How to Install Proton GE on Steam Deck

The Steam Deck is a handheld gaming computer developed by Valve Corporation. Released on February 25, 2022. Your introduction to Linux will likely be through the Steam Deck, a computer running the Linux operating system. There are certain games that don’t have a native Linux build because many games are first built for Windows PCs. The Steam Deck uses a substance known as Proton in these circumstances. The Steam Deck game includes a compatibility layer called Proton that enables Windows-only games to function on Linux. It informs your game that “hey, this is a Windows PC” and makes any necessary false statements to let the game to run.

With Code weavers’ assistance, Valve can even make particular adjustments to Proton so that games occasionally run more smoothly on Linux than they do on Windows. Due to licensing agreements, Valve occasionally is unable to alter specific game elements. Herein lies the role of GE-Proton (GE stands for Glorious Eggroll).

The most recent iteration of the Proton technology is called GE-Proton (also known as Proton-GE, its previous moniker), therefore Valve may not be able to incorporate the fixes indicated above. If any of the official Proton versions are unable to run a particular video game, using GE-Proton may resolve the issue.

Steps to Install Proton GE on Steam Deck

What is Proton?

We all play games in our own unique ways as gamers. Some people utilize gaming consoles like the PlayStation and Xbox, while others use mobile devices like the Switch and 3DS or a PC. The console or system for which a game is being developed must be considered by game developers. This is due to the fact that accessing and running games differs depending on the system. Similar to how you can’t put a PS5 disc into an Xbox Series X, the discs won’t read because the two systems aren’t compatible. Regarding operating systems like Windows, Mac, and Linux, the same is valid.

Wine was developed in 1993, two years after Linux was first released. A compatibility layer is what is referred to by the acronym Wine, which stands for Wine is Not an Emulator. Basically, it converts any applications that use Windows services into Linux ones, enabling Windows designed programmes to function on Linux operating systems. Even when executing apps, it even goes so far as to reconstruct the directory structure for Windows computers.

But running Windows-only video games on Wine wasn’t really an option. This is because it converted Windows logic into UNIX logic so that Linux could understand it, however there is a little more involved when it comes to games. Games use distinct components of a computer, such as the Graphics Processing Unit, and are far more resource-intensive than a typical Windows application. Therefore, despite Wine’s existence, Linux still couldn’t actually be used to play games. Herein lies Proton’s role.

Proton was launched by Valve in 2018 in collaboration with CodeWeavers developers. Another compatibility layer is Proton, which was created specifically for gaming apps. This layer might translate game-specific calls like DirectX to a Linux readable Vulkan format if it were built with particular libraries and game-specific software on top of a patched version of Wine.

What Is Proton GE?

Although Proton is created by Valve, Proton GE is a customized version that offers additional features and alternative fixes that Proton’s base versions (or “forks”) do not. Oh, and the “GE” stands for “Glorious Eggroll,” in case you were wondering. The same is true for me. Simply accept it. More Proton GE features include DXVK being patched with Async, additional media support to better playback, FSR patches to enable fullscreen resolutions, Nvidia CUDA support for PhysX and NAVAPI, as well as a variety of specialized Wine improvements for specific games.

As a general guideline, if a game’s component doesn’t function properly when using Proton broken video, fuzzily rendered images, etc. try Proton GE to see if that resolves the issue. The most current Proton Experimental builds, which serve as Valve’s Proton beta testing builds, are the foundation of Proton GE. Many of the fixes and changes made for Proton Experimental and Proton GE eventually find their way into stable Proton releases.

Although Proton GE receives early access to upgrades, it occasionally encounters glitches and other problems. Due to this, some games run on Proton more effectively than Proton GE. Proton GE is updated every two weeks to correct bugs and incorporate new patches to account for this. Even so, you might need to test whether Proton or Proton GE will work flawlessly with particular games. You can check ProtonDB to determine whether versions of Proton are compatible with your games.

Final Words

A cutting-edge variation of Proton from Steam is Proton GE. Before the primary Proton releases, it adds a lot of tweaks and fixes. Wine GE, Proton GE’s non-Steam game counterpart, is also available. Proton GE and Wine GE are regarded by many Linux gamers as being indispensable programmes for Linux gaming. Additionally simple to install are Proton GE and Wine GE. They can be manually installed or through an app. This method will make it simple for Linux gamers to install Proton GE and Wine GE. Users of Steam Deck and any PC running a Linux distribution can follow this instruction. We hope our article on “How to Install Proton GE on Steam Deck” will surely help you to do so.