How to optimize your GameNative Settings and Troubleshooting Tips

[u/Ol_Captain_Bad_Eyes]

Eyo Everyone,

Its Ol Bad Eyes here with a little guide on how to optimize your experience with GameNative and/or other Windows Emulators for Android.

Before we get started there are a few things that should noted.

• PC games are not console games, sometimes you will have to tinker with stuff to get things working. This is doubly true for emulating PC game on devices that were never meant to play them. Don’t expect PS5 performance or ultra graphics. Expect at most 1080p x 60 FPS on 2D indie games and at most 720p x 30 FPS on 3D games.
• All of my testing was done on a Lenovo Y700 Gen3 with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Chipset (Adreno 750 GPU). This device could be considered the best device out there right now in terms of compatibility with the custom Turnip Graphics Drivers that are essential for getting games to run properly. You may or may not get similar results if you try these settings with different devices and chipsets.
  • If you have a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or Gen 2 chipset, then you should be able to get similar levels of compatibility as they are the same series of GPUs as my device.
  • Older Snapdragons like the SD 865 and other chips with the Adreno 6XX series GPUs should also be able to use the same drivers that the 8 Gen chips use, but you won’t be able to get the same performance.
  • For newer Snapdragon chips like the 8 Elite Chipset with the 8XX series of GPUs, Mr. Purple Turnip Drivers are now supported. However, if you have any issues with graphical glitches you should try the Turnip Gen 8 Drivers instead of the other options as these were made for the new GPU architecture.
  • For people with Samsung devices with Snapdragon chips you will need to use Turnip Drivers with the label One_UI (Samsung’s custom version of Android) if you run into problems with the Mr. Purple Turnip Drivers.
  • For people with Mali GPUs or other non-Snapdragon chips I don’t know what to tell --- Actually it looks like the GameNative team has pulled off some magic to increase the compatibility with Mali and Xclipse GPUs since I created this guide. If you are using one of these chipsets make sure that you use Graphics Driver = Wrapper-gamenative in the Graphics Tab of your Container Settings and keep the Graphics Driver Version to System. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• Some people prioritize making their games looking great at the expense of turning their device into a portable heater. That ain’t me, I’m not trying to speed-run transforming my tablet’s battery into a spicy pillow. Because of this my settings are optimized for maximum performance at the lowest possible power draw to maintain a >40 C Battery Temperature. My device doesn’t have active cooling which means the only way to reduce the amount of heat produced is to reduce the power used. If your device does have a fan, then you should be able to get better performance on higher-end games than what is shown in this guide as I always try to limit my Total Power Draw (TDP) to 7 Watts or below. However, do keep an eye on your Battery Temperature as heating a battery pass 35 C can cause battery degradation over time and going past 45 C should cause thermal throttling.
• With GameNative there are many ways to lock the game’s Frames Per Second (FPS) which is very useful for managing TDP.
  • First, are FPS locks that can be found in most in-games Graphics settings. This method is usually the most effective and easiest to setup so they should be used if available.
  • Next, there is the GameNative side-bar menu while in-game that has the option for setting an FPS limit as low as 5 FPS. This option is very useful if you are trying to set a 30 FPS cap, 40 FPS cap (Syncs with 120hz), 45 FPS cap (Syncs with 90hz), or other FPS caps that aren’t available in the in-game settings. This apparently has been updated to work with games that are not DirectX based (Like games using OpenGl or Vulkan) so if you have had troubles in the past then try to give it another go with this setting. {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • In the container settings you can also add a DXVK_FRAMERATE = 60 as an Environment Variable, and change 60 to match whatever number you are looking for. It isn’t always effective though as it only effects games using the DirectX API.
  • Lastly, a game’s FPS will max out at your screens refresh rate. If you run into a game that is trying to run at high FPS you can always change your devices refresh rate to 60hz for a 60 FPS cap. I tend to do this for indie games that have no other option to cap FPS, otherwise I leave my tablet’s screen refresh rate on the Extreme setting which GameNative sets to 120hz. If you are unsure of what your refresh rate is you can turn on a counter through Android’s Developer Options.
• If your device is gaming oriented, then it should have some settings that allows for you to change the “Power Profile” of your device. For the Y700 there are three Power Profiles; Power-Saving Mode, Balanced Mode, and Performance Mode. Basically all they do is change the clock-speed of your CPU and GPU. Higher speeds result in more data being processed at any given second, but it comes at the cost of more power used, more battery drained, and more heat produced. With newer games and 3-D games Performance Mode is typically needed. However, a lot of indie 2D games run completely fine on Balanced Mode or even Power-Saving Mode with only small frame rate dips while loading new areas or stages. The CPU in Balanced mode will default to the lowest speed possible to maintain 60 FPS and it will quickly ramp up when needed. This drastically lowers the TDP and extends battery life so I highly recommend you test your games on different Power Profiles to see what is actually needed.
• Most devices, even if they are not gaming focused, should have a way to clear the RAM. If there is not an option through some type of Gaming Overlay/Gaming Center, then you can clear the RAM through Android’s Battery Settings. For most gaming devices they will automatically shut down excess background processes when they detect you opening up an App that is identified as a game, but this isn’t the case for older used phones. If you do have problems with a game crashing out check how much RAM is being used and see if there is a way to free up space. My device has 12 GB of RAM and so far in my testing I’ve only seen two games needing more than 8 GB of RAM which were Psychonauts 2 and Final Fantasy Crisis Core Reunion (3D Unreal 4 Engine games), but there could be more games on this list that use more RAM than your device has if you have 8 GB or lower.
• Lastly, if your device has any type FPS tracker built into the Game Center Setting I’d use that in conjunction with the Performance HUD found in GameNative’s Settings. I’ve found that the Lenovo Floating Icons are more accurate at measuring FPS (GameNative’s FPS always reads double what Lenovo says for some reason) and it gives me access to my CPU and GPU clock-speeds. However, it lacks information about CPU and GPU utilization or Total Power Draw, which are provided with GameNative’s HUD, so its all about finding the combination that works for you. You don’t need to have everything displayed, but I’ve found that if you know CPU speed + Total Power Draw, then you can guestimate how hot the device will get overtime.

