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The current main hurdle keeping people off Linux Gaming is Anti-Cheat rootkit/kernel-module software such as Valorant's Vanguard or Call of Duty's Richochet. I

by Alupis 3y ago

The current main hurdle keeping people off Linux Gaming is Anti-Cheat rootkit/kernel-module software such as Valorant's Vanguard or Call of Duty's Richochet. If you need Windows to play Call of Duty, you're probably going to stick with Windows for everything because of the hassle. My understanding is there is no technical reason these anti-cheats cannot work via Proton, but the anti-cheat makers will ban if they figure out you're not on Windows out of some weird fear of people having root access to the system. I could be wrong, however.

thewataccount 3y ago
> My understanding is there is no technical reason these anti-cheats cannot work via Proton, but the anti-cheat makers will ban if they figure out you're not on Windows out of some weird fear of people having root access to the system. I could be wrong, however. So the big anti-cheat platforms VAC, EAC, BattleEye, etc. all support linux, however the developer has to enable it - last I checked Battlefield2042 could run on linux just fine (as BF1 and BF5 did) but they didn't enable the anticheat on linux. I'm not sure how possible kernel level anti-cheat is via wine, the entire point of that is to be on the ring 0 layer where the best cheat software lives. Drivers generally get permissions to read/modify any memory anywhere using hooks that are difficult/impossible to detect from userland. The reason you'll get banned on linux if they don't instantly nope-out on launch and don't want to support linux is because what anti-cheat software does is primarily two things: See what is hooked into the game, and see if all the memory is in an expected state. Obviously the compatibility tools don't match windows 1:1 and will look _bizzare_ to software comparing it to what you'd expect on windows. So the state doesn't match which it assumes means something is modifying it = cheat software. tl;dr - idk if ring0 anticheat could ever work via wine, a lot of games use anti-cheat software compatible with linux but just don't enable it, if anti-cheat was somehow didn't instantly freak out on launch then it'll see a bizarre and heavily modified system compare to a real windows install, with unexpected behaviour. EDIT: From my understanding DKVX for example presents as the direct3d/directx library which of course has very different behaviour and is very clearly modified/not actual direct3d/directx
- Alupis 3y ago
  This all makes sense. I just don't see someone like Activision caring enough to make their kernel level anti-cheat work cross platforms... which has the effect of keeping people on Windows for no other reason but to play one or a couple games. To make this work, there has to be some compatibility layer good enough to fool kernel level anti-cheat into allowing the game to run. I don't know how that would be possible... but that would be the silver bullet, so to speak.
  - thewataccount 3y ago
    > fool kernel level anti-cheat That's the problem though - if the compatibility layer can fool the anti-cheat then so can actual cheats. Both cheats and compatibility layers do the same thing - modify behaviour. Generally anticheat will take a "blanket" approach and ban or crash by default and whitelist specific types of behaviour. What we ultimately would need would be a kernel level interface/process that the game talks to if it identifies it's running under linux. Which is totally possible to do, linux users specifically would hate it, and it would be a lot of work. Without this you're stuck in userland. Honestly the only realistic hope is the steamdeck becomes a lucrative enough platform for developers to target. Valve has already made sure the popular anti-cheat software supports linux. Valve's stance has been to provide cheat mitigation through other things such as overwatch/trust factor in CSGO (which works well from my experience). VAC itself is actually very primative.

by Alupis 3y ago

thewataccount 3y ago

> My understanding is there is no technical reason these anti-cheats cannot work via Proton, but the anti-cheat makers will ban if they figure out you're not on Windows out of some weird fear of people having root access to the system. I could be wrong, however. So the big anti-cheat platforms VAC, EAC, BattleEye, etc. all support linux, however the developer has to enable it - last I checked Battlefield2042 could run on linux just fine (as BF1 and BF5 did) but they didn't enable the anticheat on linux. I'm not sure how possible kernel level anti-cheat is via wine, the entire point of that is to be on the ring 0 layer where the best cheat software lives. Drivers generally get permissions to read/modify any memory anywhere using hooks that are difficult/impossible to detect from userland. The reason you'll get banned on linux if they don't instantly nope-out on launch and don't want to support linux is because what anti-cheat software does is primarily two things: See what is hooked into the game, and see if all the memory is in an expected state. Obviously the compatibility tools don't match windows 1:1 and will look _bizzare_ to software comparing it to what you'd expect on windows. So the state doesn't match which it assumes means something is modifying it = cheat software. tl;dr - idk if ring0 anticheat could ever work via wine, a lot of games use anti-cheat software compatible with linux but just don't enable it, if anti-cheat was somehow didn't instantly freak out on launch then it'll see a bizarre and heavily modified system compare to a real windows install, with unexpected behaviour. EDIT: From my understanding DKVX for example presents as the direct3d/directx library which of course has very different behaviour and is very clearly modified/not actual direct3d/directx

Alupis 3y ago
This all makes sense. I just don't see someone like Activision caring enough to make their kernel level anti-cheat work cross platforms... which has the effect of keeping people on Windows for no other reason but to play one or a couple games. To make this work, there has to be some compatibility layer good enough to fool kernel level anti-cheat into allowing the game to run. I don't know how that would be possible... but that would be the silver bullet, so to speak.
- thewataccount 3y ago
  > fool kernel level anti-cheat That's the problem though - if the compatibility layer can fool the anti-cheat then so can actual cheats. Both cheats and compatibility layers do the same thing - modify behaviour. Generally anticheat will take a "blanket" approach and ban or crash by default and whitelist specific types of behaviour. What we ultimately would need would be a kernel level interface/process that the game talks to if it identifies it's running under linux. Which is totally possible to do, linux users specifically would hate it, and it would be a lot of work. Without this you're stuck in userland. Honestly the only realistic hope is the steamdeck becomes a lucrative enough platform for developers to target. Valve has already made sure the popular anti-cheat software supports linux. Valve's stance has been to provide cheat mitigation through other things such as overwatch/trust factor in CSGO (which works well from my experience). VAC itself is actually very primative.