Someone has made a tool to add achievements to non-Steam games on Linux, which feels like a niche in a niche

If you are on Linux and are the type to play a game arguably hours too long just to finish off the achievements list, I've found the perfect thing for you / your worst nightmare. Sentinel is a new tool you can download on GitHub that will add an achievements system to your games, even if you play them on a storefront other than Steam.

In fact, the creator "m0rpheus23" on Reddit has shared that its major use is to specifically work with games downloaded outside of Steam. In concept, it's quite a simple bit of software, really. Once downloaded, you simply choose to use the Steam Web API or an external data source (like SteamHunters), and the tool will grab achievement data there.

From here, it monitors Steam saves and cross-references them with data gleaned from the achievement sources and awards the achievement when it thinks you've done so. A GIF is shown off in the GitHub of someone playing Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and unlocking an achievement the moment they shoot an arrow at a fire pit, so it does appear to work in real-time.

This does mean that if you are playing a game that doesn't have achievements online in some form, you won't be able to add them, but most games on Steam have achievements now, so it's a very wide pool of applicable games. Like traditional achievements, you will get notifications on your screen, and it even has tracking for multi-step achievements.

If you use the Steam API, it will also give global percentages, just like you get on Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation. It also comes with custom notification sounds, should you prefer more of a ding to a ping.

Sentinel - An Achievement Watcher for Linux Proton Games from r/linux_gaming

Notably, Sentinel also doubles as a game tracking tool, combining your library alongside achievement progress. M0rpheus23 notes that it even works with launchers like Heroic, which means it can track your Epic Games Store games, even if you don't want to go through Epic directly.

If you are unaware of achievement hunters, they are a surprisingly vocal segment of the gaming market. Platforms like RetroAchievements add achievement tracking to retro games, and have been in operation for 14 years now, adding support for over 10,000 games, with just under 600,000 achievements total.

And I do get this. I don't hunt for achievements on Steam very often, but I do get a light endorphin rush when I hear the unmistakable ping of a PlayStation platinum trophy. If you are the same and playing on Linux, Sentinel could be worth a download. There are even plans to get it running on Steam Deck in the future, so you can achievement hunt from the comfort of your toilet even easier.