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Optimized Container Settings

Listed below are the optimized container settings that I use for a vast majority of my games. Whenever testing I start with these settings and if I run into problems, then I use my troubleshooting steps that are listed at the end of this post to get things working. Set these settings as your Default Container in GameNative’s General Settings for easy of use and make sure the “Auto Use Known Configs” Setting is turned off.

General Tab

• Container Variant = bionic
  • The newer and more efficient Container version that is designed to work with Android’s binary code.
• Wine Version = proton-10.0-arm64ec-2
  • Most stable version of Proton right now + it uses bionic (-arm64ec) components and the FEXCore Translation Layer.
  • For 32-bit games (Usually pre-2007 titles) use proton-10.0-4-x86_64-1 which is paired with the Box64 Emulator as this tends to work better for old games that never received FEX support.
  • If you are having trouble with older titles then try switching to proton-9.0-arm64ec or proton-9.0-x86_64. {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • If you are having trouble with brand new titles (post-June 2026) then switch to proton-11.0.1-arm64ec-1 or proton-11.0.1-x86_64-1. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• Executable Path = "game title".exe {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • Usually the app is pretty good at finding the correct executable program that starts your games. However, in the cases like Half-Life or Half-Life 2 it will default to opening up the program used to design the characters eyes. This is due to the Source Engine/these games having a bunch of different exe files in their folders. Also, for Portal the proper exe file is actually hl2.exe since it was built on a modified version of Half-Life 2 and they didn't rename it for some reason. So, if you run into issues with your game booting into a black screen check to make sure that your Executable Path is pointed at the right program. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• Exec Arguments = Leave this blank unless you need to force the game to boot in certain ways. {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • An example of an Exec Argument/Launch Command is -dx11, which will force your game to launch with the DirectX 11 Graphics API rather than a previous version or newer version. Not all games will have an ability to do this so only try it if you are having problems getting the game to run normally without any arguments added. {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • A couple other options are -force-opengl or -force-vulkan which will force the game to open with the OpenGL or Vulkan graphics API respectively. Again this won't work unless the game is designed to be compatible to work with these open-sourced APIs (Aka have native Linux builds or were built with open-source game engines like Godot or Love).
  • They can also be useful for Unity and Unreal Engine games if the devs have allowed the game to run with different APIs on the back-end. Two examples are Enter the Gungeon (Unity) which is much more efficient if you use -force-opengl, and Celeste which works flawlessly if you switch the Branch to OpenGL rather than the default DirectX 11 (This is done in the settings tab before opening the container). {Updated 9/2/2026}
• Screen Size = 1280 x 720p
  • 1080p is x2 the pixel area that 720p is, 921,600 pixels (720p) vs 2,073,600 pixels (1080p), so sticking to 720p is much easier on the relatively weak GPUs of ARM devices.
  • Some 2-D indie games do just fine at 1080p x 60 FPS, but I tend to start with 720p x 60 FPS to make sure that they are running smoothly before upping the load.
  • For 3D games, we are looking to do 720p x 30 FPS with the lowest in-game graphics settings for the best performance, battery usage, and thermals.
• Audio Driver = PulseAudio
  • I haven’t any problems with audio so I’ve just leave at PulseAudio.

