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Diablo 4 is just about to release for everyone, and after blasting through the Early Access I've been thoroughly impressed by how it runs on Steam Deck and desktop Linux.

Firstly, if you need to know how to install Battle Net on either Steam Deck or desktop Linux, I've covered multiple ways before. You can install it directly using Proton (no need for GE-Proton now though, just Proton Experimental is fine) or you can use the newer way with the NonSteamLauncher script. You could also try it through Lutris.

By default it will give you Low details but if you bump it up to Medium a little, lock it to 40FPS and turn on FSR 2 quality, you get a game that looks good and performs to a consistent level. Their FSR 2 implementation seems to be pretty great, and the reduced power drain will let you play for longer.

Here's a video and some thoughts on Steam Deck along with my settings:

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Overall, it's an impressive show for performance and a lot of fun to play through. Nice to see another huge release working nearly to perfection on Steam Deck.

Naturally I've been testing it on desktop Linux too where it also works. One issue I did have, was opening the map for the first time on desktop caused the game to lock up. Reloading and this wasn't a problem. Through repeated testing, it only seemed to happen the very first time. Apart from that, everything else on desktop with my NVIDIA 2080 Ti works as expected and I've been seeing over 100FPS at 2560x1440 in busy town areas, and much higher out in the open world. Overall, it seems to be great.

Pictured - Diablo 4 on Fedora KDE 38

Are you going to pick up Diablo 4? Or have you been playing during Early Access? Let me know in the comments your thoughts on the latest in the series.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly.
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26 comments
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Liam Dawe Jul 12, 2023
Quoting: marinegeek23Liam - What are you using for you system info banner at the top of the screen? I've not seen it before but it looks like it could be Conky. If it is - can you share your script? Thanks!
It's just MangoHud with the horizontal style, customized to add / remove what I want :)
theflamingchicken Jul 16, 2023
My wife and I were also having a wonderful time playing this together on our Steam Decks. Until this morning when she received an email from Blizzard notifying her that her account is banned with no recourse. I suspect it has something to do with the Steam Deck. I set it up for both of us using Lutris the exact same way. She got banned and I didn't. They didn't offer a reason, except to say she violated their terms without being specific.

It's very upsetting because now I can't even enjoy playing with the constant threat of having my account banned. Is anyone else having this issue with their Steam Deck?
Mal Jul 16, 2023
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Quoting: theflamingchickenMy wife and I were also having a wonderful time playing this together on our Steam Decks. Until this morning when she received an email from Blizzard notifying her that her account is banned with no recourse. I suspect it has something to do with the Steam Deck. I set it up for both of us using Lutris the exact same way. She got banned and I didn't. They didn't offer a reason, except to say she violated their terms without being specific.

It's very upsetting because now I can't even enjoy playing with the constant threat of having my account banned. Is anyone else having this issue with their Steam Deck?

Stop necroing threads from 2012... ah no, wait a minute. Again?
theflamingchicken Jul 17, 2023
Luckily, so far it seems like there's no massive Linux banwave incoming. I can't fathom why my poor wife became so unlucky as to be the victim of an anti Linux rogue anti cheat, though. We were playing together on Steam Decks with identical configurations. We are in the process of appealing the ban, but they don't make it straightforward.
slaapliedje Jul 18, 2023
Quoting: theflamingchickenLuckily, so far it seems like there's no massive Linux banwave incoming. I can't fathom why my poor wife became so unlucky as to be the victim of an anti Linux rogue anti cheat, though. We were playing together on Steam Decks with identical configurations. We are in the process of appealing the ban, but they don't make it straightforward.
Comes down to... just not giving Blizzard any money. That's been my rule since Diablo 2, though I did end up getting D3 to play with my brother... and it sucked, so definitely not giving them money for D4.
Eike Jul 20, 2023
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I played Diablo IV at a friend's PC and what I hated about it is that you get to meet other players randomly. I am supposed to be The One To Save The World! ... except there's also buffoon27 next to me, who's The One To Save The World as well. And there's not even an opt-out for it.
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