--- title: Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this... description: Proton, Valve's Steam compatibility layer built on Wine and DXVK, has reached a point where Linux often runs Windows games better than Windows itself does.... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this stage than Windows does, and Proton is why | daily.dev og:description: Proton, Valve's Steam compatibility layer built on Wine and DXVK, has reached a point where Linux often runs Windows games better than Windows itself does.... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/XkZ1zgddW.png og:image:alt: Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this stage than Windows does, and Proton is why og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this stage than Windows does, and Proton is why **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 3 min read · 26 upvotes · 4 comments ## Summary Proton, Valve's Steam compatibility layer built on Wine and DXVK, has reached a point where Linux often runs Windows games better than Windows itself does. Older titles like Fallout: New Vegas, KOTOR, and Morrowind run more reliably on Linux via Proton because it preserves the original behavior games expect and translates it to modern APIs, rather than replacing underlying systems as Windows does. Over 30,000 games are supported through Proton, with nearly 10,000 verified playable on Steam Deck. GOG is also developing an official Linux client, expanding the classic game library available on Linux. While Proton isn't universally superior, it excels especially for retro and classic gaming. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How many games does Proton support on Linux and how many are verified for Steam Deck? More than 30,000 games are at least supported through Proton, with nearly 10,000 of those verified as completely playable on the Steam Deck, according to community tracking site ProtonDB. The numbers keep growing as Valve and the community re-evaluate titles with each Proton update. _Developers tracking Linux gaming compatibility trends can follow Proton's progress on daily.dev._ ### Why do some old Windows games run better on Linux with Proton than on Windows itself? Windows keeps replacing the underlying systems old games relied on while trying to stay compatible, which can break legacy titles over time. Proton instead preserves the exact behavior games originally expected and translates it to modern hardware and APIs, using Wine for older titles and DXVK for modern Direct3D translation. _Anyone weighing Linux versus Windows for gaming can dig into these compatibility tradeoffs on daily.dev._ ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@taiwofrancis** · 2 upvotes > Proton has come ridiculously far. Linux gaming isn’t the meme it used to be. **@pwitham** · 2 upvotes > Running Steam games on CachyOS has been almost flawless for me and I'd go so far to say that some performance is better and at times, even generates less heat on the GPU (nVidia 3070) **@catalin560** · 1 upvotes > I don't play as much as I used to but the few games I tried on CachyOS worked flawlessly ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Proton got so good I keep forgetting which of my games were even built for Windows](https://daily.dev/posts/proton-got-so-good-i-keep-forgetting-which-of-my-games-were-even-built-for-windows-2hnicvymf) · XDA Developers · 3 upvotes · 1 comments - [Wine has been translating Windows games to Linux since 1993, but Proton is what made it effortless](https://daily.dev/posts/wine-has-been-translating-windows-games-to-linux-since-1993-but-proton-is-what-made-it-effortless-aojdg8ve1) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Proton 11.0-1 Released To Advance Valve's Steam Play For The Best Linux Experience Yet](https://daily.dev/posts/proton-11-0-1-released-to-advance-valve-s-steam-play-for-the-best-linux-experience-yet-9zw5wfjep) · Phoronix · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I tested every game in my Steam library on Linux, and the results shocked me](https://daily.dev/posts/i-tested-every-game-in-my-steam-library-on-linux-and-the-results-shocked-me-oghv3krgs) · XDA Developers · 32 upvotes · 10 comments --- Tags: [#linux](https://daily.dev/tags/linux), [#gaming](https://daily.dev/tags/gaming), [#steam](https://daily.dev/tags/steam) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this stage than Windows does, and Proton is why","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw"},"datePublished":"2026-08-10T13:01:08.598Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T06:04:23.936Z","description":"Proton, Valve's Steam compatibility layer built on Wine and DXVK, has reached a point where Linux often runs Windows games better than Windows itself does....","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/088078ee768ccec138771ff8ac1ff3ba?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/088078ee768ccec138771ff8ac1ff3ba?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"XDA Developers","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"XDA Developers","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--kCg6yyAP--/f_auto,q_auto/v1774964407/logos/xda-developers?_a=BAMAMiWQ0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},"commentCount":4,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":26},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":4}],"keywords":"linux,gaming,steam","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"XDA Developers","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Linux has better Windows game compatibility at this stage than Windows does, and Proton is why"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"Proton has come ridiculously far. Linux gaming isn’t the meme it used to be.","datePublished":"2026-08-12T10:59:32.097Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XkZ1zgddW#c-IlwSbyFo6","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Taiwo Francis Oguntade","url":"https://daily.dev/taiwofrancis","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--px3_Pvo4--/f_auto/v1785515368/avatars/avatar_FStpm3ZejUD3qGlEeoOUS?_a=BAMAMicg0"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Running Steam games on CachyOS has been almost flawless for me and I’d go so far to say that some performance is better and at times, even generates less heat on the GPU (nVidia 3070)","datePublished":"2026-08-12T16:31:11.584Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XkZ1zgddW#c-eW3a2ZJ5w","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Peter Witham","url":"https://daily.dev/pwitham","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--PV27VbEH--/f_auto/v1767215591/avatars/avatar_zSPHgbmgf?_a=BAMAK+ZW0"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"I don’t play as much as I used to but the few games I tried on CachyOS worked flawlessly","datePublished":"2026-08-12T12:04:06.083Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XkZ1zgddW#c-sTGDsSMm7","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Anonymous","url":"https://daily.dev/catalin560","image":"https://avatars2.githubusercontent.com/u/22744333?v=4"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/linux-has-better-windows-game-compatibility-at-this-stage-than-windows-does-and-proton-is-why-xkz1zgddw#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How many games does Proton support on Linux and how many are verified for Steam Deck?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"More than 30,000 games are at least supported through Proton, with nearly 10,000 of those verified as completely playable on the Steam Deck, according to community tracking site ProtonDB. The numbers keep growing as Valve and the community re-evaluate titles with each Proton update. Developers tracking Linux gaming compatibility trends can follow Proton's progress on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Why do some old Windows games run better on Linux with Proton than on Windows itself?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Windows keeps replacing the underlying systems old games relied on while trying to stay compatible, which can break legacy titles over time. Proton instead preserves the exact behavior games originally expected and translates it to modern hardware and APIs, using Wine for older titles and DXVK for modern Direct3D translation. Anyone weighing Linux versus Windows for gaming can dig into these compatibility tradeoffs on daily.dev."}}]} ```