Sad to say, but this sucks

[archmage6x3]

I really wanted to use Linux. My Win 7 finally lost support from Steam and I thought to myself.........never again. Even went so far as to post my joy on social media at taking the "jump".
I am pretty good with computers and can do a bit of coding and scripting, I can certainly follow instructions to make things work.............


but trying to get my games to work on Linux is a show stopper. Sorry/not sorry but Linux is an absolute failure for a gamer.....even with proton 3 out of 10 games work and NONE of the online games work because of anti cheat.
Fail.
I have paid too much money into my game library to not be able to play what I own at a click. It is not a matter of capability or desire....it is a matter of cost/vs fucntion/vs time.
Linux is not worth it for a gamer........and most folks on PC's game.
It looks like it is back to windows and a pay for upgrade to win 10.

For a gamer......there is no reason to run Linux even with proton no matter HOW SAVVY you are.
It is just too much work when one can pay thirty bucks and be gaming in an hour again....and oh by the way........if you have any games that run some form of anti-cheat for online play.....you are probably screwed.
I am really REALLY disappointed to say the least.

I want Linux to be viable.
I hate Microsoft and Apple.
I also have no choice if I wish to GAME.
Like so many before it seems.......I came, I tried and I am leaving again because GAMES.
Better luck to the rest of you and I hope one day that gamers can come over to the community en masse.

[it-place]

Hi,

I‘m using Linux for years and I really love it. I don‘t want to use Microsoft or Apple as well. But I can understand your point of view about gaming.

My solution at home is a dual boot environment with Linux Mint and Win 10. I‘m using Win for gaming only, Linux for everything else. For me this suits fine.

I‘ll never used wine or other stuff to run Windows software on Linux. Perhaps you also can give games written for Linux a try. There are a lot of out there…

Best Regards, Olli

[Coggy]

If you are committed to playing Windows-only games then you are committed to using Windows. And, of course, you are committed to paying to be on Microsoft's upgrade treadmill.

Personally I'm keen on computers and I'm not that committed to any legacy games, so I use a Linux computer for work and only play games that run on Linux. Mostly games from Steam. If a game won't run on my computer then I'm not interested in it any more that I'd be interested in a saddle and reins for my car.

But there's nothing stopping you having both a Windows games machine and Linux computer for doing work, if you've got any need for a proper computer. The Linux computer won't keep demanding that you pay for OS upgrades and buy faster hardware for it to run on, so it won't be that expensive to run.

[Neophyte]

Most games work on proton. Even things like easy cheat will work. The dev just has to put in one check mark on their end.

You can check: https://www.protondb.com/

That will show you which games work and how well.

And just FYI, the STEAM Deck also runs Linux.

[severin]

You could have checked on https://www.protondb.com/ what's working on linux and what's not working before starting crying. Leaving Windows comes with a price, and the price is that you will not be able to play EVERY game you could play before. If you are not ready to pay that price and you value "playing a game" more than your freedom, than go on, go back to windows, it's your choice. But in these years the amount of work made by proton's team to make things work on linux and the born of Steam Deck, it makes me see a brighter and brighter future for the gaming on Linux.

[spamegg]

Yeah, don't use Linux for gaming! It's just a bad idea (yes yes I know Steam / Proton etc.).

The gaming world is firmly entrenched in Windows. I know you're not blaming Linux but I still have to say, it's not Linux's fault. They are just two completely separate worlds.

In fact, the gaming world is mostly hostile to PC gaming as well. Game developers only optimize their games for consoles (if they do at all), PC versions come out much later in a worse / broken state, or many games are simply console-exclusive. This has been the case with many "AAA" titles.

It doesn't really matter how much Valve / Steam works on compatibility. As long as the game companies themselves don't care, things won't improve. In fact PC gaming on Windows has been getting a bit worse as well, with very hostile DRM, broken games and addictive gambling / monetization practices. Big game companies these days have become arguably more evil than Microsoft (looking at Ubisoft, Activision, EA, and many others).

I'd recommend sticking to consoles and their very closed, very proprietary world if you want the latest, popular, online multiplayer titles to run properly. Gaming has never been friendly to free / open.

You can use Linux if you care more about 2D games, older games, indie games etc. I never cared about AAA or multiplayer, and when I moved over from Win7 to Mint in 2019, all my games worked perfectly on Linux. Mostly from GOG (so DRM-free), and my Steam games are either Linux native (like Portal 1/2) or 2D.

