User:Armahillo/Sandbox

Skyrim:Linux

With current versions of both Wine and a Linux distribution, along with appropriate hardware, it is possible to run Skyrim in Linux (via Wine) well enough that the game can be enjoyed with minimal hassle. There is a small amount of hoop-jumping, particularly in the beginning, but once the game is up and running, the rest of the process is pretty transparent.

The official Skyrim Wine page should be treated as canon for what configurations are known to work.

Setup

Playing Skyrim in Linux requires:

• A current and updated stable version of a Linux distro of your choice (Wine users have reported success ArchLinux, Linux Mint, and Ubuntu/KUbuntu)
• A current (1.3+) version of Wine
• DirectX 10 (found on the skyrim disc), which can be installed with right clicking on "DXSetup.exe" and clicking "Open with Wine"
• A few other drivers, installed via winetricks
  • d3dx9_42
  • XACT
  • vcrun2008

You'll need to delete (just rename it) the intro video in the Skyrim/Data/Video/ folder.

In the SkyrimPrefs.ini file, found in "My Games/Skryim" (which is under ~/Documents/My Games/ in Ubuntu), disable GamePad (bGamePad=0). You can also override your graphics settings here, if you want to tweak, although the SkyrimLauncher will work as well.

In Winecfg, you can set "TESV.EXE" to run in "Windows 7" or "Windows XP" mode. I have to occasionally alternate, although I don't know if it actually makes any difference.

Running this in a separate Wine prefix area has not been necessary for me so far.

Running

Simply open the SkyrimLauncher and you should be all set. Rebooting first might be necessary, depending on your system configuration.

Debugging

The biggest problem I had initially (once DX10 was installed) was getting the sound to work correctly. If you install all the drivers above, especially DX10, and delete the intro video, try running the game. It should show you the main menu and you should hear the faint background music. Clicking on "New Game" should provide the metallic-sounding audio feedback. If you hear nothing, it means sound is not working. Quit out, reboot, and try again. Try setting your "windows mode" to the opposite of what you have among "Windows XP" or "Windows 7" and re-try.

Normally, rebooting should not matter, but with Wine applications, particularly their interaction with the Pulseaudio system favored by Ubuntu and others, it sometimes becomes necessary.

If your game resolution is not the same as your normal desktop resoution, you may see a window frame (with the min/max/close icons and a window title) at the top; this will overlay on top of part of the compass, which is annoying. Quit the game, resize your desktop manually through your display settings, then re-start it. It should work correctly now.

I was unable to get the keyboard to re-map any of the keys, so I had to use the defaults.

Occasionally, if your system lags while you are pressing a key (such as "forward"), it will "stick" and you will continue to move forwards despite letting go of the key. Tap whatever key seems to be stuck and it will unstick it. This seems to be happening when the lag causes the game to overlook an "OnKeyUp" event, which should cease your movement. It happens every now and then (once or twice an hour, for me), and you just get used to it.