Running new launcher on Linux

Hi
I really like Median XL and I discovered yesterday that 2.10 is coming, and since i now switched to Linux i wanted to see if i can run this mode once again. I searched forum, there were few topics, but i couldn't find anything on how to use this new launcher advertised on front page. I decided to give it a shot.
So here's how i was able to run this mod and complete first quest on ASUS Vivobook S with AMD Ryzen 9, AMD Radeon Graphics running Linux Mint 22.04 (Xfce) :

After few tries, here's what worked for me
1. Get Lutris from Software Manager (i used flatpack version). In Lutris use 'Install a Windows game from an executable'.
2. Install new launcher first (during installation i changed path to install to 'Program Files', don't know if it was important)
3. Install game: select the same directory (prefix) as launcher, during installation i also changed path to 'Program Files', i wanted both launcher and game to have the same parent folder. because first time i did it, i installed game first and launcher second (although in the same prefix, too), and when i tried to run launcher it crashed with some python errors saying that it couldn't find game executable. that's why i decided to make it easier for the launcher. once again, don't know if it did anything.
4. After installation i had troubles running launcher. Here's a breakdown of wine versions as i tried them (in Runner options settings):
default wine - launcher just silently wouldn't run
System(9.0) - launcher would run but displayed only black screen
GE-Proton(Latest) - launcher runs, game runs
Proton 9.0(Beta) - launcher runs, game runs
Proton-Experimental - launcher runs, game runs
5. Run launcher, click Install, wait for installation
6. In settings i enabled Borderless Fullscreen, disabled sound and enabled skipping to multiplayer.

And that's pretty much it, it played like on Windows, except... I had an issue that after i enter a game, if i tab-out and then tab-in, graphics freeze. If i were to tab-out while in game menu, this didn't happen. I tried multiple settings in Lutris, and after i enabled dgvoodoo2 i was able to tab-out via Ctrl+Shift+D (minimize all windows), and then tab-in without freezes.

YMMV, of course. Maybe on Intel hardware there would be less issues, or more. It would be great to have Linux native launcher or something. I am a c++ dev myself and have experience with other languages, in particular python and javascript, but i know nothing about D2 mods/internals, nothing about D2 graphics or DirectX for that matter. If there's someone that could lead me in a direction to make a contribution for better Linux support, i'd like to try. Don't know if there's a big demand for that, but since other topics on running mod on Linux exist, it means there's definitely some.

P.S.
Sorry for the off topic, but my peak in this mod was always Imperius/Malthael, no matter how hard i tried. Biggest success i had was with Bloodzone with some guide i found here. I'd like to go further this time. Could someone please PM me with a link to a guide on a build that can do more than this, or maybe some tips on what i might have done wrong, since it seems like this build should be stronger. I don't have a great reaction time, so i like builds that can facetank. I'm afraid this game is just too fast for me, but i don't want to spend the rest of my days playing Hay Day.

There is a really well done linux launcher already, I've been using it for a year now and it's working perfectly for me (Also on Linux Mint) viewtopic.php?f=42&t=50842
I don't know yet if the old launcher being decommissioned will have an impact on the linux one, but I assume it doesn't really interact with launchers and is just taking files directly from links like these https://get.median-xl.com/launcher/index.php?get=mod
https://get.median-xl.com/launcher/index.php?get=dlls
If it doesn't work like that and for some reasons we absolutely have to use the new launcher in one way or another, I'll use your steps to install it. Thanks for sharing !

that linux launcher seems already updated to use new update system (json manifest) so it should work fine for upcoming version(s)

aahz wrote:that linux launcher seems already updated to use new update system (json manifest) so it should work fine for upcoming version(s)

Good to know !