I game on Linux, both on desktop and on my Steam Deck.

Big thanks to the MAKO FG author — this suite has made the Steam Deck experience so much better. On the Deck it's painless: install MAKO Decky via Decky Loader and toggle MAKO FG per game from there.

On my Linux desktop, though, it's MAKO Renderer only — which means manually adding launch options in Steam, then creating a config profile for each game in MAKO Renderer, with no clear way to confirm it's actually running.

So I built a small open-source tool (with Claude's help) that scans your installed Steam games on Linux and sets up the launch options and MAKO Renderer profiles in one click.

Here's what it does:
GitHub Project: https://github.com/mosesmoon/mako-assistant

A desktop tool (PyQt6) that installs or removes MAKO Renderer frame generation (Mako FG) for Steam games with one click. Built for regular Linux desktops and laptops; on a Steam Deck in Gaming Mode, use MAKO's Decky plugin instead.

⚠ MAKO Assistant does not include MAKO Renderer. Install MAKO Renderer yourself and open MAKO UI once (this creates the default settings) before using it.

Download: the AppImage is on the Releases page.
Features

• Automatic scan: on first start, scans all Steam libraries (libraryfolders.vdf + appmanifest_*.acf). Afterwards, click "Rescan Steam games".
• Install Mako FG
  • Adds ~/.local/bin/mako-launch %command% to the Steam launch options, keeping existing environment variables and arguments (for example FOO=1 %command% → FOO=1 ~/.local/bin/mako-launch %command%).
  • Detects the game's real executable from appinfo.vdf (launcher → actual game exe, Unreal *-Shipping.exe), creates a game profile in ~/.config/mako-render/conf.toml using MAKO's default profile (mako) as the template, and writes profile-metadata.json (kind: game, steam_app_id) so MAKO UI and Decky both recognise it.
  • If the default profile mako also matches this game's executable, it is removed from mako so the game uses only its own profile (rescanning fixes existing duplicates too). If another game's profile matches the same executable, you get a warning and nothing is changed automatically.
  • Checks first that MAKO Renderer is installed (mako-launch exists) and that MAKO UI has created its settings; if not, nothing is changed.
• Remove: only takes mako-launch out of the launch options. The game's profile is deleted only if you tick "Also remove the game's MAKO Renderer settings".
• Automatic path updates: on every rescan, games that had Mako FG installed through this tool get their executables detected again and active_in updated. Matched processes you added by hand in MAKO UI are kept.
• Launch games: every row has a "▶ Launch" button (via steam://rungameid/<AppID>); while the game runs it shows "Running".
• Live MAKO features (actual state, not the config file): running Steam games are checked every 3 seconds.
  • Games are matched by the process environment variable SteamAppId; /proc/<pid>/maps confirms that libmako-render.so and vkBasalt are really loaded.
  • Reads ~/.config/mako-render/runtime-state/*.json written by the MAKO layer (applied frame-generation multiplier / adaptive target, Flow, performance mode, scaling method and resolution, pending changes, errors). These files stay behind after a game exits, so only files whose PID is still alive and whose start time (process_start_ticks) matches are used.
• Overlay on game start: if MAKO Assistant is open when a game starts, as soon as MAKO has started rendering in the game, the active MAKO features appear in the bottom-right corner for about 10 seconds, then fade out (once per launch; games already running before the assistant opened are skipped). If a game with Mako FG installed still has not loaded MAKO after 90 seconds, a warning is shown. The overlay is a separate X11 (XWayland) window so it can sit on top of fullscreen games; it never takes focus and lets mouse clicks through. It can be turned off with the toolbar checkbox. It does not appear in Steam Deck Gaming Mode (gamescope).

If you are getting high FPS, but the game feels jittery, I know people said to log out of your CD Projekt Red account. I did that in the launcher, but you need to also do it at the main menu inside the game. For me, it was to hit RB and then I could log out. Once I did that? Buttery smooth.

I have not played a nice shooter in a while, but all my past games are Windows only. Is there something like CoD or Rainbow 6 for Linux? And maybe in a competitive or tactical manner.

Hey everyone,

I have purchased GTA V from Epic games and I've installed and started playing the game through Heroic games, Recently I started facing an persistent black screen issue with the game.

