For those interested in the latest big RPG from Larian Studios, here's my quick initial report on Baldur's Gate 3 running on Steam Deck and desktop Linux. Keep in mind this is just some initial testing thoughts - it's a very big game.
The first and most important thing: right now it appears you're going to want Proton Experimental set on it. You can install it from your Steam Library, and then go into the game's Properties -> Compatibility -> Tick the box and select Proton Experimental from the drop-down that appears. Otherwise, you're likely to see a bunch of crashing issues. Currently Valve has it set to Proton 7 which is somewhat old now as that was tested for verification back in September 2022 when it was in Early Access. Update 04/08/23 - Valve released an update to Proton Hotfix for it so you may wish to now use that.
Pictured - Baldur's Gate 3 on openSUSE Linux, Ultra Details (Frametiming spikes from screenshots).
After setting the right Proton, the game will launch and run properly. From my initial testing though, one problem I have seen currently is that the audio is at times just a bit out of sync and the narrator can get cut-off before finishing a sentence. Not all the time but it is an issue I've noticed on desktop.
One issue in the launcher you may see is a message about outdated drivers on Linux, which can safely be ignored because it's looking for Windows drivers and we have different version numbers. Aside from that, the launcher works as expected.
I also see this error every time I launch that appears, but it can safely be clicked away without an issue.
With my AMD Ryzen 5800x and NVIDIA 2080 Ti, performance has been pretty good. Sticking with it on DirectX 11 as Vulkan (from what I've seen) can be problematic, I've been playing it on the Ultra details preset and the majority of the time it's above 60FPS at 2560x1440. In less intense areas, the FPS has been much higher between 90-100FPS. So far I'm pretty happy with the performance level of running it on Linux with Proton! That said, there's plenty of random stutter, which is most likely the shader cache building up, which will be less of a problem over time.
Pictured - Baldur's Gate 3 on openSUSE Linux, Ultra Details (Frametiming spikes from screenshots).
When it comes to the Steam Deck the developers said they were "aiming" for Steam Deck Verified by launch but it seems they didn't quite make it since it's still noted as Playable right now. It does have full controller support ready but they have disabled split-screen on Steam Deck. Additionally, Larian are working on adding AMD FSR 2.2 for September 6th, so performance is likely to be quite a bit better when that's added in. So I'll be taking another proper look at Baldur's Gate 3 on Steam Deck then as well.
So how is it on Steam Deck? Well, it's a bit rough actually. Playable? Yes but performance is not great. The defaults set for it on Steam Deck are poor too, with their FSR making it quite blurry. Performance is also all over the place, some parts might shoot up to ~40FPS but lots of it will dip below 30FPS even with various settings turned down to Low.
Pictured: Baldur's Gate 3 on Steam Deck.
I will suggest setting the Maximum Framerate Cap to 30FPS, VSync to Double Buffering, FSR to Ultra Quality, Model Quality on Low, Texture Filtering to Trilinear, Shadows / Fog and Clouds on Low, Ambient Occlusion turned Off and God Rays turned Off. A lot of the settings are based on what you feel is best though, these are just initial suggestions. You're also only looking at about an hour and a half on the battery.
The user interface on Steam Deck is looking great though, their new controller support is really nice.
Pictured: Baldur's Gate 3 on Steam Deck.
Nice to see another massive launch, quite possibly one of the biggest launches of the year, working same-day on Linux and Steam Deck thanks to the power of the Proton compatibility layer. I don't think I can overstate just how important it is for Linux desktop and Steam Deck to have such releases working so promptly, and looking at the player numbers just before hitting publish on release day Baldur's Gate 3 saw around 450,000 people playing it on Steam — that's crazy.
Hopefully their switch over to FSR 2 in September will improve it on Steam Deck though, as it could use a bit of a boost. Still, around 30FPS is pretty okay for a game like this on a handheld with a small screen.
Here's some Steam Deck footage and early thoughts:
Direct Link
Do you need to have played the previous games to enjoy Baldur's Gate 3? Simply put: no. Thankfully. It's an entirely new adventure with new characters but you will see some familiar faces and places if you have played the previous games but no knowledge of them is needed.
You can buy Baldur's Gate 3 on Steam.
The release trailer can be viewed below:
Direct Link
Sync also worked fine.
Arehandoro Aug 5, 2023
Quoting: RaabenQuoting: ArehandoroSomething that annoys me, though, how can I disable the version number to show on screen all the time? Couldn't find the toggle in the menus.There was a small hotfix for the game itself yesterday and though I didn't play much, it seemed a little more stable on DX11 as in I had no crashes there (Vulkan still a mess and now I can't even get to the main menu with it) and is pulling almost 100 watts less on my desktop.
