How to play DayZ on Linux – Easy Steps

DayZ is a survival game developed and published by Bohemia Interactive. It is the successor to the ARMA 2 modification that bears the same name. This is how you can play DayZ on Linux.

Make DayZ work on Linux

DayZ is not a native Linux game, sadly, but thanks to Valve’s hard work with Proton and Steam Play, it can be made to work. The first step for this game to work is to install Linux for Steam.

Instalar Steam

In order for Steam to work on your Linux system, you will need to open a terminal window on the desktop. You can open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T on the keyboard. Or search for “Terminal” in the application menu and run it that way.

With the terminal app open, Steam can be installed. Follow the installation instructions below to get the Steam application working on your computer.

Ubuntu

To get Steam to work on Ubuntu, use the following apt install command below.

sudo apt install steam

Debian

In order for the Steam application to work on Debian, you will need to download the latest Steam DEB package from the Steam website. You can grab the Steam DEB package with the wget command below.

wget https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steam.deb

Installation can begin with the Steam DEB package downloaded to your computer. Using the dpkg command then configure Steam on Debian.

sudo dpkg -i steam.deb

Once the Steam DEB package is configured on your computer, you will need to troubleshoot any dependency issues that occurred during the installation process. To do that, run the apt-get install -f command.

sudo apt-get install -f

Arch Linux

Those on Arch Linux will need to enable the “multilib” software repository before attempting to install the Steam application. To enable the repository, open the /etc/pacman.conf file in your favorite text editor (as root).

Once inside the text file, find the line “multilib” and remove the # symbol in front of it. Then remove the # symbol from the lines directly below. Save when done and run the pacman -Cause command.

sudo pacman -Syy

When you have configured the “multilib” software repository, run the pacman -S command to configure Steam on Arch Linux.

sudo pacman -S steam

Fedora / OpenSUSE

On Fedora and OpenSUSE Linux, the Steam application can be installed through software repositories included with the system. However, the Flatpak version of Steam tends to work better on these operating systems, so we suggest following those instructions.

Flatpak

Steam runs on Flatpak with the help of the Flatpak runtime. In order for the runtime to work on your computer, you will have to install it. If you don’t know how to configure the Flatpak runtime, please follow our tutorial on how to configure the Flatpak runtime.

With the Flatpak runtime set up, Steam will be able to install Steam. Using both flatpak installation commands then configure the application on your computer.

flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

flatpak install flathub com.valvesoftware.Steam

Install DayZ on Linux

Now that the Steam application is installed on Linux, run it on the desktop and log into your account. Then follow the step-by-step instructions below to get DayZ working on your Linux system.

Paso 1: Find the “Steam” menu and click on it with your mouse to access the Steam menu. Then select the “Settings” button to launch the Steam settings area. From here, look for the “Steam Play” button to access the Steam Play area.

Within the Steam Play area, check the “Enable Steam Play for supported titles” box and the “Enable Steam Play for all other titles” box. Finally, click on the “OK” button to save your settings.

Paso 2: Find the “Store” button within the Steam application and click on it with your mouse to access the Steam store. Once there, find the search box and click on it with your mouse. Then type “DayZ”. Finally, press the Get into to view the search results.

Paso 3: Search the Steam store search results for “DayZ.” When you have located the game in the search results, click on it with your mouse. Selecting the game will take you to the DayZ store page.

On the DayZ store page, look for the green “Add to Cart” button to click to add it to your Steam Cart. You can then purchase the game and add it to your Steam game library.

Stage 4: After purchasing the game, find the “Library” button and click on it with your mouse. When you select “Library”, you will be taken to your Steam game library. From here, find “DayZ” in your collection and click on it.

Look for the blue “INSTALL” button after locating DayZ in your game library. Click this button to install the game on your Linux PC. The installation process shouldn’t take long.

Paso 5: When the game finishes downloading, the blue “INSTALL” button will turn into a green “PLAY” button. However, before selecting it, you will need to run a command in the terminal.

This command is essential, and if you don’t run it before trying to start DayZ, it won’t work properly. Open a terminal window on the Linux desktop and run the following command.

sudo sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=1048576”

After running the command, select the green “PLAY” button to enjoy DayZ on your Linux PC.