Deskrawl on Linux: Proton Reports and Input Fixes

Deskrawl’s Steam page provides Windows requirements and marks Steam Deck compatibility as Unknown. It does not establish native Linux support. The community reports below concern running the Windows game through Proton.

Test three things separately: whether the game starts, whether you can interact with it, and whether the desktop overlay stays transparent. An October 4 player could interact after forcing Proton 10, but still saw a black area above the game instead of a transparent overlay. Another player reported that full-screen mode worked with default settings.

1. Write down the compatibility version and launch options you use now, so you can return to them.
2. In Steam, open Deskrawl’s Properties and Compatibility settings. A September Deck reply describes enabling the forced compatibility option and selecting Proton 10.0-4.
3. If that version is available, test it as a reported candidate. Check menu clicks, map dragging and the desktop background separately.
4. Change one setting at a time. A successful launch without working input is not a complete fix.

Use those version numbers to identify the reported setup, not to infer which release is newest or best. Linux behaviour varies across the reports, so verify the specific controls and display features you need after each change.

One October 1 Nobara 44 KDE Wayland post pairs Proton-GE 11.7 with the following Steam launch option:

WINE_LAYERED_OVERLAY_ALPHA=1 %command%

The same author repeats this setup in another Linux thread. Those two posts are one person’s report, not two independent confirmations. Keep that environment attached to the suggestion and preserve your existing launch options before trying it.

An October 1 discussion contains both a failure to drag the map under Proton and a reply reporting normal dragging under Proton Experimental. Another reply suggests clicking and holding the World Map heading at the top of the screen. That is a useful control check before assuming every failed drag is a compatibility failure.

For a useful bug report, record your distribution, desktop session, Proton version, launch options and the exact failed action. Say whether the problem is click-through, map dragging, SteamID connection or transparency; those are different symptoms and may need different fixes.