I just got some cheap little games from Steam Winter Sale for a few bucks. Infinitely replayable, fun, lovingly crafted (of course from my subjective point of view):

[archmage6x3]

I have over a hundred titles in my Steam library. I am finishing up my E.E degree, have a wife and a teen kiddo and do part time work. I do not have time to take a part time job to tinker and jigger every title I own. A great many of them I play modded and that simply adds an extra layer of headache......and mods/online communities are the reason I prefer PC gaming over consoles. I do not have to have the latest titles......frankly I stopped buying AAA titles at launch YEARS ago because the Early Access/hype train/dev stretch money scam was just not worth it to me.

Not having access to thousands of dollars worth of software I own is not acceptable to anyone and if you consider that "crying" well then it is no wonder that Linux has %1 of market share while being free.

I am an Atari gen gamer. I was born very shortly after the invention of pong lol. Games are what I do in my free time and have always done, even thru my Marine Corps service, even while in Afghanistan..when I could I played SOME form of game. Cards, dominoes, dice..........something.
99% of nerds I know and hang out with and study with...............game.
If folks like me could come over and simply play our games.......the current "state" of Linux distros would quickly take over I think.
It sucks because I WANT to put Microsoft off the top. I WANT to support an open and free culture for computing in general.
I would be HAPPY to give any single group of Linux devs 30 to a hundred bucks instead of Bill, but nobody is going to be willing to look at a library full of cash spent and just go...........meh. Dont care about that anymore.
This is the truth......and as I stated in my title...it sucks.

[archmage6x3]

And thank you spamegg for recognizing that I am not "blaming" Linux.
Quite the contrary, Linux distros in the current state provide pretty much everything I need (and I really REALL LOVE MINT)......except the capability to access thousands of dollars worth of software.

Sure I can use it on my tablet and laptop and give Bill the finger there..........but my desktop is the center of it all.
I see no reason to dual boot it if I have everything I need to work AND play on one OS.

I know I sounded harsh when I said "Fail" but that is my analysis with respect to the desktop using population.

A quick google search showed me that there are an estimated 1.8 billion PC gamers world wide.
Another search showed me that Bill told the world Win 10 and 11 were installed on 1.4 billion desktops.
Throw in Mac users hating life but still able to play most things and the evidence speaks clearly to me.

Linux platforms have failed to be adopted because games.
I think this is an accurate opinion, not a rant or a princess and worth posting and talking about even if it hurts some folks sensitivities because I SUPPORT the idea and culture.
I would love to invest my time and cash knowing it would serve to free humanity. It is the reason I chose a life in the Corps in the first place.
Time I do not have, like most folks in my nation.....even if I have the capability.

[archmage6x3]

Here is a brief example of the.........."well this sucks" experience that I assume happens to most folks that come to Linux with a library full of games.
My mission: Let Bill eat sack and never use Windows again!!!!

Load up mint......spend two days working to install.
Give up on installing on SSD due to issues researched and no resolutions working for me.
Install to platter drive....works like a champ. Compromise, but YAY! Free of Windows! Sucess.
Spend a day updating to 20.3, setting up browser and customizing desktop. Install steam and play Survivng Mars.

Works like a champ....goes to bed happy after posting on social media about doing all forms of questionable things to my Windows Disk in elated joy and describing the questionable breeding of Bill Gates in colorful detail. Sucess.

Install Bannerlord.........and the downhill slide begins. Got the launcher to come up once. fail
Install Empyrion.....runs like a champ. Go to log onto my server........EAC dont work. Quick search.......confirmed Eleon will not support Linux. I only play Empyrion online and even co op in creative to design ships on a server......fail
Looked at Ark and decided to not even waste the download time.
Installed Frostpunk. Works. Yay........still a little miffed about Empy....but mebbe the dev could be convinced. They are small after all. Frostpunk crashes for the first time ever in the hundreds of hours I have played it. No prob...mebbe a glitch. Reload......hangs forever in launch. Fail
.......
.....
Looks at the hundred fifty odd titles in list, contemplate total investment, total free time with work, family and classes starting soon and then it sinks in.........I have to give Bill another 30 bucks.
Mission Fail.

Sad to say, but this sucks.

Semper Fi yall and keep pushing.

[BillyLinux]

I have never understood any gamers who use a desktop/laptop to play premium games I mean the ones with extensive use of graphics) - and certainly not those who pay top dollar.
IMHO if you want to play games, buy a games console. I am told PS4 and PS5 are very good.

I know linux is the OS of choice on the Mars project and up on the ISS but I don't suppose they are playing games,

[archmage6x3]

To be honest BillyLinux I think the exact same thing about console gamers.

