steam-runtime VS steamtinkerlaunch

> It turns out that unless the game is explicitly marked (by Valve reviewers), Steam Deck will use the Windows build + Proton even if a Linux version is available.

I found this which sounds like it's not the default, but is in fact a result of compatibility testing:

> If your game has gone through Steam Deck compatibility testing and the testers reported that the native Linux version didn't work (because of #579), then it might have been flagged to run the Windows binaries via Proton by default, instead of the native Linux version.

per https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime/issues/585

> Where is it written that steam-run will magically execute most binaries without patching them?

Somewhere in here: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime

:p

But I do get what you're saying. Once Flakes are default, I hope people start a proper push to clear up documentation and streamline the development process. The end-result is amazing, and the perfect OS/packaging system for my needs. The means of getting there... need a lot of work. I'm along for the ride either way.

I think they have something a bit like a container built into Steam: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime

this is for steamworks API, my understanding is there's a separate SDK for consuming Linux dependencies like glibc. Like Soldier runtime, Sniper runtime, and so on. Am I wrong in thinking these are two separate SDKs? here's the link to the other SDK I'm talking about: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime

I'm not sure we can distribute a flatpak or an appimage through Steam. They have their own controlled environment called Steam Runtime (https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime) in which I should compile to be sure it runs everywhere (very similar to what I am doing). Last time, I look at this, it wasn't very clear and they supported only old versions of GCC. But it seems the documentation improved and now that I succeeded in building a modern version of GCC in my own container, maybe I could do that in theirs.

I believe it's usable outside of Steam: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime though the instructions are not particularly clear. There's also a link to the APT repo they use as a reference: https://repo.steampowered.com/steamrt/

Looking at the Flatpak version, if you want to use Proton versions 5.13 or newer with Steam in Flatpak, you need to install Flatpak from backports https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime/issues/294 . Using Flatpak saves having to install i386 if that matters to you.

> Game developers would be fine to target a single distro like Ubuntu 22.04.

Valve has its own container-only Linux distribution, called "Soldier Runtime" (https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-runtime); especially for games distributed on Steam, it probably makes more sense to target that distribution instead of Ubuntu.

I haven't used it myself but steamtinkerlaunch is definitely your best bet. It lets you easily set up Mod Organizer 2 or Vortex directly on your Deck. The quite extensive wiki will provide more information than I possibly could.

For any problems, suggestions and contributions you might have, please use the issue tracker (which was the preferred way already before)

Tinker Launcher is the easiest way to do it. There is also a third party Linux "port" of MO2 you can install. Tinker Launcher is my preferred method. ProtonupQT is not where you get it from. https://github.com/frostworx/steamtinkerlaunch/wiki/Installation

Another app / set of scripts I have found is https://github.com/frostworx/steamtinkerlaunch.

https://github.com/frostworx/steamtinkerlaunch/tree/mo2-overhaul branch.

Yes you can use mods/mod managers with Steam Tinker Launcher