The Finals Linux support isn’t planned but Embark won’t punish your Steam Deck
We’re still a few weeks away from The Finals Season 8, but the grind for Emerald rank in World Tour continues, whether you’re playing on PS5 or Steam Deck. It’s still astounding that the shooter runs on Valve’s handheld, but this isn’t guaranteed to last. Despite the odds stacking against it, Embark Studios reiterates it isn’t discarding the console anytime soon.
Earlier this month, I reported on The Finals Steam Deck support, as changes to the FPS game’s kernel-level anti-cheat threaten to put its stint on the console to an end. If Embark can stamp out cheaters and exploiters more easily, it should be a positive change, but the thing is: The Finals isn’t officially Steam Deck verified. Actually, The Finals’ Steam listing marks it down as ‘unsupported’. Yet, in the recent mid-season update patch notes, Embark is hearing your pleas.
Embark expresses that it “noticed the concern about Linux following our last update. We’re testing everything across all platforms, and have made it very clear to our partners that Proton and Steam Deck are important to our development plans.” Unlike other portable gaming consoles such as the Asus ROG Ally or Lenovo Legion Go, the Steam Deck’s design decision to veer away from Windows makes running games difficult in some instances.
However, helpful compatibility tools like Proton Experimental serve as decent workarounds. As the game depends on Proton Experimental to stay compatible with the Steam Deck, it puts Embark in a tough spot. Nevertheless, the developer says that “we are committed to ensuring compatibility, and we work with external partners to fix issues before we ship a patch. The experience of every player is important to us. Despite many factors, we are still dedicated to supporting it because we know it matters.”
So, the Steam Deck isn’t missing out on some Power Shift or Cash Out action anytime soon. It is worth noting, though, that Embark adds that “general Wine support is not tested, and native Linux support is not planned.” While the studio could be speaking generally, it does close out the patch notes by saying that it will “
The next update is the beginning of Season 8, which introduces The Finals’ first eSports Major event. I spoke to Embark at the start of The Finals Season 6, as I wanted to set the record straight on one thing: is The Finals dying? While it doesn’t have the larger player base of genre stalwarts like Call of Duty, it’s safe to say that it isn’t sunsetting. There are some changes I’d like to see, especially with revives, but the Season 7 meta is still proving to be an interesting turning point.
Beyond Season 8’s arrival, the ARC Raiders release date is fast approaching. You can read my ARC Raiders preview to see how the looter shooter is shaping up.
For more of the latest mobile hardware and gaming news, whether you’re diving into the best Steam Deck games or the best Switch games, follow us on Google News to stay in the loop. Or, if you’re more of a console gamer, check out our Nintendo Switch 2 review.