My last console was PS3. After I built my first tower, that was it. I can always match or have better graphics than a console. I can use any controller I like. My networking capability, online communities and modification capabilites are much much greater on PC. Literally everything in my experience is not only better on PC, but I get more mileage out of my games on PC. Even my beloved and venerable Supreme Commander Forged Alliance STILL has a dedicated online community that rocks out massive RTS battles daily. Consoles.......not so much. I do not think I will ever buy a console again to be frank. I would rather spend the cash to upgrade my proc/gpu/ram/new monitor etc. Most AAA companies that concentrate on console at least do a PC port now a days. Some do not happen of course and some are not so great, but PC gamers have enough market share that this is happening less and less. The few "exclusives" that I can not get on PC I can always play with other friends that have the game and "see whats up". Not once did I play an exclusive that prompted me to lay out hundreds of dollars for a single title or two. No game is that good, esp when the excess cash can be put into better hardware than that console will EVER have. lol. I am still running an Asus P6T with an Intel 950 and a 1070 gpu. It runs ALL of the things still with "mostly" maxed settings. She IS getting long in the tooth tho and I could pay half of what I paid to build her a decade ago and get similar performance with less power use lololol. So yea......instead of buying a PS5......I will build a new tower to last another decade and have one system for all of my work/business/play/control home systems needs. They can keep nasty consoles. All they are is gimpled PC's now a days anyway lol.

[BillyLinux]

I get all that - fair do - but don't slag Linux off - it does what it does. PC Windows does what it does. Consoles do what they do. Room in the market for all manner of things. You have experimented with Linux. You can now either stay and contribute in the active Linux gaming community or go back to MS and play. Maybe both?

[motoryzen]

Load up mint......spend two days working to install.
Give up on installing on SSD due to issues researched and no resolutions working for me

I noticed, as usually with noobs here, ya didn't follow the instructions up in that impossible to miss pink section where to has a link of Forum rules and how to get help.

Step 5, 2nd dot aka bulletin point. Posting system details helps others help you narrow down a problem most often and saves much time-wasting speculation.

And yes..you can do this from being booted into the live desktop ( aka booting from the Linux Mint installation drive you prepped )

I'm willing to bet that ssd is the problem, or the sata connection..or both. Try new sata cable also. Beyond that, unsure.

I've installing versions of Linux Mint ranging from version 10 from over 10 years ago easily to 21.2 today and not a single time have I encountered a problem save for my own ( aka end user) error of formatting it wrongly first...OR dealing with a damn Mushkin brand ( and yes..both sata gen 2 and gen 3 ssd's from 2010 through 2013 late era btw...never again Mushkin )

Billy Linux ....

Load up mint......spend two days working to install.
Give up on installing on SSD due to issues researched and no resolutions working for me

Because a PS4 and PS5 CAN'T also play, nes, snes, n64, gamecube, wii, wii U, switch, xbox 1st gen, xbox 360, xbox one, ( this next part I could be mistake but I doubt it). PS1, PS2, AND PS3 games ...WITHOUT the PSN, as well as other not as popular/well known or available in the USA...but cool console games like those on Turbo Grafx-16, Famicom, Super Famicom, also Sega Master system, Sega Genesis, Sega Dreamcast AND actual Arcade version/titles using MAME....the list goes on.

So...yeah...as usual , nothing new here, PC > Console. The argument in favor of consoles over PC was already destroyed well over 11 years ago if not longer for the same variety of reasons that still stand today. But that's for an entirely different topic.

back to OP

Linux platforms have failed to be adopted because games.

Right...sure...That's why the Steam deck has literally skyrocketed Linux gaming adoption ( facepalms). Yeah..That's plenty of nonsense for one day for me..I'm out of here.

[Eric23]

Looked at Ark and decided to not even waste the download time.

The Steam version of Ark Survival Evolved actually runs really well for me, the mods work too. You can even setup and host a dedicated server.
I did make the mistake of installing it on an external drive formatted in FAT32, but after formatting the drive to EXT4 it worked. Even Battle Eye Anti Cheat didn't have an issue. Though if you are playing single player or are hosting your own server you can turn the anti cheat off if you desire. Though the game is now on the back burner as they closed down the official servers to concentrate on the new version of Ark Ascended and that is a different matter right now, though I don't think my PC would run Ark Ascended even on windows haha. There are still loads of unofficial servers running for Ark Evolved though.

I only own 17 games on steam and 14 of them I managed to get working well. So I didn't have to sacrifice very much.

I, like you held out on windows 7 until it became unsupported in 2020 and was no longer getting security updates. I had fought off Microsoft stealth installing win10 on my machine and couldn't bring myself to install the telemetry riddled nightmare.

