NVIDIA keeps neglecting frame gen on Linux, so I turned to this $7 alternative instead

Gaming on Linux is better today than it ever has been, but that doesn’t mean it is perfect. NVIDIA’s drivers are notoriously finicky, especially when you want to use more advanced features like DLSS or Frame Generation.

After one too many times fighting with a configuration file, I decided to try a third-party alternative instead.

NVIDIA’s frame gen is hit-and-miss on Linux

It has gotten better, but it isn’t perfect

NVIDIA’s graphics drivers on Linux, which include Frame Generation and DLSS, have improved dramatically over the last few years. A lot of the credit goes to Valve for their work on Proton—without it, Frame Generation wouldn’t be possible on Linux at all.

However, despite the significant improvements, Frame Generation (and DLSS) on Linux is still unreliable. Sometimes, after an update to Proton or your NVIDIA drivers, the option to enable Frame Gen disappears completely. On a handful of occasions, I’ve had to use experimental versions of Proton or track down specific flags to enable Frame Gen at all.