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Proton GE, the community-built version of the Windows compatibility layer Proton has a new release available and there's quite a lot of fixes included.

If you're not clear on what Proton and Steam Play are, be sure to check out our constantly updated dedicated page. It's a special compatibility layer for running Windows games and apps from Steam on Linux. Proton GE is not affiliated with Valve/Steam, it also has less quality assurance versus the official Proton but often ends up with special game-specific fixes quicker.

Proton-6.15-GE-1 and shortly after Proton-6.15-GE-2 with a few extra fixes are live now. A fair bit of it is pulling in fixes from the official upstream Proton like the cloud save fixes, multiple font fixes, Project Cars III window focus fixes and Tokyo Xanadu Xe+ ASF fixes. There's also a workaround for FFXIV having a broken login button, there's a FFXIV frame timing configuration for DXVK to resolve some stuttering, a fix for some Unity games that had broken Microsoft's Media Foundation Platform in 6.14, a patch to help Riftbreaker and other game-specific fixes.

Other updates include Wine / Wine Staging at version 6.15, DXVK added the latest git fixes to help Endless Legend and Borderlands 2, VKD3D added the latest git code and the same for FAudio. Interestingly VKD3D has a patch added for Diablo II Resurrected, which the Proton GE developer notes it was added "in case it fixes other games" as non-Steam games are not supported with Proton.

The quick follow-up release with GE-2 added a fix for TemTem, Tokyo Xanadu eX+ and has a workaround to skip Call of Duty Black Ops III videos making it playable.

If you do use this version, you may want to make save backups for the Steam Cloud fixes so you don't lose them - just in case. Proton GE's developer also notes you will want to "remove your old game prefixes so that they are properly regenerated with new symlinks". More on how to do that in our previous article.

How to install Proton GE? Here's a quick how-to:

  1. Download the Proton-6.15-GE-2.tar.gz file from the release notes.
  2. If this folder does not exist, create it: ~/.steam/root/compatibilitytools.d/
  3. Extract the archive downloaded in Step 1, and place the contents into the above directory.
  4. Restart Steam if it's open which refreshes the Steam Play list for Proton-6.15-GE-2 to show up.
  5. Right click on your game, go to Properties, Compatibility and ensure the box is ticked named "Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool" then select it from the dropdown box that appears.
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herrorange Aug 17, 2021
If it helps anyone, here is a basic script I use to get latest version of Proton-GE: https://pastebin.com/x5SCV2sN
TheSHEEEP Aug 17, 2021
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Proton-GE has to be one of the most wildly unreliable pieces of software that I use regularly anyway.

If/How it works changes radically for me per game. Some games won't work with it at all that work just fine with normal Proton, some games work, but with abysmal performance compared to normal Proton.
Or the other way around.
Or anything in-between.
SystemShock Aug 17, 2021
Quoting: TheSHEEEPProton-GE has to be one of the most wildly unreliable pieces of software that I use regularly anyway.

If/How it works changes radically for me per game. Some games won't work with it at all that work just fine with normal Proton, some games work, but with abysmal performance compared to normal Proton.
Or the other way around.
Or anything in-between.
Did you always delete the wineprefix when you change from normal Proton to Proton-GE or the other way round. ?
Its the first thing i do when i have Problems with Proton.
drmoreira13 Aug 17, 2021
I have an Acer Nitro powered by Endless OS, I use to play America's Army "normally", but in a few weeks later it is not working correctly, some maps doesn't works, the laptop crash when I try to play "Hospital" for example, and many others maps. To play various maps I had to move back to an old version of Proton about 5.10 I guess, and my FPS had a huge drop back from 130FPS to 90FPS...
I wish it could go back to what it used to be...
Independent of this little problems, I need to say thank you all for doing Proton and make Linux community happier. I really appreciate it!
whizse Aug 17, 2021
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Quoting: TheSHEEEPProton-GE has to be one of the most wildly unreliable pieces of software that I use regularly anyway.

If/How it works changes radically for me per game. Some games won't work with it at all that work just fine with normal Proton, some games work, but with abysmal performance compared to normal Proton.
Or the other way around.
Or anything in-between.
This must be expected. There's a reason all those patches haven't been mainlined yet.
SystemShock Aug 17, 2021
Quoting: drmoreira13I have an Acer Nitro powered by Endless OS, I use to play America's Army "normally", but in a few weeks later it is not working correctly, some maps doesn't works, the laptop crash when I try to play "Hospital" for example, and many others maps. To play various maps I had to move back to an old version of Proton about 5.10 I guess, and my FPS had a huge drop back from 130FPS to 90FPS...
I wish it could go back to what it used to be...
Independent of this little problems, I need to say thank you all for doing Proton and make Linux community happier. I really appreciate it!

Hi drmoreira13 and welcome on Board !

I assume you are trying to get "America's Army proving Grounds" to work ?
Did you try to run this game with PROTON_USE_WINED3D=1 %command% as a Start-Option in Steam ?

I just did a quick Search in Protondb.com for this Game and there this Tip was provided.
TheSHEEEP Aug 17, 2021
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Quoting: SystemShock
Quoting: TheSHEEEPProton-GE has to be one of the most wildly unreliable pieces of software that I use regularly anyway.

If/How it works changes radically for me per game. Some games won't work with it at all that work just fine with normal Proton, some games work, but with abysmal performance compared to normal Proton.
Or the other way around.
Or anything in-between.
Did you always delete the wineprefix when you change from normal Proton to Proton-GE or the other way round. ?
Its the first thing i do when i have Problems with Proton.
No, I don't bother.
So far, I have (almost) always found a version of Proton that works for me, be it normal Proton or -GE.
If I need to start digging deeper than the config in Steam, I'm more likely to just refund the game and play something else. Unless it's a title that I REAAALLLLY have to play.
Schattenspiegel Aug 17, 2021
Does anyone happen to know which was the last version of proton-GE that Endless Space 2 worked with? With the two latest ones I get a crash on starting it.
STiAT Aug 17, 2021
I'm by now back on stable proton 6.3, GE and experimental ruined my steam config and steamuser dirs of games so nothing at all would start anymore in compatibility mode, if you selected a default it wouldn't even save and it created backups of my applications and stuff, not creating new ones, keeping the symlink and making proton not start the games due to not finding folders.

I am loath to fix my dirs up all the time, so I will stay with 6.3 and only select experimental if I need it somewhere.
Beamboom Aug 17, 2021
Quoting: SystemShockDid you always delete the wineprefix when you change from normal Proton to Proton-GE or the other way round?

Hooh - that question alone is enough for me to steer clear of GE. I want the "out of the box" experience, add a startup parameterer at worst, I do not want to start fiddling with Wine stuff again. Oh no, no thanks.
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