According to Boiling Steam , the number of Windows games running reliably on Linux is the highest ever recorded. The analysis is based on statistics from ProtonDB , which collects user reports on game launches via Proton and WINE.
The researchers note that the games are divided into five categories: Platinum – works perfectly out of the box; Gold – requires minimal settings; Silver – playable but with issues; Bronze – intermediate; Borked – doesn’t work at all.
These ratings are only partially comparable to the Steam Deck Verified system, which takes into account the performance of a specific device.
The graph published in the article shows a steady increase in the number of games in the Platinum and Gold categories. Currently, about 90% of Windows games run properly on Linux, and the percentage of “non-functional” games has dropped to an all-time low of about 10%.
These improvements are attributable to the continued work of developers at Proton and WINE , as well as initiatives from Valve , which is increasingly working with publishers ahead of game release to ensure Steam Deck compatibility.
Some titles, such as the MOBA March of Giants, continue to refuse to launch, often due to direct bans from developers, as confirmed by reports from ProtonDB . However, cases of games like Blade and Soul NEO going from non-functional to partially compatible are becoming increasingly common.
There are still projects that require manual manipulation of DLL libraries, such as the visual novel Sickly Days and Summer Traces , which can only be launched after installing protontricks. On another front, progress is hampered by the use of anti-cheat software that doesn’t support Linux, a problem that, according to Boiling Steam , can only be overcome with the widespread adoption of Linux devices.
Growing compatibility makes Linux and SteamOS increasingly attractive to gaming system manufacturers: today , they offer 80% full support for the most popular games. Furthermore, on hardware with AMD processors, Linux often performs better than Windows.
HDR support on desktop systems is also improving, and overall rendering quality and driver stability are bringing Linux closer to the level of gaming platforms.
The authors of Boiling Steam conclude: five years ago, few believed in gaming on Linux, but now its success is becoming impossible to ignore.
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