue_mode 2 +cl_forcepreload 1 -dx11 for launch commands.
Last option interchanged with -vulkan during tests

@awth13 from discord

awth13 — Today at 19:03
Flatpak Steam
Wayland
RTX 2070
i7-9750H
No launch options apart from gamemode because I think they don't do anything

From @leibniz2574 on discord
Arch Linux
sched ext kernel (forgor the name Xd)
scheduler: bpfland
DE: KDE Plasma6 (Wayland)

Ryzen 5 3600
Radeon RX6600 (MECH 2X)

custom ingame settings: stretch, 100%

RADV_PERFTEST="dccmsaa,gpl,sam,nircache,transfer_queue" vk_radv gamescope -W 1770 -H 996 %command% -w 1770 -h 996 -high -nojoy  +engine_low_latency_sleep_after_client_tick true +mat_queue_mode 2 +cl_forcepreload 1

From @_tyke on discord
Running Nobara, kernel version 6.10.6 with KDE on top of X11
CPU: 7800X3D
GPU: NVIDIA 3090 (Founders)
RAM: 32GB DDR5 6000 MT/s
Storage: Game is installed on an SSD (WD Black NVMe)
Launch options:

mangohud gamemoderun %command% -nojoy -high -threads 8  +engine_low_latency_sleep_after_client_tick true +mat_queue_mode 2

On the majority of tested devices, the differences in both average performance and performance stability are negligible. The two outliers are the powerful machine with a 3090 and an older machine with a 1650, on both of which VK performed significantly better in terms of frame stability.

AMD P-state CPU governor

amd-pstate is the AMD CPU performance scaling driver that introduces a new CPU frequency control mechanism on modern AMD APU and CPU series in Linux kernel. The new mechanism is based on Collaborative Processor Performance Control (CPPC) which provides finer grain frequency management than legacy ACPI hardware P-States. Current AMD CPU/APU platforms are using the ACPI P-states driver to manage CPU frequency and clocks with switching only in 3 P-states. CPPC replaces the ACPI P-states controls and allows a flexible, low-latency interface for the Linux kernel to directly communicate the performance hints to hardware.

In order to maximize performance with AMD CPUs you should enable the p_state driver:

• Arch amd_pstate docs[wiki.archlinux.org]
  
• Thread on how to use amd_pstate driver[bbs.archlinux.org]

AMD 4G Decoding [REBAR]

What is Resizable BAR?

All gaming PCs produce an on-screen image by way of the CPU processing data – textures, shaders and the like – from the graphics card’s frame buffer. Usually the CPU can only access this buffer in 256MB read blocks, which obviously isn’t very much when modern GPUs regularly have 8GB of video memory or much, much more.

Resizable BAR essentially makes the entirety of the graphics frame buffer accessible to the CPU at once; where it could once sip, it now guzzles. The idea is that once textures, shaders and geometry are loading in faster, games should run faster with higher frame rates.

To enable AMD REBAR you do have to enable it in your BIOS. Enable the setting named Above 4G Decode or >4GB MMIO in your motherboard settings.
Restart your PC and run this test in the terminal:

dmesg | grep BAR=

Which should return something like this:

[drm] Detected VRAM RAM=8176M, BAR=8192M

Note

• VRAM AND BAR should have the same amount to verify that it's working
  
• We did some testing on low end systems and there is marginal differences (take those with a grain of salt)

Thanks again @Miuzu from the discord

DXVK vs VULKAN with REBAR enabled:

Compared to DXVK vs VULKAN with REBAR Disabled:

Experimental: Disabling your compositioning

If you are still struggling with FPS, disabling your compositor is worth a shot, it seems to have helped me and some other users (X11/XFCE/X) (note: disabling your wayland compositor will render nothing for you)

Various

NixOS

Memory Map Areas

For NixOS users, to increase your memory map areas limit, just add the following to your /etc/nixos/configuration.nix:

boot.kernel.sysctl = {
"vm.max_map_count" = 1048576;
};

Extest library

Fix for gyro mouse in Steam input not working, just add the following to your /etc/nixos/configuration.nix:

programs.steam.extest.enable = true

Credits

• Tia maço
  
• MM2000

Newest findings

It takes too long to process Vulkan shaders

The current consensus is to disable shader pre-caching. You can disable it globally on steam settings, under Downloads section.

