Aru
Published
Linux build has borked controller mapping, running with Proton solved the issue
Controller issues on linux build, running the Proton version worked perfectly
Analog stick controller mapping is broken/inaccurate on the Linux native build. Forced Proton 7.0.1, which worked perfectly without any other tinkering required.
MoguriMod install tutorial for the Steam Deck, see here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0YNgha9h1E
The tutorial video should mostly apply to other Linux distros too.
Stutters a lot due to shader compilation, you can eliminate most stutter with DXVK_ASYNC + Proton GE 7-38
DXVK_ASYNC=1 %command%
Game has significant shader compilation stutter, you can improve performance with DXVK_ASYNC and Proton GE (I tested with GE Proton 7-38)
DXVK_ASYNC means you'll see temporary visual artifacts and bugs while shaders compile
DXVK_ASYNC=1 %command%
some text in the menus and field map were too small to read clearly
a lot of shader compilation stutter
- Roughly 2.5-3 hours of battery life on the graphics settings I used
- Out of the box (OOTB), there was really bad shader stutter, see example video here. Valve hadn't built a shader cache for the game yet, and the
compile shadersingame option didn't work. - Enabled async shaders workaround for to smooth out most of the shader stutter, but this lead to a lot of loading pop-in for new areas.
- The loading pop-in was particularly bad in cutscenes + whenever I entered a brand new area of the game for the first time. See example video here at 52 seconds
- Workaround for pop-in during cutscenes was for me to hit the start button to pause the game, and wait for 30 secs or so to let the textures load in.
- Once valve provides a shader cache, this workaround should no longer be needed
- I played through the entire game with
stable 30fps, mix of high and low settings. Settings I used are as follows:- 720p resolution, full screen mode off
- ingame 30fps limit, vsync off
- prioritize image quality, 100% graphics resolution
- anti-aliasing - High
- Texture Filtering - Normal
- Shadows - Low
- Model LOD - High
- Environment quality - Normal
- Fog quality - Low
- Screen Space Reflection - Off
- Bloom - Off
- Character Texture quality - high
- Ambient Occlusion - off
- Precompiled Shaders - off (this setting doesn't work anyways)
- There were occasional FPS dips during some intense battles, large maps, etc, but overall was a fairly smooth experience end-to-end
- ingame text is unusually small, sometimes outright unreadable, but that's an issue regardless of the Steam Deck or not.
Playable with pre-downloaded shader cache, recommend DXVK_ASYNC to smooth out remaining issues
DXVK_ASYNC=1 %command%
Playable (but not perfect) without tinkering, use DXVK_ASYNC with Proton GE for to smooth out remaining microstutters
changed graphics settings for smooth performance + improve battery life
in game text, especially the maps, can be difficult to read due to small text
This is a followup update to my previous report.
- performance is WAY better out of the box due to Steam now providing pre-compiled shaders for the game
- Almost all of the shader stutter is now gone, but there's still very occasional tiny microstutters.
- I'd say that the game is now playable without workarounds
- I'd still recommend the DXVK_ASYNC workaround, it takes 5-10 minutes to setup, and will eliminate all remaining microstutters
- you still might need to change in-game graphics settings for a good experience, see my prior report for graphics settings I used
DXVK_ASYNC setup:
- install Proton GE, I used version 7-38. guide here
- In game mode, under compatibility settings for the game, force the GE proton version. Note, you may also want to
delete Proton Filesto clear out any lingering files from the other versions of proton you were using. - under the game's properties, add the following to "Launch Options" for to enable async shader compilation:
DXVK_ASYNC=1 %command%
PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%
Medium Settings with low shadows gave 3+ hrs battery life
cloud save was erroring out on other devices
Frequent crashes while loading the game, or loading into a new area while in-game
Game was freezing frequently for me while trying to load the game, as well as during loading screens while going to new areas in-game.
After disabling esync with the PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command% launch option, I was able to play for a few hours straight without any crashing or freezing.
PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 PROTON_NO_FSYNC=1 %command%
loading cloud save from Deck wouldn't work on living room HTPC
solved by disabling esync + fsync
This is an update on my prior post. After disabling esync and fsync with PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 PROTON_NO_FSYNC=1 %command%, I've now played 14+ hours on the Deck with no in-game freezes/crashes. I can also now change in-game resolution, borderless/fullscreen, etc, without any issues.
The only remaining issue I've encountered at this point is that freezing while first starting the game does still occasionally happen, but is very rare now, and usually just works on a single retry.
PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 PROTON_NO_FSYNC=1 %command%
40hz medium settings
Lots of missing textures and effects in battles
could not load cloud saves on other devices
even with esync and fsync disabled, loading into the game could be a struggle later in the game
This is a final update on on prior posts. I completely beat Soul Hackers 2's main story on the Steam Deck.
However, there are lots of missing battle textures and effects. The missing textures don't affect the core gameplay, but not having attack effects, etc, does make the experience less visually interesting.
Also, when I was later in the game, I had trouble getting past the title screen and initial load screens without freezing.
After fully loading a save file, everything would be smooth sailing afterwards. So the title screen and initial load are unstable, the rest of the experience was pretty much smooth sailing for me.
PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 PROTON_NO_FSYNC=1 %command%
installed d3dcompile_47 via protontricks, which resolved texture issues
cloud saves can error out/not load. To resolve, change a graphics configuration, save, and restart the game
The game can freeze during initial loading, but once you get past that, generally stable gameplay
missing textures, resolved with protontricks + d3dcompile_47
Use Protontricks to install d3dcompile_47 (Windows DLL component) to Soul Hackers' default WINE prefix. Afterwards, missing textures show up properly.
The title screen and initial load are unstable and can freeze. Once you get past that, and load a save file, everything would be smooth sailing afterwards.
If cloud saves fail to load / error out, you can fix them by updating your graphics settings in the title menu, exiting the game, and reloading it. Updating configuration locally somehow resolves the save corruption issue.
To fix videos on the Steam Deck, do the following:
- Install Ys Origin, then under
Properties > Compatibility, force Proton version 4.2-9 - Boot up the game at least once, and confirm that the intro video was skipped. The game will load straight to the
new game, continue, etcmenu. - Install the Protontricks flatpak from the Discover store. flathub link
- Run Protontricks, and select
Ys Origin. You'll see a bunch of warnings that you can ignore, just keep clickingokuntil you get awinetrickswindow - Once you reach the
winetrickswindow, do the following:
- select default wine prefix
- install a Windows DLL or component
- select
cinepakanddirectshow, and clickok
- You'll see more warnings/errors for the cinepak and directshow install, you can ignore those and click
OK.
The install process will be finished when you see the winetricks window again.
Videos broken, can be fixed with Protontricks
