Cyberpunk 2077 is playable on Linux at launch thanks to Steam Play

Cyberpunk 2077
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)

Linux gamers won’t be left out in the cold with Cyberpunk 2077, as the game is now playable on Linux thanks to an update for Valve’s Steam Play service.

As you may be aware, Steam Play lets people play Windows games on Linux using Proton – a compatibility layer (actually a specially modified version of WINE) – with Proton just having received an update to version 5.13-4.

That’s an update which solely brings in support for Cyberpunk 2077, with the caveat that you’ll need to be using an AMD graphics card (and you must have the Mesa 21.0-devel Git).

Of course, how the game will actually run on Linux distros in these early days is another question – considering that there are already plenty of question marks over the amount of bugs when running Cyberpunk 2077 natively on Windows, at least going by some reports.

Mixed bag

Early feedback from Linux users on Phoronix, which spotted this development, are mixed, with some failing to get the game working, but others reporting a smoothly running game (on Ubuntu at any rate).

So, potential (and doubtless expected) teething troubles aside, it’s impressive to see Cyberpunk 2077 being ready for Linux gamers on launch day, even if everyone might not be able to successfully play right off the bat.

Cyberpunk 2077 has certainly been a big hit on Windows, smashing the record for concurrent players on Steam for a single player game (and setting a new record for Twitch viewing too).

Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - 'I Know What You Did Last Supper' - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).