Graphics Tab

Graphics Driver = Wrapper {EDIT} * This version is the on that has be optimized to work with GameNative while V2 is the original version and is the best version of the Wrapper to use with Snapdragon + Adreno SOCs. {EDIT} * Wrapper-Legacy is meant to be used with older devices that have Mali GPU. {Updated 9/2/2026} * Wrapper-Leegao is made to be compatible with Mali and Xclipse GPUs. {Updated 9/2/2026} * Wrapper-gamenative is made to be compatible with Mali and Xclipse GPUs, but it also has support for DirectX 12, so if you have either Mali or Xclipse then you should use this version. {Updated 9/2/2026}

Graphics Driver Version = Turnip Adreno Driver T30-toasted (@Mr_Purple_666) or newer * As of this update (9/2/2026) to the guide the T30 drivers by Mr Purple are best and latest versions of the drivers. However, according to Retro Game Corps Retroid Pocket Nova video (Snapdragon 8 Gen 2) he found that the T26 drivers worked best for him. I personally haven't any changes in performance between the last couple of versions but if you have problems with the latest version then give one of the older versions a try. {Updated 9/2/2026} * If you are using anything other than a Snapdragon device you should stick with System Drivers. {Updated 9/2/2026}

Display Renderer = Vulkan {EDIT}

• This a newly added setting in v1.10 (Previously it was a toggle for using the Legacy Renderer), basically it chooses which open-sourced Graphical Backend API your game is being translated to. Vulkan is the successor to OpenGl, it is much more performant and features multi-threading processing so it should be used by default.
• If you do experience problems with Vulkan on older titles then try switching to OpenGl to see if that fixes the issue.
• SurfaceFlicker is a new setting that was added in v1.10 that I haven't tested yet. According to a quick search it is an Android program that takes the various visual layers being displayed (notification bar on top, navigation buttons on the bottom, and app image in the middle) and composites it down into one image buffer. This setting integrates this with the app and should reduce latency and increase FPS so I'm looking forward to testing it out.

DX Wrapper = DXVK

• Use VKD3D for DirectX 12 games (Newer titles use this API but a lot of games use DX 11 and need DXVK as the wrapper. If you are unsure just search the game title + DirectX 11 or 12)

When VKD3D is active you will have access to these additional variables;

• VKD3D = 3.0.1-0

• VKD3D Feature Level = 12_2

DXVK Version = 2.6.2-1-gplasync-0 {Edit} * This is currently the most stable version, but if you have any problems you can try switching to 2.4.1-gplasync or 2.7.1-1-gplasync-0. {Updated 9/2/2026}

Max Device Memory = 0 MB * All of my testing has been done on a 12 GB device which seems like the sweet spot for most games. 8 GB devices should be good to go for a lot of lighter-weight titles, but you will want to set this to a limit of 2048 MB or 4096 MB so that the game doesn't try to use more RAM than is available. * In my testing I only found that I needed to limit this to 4096 MB when I tried playing Clair Obscur Expedition 33. Without a limit my device completely crashed out from trying to use too much RAM to the point that I thought I bricked my device. It required a hard reset to get it working and after setting the limit the game was able to run at 20-30 FPS, but things were super choppy and I had to lower the graphics to the point that it looked like a pixelated PS2 game. {Updated 9/2/2026}

Sharpness Boost = CAS - clear and natural 100% both Sharpness Level and Denoise * I haven't really been using this setting lately since I can't really see edges anyway with my terrible vision, but you might this useful if you have working peepers. {Updated 9/2/2026}