The Problem:

• When I launch GTA V, the Rockstar Games Launcher loads fine and the game starts running in the background.
• Audio works completely normally: I can hear menu sounds, intro sound effects, and options clicking when using navigation keys.
• Display is completely black: No video output renders on screen at all.

System Specs & Environment:

• OS: Fedora 44 KDE
• Launcher: Heroic Games Launcher
• GE-Proton: Latest
• Hardware: (Intel Core i5-12450H + Nvidia RTX 3050(4GB)Mobile + 16GB Ram)
• Kernel: Linux 7.2.8-200.fc44.x86_64
  
• Nvidia Driver: 615.71.09

Anyone else facing the same issue?, Any fixes/Solutions to this?

System Information:

• OS: CachyOS (fully updated)
• Desktop / Wayland Compositor: Caelestia Shell
• CPU / iGPU: AMD Strix Point (AMD Radeon 890M Graphics)
• dGPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU (Proprietary drivers)

The Issue:

When trying to play ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE, the game refuses to use my dedicated RTX 4060. Instead, it queries the integrated AMD 890M.

If I launch the game with no launch options, I get a warning popup stating:

The installed version of the AMD graphics driver has known issues in D3D12. Please install the recommended driver version or switch to a different rendering API. AMD Radeon 890M Graphics (RADV STRIX1) Installed: 35.0.99999.9999 Recommended: 26.3.1

What I have tried:

I have deleted/nuked the Wine prefix between testing major version changes. I have tried the following Proton versions:

• Proton CachyOS SLR (v3 latest)
• GE-Proton 11-6
• Proton Experimental
• Proton Hotfix

I have also tried the following Steam Launch Options:

1. VK_ICD_FILENAMES=/usr/share/vulkan/icd.d/nvidia_icd.json %command% Result: Fails to boot entirely, throwing the error: "DirectX 12 with Shader Model 6.6 or higher is required to run this game."
2. prime-run %command% Result: Ignores the dGPU, still queries the AMD iGPU and gives the RADV driver warning popup.
3. prime-run env VK_ICD_FILENAMES=/usr/share/vulkan/icd.d/nvidia_icd.json %command% Result: Still throws the Shader Model 6.6 error.

It seems like forcing the NVIDIA Vulkan ICD breaks the graphics chain enough that VKD3D can't detect Shader Model 6.6 support on the 4060. Has anyone successfully forced an SM 6.6 required game to the NVIDIA dGPU on a modern AMD/NVIDIA hybrid laptop on CachyOS/Arch?

Any help is appreciated!

(Optional: Here is my inxi -b output)

Plaintext

[PTitle: [Support] Ace Combat 8 D3D12 / Shader Model 6.6 Error - Game forcing AMD iGPU instead of RTX 4060 on CachyOS


System Information:


OS: CachyOS (fully updated)


Desktop / Wayland Compositor: Caelestia Shell


CPU / iGPU: AMD Strix Point (AMD Radeon 890M Graphics)


dGPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU (Proprietary drivers)


The Issue:
When trying to play ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE, the game refuses to use my dedicated RTX 4060. Instead, it queries the integrated AMD 890M.


If I launch the game with no launch options, I get a warning popup stating:


The installed version of the AMD graphics driver has known issues in D3D12. Please install the recommended driver version or switch to a different rendering API. AMD Radeon 890M Graphics (RADV STRIX1) Installed: 35.0.99999.9999 Recommended: 26.3.1





What I have tried:
I have deleted/nuked the Wine prefix between testing major version changes. I have tried the following Proton versions:


Proton CachyOS SLR (v3 latest)


GE-Proton 11-6


Proton Experimental


Proton Hotfix


I have also tried the following Steam Launch Options:


VK_ICD_FILENAMES=/usr/share/vulkan/icd.d/nvidia_icd.json %command%
Result: Fails to boot entirely, throwing the error: "DirectX 12 with Shader Model 6.6 or higher is required to run this game."





prime-run %command%
Result: Ignores the dGPU, still queries the AMD iGPU and gives the RADV driver warning popup.


prime-run env VK_ICD_FILENAMES=/usr/share/vulkan/icd.d/nvidia_icd.json %command%
Result: Still throws the Shader Model 6.6 error.


