Nvidia’s GeForce NOW exits beta on Linux with improved cloud gaming performance
Linux gamers have waited seven months for this moment. Nvidia’s native GeForce NOW app for Linux has officially graduated out of beta, giving Linux desktops full access to the cloud gaming service without needing a powerful local GPU.
This is the latest step in Nvidia’s plans to bring GeForce NOW to more devices. The timing lines up neatly with back-to-school season, when Nvidia is also pushing GeForce NOW as a way to turn everyday Chromebooks into capable gaming machines.
What changes now that Linux support is official?
The app first entered beta back in January, and Nvidia says the months since have gone toward improving performance, stability, and overall polish based on community feedback. It officially supports Ubuntu 24.04 and later, and thanks to Flatpak, it should also run fine across many other Linux distributions.
Recommended Videos
Nvidia even set up a dedicated Flatpak repository, making installation and future updates far simpler than the earlier method of running a manual .bin file. Since GeForce NOW streams from the cloud, Linux users can tap into GeForce RTX level performance using games they already own across Steam, Epic Games, Xbox, Ubisoft, and other stores, skipping local hardware upgrades entirely.
Faster cloud gaming, new games and Chromebooks get a free year
Alongside the Linux milestone, Nvidia rolled out cloud side upgrades benefiting every platform. DLSS Frame Generation has been optimized to cut latency, an improvement Nvidia says feels most noticeable when streaming at 60 or 120 frames per second in 1440p or 4K.
Performance tier subscribers also get additional server side tweaks that boost frame rates specifically in CPU intensive games. None of this requires any setup on the user’s end.
Nvidia is separately promoting GeForce NOW as a school friendly tool too, letting Chromebooks stream from a library of over 4,500 titles total, though the free ad-supported tier caps access at 2,000 titles with added limits.
Eligible new Chromebook and Chromebook+ buyers can also claim a free year of access through Chromebook Fast Pass. On top of all this, nine new games joined the cloud library this week, including Hell Let Loose: Vietnam and a Monster Hunter Wilds Prologue demo.
PlayStation Plus just added two of the best games you can play right now
Helldivers 2 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II headline PlayStation Plus for August
Sony has confirmed the next batch of games coming to the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog in August, and there are two particularly great additions. Helldivers 2 is available through the service for the first time, while the excellent Kingdom Come: Deliverance II joins later this month.
The two games offer very different experiences, but both are among the most notable releases of the past few years.
Someone paid $200 for a mystery Xbox controller and may have gotten the Elite Series 3
The OfferUp find appears to be an unreleased Microsoft prototype, and it reveals a tiny screen we hadn’t seen before
The next Xbox Elite controller may have turned up in about the least official way imaginable. Reddit user ssuberlex, in a now deleted post, says they paid $200 on OfferUp for a mystery Xbox controller that looks like an unreleased Microsoft prototype.
Photos show a small built-in screen alongside hardware that resembles the Xbox Elite Series 3 design previously exposed through Brazilian regulatory material. The controller is also labeled as not for sale and carries placeholder regulatory information, giving the prototype explanation considerably more weight.
Sony’s Wolverine PS5 has literal claw marks ripped through its shell
Logan has left his mark on Sony's special-edition PS5
Limited-edition consoles usually settle for a new paint job with a new logo slapped on. But Sony is giving a little extra attention to detail to one of Marvel's most beloved characters. The company has revealed its Marvel’s Wolverine limited-edition PS5 collection, headlined by a Battle Yellow PS5 Digital Edition covered in enormous claw marks that appear to tear through its outer shell and expose what lies underneath.
A matching DualSense gets the same yellow-and-black treatment, complete with scratches and slashes inspired by Logan’s claws. The whole collection arrives September 15 alongside Insomniac Games’ Marvel’s Wolverine, with preorders opening August 19.