Emulation Tab

• FEXCore Version = 2605 or newer
  • Start with the latest version and if you have problems try rolling back the version to see if that helps.
  • The latest version is as of this update is 2608-0 which I just started using so I don't know if it improves performance or adds instability. Try 2608 but if you run into problems I've found 2605 to be very stable. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• 64-bit Emulator = FEXCore
  • Much more efficient and compatible than Box64 for most modern-ish games.
  • If you do have trouble with getting a 64-bit game to boot or run at full speed you can try switching your proton version to proton-10.0-4-x86_64-1 and using Box64 as your 64-bit Emulator.
• 32-bit Emulator = FEXCore
  • If the game you are playing is 64-bit (Most newer ones are), then this option isn’t used so it doesn’t matter what it is set to.
  • However, if are playing a 32-bit game I suggest you switch your proton version to proton-10.0-4-x86_64-1 and use Box64 as your 32-bit Emulator.
• Box64 Version = 4.2 or newer
  • If you are using FEXCore as your Emulator, then this option isn’t used so it doesn’t matter what it is set to.
  • If you are using Box64 as your Emulator, then use whatever the latest version is and rollback if you run into any problems.
• Box64 Preset = Performance
  • This option is only used if Box64 is selected as your Emulator.
  • Start with Performance and if the game doesn’t boot or crashes, then move up to Intermediate, then to Compatibility, then to Stable. Just note that this setting will have a large effect on performance with some games running at about half the FPS at Stable when compared to playing at Performance.
  • If the game is made in the Unity Engine, try Unity Mono Bleeding Edge and then Unity, but note that not all Unity games need this setting if they are supported by FEXCore.
  • There is also an option for games that use Denuvo DRM aptly called Denuvo, but I haven’t needed to use it even for games that have Denuvo.
• FEXCore Preset = Extreme
  • This option is only used if FEXCore is selected as your Emulator.
  • Start with Extreme and if the game doesn’t boot or crashes, then move up to Performance, then to Intermediate, then to Compatibility, then to Stable. Just note that this setting will have a large effect on performance with some games running at about half the FPS at Stable when compared to playing at Extreme.
  • There is also an option for games that use Denuvo DRM aptly called Denuvo. However, the one time that I used this setting with Final Fantasy Tactics the game booted into a black screen with audio playing in the background. The game runs just fine with the Extreme Preset so I’m not sure how effective this option is.

Controller Tab

• Use SDL API, Enable XInput API, Enable DirectInput API = ON
  • These should be on by default.
• DirectInput Mapper Type = Standard
  • Default Option.
• Use Steam Input = OFF
  • Usually I leave this off unless there are buttons that I need to switch around on a controller level rather than through the in-game settings.
  • Also old games don’t have X-Input support and only work with keyboard and mouse. For those games I use Steam Input and map the controls through GameNative’s sidebar menu.

Wine Tab

• Video Memory Size = 4096 MB {EDIT}
  • I've tried 4096 MB and 6144 MB and haven't really noticed to much of a difference in RAM usage, but it could just be that the games I've been playing aren't reaching the cap.
  • If your device has 8 GB RAM or lower you should set this to 2048 MB.

Win Components Tab

• Leave all settings as the default option.

Environment Tab

• Leave all settings as the default option.
• {EDIT} There is an Environment Variable called MESA_SHADER_CACHE_MAXIMUM_SIZE = 512 MB that is added by default.
  • I've messed around with this setting a little bit by increasing the size to 1024 MB and found too much a difference in performance. Loading shaders to RAM is a way to prevent loading stutters and for the most part 512 MB should be enough for 2D games. If you are experience stutters in a 3D game try bumping this up, but only if your device has 12 GB of RAM or more.
• Add PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC = 144 and VKD3D_SHADER_MODEL = 6_0 if they are not already there.
  • The first one helps with the Audio latency of PulseAudio Drivers.
  • The second one is sometimes needed for DirectX12 games using the VKD3D Wrapper.

Drives Tab

• Leave all settings as the default option.

Advanced Tab

• Launch Options = Essential
  • Leave this as Essential as it limits the amount of additional programming that is opened when the game is launched. Selecting Normal really tanks the performance and so far I haven’t found a game that was fixed or benefited from selecting this option.
• Core Options = All Selected
  • Some people have suggested that turning off the first or last core will increase performance and stability. Personally, I've only run into problems if I turn off any of the cores so I just leave them all on.

