gamemoderun %command% --launcher-skip
The performance with NVidia and DX12 isn't that great. Unless you modify the launcher params it will crash after some play time, but still the performance isn't that great. Forcing the game to use DX11 is way better.
Look at other posts how to modify config.json for applying DX11 as fallback
DX12 isn't good. DX11 on the other hand, gave me no issues
Crashed only with DX12
gamemoderun %command%
Crashing on startup
I played this game on both Nvidia (3060 ti) before I upgraded to AMD's 9070 xt. On Nvidia the game wouldn't launch at all with DX12. On AMD, I get about 40% less fps on DX12 than on DX11 (though I also get the option for things like raytracing)
You can set the game to use DX11 by browsing its local files on Steam, find the file "launcher-configuration.json". In here find the line:
"fallback": "DirectX 12"
Change it to:
"fallback": "DirectX 11"
Save, and then in the Steam launch settings put this in:
--launcher-skip
gamescope -W 2560 -H 1440 --force-grab-cursor --hdr-enabled --adaptive-sync -f -o 240 -r 240 -- %command% --launcher-skip -dx12
DX12 crashes fixable with disabling AA (XeSS, DLSS, FSR) didn't test with FXAA
gamemoderun PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=83 PIPEWIRE_LATENCY=1024/48000 mangohud gamescope -w 2560 -h 1440 -f --sharpness 0.6 --force-grab-cursor -- %command%
fixed with: PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=83 PIPEWIRE_LATENCY=1024/48000
gamemoderun → Enables GameMode (performance optimizations)
PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=83 → Sets PulseAudio latency to 83ms (reduces audio crackling)
PIPEWIRE_LATENCY=1024/48000 → Sets PipeWire buffer size and rate (for better audio sync)
mangohud → Enables MangoHud (performance overlay)
gamescope → Runs the game in a nested Wayland session
-w 2560 → Sets width to 2560 (upscales from 1080p to 1440p)
-h 1440 → Sets height to 1440 (upscales from 1080p to 1440p)
-f → Enables fullscreen
--sharpness 0.6 → Applies 0.6 sharpness to scaling
--force-grab-cursor → Forces the game to grab the mouse cursor
-- %command% → Executes the game with these options
--launcher-skip
To fix The Witcher 3 DX12 crashes on Linux (Steam/Proton), edit launcher-configuration.json in the game's install folder, changing "fallback": "DirectX 12" to "DirectX 11". Also, add --launcher-skip to Steam launch options.
The Fix:
Locate the launcher-configuration.json file. The easiest way to find it is by:
- Opening your Steam client.
- Going to your Library.
- Right-clicking on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -> Properties.
- Navigating to the "Installed Files" tab (as shown in the image).
- Clicking "Browse...".
- This will open the game's main installation directory (e.g., ~/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/The Witcher 3/). The launcher-configuration.json file is located directly in this folder.
- Edit the file, open launcher-configuration.json with a text editor.
Change the fallback setting.
- Find the line that says: "fallback": "DirectX 12", And change it to: "fallback": "DirectX 11",
- Save the file.
Set Steam Launch Options to skip the launcher.
- In your Steam Library, right-click on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -> Properties.
- Under the "General" tab, locate the "Launch Options" field.
- Type in: --launcher-skip
After saving the file and setting the launch option, the game will now default to DirectX 11 and bypass the launcher, eliminating the crashes I experienced with DirectX 12.
Con dx12 rara vez se queda, me ha pasado solo 3 veces
--launcher-skip
Set "fallback": "DirectX 11" in launcher-configuration.json
Set this to DX11 either in launcher or config. I literally get 2-3x the fps in dx11 and all it does is enable RT.
gamemoderun %command% --launcher-skip
runs better on linux than on windows
Ocassional shadow flickering (might be due to my settings).
At some point, the game was randomly freezing after 3-4 hours of gameplay (as for my 90h playthrough, the game froze 15 times). Also, I got 2 kernel panics (should be GPU driver or RAM instability?). I didn't try switching to DirectX11 yet, as this supposedly might fix this issue.
