Protontricks
Runs Winetricks and Windows tools inside the Proton prefixes of your Steam games on Linux.
- Verified facts
- 4 of 4
- Alternatives ranked
- 4
- Approved reviews
- 0
- Visits sent from here
- 0
About Protontricks
Protontricks is a small open-source helper for Linux gamers who play Windows titles through Steam Play (Proton). Each Proton game gets its own Wine prefix, and Protontricks lets you run Winetricks against that prefix so you can install missing runtime libraries, fonts or codecs a game needs but Proton doesn't ship. It can also launch an extra Windows program, such as a mod manager or trainer, inside a game's prefix. You can use it from the command line, where you look up a game's App ID and pass Winetricks verbs, or through a simple GUI that lists your installed games. It depends on Steam and Winetricks being installed, and the GUI needs YAD or Zenity. It's free under the GPL, packaged by many distributions and on Flathub, which is the suggested route on the Steam Deck. It's a fixing tool, not a launcher: it won't download Proton versions or manage non-Steam libraries.
Best for: Linux and Steam Deck players who need to patch a Proton game's Wine prefix.
Pros and cons
What works
- Applies Winetricks fixes to one game without touching others
- Can launch extra Windows tools like mod managers inside a game's prefix
- Flatpak build makes it easy to install on the Steam Deck
Why people leave
- Only works with Steam games running through Proton
- Needs Winetricks installed separately for some install methods
- The GUI is basic and most guides assume the command line
Top Protontricks alternatives
See all 4- 1
ProtonUp-Qt66.5Installs and manages custom Proton builds like GE-Proton, which often fixes games without manual Winetricks work.
- 2
ProtonPlus62.6A newer GUI for installing compatibility tools such as GE-Proton across Steam, Lutris and Heroic.
- 3
Bottles59.6Gives each Windows app its own managed Wine prefix with a dependency installer, outside of Steam.
- 4
Lutris48.9Handles Wine prefixes and install scripts for games from many stores, not just Steam.
Why people left Protontricks
In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.
No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Protontricks, review the app you switched to and tell us why.
Reviews
No approved reviews yet. How we verify reviewers
Write a review of Protontricks
Protontricks: common questions
Is Protontricks free?
Yes. Protontricks is free, open-source software.
Is Protontricks open source?
Yes. The source code is on GitHub at Matoking/protontricks.
What platforms does Protontricks run on?
Protontricks is available for Linux.
What are the best alternatives to Protontricks?
The highest-ranked Protontricks alternatives right now are ProtonUp-Qt, ProtonPlus and Bottles. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.