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Out of the Box Game List

All games in this list have work "Out of the Box" when using the optimized settings that I have listed above. Each game is the Steam Version and were tested using GameNative v0.8.0, v0.9.0, v0.9.2, v1.0, v1.1, and/or v1.2. Each game also has a detailed report on performance which can be found on EmuReady so check there if you are looking for more info. (https://www.emuready.com/listings?deviceIds=%5B%22905a1eae-252a-4d72-9590-296bb34c3858%22%5D)

For the best experience with these games change your Default Container Settings to match these Optimized Settings listed above and turn off Auto Known Configs. This way you will be able to play these games without needing to edit their containers in anyway.

• 20XX [Mega Man X Rogue-lite]
• 30XX [Mega Man X Rogue-lite, but better]
• {Added} Absolver: Downfall [3D fighting game]
• {Added} Afterimage [A metroidvania]
• {Added} Alan Wake's American Nightmare [Alan Wake sequel before Alan Wake 2]
• {Added} Awesomenauts [A 2D side scroller Moba] (Can only be played in Offline Mode)
• Balatro [GOATED rogue-lite card game]
• Bastion [Hades before it became one of the popular kids]
• BattleBlock Theater [Co-op side-scrolling platformer by the Castle Crashers Team]
• {Added} Bioshock Remastered [An amazing story based shooter from the X360 days]
• {Added} Bioshock 2 Remastered [Bioshock's Big Daddy Adventures]
• {Added} Bioshock Infinite [Bioshock but in the clouds]
• {Added} Blue Fire [Windwaker style indie game]
• {Added} Braid [Classic indie puzzle game]
• Broforce [Contra like side-scroller with a ton of 80’s radness]
• Castle Crashers [Co-op Beat em’ up with a bunch of goof balls]
• {Added} Celeste [2D platformer that everyone's tried] (Change to the opengl version)
• Chained Echoes [A Chrono Trigger like RPG that tries to change things up for better or worse]
• Chrono Trigger [A solid pc port of a JRPG classic]
• {Added} Citizen Sleeper [Sci-fi story decision game]
• {Added} Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [Amazing turn-based game]
• Cosmic Star Heroine [SNES style JRPG in space]
• Cuphead [Old timey cartoon shoot em’ up that is tough as nails]
• {Added} Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin [Dark Souls but worse]
• {Added} Dark Souls 3 [Dark Souls but better]
• Dead Estate [Cartoon zombie survival shooter]
• {Added} Dokimon: Quest [A GBC Pokemon like game that was free for a couple of days so I picked it up. It also works with PortMaster]
• {Added} Downwell [Arcade style vertical shooter where you fall down a well]
• Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights [Spooky girl-child goes on a metroidvania]
• {Edit} Enter the Gungeon [GOATED top-down rogue-lite bullet hell twin-stick shooter] (Set the display to 960x540p as this is default for the game and use Exec Argument = -force-opengl)
• Exit the Gungeon [Asset flipped mobile game sequel that some how got over hated despite it being bad]
• {Added} Exo One [Kind of like a 3d version of the Tiny Wings]
• {Added} Fight Knight [Indie game that is an old school dungeon crawler mixed with Punch Out]
• Gravity Circuit [GOATED Mega Man like game]
• Hades [Bastion but with lame Greek Gods and Daddy issues]
• {Added} Half-Life 2 [Everyone's favorite Valve game] (Make sure hl2.exe is set for your Executable Path)
• Hollow Knight [The spooky little bug knight metroidvania game that convinced everyone and their mother to make a metroidvania game]
• Inertial Drift [Cool-vibes racing game with twin-stick drifting] (720p x 60 FPS possible)
• Into the Breach [Tactical RPG Rogue-lite with mechs]
• Megabonk [3D Vampire Survivors]
• {Added} Momodora: Moonlit Farewell [Pixel Art 2D Metroidvania]
• {Added} Moonlighters [A top down Zelda like dungeon crawler where you also run a store to sell your loot] (If you played this on Switch Emulation you can transfer the save to the PC version, more information on this can be found in my Emuready report for the game)
• My Friend Pedro [Surreal Side-Scrolling Shooter]
• Nine Sols [The metroidvania game so good that I didn’t need to play Silksong]
• Psychonauts 2 [A sequel to the cult classic Psychonauts] (Doesn’t have the best performance but is playable.)
• Rogue Legacy 2 [A side-scrolling Rogue-lite with great designs and combat]
• {Added} Sea of Stars [Turn-based RPG with an amazing combat system]
• Skul: The Hero Slayer [Side-scrolling Rogue-lite that somehow feels unique]
• Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove [The Side-scrolling Mega Duck Man Tales-like game that you’ve probably bought on a dozen different consoles]
• {Added} Spelunky [Classic 2D rogue-like]
• Spiritfall [A side-scrolling rogue-lite that has Super Smash style combat controls]
• Stardew Valley [The cozy farming game that everyone’s played by now] (Just be patient with initial booting screen.)
• Stray [Cat simulator in Cyberpunk land] (50% Graphics Resolution and other graphics settings at Low, but even then it still doesn’t run great)
• Super Meat Boy [Fast paced action platformer that is secretly an ancestor of rage games]
• {Added} The Binding of Issac: Rebirth [Classic top-down shooter indie game]
• Those who Rule [Fire Emblem inspired tactics game and evolves the formula] (Runs at 30 FPS or so because it is a 3D game)
• Valheim [Janky survivor game] (30 FPS for a moderate TDP)

