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While not available for Linux, No Man's Sky can be run through Steam Play and it appears Hello Games continue to keep an eye on it.

In a recent article, I highlighted the fact that the developer put in a fix for SteamVR on Linux even though the game is not supported there. Not only that, NVIDIA (certain generations anyway) needed a fix applied to get it working properly.

Here we are less than a month later and it appears that manual fix for NVIDIA is no longer needed. Not just that, their latest experimental update released yesterday notes that it fixed "a Linux driver issue.". If you wish to try it, use the password "3xperimental" on the Beta tab of the games properties on Steam.

After my testing, I can confirm at least for me the game seems to work quite a bit better. I've actually been able to stick a few settings one notch higher with the game looking better and still performing well above 60FPS the majority of the time.

Very interesting. While they're not the first developer to tweak and fix for Steam Play, they are the biggest I've seen so far keep an eye on it and actively seem to try and make it better for us. This pleases me. Support is the biggest and most important factor, regardless of how you play games on Linux you're paying just like anyone else.

If you plan to pick up a copy for Steam Play, it's on Humble Store and Steam.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Proton, Steam, Update
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19 comments

Corben Sep 13, 2019
This is so cool! Time to sink more time into it :D
Thank you so much Hello Games.

I'm just wondering though, do they know that lots of Linux gamers are playing No Mans Sky, or did e.g. Valve approach them?
RichardYao Sep 13, 2019
Steam gives statistics on which platforms are generating sales. As for the driver issue, I recall an nvidia engineer saying something on discord about trying to contact them about the issue.
Kohrias Sep 13, 2019
Nice! Highly appreciated!
scaine Sep 13, 2019
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And Steam Play sales are confirmed to count as Linux sales, so the platform stats should be fairly accurate for purchases too.

I might dip back into this game. It's a huge amount of fun and ran flawlessly (literally) under Steam Play last I tried it. I have about 40 hours already.
KuJo Sep 13, 2019
I already sunk 81 hours on the game. And there is so much more possible now after the Beyond-Update. I might double the time. :)
FurbyOnSteroid Sep 13, 2019
Well the new build makes mesa-aco crash it seems like. As soon as it's done loading into a world, the screen stays white for a bit before it crashes the gpu. Tried many things but it seems to be an experimental build issue here. Other games run fine and even the stable build doesn't seem to have issues here. Hm.

mesa-aco 19.3 btw

EDIT: Alright, after a bit more testing it seems to be a proton 4.11-3 (and perhaps older versions) issue. If I use the Proton-GE 4.15-4 version, the game loads just fine. Maybe the next proton release will fix that.


Last edited by FurbyOnSteroid on 13 September 2019 at 10:59 am UTC
einherjar Sep 13, 2019
Does Multiplayer coop work well with steamplay?
Perhaps it is something that I can play with my son.

Is there any motivation in the game, to do things? Or is it just "Sandbox: Do something or not, doesn't really matter"?

And thanks hello games anyways. Support for Linux is always appreciated :-)
Corben Sep 13, 2019
Quoting: einherjarDoes Multiplayer coop work well with steamplay?
Perhaps it is something that I can play with my son.
Yep, Multiplayer just works.

Quoting: einherjarIs there any motivation in the game, to do things? Or is it just "Sandbox: Do something or not, doesn't really matter"?
No Mans Sky has a story you can experience, and there are certain abilities you can learn and master. To be able to do certains things, you need to e.g. find or craft the materials first, and to be able to get those you need to do other things first etc.
It depends on if you like exploring a lot, as imho most of No Mans Sky fascination is coming from exploration.
Also there is a lot of hidden lore, and even more with the latest update, which is not obvious at all. But iirc if you once made it to the center of the galaxy the "story" is over (I didn't complete it yet, so don't take my word for it).
Nanobang Sep 13, 2019
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I'm actually worried that if I buy No Man's Sky I'll never play anything else ever again. Their improving the Linux performance isn't helping. :P


Last edited by Nanobang on 13 September 2019 at 12:09 pm UTC
autonomouse Sep 13, 2019
I've been desperate to try this on my valve index, but VR just does not work (starts on desktop instead of on headset). Sooo annoying, especially when I keep hearing how great is supposed to be. Please don't make me reinstall Windows Hello Games, please!
Ardje Sep 13, 2019
Quoting: NanobangI'm actually worried that if I buy No Man's Sky I'll never play anything else ever again. Their improving the Linux performance isn't helping. :P
I thought that about a lot of games. The reality is that after some time you switch to one of the other games and then switch back. I've already done 172 hours on no man's sky, ever since I've heard that it worked on proton. But then I needed to switch back to fortresscraft, and now I am playing oxygen not included, waiting for my new video card to arrive so I can play No man's sky again, add another 100 hours or so...
Actually I am postponing certain games so I can play them on my Smach Z.
Fakeman_Pretendname Sep 13, 2019
I've chucked about 60 hours into it (somehow) in the last few month. It was definitely worth getting as a Steam Play purchase, which previously I've been very hesitant to do - but this is fully "click play and it works" for me. The fact they're actively trying to support Linux via Steam Play is very reassuring.

I'm tempted to try the experimental update and see if it improves performance further - but I also noted:

QuoteFixed an issue that caused incorrect unit costs to be used when purchasing Exosuit slot upgrades.

So I might go and upgrade my backpack slots a bit more whilst they're accidentally free...
wazz4657 Sep 13, 2019
Love these guys, love this game.

I know they are working hard to clear up some bad karma from the release with all these free updates, but I'd gladly drop more $$$ on a full-fledged expansion.
wvstolzing Sep 13, 2019
I have a weird relationship with this game. I received it as a gift when it first came out; and enjoyed it quite a bit in that MUCH inferior state. After all the updates I'm curious as to how it plays; but I really can't justify putting time into it -- and besides, I'm really not that motivated to start all the way from the beginning, learn the crafting recipes again, etc. etc. I'll install it one of these days to check the graphics updates though.
garpu Sep 13, 2019
I have over 300 hours into this game, and I started playing it last year. Easily one of the best games I've played. That they're specifically fixing linux issues makes me glad I got it.
Avehicle7887 Sep 13, 2019
Supporting Linux without offering a native version is always better than no support at all. I am nowhere near as far into the game, left the "tutorial" planet and began exploring, but I'm enjoying it a lot, keep em coming Hello Games and thanks!
Zelox Sep 13, 2019
Linux port in the future maybe :D.
ertuqueque Sep 16, 2019
I have to say that even when I'm still not sold on the idea of developers relying on Steam Play to cover Linux support, I still appreciate when a developer takes time and resources to at least make that option a good one.

Maybe is not what I really expect from a developer, but I guess is a fair compromise in some cases. Kudos to them.
garpu Sep 17, 2019
Quoting: ZeloxLinux port in the future maybe :D.

with Vulkan, I wouldn't think it would be too difficult. Isn't PS4 basically Linux? Or are they BSDish these days? If they ported it to Linux, I'd totally buy a copy for a friend of mine.
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