Launchers

After messing around a bit in MyHouse.wad as my entry to the whole universe, I decided to make some better setup for Linux that I could configure later to automatically sync up between my machines and run on my Steam Deck.

Here’s the features I consider essential for me:

• separate saves (and config) per each .wad
• .wad-centric UI with thumbnails
• easy .txt access (for checking technical setup details)
• easy config of multiple source ports with

Contenders

I searched a bit, considered some launchers for me and tried a few of them. First I tried the Doom Runner, as that’s what I saw in Debian software search. It’s fine for quick lightweight setup, but IMO it’s too cumbersome, as to keep it organized, you would have to create, configure and maintain lots of profiles (at least for .wad groups that share some common trait, or in worst case you’d need one for every single .wad).

Capable, but tedious.

My overall impression was that launchers with native Linux support were a bit meh, lacking - so I sticked with Windows executables + a Proton environment

Then, there’s Hakros Doom Launcher (HDL), a nice fork of the all-time classic ZDL. It seemed promising, but I had some issue with it under Linux + Wine. I don’t exactly remember now, but I think it was something to do with the .net setup there and I just gave up, or sth. I’d need to check it out again to tell, and I don’t really have the incentive to do that right now.

Current pick

In the end - at least for now - I’m sticking with one with a rather inept name - the Doom Launcher. It ticks most of the stuff for me to make for a good-enough daily driver. And it has a cool igames integration.

Nitpicks

I can’t use dark mode properly, as the description is rendered in a black font on a dark background, making it unnecessarily unreadable.

Afterthoughs

• idk but, in this area, so far, as of 2025 - FOSS sucks and Linux support sucks