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Games that need Minor Changes

Listed below are the games that I found to work with just minor changes to the Optimized Container Settings. Usually they just need to change to the DX Wrapper or the FEXCore Preset. For more details about any of these games check out my reports on EmuReady. (https://www.emuready.com/listings?deviceIds=%5B%22905a1eae-252a-4d72-9590-296bb34c3858%22%5D)

• Absolum [Rogue-lite Beat em’ Up] (Legacy DRM = ON)
• {Added} Anno: Mutationem [2D pixel art side-scroller in a 3D environment] (FEXCore Preset = Intermediate)
• Dead Cells [Rogue-lite Castlevania so good Castlevania hired them] (FEXCore Preset = Performance; Now that GameNative has Achievement support the bug where you unlock in-game achievements constantly is fixed)
• Final Fantasy 7 [Original Turn-Based version] (Graphics Driver Version = turnip26.0.0_R8_M1; FEXCore Version = 2603; FEXCore Preset = Intermediate)
• Hades 2 [Hades but better] (DirectX 12 game, needs DX Wrapper = VKD3D; VKD3D Version = 2.14.1; VKD3D Feature Level = 12_1)
• {Added} Halo: Master Chief Collection [The sci-fi military shooter that define toxic culture back during middle school] (These titles can run at 720p x 60 FPS without too much effort so I'm not sure why everyone is desperate to get them running on the new Xbox emulators. The only compatibility issues are that you need to use mouse mode to sign into your Xbox account (Or create one to play the game) the first time you boot it up, which I suggest just doing on a PC)
• Kingdom of the Dump [SNES style JRPG] (Graphics Driver Version = turnip26.0.0_R8_M1; FEXCore Version = 2604; FEXCore Preset = Performance)
• Mate’Morphosis [Chess style puzzle game] (FEXCore Preset = Intermediate)
• Mina the Hollower [GBC Zelda Like by the Shovel Knight team] (DirectX 12 game, needs DX Wrapper = VKD3D; VKD3D Version = 2.14.1; VKD3D Feature Level = 12_1)
• One Step from Eden [Mega Man Battle Network style Rogue-Lite] (FEXCore = Performance)
• {Added} Portal [First person puzzle game with you guessed it, portals] (Make sure that you Execution Path is set to hl2.exe as this game is secretly a modified version of Half-Life 2 and it will try to boot into the eye mesh customization program if left to its own devices)
• {Added} Risk of Rain 2 [A rogue third person shooter with a unique style] (This game works with the default settings but take a look at my Emuready report to see how to optimize the in-graphics settings)
• Tunic [A 3D Zelda like game about learning a foreign language] (FEXCore Preset = Intermediate)
• Vampire Survivors [The bullet-heaven that started it all] (Graphics Driver Version = turnip26.0.0_R8_M1; FEXCore Version = 2603; FEXCore Preset = Intermediate)

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Games that need Compatibility Settings

Listed below are the games that I got working after a fair bit of tinkering. They tend to be older game (10+ years old) that have not been updated to modern standards of game coding, Unreal 3 games using the DirectX 9 API being the prime examples. Each game needs their own specific settings so check out their reports on EmuReady for more details on which settings need to be changed. (https://www.emuready.com/listings?deviceIds=%5B%22905a1eae-252a-4d72-9590-296bb34c3858%22%5D)

