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A huge Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 patch has landed improving many parts of the game, along with helping performance with an upgrade to NVIDIA DLSS3, AMD FSR3.1 and Frame Generation plus some improvements to their anti-cheat (Easy Anti-Cheat).

The version bump for DLSS2 and FSR along with adding Frame Generation should enable more systems to perform better overall. For DLSS 3 Frame Generation on Desktop Linux, you'll need the current Proton Experimental or the Beta of Proton 9.0-4 which both have support for it added. Another major change is that as of this update mods are no longer supported in public lobbies. As they explained previously, it was causing all sorts of server problems but they're still allowed in private games. Seems fair enough.

For Desktop Linux, if you want to actually play online multiplayer, you will need to pretend your PC is a Steam Deck with this launch command:

SteamDeck=1 %command%

This will initially also drop all your settings down to Low and 30FPS limit, so you'll then need to change your graphics settings. If you don't do the launch option on Desktop Linux you'll see an EOS error at the menu (single-player still works), and you'll be kicked from online games due to mods being detected (even with none).

Slightly annoying that we're seeing more games do this lately, but at least it's easy to work around.

With the launch option, online play appears to work without issue on Desktop Linux with Proton Experimental.


Pictured - Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on Kubuntu 24.04, online PvP

On Steam Deck directly though, the game launches without issue. And thanks to the AMD FSR update, it should look and perform better than before.

I don't have any direct comparison here for the Steam Deck though since I didn't try it previously. I've seen others play it, and it was awful originally. What's surprising here with Space Marine 2 update 5.0 now is that on Steam Deck with Low settings + AMD FSR Performance and Frame Generation On — it's actually a lot more playable.


Pictured - Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on Steam Deck

Since Frame Generation is usually terrible if the game is already struggling below 60FPS, I'm surprised that not only did it make Space Marine 2 on Steam Deck hit much higher FPS, but the frame timing remained mostly okay as well. I still firmly don't recommend it on Steam Deck though, as the visual quality is pretty poor and there's a fair amount of small text.


Pictured - Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on Steam Deck

Be sure to keep checking back on our anti-cheat compatibility page for more info on multiplayer games for Steam Deck / Linux Desktop.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 | Release Date: 24th May 2024

Official links and where to buy from:

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 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.
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7 comments

Zlopez 5 days ago
  • Supporter Plus
I played it on Steam Deck before and it was playable just running on lowest settings. But this could be a nice improvement.
herrorange 5 days ago
If I add `SteamDeck=1`, it does not allow me to crank all setting to the max, complaining I don't have enough VRAM, that's with RX 7900XTX. I don't play online, so ultimately it does not matter, but still.
Thibug 4 days ago
How is the game overall for a mostly single player experience? I got hooked on 40K recently and want to dive into the video game universe but will most likely play solo


Last edited by Thibug on 10 December 2024 at 2:48 pm UTC
Zlopez 4 days ago
  • Supporter Plus
Quoting: ThibugHow is the game overall for a mostly single player experience? I got hooked on 40K recently and want to dive into the video game universe but will most likely play solo

There is only a relatively short campaign. It's great, but you can finish it in few hours. If you want a great 40K experience in a single player package I recommend Rogue Trader.
Avehicle7887 4 days ago
Hopefully GOG release sometime in the near future.
Cerberon 3 years 4 days ago
Quoting: ThibugHow is the game overall for a mostly single player experience? I got hooked on 40K recently and want to dive into the video game universe but will most likely play solo
It could be considered short, it took me 10-12 hours on the easier difficulty. It's really good though.
14 9 hours ago
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  • Supporter Plus
Quoting: herrorangeIf I add `SteamDeck=1`, it does not allow me to crank all setting to the max, complaining I don't have enough VRAM, that's with RX 7900XTX. I don't play online, so ultimately it does not matter, but still.
You can just ignore this.
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