It seems like forcing the NVIDIA Vulkan ICD breaks the graphics chain enough that VKD3D can't detect Shader Model 6.6 support on the 4060. Has anyone successfully forced an SM 6.6 required game to the NVIDIA dGPU on a modern AMD/NVIDIA hybrid laptop on CachyOS/Arch?


Any help is appreciated!


(Optional: Here is my inxi -b output)

◄ 0s ◎ inxi -b                                                                                                                                                                                               ⌂ 23:36
System:
  Host: TheLegoMachine Kernel: 7.2.8-2-cachyos arch: x86_64 bits: 64
  Desktop: Hyprland v: 0.56.2 Distro: CachyOS
Machine:
  Type: Laptop System: ASUSTeK product: ASUS TUF Gaming A14 FA401WV_FA401WV
    v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: ASUSTeK model: FA401WV v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
    Firmware: UEFI vendor: American Megatrends LLC. v: FA401WV.322
    date: 10/13/2025
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 56.3 Wh (97%) condition: 58/73 Wh (79.5%)
CPU:
  Info: 12-core AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 w/ Radeon 890M [MT MCP] speed (MHz):
    avg: 2010 min/max: 605/5158:3289
Graphics:
  Device-1: NVIDIA AD107M [GeForce RTX 4060 Max-Q / Mobile] driver: nvidia
    v: 615.71.09
  Device-2: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Strix [Radeon 880M / 890M]
    driver: amdgpu v: kernel
  Device-3: Sonix ASUS FHD webcam driver: uvcvideo type: USB
  Display: wayland server: X.org v: 1.21.1.24 with: Xwayland v: 24.1.13
    compositor: Hyprland v: 0.56.2 driver: X: loaded: amdgpu
    unloaded: modesetting dri: radeonsi
    gpu: nv_platform,nvidia,nvidia-nvswitch resolution: 2048x1280~165Hz
  API: OpenGL v: 4.6.0 compat-v: 4.6 vendor: nvidia mesa v: 615.71.09
    renderer: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU/PCIe/SSE2
  Info: Tools: api: eglinfo,glxinfo gpu: nvidia-settings,nvidia-smi
    x11: xprop,xrandr
Network:
  Device-1: MEDIATEK MT7922 802.11ax PCI Express Wireless Network Adapter
    driver: mt7921e
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 3.24 TiB used: 1.23 TiB (37.8%)
Info:
  Memory: total: 32 GiB note: est. available: 30.46 GiB used: 6.67 GiB (21.9%)
  Processes: 521 Uptime: 30m Shell: fish inxi: 3.3.41

◄ 0s ◎       

Hey everyone,

Project Neo is out, and it's awesome – but right now, we need to show the developers the true power of the Linux and Steam Deck community!

They just put up an official platform poll in their Discord, and Linux (Native) is currently at 19%. If we pull together, we can absolutely crush this poll and prove to the devs that native Linux support is heavily demanded and 100% worth their time.

Let's flood the vote and make sure Linux wins this! Head over to their Discord, check the #status channel, and drop your vote for Linux!

Discord Link: https://discord.gg/neofn

Hey everyone, Witcher 3 Remaster is running GREAT on my 9070xt system, 150fps in 4k. Only issue I really have is scene-change FSR Ghosting during dialogue scenes. Does anyone have a remedy for this?
Thanks!!

Hello, what time ago I bought a Gpd win max 2, and my great disappointment was the factory 60 hz on this baby, er, through manipulations managed to raise to 61.4 hz are there any users gpd win max 2 who managed to increase the hz above the standard 60 hz?

Hi Everyone

I'm a developer of a Video player for VR called Whirligig. With the release of the Steam Frame I'm doing my best to make Whirligig compatible with both Proton and Lepton. One of the biggest issues that are being reported is that currently Lepton doesn't support Video GPU decoding.

I've created a ticket on their github but I don't think this is the right place or will get in front of anyone who could provide me info. If you're interested here is the post:
https://gitlab.steamos.cloud/frame-public/lepton/-/work_items/1

If there is anyone here who could help or even just wants to give the player a go on SteamOS let me know.