TLDR: Fossilize is, in theory, a useful tool for preventing stutters during real time gameplay. Especially for older hardware, however for most users pre-cache is not necessary. And, even for the users who it IS beneficial for I still recommend turning it off, and instead just watching a replay or live match.
------
My system should be where it is useful, I am unable to connect to a match if I do not pre-compile shaders as I timeout for taking to long to join. Even still, I have pre-cache disabled. From scratch, it takes my CPU three and a half hours to compile just the deadlock shaders. Everytime valve updates the cache, and everytime my gpu driver updates I have to rebuild the cache.

If I either watch a replay or watch a match live, it takes about 10 minutes of watching for all the non-hero-specific shaders to get built. There is actually a DXVK launch argument `DXVK_HUD=compiler ` that will show you the progress for shaders, that you want to put near the beginning of your launch steam launch arguments. (Before the %command%) You can also go to the heroes tab and cycle through all the heroes to compile shaders in the menu.

There are a few other reasons why Fossilize ins't great: one it's just simply overkill. They render over 1.1 million[github.com] frames for deadlock to build the cache, and two weeks later it grew to 1.4 million[github.com] frames. Two: the progress % is incredibly inaccurate. When it starts compiling it estimates it only has 110 thousand frames, causing it to rapidly progress. Three, It also build cache for every single shader any user encounters, which includes workshop contnet. This doesn't matter for deadlock yet, but for games like Hat in Time with massive workshop content this causes the cache to get massive[github.com]. Valve-kiosk or the dev working on it has not responded to any of these issues.

Pre-loading shaders that keep 0 out of 0

Use the following launch args:

%command% -no_prewarm_map

1[forums.playdeadlock.com]
Game gets very laggy after 20-30 minutes

Enabling steam overlay might fix it.

If you don't want the overlay, use the following launch args:

LD_PRELOAD= %command%

1[forums.playdeadlock.com] 2[forums.playdeadlock.com] 3[forums.playdeadlock.com]

Closing notes

This guide is not final, as more knowledge is learned it will be updated.

Credits

Everyone who was active, and the whole Linux community, from the official discord, if anyone feels like they are left out please reach out to use so we can credit you.

[Mash0Star]

Just wanting to let you know that there's a major performance uplift available for free on Wayland by using the new Wayland driver.
Get GE-PROTON10-1 (or newer) and type "PROTON_ENABLE_WAYLAND=1 %command%" into the launch options.
The catch is that the Steam Overlay and Steam Input are currently broken on native Wayland apps.
Enjoy the performance boost!

[index]

normal, sandbox is a very small map compared to the larger map

[Schlawg]

Hey does anyone also experience a very big difference in frame time beetween sandbox and actual match? I know my 960m is very weak as today but playing on 720p I can get around 90fps in sandbox (even when using a lot of abilities at once and fighting bots) but can't keep stable 20fps during match even in less crowded areas.

[avc39076]

I see. When executing the game I didn't have to choose "force compatibility tools" so I thought that it had a native version now. My bad.

[index]

Linux depot size is still 0
https://steamdb.info/app/1422450/depots/

[avc39076]

I don't know when it happened, but the game has a native linux version now

[index]

I am no longer on the deadlock discord, should any new things arise, please notify me, I will add them to the guide here

[ppedro de la paska]

Thank you for this post, good sir.

[index]

Guide was updated, please check it out

[Melody]

8) do, not, use, flatpak Steam, newbies always make this mistake. It's gonna use runtimes over runtimes, we do not want this
9) always use rolling/upstream distros, you want everything to be as updated as possible
10) make sure you're not blocking split locking. Use split_lock_detect=off and kernel.split_lock_mitigate=0, docs available at linux kernel github