I switched to Mint and accepted that all the software I knew would need to be substituted, but it actually wasn't nearly as painful as I imagined.
Sure there are games in my library that don't work and others that do. Now when I'm in the market for a new game I look on the proton DB site and see what seems to work and pick accordingly.

Sure there have been times I wish something would run on Linux, but the longer I have used Mint the less that seems to happen. When I need to complete a task I just look for software made for Linux instead of windows. There was a learning curve like using any new software, but once I found alternatives to what I was accustomed to I can happily say I don't miss windows at all. I avoid looking at windows software and the disappointment levels diminish very quickly. If I have a PS5 I don't go looking for a Nintendo Switch game.

It is hard to say goodbye to what you have become accustomed to, but a fresh start was for me a chance to learn new things.

[Teadrinker]

Hi. I'm also Win7/Linux dual booter.
It is true that Steam has said it won't support win 7 but it hasn't really happened yet. I don't understand why can't you just play your online games on Win 7? What is the problem? I literally have Steam opened on my Win 7 right now. Not sure what this doomer language is coming from. You literally can use Steam on Win 7.
Future of Linux gaming is brighter than Windows. There are AAA games that currently run faster on Linux than on Win 11!
(Cyberpunk 2077, Forspoken, Rachet & Clank, Starfield and The Talos Principle II just to name a few and there are more. ppl just haven't tested yet.) This speaks volumes of potential and capabilities of Linux for gaming.
Existence of Linux based Steam Deck is going to result even more dev work to ensure more titles will run on Linux.
I'm sorry but you are using words that are OUT of time. the "linux is not good for gaming" is literally out of time. 10 years ago this was true but now it is simply a false statement and denial of reality.

[Danbor]

I admit that I don't play games beyond solitaire or mahjong so I don't have much experience in this area, but I wonder if this might work for you.
You can download a free version of windows 10. It can't be "personalized" but other than that it seems to work. I have a virtual machine running it for the rare occasion I need it.
Can't you just download one yourself and either dual boot it or create a virtual machine with it just to run all those games? Of course I don't know anything about steam or wine so I've no clue if this option is compatible with those.

[ironbark]

Like so many before it seems.......I came, I tried and I am leaving again because GAMES.

I used to enjoy my Windows games, but when Win 7 became obsolete I wanted, like you, to free myself from the clutches of Microsoft so, at 73 yrs of age, I taught myself to use Linux Mint and have been using it as a stand alone O/S in my desktop pc for three years now and I have never regretted it. The freedom you get far outweighs the lack of gaming options, and when I look back now the only regret I have is for the amount of time and money I foolishly wasted in playing those damn Windows games. When I switched to Linux I simply convinced myself that my games went obsolete along with my Windows 7 O/S. I don't miss them one bit.

Being completely Windows free is a very, very satisfying feeling, but it's no good being half arsed about it. You never can be free if you insist in hanging on to mumma Microsoft's apron strings.

Give up on installing on SSD due to issues researched and no resolutions working for me.

As I've mentioned I'm in my mid seventies and yet I was able to easily install Linux on SSD with no trouble at all. I wonder why it's such a problem for younger people to achieve?

[mikaelrask]

hey small question have you enabled steam play for all titles in your steam? under setting in steam it might be able to help you out with your games.

[majpooper]

Another ridiculous thread.

Not a gamer myself but know a few from "hard core" to casual and they are also linux users.
They all are aware of the limitations of gaming on linux and act accordingly.
It is not rocket science to find out what games you can play on linux - that cost you absolutely nothing btw - and which ones require Windows.

I think the first thing in big bold letters at the top of every linux website should be
LINUX IS NOT WINDOWS

So coming on a linux forum complaining that you can't play all your Windows games on linux is . . . . yeah that.

[featherlessbiped]

I have paid too much money into my game library to not be able to play what I own at a click. It is not a matter of capability or desire....it is a matter of cost/vs fucntion/vs time.

The crux of your issue is not the amount of time spent getting games running but rather that you paid for games. With linux you don't have to worry about that, at all. Worst case scenario is you set up a virtual machine and run Windows 10 in that to game.

Worried about your system being compromised after you get a 100% discount on a game? Rarely a problem on Linux, assuming you run it in virtual box. Can be a problem with Proton or Wine. You could always ask others for hashes and filesizes of their game files to verify that a 100% discounted game is not compromised. It's a shame there isn't a service that stores this info for PC games.

The mindset of linux is essentially that you stop contributing to a system of control, one which loathes you and sees you at best as livestock, and instead figure out things yourself and contribute back. It is in essence conspiratorial.