$HOME/.config/openvr/openvrpaths.vrpath exists but was empty for me. Added an empty JSON document to it and Proton Experimental works as expected afterwards.
$HOME/.config/openvr/openvrpaths.vrpath:
{}
Confirmed, anders-larsson's fix worked for me.
proton experimentalx2 2025-05proton 9.0-4x1 2025-05
Played games using Proton Experimental earlier today. Got an update around 20 minutes ago and can no longer launch Path of Exile 2. Fails with the python error below.
Distribution: Gentoo Linux
Switching Proton-9.0-4 and the game starts successfully.