Roll checks seem to be VERY high since that update. I haven't failed a single one since. The game version doesn't appear on screen now :)
Quoting: ArehandoroQuoting: RaabenQuoting: ArehandoroSomething that annoys me, though, how can I disable the version number to show on screen all the time? Couldn't find the toggle in the menus.There was a small hotfix for the game itself yesterday and though I didn't play much, it seemed a little more stable on DX11 as in I had no crashes there (Vulkan still a mess and now I can't even get to the main menu with it) and is pulling almost 100 watts less on my desktop.
Roll checks seem to be VERY high since that update. I haven't failed a single one since. The game version doesn't appear on screen now :)
Oh nice, I hope that did remove the number. As for dice rolls, maybe you're seeing the effects of the default karmic dice setting :P
I turned that off since it works against you too by applying to combat/NPCs as well. I'd rather deal with actual rolls than the game trying to weigh it in or out of favor.
Arehandoro Aug 5, 2023
Quoting: RaabenQuoting: ArehandoroQuoting: RaabenQuoting: ArehandoroSomething that annoys me, though, how can I disable the version number to show on screen all the time? Couldn't find the toggle in the menus.There was a small hotfix for the game itself yesterday and though I didn't play much, it seemed a little more stable on DX11 as in I had no crashes there (Vulkan still a mess and now I can't even get to the main menu with it) and is pulling almost 100 watts less on my desktop.
Roll checks seem to be VERY high since that update. I haven't failed a single one since. The game version doesn't appear on screen now :)
Oh nice, I hope that did remove the number. As for dice rolls, maybe you're seeing the effects of the default karmic dice setting :P
I turned that off since it works against you too by applying to combat/NPCs as well. I'd rather deal with actual rolls than the game trying to weigh it in or out of favor.
Good point. I'll have a look :)
Quoting: ArehandoroThe game version doesn't appear on screen now
It's still there for me.
InhaleOblivion Aug 5, 2023
And better yet...
Yep, the lack of Denuvo had no appreciable effect on the sales of this title. Glad I was sitting down when that bombshell landed, eh?
Makes me wonder how Denuvo pitch their shitty technology to any big-name studio who wants to do Early Access.
QuoteNice to see another massive launch, quite possibly one of the biggest launches of the year, working same-day on Linux and Steam Deck thanks to the power of the Proton compatibility layer. I don't think I can overstate just how important it is for Linux desktop and Steam Deck to have such releases working so promptly, and looking at the player numbers just before hitting publish on release day Baldur's Gate 3 saw around 450,000 people playing it on Steam — that's crazy.This isn't my sort of game, but it always makes me happy to see big titles like this aiming for Linux/Steam Deck compatibility on day one - I hope that it bodes well for the future.
Quoting: scaineYep, the lack of Denuvo had no appreciable effect on the sales of this title. Glad I was sitting down when that bombshell landed, eh?I had my first run-in with Denuvo recently - it got added to a game that I was interested in, so then I didn't buy it. It saved me some money, at least.
Makes me wonder how Denuvo pitch their shitty technology to any big-name studio who wants to do Early Access.
StoneColdSpider Aug 7, 2023
Quoting: scaineYep, the lack of Denuvo had no appreciable effect on the sales of this title. Glad I was sitting down when that bombshell landed, eh?While Denuvo is shitty and I refuse to purchase a game that has it...... I think you need to be looking at the shareholders for why its in the games...... Shareholders have way more influence in what a business does than people seem to want to admit........
Makes me wonder how Denuvo pitch their shitty technology to any big-name studio who wants to do Early Access.
Also this might be the conspiracy theory side of me coming out...... But it would be interesting to see who is a publisher shareholder and also a Denuvo shareholder......
Quoting: PenglingI had my first run-in with Denuvo recently - it got added to a game that I was interested in, so then I didn't buy it. It saved me some money, at least.I have a heap of games in my ignore list on Steam thanks to them having Denuvo.........
I do wish Steam would make peoples ignore lists visible to others....... I dont want a steam friend buying me a game that is on my ignore list....... And I dont want to buy a steam friend a game thats on their ignore list........
Quoting: StoneColdSpiderI think you need to be looking at the shareholders for why its in the games...... Shareholders have way more influence in what a business does than people seem to want to admit........Based on what experience?
Also this might be the conspiracy theory side of me coming out...... But it would be interesting to see who is a publisher shareholder and also a Denuvo shareholder......
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