Support us on Patreon to keep GamingOnLinux alive. This ensures all of our main content remains free for everyone. Just good, fresh content! Alternatively, you can donate through PayPal. You can also buy games using our partner links for GOG and Humble Store.
We do often include affiliate links to earn us some pennies. See more here.

Recently the Aleph One team released the classic Bungie shooter Marathon on Steam, as I covered previously, but it's only officially for macOS and Windows despite the open source project supporting Linux. Now you can just use Luxtorpeda for it.

What is Luxtorpeda? It's a Steam Play tool (like Proton) that allow you to run games on Steam via a Native Linux build if one exists for it that's not available on Steam. Like OpenMW for Morrowind, the S.T.A.L.K.E.R games with OpenXRay, and many more with Classic Marathon now added to that list. The point is it keeps it all inside Steam, and gives you what is usually an updated game engine.

So you'll use ProtonUp-Qt to download Luxtorpeda, then set Classic Marathon on Steam to use Luxtorpeda in the Steam Play Compatibility settings and it will download Aleph One and set it up for you. You can check out my previous article about Luxtorpeda being used on Steam Deck as an example.

After you launch it will do a quick download of Aleph One, set it up for you and away you go. Then you get to play the Linux version easily, which I tested working great via this method today.

Luxtorpeda is a really great project, truly useful when you think about just how many games now have various Native Linux game engines (open source or not) that provide a better experience than what's currently available on Steam. In this case though, it's just because they for some reason didn't put the Linux version on Steam so if you prefer that over Proton this is your easy way to do it.

See more on the Classic Marathon Steam page. And find Luxtorpeda on GitHub.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
8 Likes
About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked 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. You can also follow my personal adventures on Bluesky.
See more from me
All posts need to follow our rules. For users logged in: please hit the Report Flag icon on any post that breaks the rules or contains illegal / harmful content. Guest readers can email us for any issues.
5 comments

TimeFreeze May 14
I asked the Devs in their Discord on why there is no Linux version yet even though there is one available just not for the Steam version and they said i quote:

the steam linux SDK is like 8 years old
so it's not a simple as just build the linux version, unfortunately
Afterwards i asked if there is a chance that in the future it might get one and they said i quote:

well they have a new one in beta, which they have to pick your game to opt into
for now, it runs great with proton 9 in linux for me
rea987 May 14
I asked the Devs in their Discord on why there is no Linux version yet even though there is one available just not for the Steam version and they said i quote:

well they have a new one in beta, which they have to pick your game to opt into
for now, it runs great with proton 9 in linux for me

laziness noun

- the fact of being unwilling to work or be active
        
- lack of care in doing something


https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/laziness


Last edited by rea987 on 14 May 2024 at 11:15 am UTC
Pyrate May 14
they said i quote:

Quote
the steam linux SDK is like 8 years old

Is that true? How is Valve and other developers releasing Linux Native games recently then?
d10sfan May 14
Thanks for the article!

The original steam Linux runtime is very old but they have a new one called soldier and sniper that is on much more modern base. It's an opt in thing where you ask valve to use it, there's been a few games that did so and valve uses it for dota 2 and cs2 I velieve
CatKiller May 14
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
the steam linux SDK is like 8 years old

Is that true? How is Valve and other developers releasing Linux Native games recently then?
No. If you want to do hyperbolic complaints about the age of the target libraries because you can't be arsed to do a Linux build, you'd say that they were 12 years old. That's the original "scout" set, from the very beginning of Steam for Linux, based on Ubuntu 12.04.

If you build against a "scout" container, you actually get mostly libraries from "soldier" except for those that have to be from "scout" for ABI compatibility. "soldier" is based on the libraries from Debian 10 in 2019. This (building against "scout" and getting "soldier") is the currently recommended set. You can't build against "soldier" directly and release on Steam.

There is also "sniper" for future games, based on Debian 11 from 2021. If you build against that someone from Valve has to tweak the configuration before it can be released on Steam because the plumbing for making that work with a tickbox in steamworks is being done at Valve Time.


Last edited by CatKiller on 14 May 2024 at 3:16 pm UTC
While you're here, please consider supporting GamingOnLinux on:

Reward Tiers: Patreon. Plain Donations: PayPal.

This ensures all of our main content remains totally free for everyone! Patreon supporters can also remove all adverts and sponsors! Supporting us helps bring good, fresh content. Without your continued support, we simply could not continue!

You can find even more ways to support us on this dedicated page any time. If you already are, thank you!
Login / Register