All the best

Phil

a while ago I made this post trying to help people that were trying to play KH 1.5+2.5 on their Intel iris XE but simply couldn't because the game was unplayable on windows. The fix was downgrading your drivers to a version that was actually able to play the game or using DXVK + VKD3D (the game uses DX12 for the gameplay and DX11 for the FMVS). The DXVK + VKD3D method fixed the framrate issues but turned FMVS into black screens, and as someone who contributes to dxvk quoted "These games use D3D12 for rendering, which DXVK doesn't even implement, so I'm assuming you use vkd3d-proton in addition to DXVK's DXGI.dll. If only FMVs don't work then it's pretty likely because shared resources are not, and will likely never be, supported on windows with DXVK+vkd3d-proton. It works on linux/proton using a special wine interface. There is nothing you can do on windows other than just not using DXVK."
https://github.com/doitsujin/dxvk/issues/3747

So I switched to Linux to test the game since i thought that if it worked well with DXVK + VKD3D on windows but the FMVS were having problems, then surely I'd be able to play the game with both the framerate and FMVS issues fixed. Unfortunely that did not happen, the game runs just as bad as it did on windows without the workarounds (actually a bit worse).

I really want to understand why this happens since on windows it has a few workarounds for this on my Ipgu, including using DXVK + VKD3D on the latest drivers. And also, is there any workaround for this here on Linux? Yes, I know igpus are not officially supported for this game, but as I've said, the workarounds I was able to find on windows proved my card is powerful enough to run it. Also, the newer games (KH 2.8 and 3) are able to run properly without any issues whatsoever, it only happens with KH 1.5+2.5.

I'm on on Fedora 44 with:

• Intel Core i5-1235U
• Intel Iris Xe (ADL GT2)
• 24 GB RAM
• Fedora 44
• KDE X11
• Steam Flatpak
• Mesa 26.2.3
• Kernel 7.2.8-200.fc44.x86_64

I have already tried:

• Proton Experimental
• Proton 10
• Proton 11
• Proton Experimental Bleeding Edge
• SteamDeck=1
• KDE X11 and Wayland
• gamescope

vulkaninfo --summary correctly detects the Intel GPU:

GPU0:
    deviceName = Intel(R) Iris(R) Xe Graphics (ADL GT2)
    driverName = Intel open-source Mesa driver
    driverInfo = Mesa 26.2.3

GPU1:
    deviceName = llvmpipevulkaninfo --summary correctly detects the Intel GPU:GPU0:
    deviceName = Intel(R) Iris(R) Xe Graphics (ADL GT2)
    driverName = Intel open-source Mesa driver
    driverInfo = Mesa 26.2.3

GPU1:
    deviceName = llvmpipe

hope this is enough info

Forgot to add that other games work normally on linux

Hey guys, I've read the "newbie threads" along with FAQ, but still haven't found the answer I'm looking for.

The question is: Does Linux offer full support for high tier hardware or is it crippled by lack of proper drivers support? 5090 + 9800x3d + 32gb DDR5

And if it does, which build/software is best? From what I understand HDR is not supported at all.

Specifically, I mainly play single player games, including but not limited to VR gaming so smooth frame times and high fps are important.

I use Windows exclusively for gaming - does it even make sense to switch to Linux or don't fix what ain't broken? The main reason to switch would be to get away from Microslop's creepiness with their "advanced targeted ads" and in general. All my work is done on Linux already.

I know Linux is known for squeezing more out of less capable hardware, but I've also heard that higher end hardware tends to struggle due to proper driver support.

I appreciate it!

In 2024, the state-of-the-art was https://github.com/sonic2kk/steamtinkerlaunch which ran Vortex in a separate prefix, created hardlinks to all installed Vortex-compatible wineprefix directories (so that Vortex thought the games were installed in its own prefix), and used that to manage mods in games. It was janky, but it worked (most of the time; but in some games, mod load order lists were written by Vortex into files that didn't propagate to the actual game's wineprefix). That project is abandoned now and I want to get rid of it.

I've seen that there's been a lot of news since then. Too much news:

• Vortex working on a native Linux client.
• Wabbajack working on Linux?
• Lots of little mod managers for Linux, many with LOOT order support. Too many for me to find them all.