The game runs mostly stable (I'm playing on highest settings, QHD, no RT). I didn't find any other issues and the game works with a gaming controller.
The game launches to Redlauncher but trying to actually start the game results to a black screen. used to work after update.
gamemoderun %command%
switching to experimental or hotfix does not seem to solve the issue, or verifying cache/redownloading the game. the problem persist with dx11 and dx12 versions, classic or next gen both dont work currently.
gamemoderun DXVK_FRAME_RATE=60 VKD3D_CONFIG=upload_hvv PROTON_ENABLE_NVAPI=1 PROTON_HIDE_NVIDIA_GPU=0 __NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1 __GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 %command%
Instances were few and far between but it did happen.
For smooth sailing on Pop!_OS with an NVIDIA GPU, I've found this launch option helpful. It makes sure your NVIDIA card is always used, caps frames at 60 FPS as to not use excess resources, helps DX12 run better if you choose to enable it, and enables GameMode (Must download and install through terminal first) for extra performance tweaks. Hope it helps someone; I have spent HOURS tweaking this so my game was snappy and never dared to crash. ALSO, as I'm posting this, nvidia-driver-575 was a big issue in getting above 1-5 FPS so I instead use nvidia-driver-570. Thanks for reading!
Playing this game was as smooth an experience as one could have with Windows, the only weird bug was the fullscreen thing and nothing else
The game wouldn't run in fullscreen natively and if I used Lutris, my saves won't show up (probably was a way to get that done), all I had to use the shortcut Meta+F (different depending upon your setup) and that worked
If using Lutris
mangohud %command% --launcher-skip
The game runs fine except for some very rare crashes after I switched to GE-Proton8-17. If you try running the game in DX12 using any of the more recent Proton versions it causes the game to freeze every time you open the main menu after loading the game.
I've only run into 1-2 game closing crashes in over 8 hours of gameplay so it's mostly stable. Something else to note is that closing the game can be a bit buggy as it either generates a crash report upon close or steam closes the game but still shows it as running in the UI where you have to stop it manually.
gamemoderun %command% --launcher-skip
Musics/ambiance are sometimes late to load
Had one crash when opening the map and zooming out, didn't reproduce
Use --launcher-skip to avoid going through the CD projekt launcher. Performance is quite poor (I know, nvidia GPU) in just high quality, no RT, 2k screen, around 60 fps without framegen, which seems a bit low for a 3060Ti, but unsure if that's a linux thing
WINEDLLOVERRIDES="d3dcompiler_47=n;dxgi=n,b" %command%
Haven't encountered a single crash within the 20 hours of gameplay on KDE Plasma(wayland). FPS could be a bit lower in some areas compared to Windows.
--launcher-skip
Some audio crackling during gameplay.
Once the launch configs was added, the game ran perfect, no frame rate drops or any freezes.
PROTON_HIDE_NVIDIA_GPU=0 PROTON_ENABLE_NVAPI=1 %command% --launcher-skip
Frame rate drops on areas where there are a lot of polygons to render
Occasionally froze when open the menu
Occasionally froze when open the menu
Once the launch configs was added, the game ran perfect, no frame rate drops or any freezes.
DXVK_FRAME_RATE=144 __NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1 __GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia PROTON_FORCE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE=1 %command%
Ao ativar o vsync o jogo congelava, e so voltava apos apertar alt + tab, recomendo desativa-lo para jogar, para mim funcionou perfeitamente após esse ajuste.
PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=60 %command%
Sound crackling fix: PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=60
D3D12 version occasionally crashes in Gwent, D3D11 version is recommended as it provides perfect stability, not a single crash after switching
--launcher-skip
Launcher skip is not needed, but cd projekt reds launcher has been known to cause issues, so I normally skip it
--launcher-skip
On i3, moving to a screen on the side of fullscreen game keeps game focused, need to switch to a different workspace on same screen, or go to a screen not sharing a side.
launcher errors started on second day, adding startup option solved them.
