Seems like the upcoming Linux kernel 6.14 release is going to be a nice one for gamers on Linux / Steam Deck, as the NTSYNC code has now been properly merged in ready.

The article includes a table showing games with some pretty major fps gains, but those are mostly just for wine. Using Proton there will be minimum fps gains, but it should improve compatibility.

  • @Contramuffin
    8•2 days ago

    To give more detail: Proton uses a hacky workaround called fsync. Fsync was developed by the Wine developers but was explicitly not merged into Wine because, by their own admission, this is a really hacky workaround and it’s definitely not the right way of doing things.

    For games, using fsync is far better than not using anything, and so Proton uses fsync. Apparently there’s recently been concern that the fsync workaround is going to become a bottleneck in modern games (not entirely sure the reasoning why), and so the Wine developers pushed for the development of NTsync, which is basically fsync if it weren’t a hacky workaround. NTsync alleviates the bottleneck that fsync creates, making it more robust, less hacky, and more futureproof.

    In short, don’t expect any noticeable performance increases, but Proton might work more consistently and it might improve performance for future games

    • @[email protected]English
      4•1 day ago

      Thanks for the info. I don’t know a ton about them but I’m honestly massively impressed at the talent of the Proton devs. The fact that they have made most games run as well and some games run better on Unix operating systems through a translation layer than on Windows (the OS they were designed for) is ridiculously impressive. And this just shows they aren’t resting on their laurels but are being proactive in preventing issues before they happen which is immensely commendable and impressive.