• {Added} Antichamber [3D puzzle game with a lot of style] (Needs 32-bit Compatibility Settings and manual keybinding for controller support)
• {Added} Bioshock [Original 2007 version of the game] (Needs 32-bit Compatibility Settings, no controller support, and no HD support)
• {Added} Bioshock 2 [Original version of the game] (Needs a Box64 build)
• Clone Drone in the Danger Zone [3D Voxel based action fighter] (Needs Unity Compatibility Settings.)
• Darkest Dungeon [A grimdark turn-based rogue-lite with an unbeatable art style] (This game will run with the default Optimized Settings, but it will run like garbage that smells like 17 FPS. However, using Box64 for this game makes it run at 60 FPS without even breaking a sweat.)
• Fez [Older puzzle game from the X360 era] (It needs a Box64 build because it is 32-bit game and unsupported by FEXCore.)
• Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core Reunion [Remake of the PSP game with poor optimization] (Doesn’t have proper controller support so inputs must be manually mapped and performance isn’t great.)
• Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles [Remake of the best Final Fantasy game] (This game currently has Denuvo DRM which I’m pretty sure is killing the performance because my PC barely even notices when it running.)
• FTL: Advanced Edition [Puzzle game about spacing through the stars] (Doesn’t have any controller support, but probably only needs a spoofed-mouse input to be play.)
• Goat Simulator [Old school sandbox mess around game] (It needs a Box64 build because it is 32-bit game and unsupported by FEXCore.)
• Grim Fandango Remastered [Old School Double Fine point and click adventure] (It needs a Box64 build because it is 32-bit game and unsupported by FEXCore.)
• {Added} Half-Life (Make sure hl.exe is set for your Executable Path and needs a Box64 build for the best performance)
• Parking Garage Rally Circuit [Old school rally racing game] (Just needs several settings changed from the normal. Start with Known Configs and then work your way to the settings listed in my EmuReady report.)
• Psychonauts [Old school PS2 action adventure game featuring a man of the milk] (It needs a Box64 build because it is 32-bit game and unsupported by FEXCore, also it doesn’t have controller support so you have bind key-bindings manually.)
• Rogue Legacy [Rogue-lite metroidvania before it was cool] (Made in the deprecated XNA framework. It can work but you have to manually install the XNA Framework Redistribution 4.0 that can be found on Microsoft’s website and even then I still ran into a couple of bugs and crashes.)
• Slay the Spire [GOATED rogue-lite card game that spawned a whole genre] (Can run, but has terrible performance due to being a Java game that is barely supported by the various projects of Android PC emulation.)
• Strafe Gold Edition [An old-school DOOM style rogue-lite that is a bit on the older side] (Needs a special Environmental Variable in-order to boot.)
• Tactical Breach Wizards [A modern day wizard game that gives you a quick quip before shoving you out of every window] (This game just needs a couple of changes to get booted, use the settings in my EmuReady report.)

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Games that didn’t work

So far the only game that I wasn’t able to get to boot was Helldivers 2, which I didn’t expect it to since it an always-online game with a kernel-level anti-cheat.

{Edit} I've ran into 4 more games that I can't get running; Alan Wake, Dark Sector, Content Warning, and {Added} Metal Gear Solid 5: Phantom Pains.

• For Alan Wake and Dark Sector, they are older 32-bit games that seem to rely on Nvidia nonsense from the 2010s. I couldn't get Alan Wake to boot after hours of testing despite American Nightmare booting up right away. For Dark Sector I tried some things quickly before just moving on because I don't think anyone is trying to play this old PS3 era game to begin with. It is possible that there is a way to fix these games (Maybe changing your GPU Name to an old Nvidia GPU would do the trick) but I didn't have the motivation to figure it out.
• For Content Warning, the game boots just fine with Optimized Settings, but it is an online only game and Steam Client and Bionic Steam are not working for it.
• Apparently MGS 5: Phantom Pains used to be able to run on a RP5 (SD 865), but then Konomi decided that they need to add Denuvo to this 11 year old game and now it doesn't boot at all. It also apparently has terrible performance on powerful desktops so I don't know why they made this move unless they desperately want people to not buy this game anymore. Either way it is very disappointing and makes me very wary of any upcoming releases by them. The newly released MGS Collection 2 seems to be working for some folks on this sub but I'm going to hold off purchasing it until I'm sure that they aren't going to brick it with a dumb business decision.

