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Linux Desktop - Recommended Software

The following software might enhance your RetroDECK or general gaming experience on Linux.

Emulation Management

Flips

Flips is a software that lets you patch romhacks IPS & BPS files onto the rom files.

Flips Flathub

JRomManager

A MAME and retro gaming rom manager.
This more complex application allows you to manage and verify your roms via .dat files.

JRomManager Flathub

RomM

RomM is a game library roms manager focused on retro gaming. Manage and organize all your games from a web browser.

Inspired by Jellyfin, allows you to manage all your games from a modern interface while enriching them with IGDB metadata.

RomM Github

Game & Software Clients/Installers

Steam

Steam is a software distribution service with an online store, automated installation, automatic updates, achievements, SteamCloud synchronized savegame and screenshot functionality, and many social features.

RetroDECK and Steam:
RetroDECK uses several of Steam's functions like Steam Input to do advanced controller profiles. It is not required to have Steam to use RetroDECK but launching RetroDECK from Steam will enchance your experience.

Steam exists as a Flatpak and or in most cases also as a built-in native installation that you can download for your distribution via built-in package managers. You need to check your distribution on how to download Steam.

We recommend the native version of Steam over the flatpak version as running RetroDECK in the Steam flatpak version you will need to open various permissions to get everything to work.

Steam
Steam Flathub

Lutris

Lutris is a separate interface to manage and play your games on Linux. It can integrate several different stores: GOG, Steam, Epic, Itch.io, Battle.net and more.

Lutris Flathub

Minigalaxy

A simple GOG client for Linux. Minigalaxy lets you download, install and play your GOG Linux games without getting in your way.

Minigalaxy Flathub

Heroic Games Launcher

Heroic is an Open-Source Games Launcher. It supports launching games from the Epic Games Store, GOG and Amazon Games.

Heroic Flathub

Bottles

Bottles lets you run Windows software on Linux, such as applications and games.
It introduces a workflow that helps you organize by categorizing each software to your liking.
Bottles provides several tools and integrations to help you manage and optimize your applications.

Bottles Flathub

Prism Launcher

A custom client for Minecraft Java that allows you to easily manage multiple different installations of Minecraft at once and features easy mod management.

Prism Launcher Flathub

Game Streaming Applications

Greenlight

Greenlight is an open-source client for xCloud and Xbox home streaming made in Typescript.

Greenlight Github

Chiaki

Chiaki is a Free and Open-Source Software Client for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 Remote Play for Linux and other systems.

Chiaki Flathub

Moonlight

Moonlight allows you to play your PC games on almost any device, whether you are in another room or miles away from your gaming rig.

Moonlight Flathub

Sunshine

Sunshine is a self-hosted game stream host for Moonlight. Offering low latency, cloud gaming server capabilities with support for AMD, Intel, and Nvidia GPUs for hardware encoding.

Sunshine Github

The Steam Link app allows you to stream games from your other computers.
Just plug in a controller, connect to a computer running Steam on the same local network, and start playing your existing Steam games.

Steam Link Flathub

Other software

BoilR

BoilR will show games from other games platforms in your Steam library. It uses the Steam 3rd party shortcuts feature and does not require you to set up anything. You can also use BoilR to download custom art manually and automatically from SteamGridDB. It is already in Flathub.

BoilR Flathub

ProtonUp-Qt

Install and manage Wine- and Proton-based compatibility tools for both Steam, Bottles and Lutris.

ProtonUp-Qt Flathub

Flatseal

Flatseal is a graphical utility to review and modify permissions from your Flatpak applications.

Flatseal Flathub

Flatsweep

If you are using many flatpaks they sometimes leave data behind. You can use Flatsweep to clean that from your system.

Flatsweep Flathub