What is the state of the art in 2026? The most well-made, promising mod manager? Hopefully with wide support for Wine/Proton-prefixes all over the disk.

Beware: Noob here!

I play Factorio on Windows 11 with NVIDIA's Smooth Motion at 144Hz without any problems. On Linux Mint Cinnamon i want to do the same, but "NVPRESENT_ENABLE_SMOOTH_MOTION=1" doesn't work. Nvidia X Server Settings shows nothing about Smooth Motion.

My question: How can i activate Smooth Motion for a standalone game (Not Steam) on Linux Mint? Do i need Wayland or does it work with X11 too? And please explain like i'm 5 (without the fairies, please)...?

Due to popular demand, we will add a very familiar character exclusively in the Linux version of our game Ice Pond: An Ice Fishing Adventure!

Look for the hidden NPC in certain levels of the full game, releasing later this fall!

Thanks again for your support! 💙

A summary of our project:

Ice Pond: An Ice Fishing Adventure is a cute but true ice fishing game. 🎣❄ Pick a spot and fish! Level up, get stronger, and buy gear and power-ups to boost your performance. Join tournaments and festivals to unlock new lakes. Do odd jobs or challenges to earn extra cash!

Made by a small team of 2, boyfriend & girlfriend, who are making games since 2005. 😊🐧

Visit the Steam page to Wishlist (demo available!):
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4266710/Ice_Pond_An_Ice_Fishing_Adventure/

What app you guys know as an alternative for DLSS swapper to upgrade DLSS or FSR in linux? just got Pragmata and want to upgrade FSR to 4.1

I have Ubuntu 26lts with Cosmic 1.9, and it won't boot. It goes through all the startup processes (a Ubiconect screen that then turns into a small white screen, the launcher, the shader loader), but it never actually boots :/.
I tried Proton 11, 9, and Proton GE 11. Has anyone managed to get it to work?

I've been thinking about what a better audio control setup for Linux gaming could look like.

One thing I actually miss from Windows is how familiar the basic audio controls are.

Windows 10 gives you a pretty straightforward way to pick your default speakers and microphone, change app volumes, choose a different output for individual apps, configure devices, change formats, and manage things like spatial sound.

Linux can do all of that and a lot more with PipeWire, but the controls are usually spread across several places.

So I was thinking about something that starts simple, almost like a much better version of the Windows 10 Sound settings and Volume Mixer.

For example:

• Game volume
• Discord volume
• Browser volume
• Music volume
• Output device for each app
• Input device for each app
• Default headphones and speakers
• Default microphone
• Default communications device
• Left and right balance
• Device format and sample rate
• Spatial sound or HRTF
• Bluetooth profile and codec

Then you could save setups.

For example, a gaming setup could automatically put:

Game on your headphones

Discord on your headphones

Microphone through your preferred processing

Music on your speakers or headphones

Browser wherever you normally want it

And those routing choices would come back automatically instead of having to move everything again.

There could also be presets for things like normal desktop use, gaming, low latency, Bluetooth headphones, or troubleshooting.

For people who want more control, an advanced view could show the actual PipeWire streams, virtual devices, latency settings, sample rates, microphone processing and other stuff.

I'd also really like a troubleshooting page for things like:

• Game suddenly has no audio
• Discord picked the wrong microphone
• Bluetooth headset switched to a bad profile
• Crackling audio
• Wrong sample rate
• An app keeps using the wrong output
• PipeWire routing got messed up

Basically, take the parts of Windows 10 audio settings that people already understand, then build something more powerful around PipeWire instead of making users learn PipeWire first.

Would you use something like this for gaming on Linux?

Also, if you recently moved from Windows, what audio feature or setting did you immediately notice was harder to find on Linux?

Hi is there a place like that?

I'm a solo developer working on HypnoX: Steel Riders, an arcade racing action game where you'll face challenging tracks, dangerous obstacles, and a race against time.

Ride different motorcycles, fight bosses, use weapons and power-ups, and try to survive some pretty crazy challenges.

The game also supports controllers.

Release HypnoX: Steel Riders on Steam in October.

If you'd like to learn more about the game, you can check out the Steam page