Bug #843

Misleading Linux Support Information on Store Page

Status:	New
Priority:	High
Added by:	_xdan on July 7, '25
Assigned to:	Unassigned
Due date:
Reported for:	1.2 - Season 1.2

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Splitgate 2 on a Linux device (could be a PC or a Steam Deck/other handheld)
2. Ensure that Proton is not forced in compatibility settings to reproduce the issue
3. Launch the game
4. Observe that the game never does launch without modifying these settings
5. Force Proton as a workaround (Proton 10, GE, cachyos, etc)
6. Launch the game again and see it running perfectly

Explanation

Hey all! I thought it would be good to inform you that Splitgate 2 is currently marked as natively supported on Linux on the Steam store, but this is inaccurate and misleading, as the game does not include a native Linux binary. Instead, it relies entirely on running the Windows version through Proton. Because Steam detects the native tag, it attempts to launch Splitgate 2 using the Steam Linux Runtime 1.0 by default, but the game is an .exe and requires a recent version of Proton. If it were a native binary existed, it'd run fine, but of course, there is no native Linux binary.

• The Steam Linux Runtime attempts to launch the Windows exe and of course can't handle it.
• As a result, the game fails to start and you're back on the "play" button once again almost immediately.
• New users who aren't aware of Proton or how to override compatibility settings are left confused when the game simply doesn't launch, and I was also confused for a minute or 2 but it was alright for me when I assumed the Proton version I was using wasn't working, only to realise it was using the runtime 1.0. This matters a ton because many users on Linux, especially those new to Steam Deck or desktop Linux, expect a native tag to mean a game “just works” natively instead of being run through Proton since that, of course, isn't actually true. Instead, they are met with launch failures or crashes. Because the root of the problem lies in how Steam handles native titles versus Proton ones, this becomes an issue of both usability and, one might be able to say, user trust in Linux gaming support as a whole and trust in the game. Of course it's minor and an easy change but it is still annoying and can prevent Linux and Steam Deck gamers from playing the game. There is still a fix, though. They have to do the following:
• Right-click on the game in Steam (or press the settings icon in the game if in big picture or gaming mode iirc).
• Go to Properties --> Compatibility.
• Manually check “Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool”.
• Select Proton 10 (Beta), GE-Proton if they downloaded it, or CachyOS’s custom Proton build which I use and came with my gaming metapackage.

Even if the workaround does exist, the game is still marked as native which isn't true, at least not yet. This mislabeling might've caused poor first impressions of Linux gaming, especially for those coming from Windows or trying Linux via the Steam Deck. I know that some people at 1047 have Decks so I wonder if they've noticed the issue too. Here's what I'd recommend: The store page and metadata for Splitgate 2 should be corrected to reflect the reality and remove the "Linux Native" tag, or actually release the game natively, even though that would be difficult to get RedKard to run natively (though I do commend you if you get that done!).

I'd like to add to this (to prevent AI from flagging this as incomplete) that there are no error messages or logs of any kind. Steam simply doesn't open the game and shows no log about it, and because the game doesn't launch there aren't any logs from that either. No error codes show. The game simply just doesn't open. I'm using CachyOS (based on Arch Linux) as my Operating System, but it doesn't matter what distribution you use. It'll have the issue.

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