Only one thing: you can not choose Directx10 option the in the graphic menu.
I played approx. 2h, works fine except opening any menu. Pressing Esc or interacting with any shop will cause a long delay ( > 1min) for me. After the delay the menu opens and works normally.
edit:
This and the textures can be fixed by modifying the lunch options
PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%
@arzardk
I do have also issues with the input, but only with the mouse. All the controllers that I tested worked OK fortunately.
Bioshock 2 hangs during transfer from one level to another
Issue transferred from https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/issues/836.
@Sebastian1978 posted on 2018-08-28T15:43:55:
Ubuntu 18.04
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3337U CPU @ 1.80GHz
NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M
Driver Nvidia 396.54
Game runs smoothly but when I go from level 1 to Atlantic Express game hangs.
Adding PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command% to the launch options fixed the problem
Also dark screen during fighting with monsters. I haven't seen this before adding PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%
Sometimes saving game corrupts save files
Didn't try it with a joystick/gamepad/controller, but in my system has the same "mouse wall/lag" as a lot of other games (GTA3, GTA-VC, Q3A, etc).
BioShock and BioShock Remastered works fine for me.
Proton beta 3.16-4 does not work. Proton 3.7-8 does work without options. Without esync texture resolutions can be very low on high settings. The game hangs for 10-20 seconds when you hit escape. If you enable esync then textures seem to look fine and there is no hanging on pressing escape. When transitioning from one level to the next, the game freezes just before the loading screen. The only way I found to close the game is using kill with the sigkill signal sent (kill -s sigkill ).
I enabled debugging for my last run with esync disabled and the file was 71MB so I have had to upload it in tar.gz format so you don't have to scroll through >600,000 lines on my website.
bs2-proton3.7-8-noesync-steam8850.log.tar.gz
Specs
OS: Ubuntu 18.04.1 LTS
KERNEL: 4.15.0-38-generic
CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K @ 4.00GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080
GPU DRIVER: NVIDIA 410.73
RAM: 16 GB
Hello @Matamanthemaster, can you also include a proton log of Proton 3.16-4?
Sorry I was busy all day. Changed proton to 3.16-4 and removed all launch options other than logging.
steam-8850.log
It shows the logo which is about 425x100 pixels. After that the screen goes black, and when trying to close says Wine is not responding.
Using proton 3.16-6 Beta and experiencing game freezes on level transfers as well. The solution is to save your game right before transfering, quit the game, load back in, and then attempt to transfer. My only guess is that autosaving is somehow related to the freeze, since autosaving only occurs during level transfers.
The game itself was bugged from the beginning. It crashed A LOT back in 2013 when I tried to play it on a Windows XP sp3 machine... And, in 2016, when I tried to play it on Ubuntu Linux 64bit via Wine, it crashed too...
I only was able to play the game entirely (including DX10 mode) on a Windows 7 64 bit pro machine (fresh Win7 SP1 install with KB3020369 and rollup pack kb3125574, corei5 4690K 2x4GB DDR3 2400CL11, GTX 970), having just one crash to desktop... and using performance tricks listed at https://pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/BioShock_2
So, or this is a 32 bit game with huge memory leaks, or one of the native VC2005 windows libraries installed by steam are bugged or the wrong versions... or is all together. ..
I guess that is why GOG is taking its time to patch it before release it as a free bonus for Bioshock 2 Remastered owners...
I decided to make an experiment and add this to the launch options:
PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command% -dx9
I was able to play the entire first level and the transfer to the second level without crashes. (minor FPS drops here and there)
Specs
OS: Ubuntu 16.04.5 LTS
KERNEL: 4.4.0-141-generic
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K @ 4.00GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
GPU DRIVER: NVIDIA 415.25
MONITOR: 1920 x 1080
RAM: 2x8 GB DDR3 2400CL11
I will play two levels in a row so I can tell if this fixed the problem.
@kisak-valve I think it would make sense to remove the regression tag from this game. It is running into the same problem as issue #388 -- it used to work because d3d10 was not an option, but now it is attempting to run with d3d10 and failing. Using the -dx9 launch option will "fix" the issue by mimicking the old fallback behavior.
I confirm that with the options PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command% -dx9I played the first two levels in a row, with the transfer to the third level without crashes.
Specs
OS: Ubuntu 16.04.5 LTS
PROTON: 3.16-6
KERNEL: 4.4.0-141-generic
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K @ 4.00GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
GPU DRIVER: NVIDIA 415.27
MONITOR: 1920 x 1080
RAM: 2x8 GB DDR3 2400CL11
https://gist.github.com/CSahajdacny/07a4c2e835804bb7368673bd8035d8f4
Bioshock 2 Multiplayer crashes joining a match, not before
Issue transferred from https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/issues/8590.
