Configure Proton/Steam Play¶
Proton is software developed by Valve that allows Windows games to run on Linux, and is used by the Steam Play client.
Using Proton/Steam Play is not always necessary. If the game installs and runs without Proton, it is native and likely works the best without Proton.
Check if a game requires Proton¶
ProtonDB, a crowdsourced database of compatibility information, will show “Native” if the game is a native game. Otherwise, it requires Proton.
Disabling Steam Play entirely will only then allow you to install and play native games.
Enable Proton for non-native games¶
In the Steam application, navigate to Settings > Steam Play
Enabling Steam Play will automatically download the Proton compatibility layer libraries for non-native games. If left disabled, only native games can be installed and played.
“Enable Steam Play for supported titles” enables compatibility layer tools for games verified by Valve to work well on Linux.
“Enable Steam Play for all other titles” enables compatibility layer tools for all non-native games in your library.
Unsupported titles greatly vary in functionality – check ProtonDB for more info on specific games.
Enable Proton for an individual game¶
Right-click on the game title in your library, then navigate to Properties > Compatibility
Check “Force the use of a Specific Steam Play compatibility tool”, and choose a Proton version.
Use a custom Proton version¶
Run Steam at least once.
Create the compatibilitytools.d directory:
mkdir -p ~/snap/steam/common/.steam/root/compatibilitytools.d
Extract custom Proton versions to the above directory. For example, proton-ge.
Run Steam, and you should be able to select your custom version from the Proton version dropdown like normal.