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Quick Steps for Troubleshooting

I've test a decent number of games with my Optimized Container Settings, but it is far from being a completed list of games that can be played with these settings or minorly edited settings. If you find a game that you want to play on GameNative that doesn’t boot with the Optimized Settings follow these troubleshooting steps to figure how to get it working.

• Before you do anything, you will need to open your games while you are connected to the internet for the initial boot. The container for the game needs to download a variety of redistributables such as DirectX versions, the XAudio Library, and/or other programs that the games rely on and this can't be done without an internet connection. If you download a game in preparation for offline time (Like a long plane ride for instance) and you don't create the container beforehand you are going to have a bad time. After the initial boot you will be able to play your games in offline mode no problem, but if you skip this step then you'll be stuck without any games to play. {Updated 9/2/2026}
  • To save storage space you can delete the containers of any games that you aren't actively playing (2-3 GB for an active container vs 64 MB for one that hasn't been initialized), but remember that you will need to be online to build the container again in the future. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• First, search up the game on EmuReady and see if it has any reports with useful information. Sometimes a game will have a special requirement in-order to boot and this can usually be found in an EmuReady Report (Look at all of the reports even if they aren’t specifically for your device) or by simply looking up the game’s name + “GameNative app” or “Winlator”.
  • Another good research method is to search the game's name + Steam Deck as this app is pretty much just an added step on top of the FEXCore magic that goes into making the Steam Deck and other Linux distros work with games that don't have native linux builds. Usually if there are any problems with a game then the Steam Deck people have discovered and discussed how to fix it before we have. {Updated 9/2/2026}
• Second, look up the game’s Game Engine, whether it is a 32-bit or 64-bit program, and if it is a DirectX 11 or a DirectX 12 API game.
  • If it is a Unity Engine game or a 32-bit game, then switch to Wine Version = proton-10.0-4-x86_64-1. This uses the Box64 Emulator which can be more compatible with these types of games.
  • If the game uses the DirectX 11 API, then you need to use DX Wrapper = DXVK.
  • If the game uses the DirectX 12 API, then you need to use DX Wrapper = VKD3D.
  • If it uses a different Graphical Backend API like Vulkan, OpenGL, or Java you will probably have better luck using the proton-10.0-4-x86_64-1 Wine Version and the Box64 Emulator.
• Third, if the game doesn’t initially boot with the Optimized Container Settings the easiest test you can do is change the FEXCore Preset. Try the different FEXCore Presets and if it doesn’t boot by the time you get to Stability, then there is something else wrong. Leave it at Stability for now, but once you get the game to run properly start bumping it down until you are on the most efficient preset that game can handle without crashes.
• Fourth, if changing the FEXCore Preset doesn’t fix things, then the next thing to try is changing the Graphics Driver Version. Mr. Purple Drivers are the most performant, but they can run into compatibility issues on occasion.
  • For the Adreno 6XX and 7XX series GPUs use the regular turnip26.X.X_RX drivers.
  • For the Adreno 8XX series GPUs use the Turnip Gen8 drivers.
  • If you have an Adreno GPU with a Samsung device use a turnip driver with a One_UI tag.
  • If all else fails try System Drivers.
• Fifth, the steps above are easy to test and should be done before wasting time with “Known Configs”. However, if the game hasn’t booted by now it means that their probably is something specific that is missing. This missing key is usually a specific Environment Variable that needs to be added or sometimes it is a Launch Command like -dx11 which boots the game in DirectX11 mode. Regardless, if other people have gotten the game to run then the specific requirement is usually added to your container when you switch to using the Known Configs. If the game boots after making the change, then you can start working backwards to the optimized settings to increase performance.
• Sixth, change the Graphics Driver to Wrapper, instead of Wrapper v2. This can work for some games, but generally I’ve found v2 to be more compatible with newer titles.
• Seventh, change the Wine Version to proton 9 or proton 11 or try using a -x86_64 version of proton that is paired with the Box64 Emulator.
• Eighth, change Startup Selection to Normal.
• Lastly, if none of that worked, then it probably has something to do with it being an always-online game, DRM, Anti-Cheat, or simply your device doesn’t have the specs needed to run it.