@jebez1 posted on 2025-04-04T10:57:58:
On Arch Linux KDE.
Bioshock 2 Multiplayer works but crashes joining a match (Find a Match, ANY).
Not before, I think since the latest update of Proton Hotfix (Installed content updated: Mar 29, 2025 at 1:05).
Install Bioshock 2
PLAY
Bioshock 2 Multiplayer
PLAYER LOBBY
Find a Match
ANY
With the new Proton Hotfix (Installed content updated: Apr 4, 2025 at 15:27) it not crashes anymore! Thanks Valve.
But an other issue:
although I not have a microphone plugged to my PC, I've the microphone symbol in game, other players complain of hearing my game.
@jebez1 does the microphone issues also happen with proton 9.0-4 or experimental?
I not tested but why Proton Stable or Experimental would work but not Hotfix?
Proton Hotfix is more "beta" than Stable & Experimental https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/wiki/Proton-Versions .
@jebez1 because sometimes things can regress in newer versions
Both Stable & Experimental: same issue.
I found a solution:
System Settings
Sound
Mute steam: Capture Stream
Proton Experimental.
New issue: since maybe the 11/1/2026, BioShock 2 launches not anymore, the only of all my Window$ games.
PROTON_LOG=1
steam-8850.log
In red (error) there are:
1083.017:012c:0130:err:module:import_dll Library MSVCR80.dll (which is needed by L"C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\BioShock 2\MP\Builds\Binaries\Bioshock2Launcher.exe") not found
1083.017:012c:0130:err:module:loader_init Importing dlls for L"C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\BioShock 2\MP\Builds\Binaries\Bioshock2Launcher.exe" failed, status c0000135
but there is the file symlink
/run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9/pfx/drive_c/windows/system32/msvcr80.dll pointing to
/run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9/pfx/drive_c/Program Files (x86)/Steam/steamapps/common/Proton - Experimental/files/lib/wine/x86_64-windows/msvcr80.dll
...
@jebez1 if you install the game on your main drive rather than an external partition, does it still fail to launch?
Obviously yes, why that idea?
https://steamcommunity.com/app/8850/discussions/0/816973559978073043/
still no answer, as usual few people play on Linux...
@jebez1 because it's working on my end and failure to launch can be an issue with microsoft partition formats (like ntfs) which people tend to use for secondary partitions/devices
My external partition is ext4 on HDD.
omg it works if I let create a new Proton prefix!
I use a single Proton prefix https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3378517770 :
launch options: STEAM_COMPAT_DATA_PATH=/run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9 %command%
If launch options empty, it works!
So my single Proton prefix is corrupted?
But the issue now is no Steam Cloud, I'll loose my multiplayer progression... What is the file about this? %APPDATA%\Bioshock2Steam<user-id>.profile https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/BioShock_2#Save_game_data_location ? But if I use my single Proton prefix & delete /run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9/pfx/drive_c/users/steamuser/AppData/Roaming/Bioshock2Steam , still not launches, wtf...
I cleaned, deleted files & folders in my single Proton prefix, it works on it! I know not the right file(s) to delete...
For my multiplayer progression, I replaced /run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9/pfx/drive_c/users/steamuser/AppData/Roaming/Bioshock2Steam/76561197970875478.profile with the backup.
Bioshock 2 Multiplayer crashes joining a match only the Arcadia map, not the others, via Proton Experimental.
proton experimentalx2 2026-06proton hotfixx3 2025-04proton 9.0-4x1 2025-04proton 3.16-6x1 2018-12proton 3.16-4x1 2018-11proton 3.7-8x1 2018-11proton3.7-8x1 2018-11STEAM_COMPAT_DATA_PATH=/run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9x1 2026-01PROTON_LOG=1x1 2026-01PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1x6 2019-01PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1x2 2019-01STEAM_COMPAT_DATA_PATH=/run/media/a/8688e754-c2e4-40d1-a9c8-c205211ca8d9 %command%x1 2026-01PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command% -dx9x2 2019-01PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%x4 2018-08msvcr80.dllx1 2026-01
I only tried until the arrival in Rapture, worked without problems
Edit: Better textures and improved loadtime with PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%
Systeminfo: https://gist.github.com/Dakunier/352c4f0b1b7c027065f71993367b0249