Valve’s Proton, a compatibility layer for Windows games to run on Linux, has unveiled its latest version, Proton 9.0-3. The update brings many new playable games, crucial bug fixes, and performance improvements, further enriching the gaming experience for Linux users.
Expanded Game Library
Proton 9.0-3 significantly broadens the range of games playable on Linux systems. Notably, titles such as Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora (desktop only), Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition, Syberia, and THE KING OF FIGHTERS XIII STEAM EDITION are now fully supported.
Additionally, indie gems like Ball at Work: The Ultimate Speedrun Platformer!, Banyu Lintar Angin, Dinner with an Owl, and demos for Owl Observatory and To Pixelia have been added to the compatibility list.
Strategy enthusiasts can now enjoy Unity of Command II, while pinball fans can dive into Zaccaria Pinball. This expansion allows Linux gamers to explore a more diverse selection of titles without the need for additional compatibility layers.
Key Bug Fixes and Regressions Addressed
This release also tackles several regressions from previous versions, restoring functionality to games that had become unplayable. For instance, Alan Wake’s American Nightmare’s DLC is now accessible again, allowing players to continue their adventures uninterrupted.
Bionic Commando has returned to operational status, and controller issues in Sonic Forces have been resolved, ensuring a smoother gaming experience.
Racing titles GRID Autosport and GRID 2 are once again playable, and Noita mods now update without failure, providing mod enthusiasts with seamless access to custom content. Moreover, random freezes in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide during shader cache processing have been eliminated, enhancing overall stability.
Additional Fixes and Improvements
Proton 9.0-3 addresses a host of other issues affecting various games. The broken News section in Aimlabs has been fixed, ensuring players stay informed about updates and events.
Random startup hangs in RAID: World War II has been resolved, and startup issues with Strip Fighter ZERO on some setups have been corrected. Undecember is playable again following a recent game update, and the missing cursor in IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover Blitz Edition has been restored, improving usability.
Display issues with the License Agreement in Romance of the Three Kingdoms [JP] have been fixed, and launch issues in FINAL FANTASY XII THE ZODIAC AGE on the Steam Deck OLED have been addressed, preventing the white screen problem.
Moreover, microphone functionality in Helldivers 2 has been restored after a recent update, and freezes and startup crashes in Dinogen Online have been resolved, enhancing stability for players. But there’s more.
Crashes in SCP Secret Laboratory following a recent game update have been fixed, and issues causing Burnout Paradise Remastered to crash when an input video device is connected have been addressed.
Memory usage in Burnout Paradise Remastered has been improved, reducing the likelihood of crashes and enhancing performance. Font rendering issues in Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet and Shady Brook – A Dark Mystery Text Adventure have been fixed, ensuring text displays correctly throughout the games.
Crashes in Once Human when joining a server or opening the EULA on fresh Proton prefixes have been resolved, and manual login requirements in Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon with Ubisoft Connect have been fixed, streamlining the login process.
Lastly, The Finals is now playable again after a recent update, and video playback in Spirit Hunter: NG and One Finger Death Punch has been fixed, providing a smoother gaming experience.
Proton 9.0-3 Technical Updates
Lastly, Proton 9.0-3 includes several technical updates to enhance performance:
- Updated Wine Mono to version 9.2.0.
- Updated vkd3d-proton to version 2.13-64.
- Updated dxvk to version 2.4-40.
- Updated dxvk-nvapi to version v0.7.1-19.
Check out the changelog for more details and the complete list of novelties in Proton 9.0-3. Happy gaming!
One of my favourite games is Alice: Madness Returns which only seems to run on Steam when I use Proton 4.5. My wish is that Valve would look into the older titles and have them work with newer proton releases so we can take advantage of all the new features while playing.
I think that's not as easy as we might think. Mostly because proton is at most, a wrapper of multiple solution like DXVK, VK3D and WINE, this projects are always being updated all the time and mutating a lot. It's nearly impossible for valve to keep checking if something breaks everytime there is a small update or large update. I hate to go back to older versions too, but it seems the only solution for now. Valve is trying to build trust and bring people over to linux and steam deck, the more marketshare linux gets, the more interest devs will have on the platform, we already have some irrelevant indie titles like schim, that just decided to port the game directly to linux without needing proton to be run. I think that's what Gabe/valve is trying to do in the first place.