Hey c/selfhosted,

In my last post here, I introduced the Web UI and said it would become the foundation for a cross-platform desktop client. Quite a few of you were waiting for a Linux application. I’m really happy to finally be back with one: GameVault 2 is now available to everyone as a public beta!

For anyone coming across it for the first time, GameVault is a self-hosted platform for managing your own DRM-free game collection. Your server holds the library, and the desktop client downloads and installs games so you can play them locally and share your collection with friends and family.

The new desktop app runs on Linux, Windows and macOS. On Linux, we provide AppImage and .deb packages, and Windows games can run through umu-launcher with Wine/Proton. Each game gets its own prefix.

We’ve also rebuilt the interface around the frontend we started with the Web UI. It’s a huge visual improvement over the old client, and it’s responsive, so the layout adapts when you’re browsing on a phone or using a smaller window. The browser and desktop app share the same interface. You can now keep multiple versions of a game in your vault and pick the version you want to download, too.

When we first shared GameVault here, it was a small project built with the technology we knew. A lot has changed since then. We’re still two developers, and being able to come back here with the Linux client people asked for means a lot to me. I’m proud of this release.

There are still rough edges: GameVault 2 is a public beta, GameVault+ features are still missing, and games installed through GameVault 1 need to be downloaded and installed again. The old client remains available while we work on the missing functionality and stability.

Thanks to everyone who stuck around, tested builds or gave us feedback. We’ve already moved to GameVault 2 ourselves, and I’m excited for more of you to try it.

Download GameVault 2, and please report any bugs you find.

AI disclosure:

• Implementation — Pair
• Testing — Pair
• Documentation — Pair
• Deployment — Pair

GameVault was originally built about 3–4 years ago without AI. For the new client rewrite, we worked alongside LLM agents on the implementation. We spent dozens of hours testing the new client and ran an Early Access phase with real users before this release. AI also helped with the wording of this announcement.

Hey c/selfhosted,

we’ve finally done it. After years of people asking for it, GameVault now has its very own Web UI!

For anyone who hasn’t heard of it yet: GameVault is a self-hosted gaming platform that gives you a Steam-like library experience, but for your own DRM-free games. You host it yourself, you own your data, and you can share your collection with friends and family. Basically, it’s for gamers who also love the selfhosting mindset.

This Web UI / Cross-Platform Client has been the most requested and long-awaited feature for as long as we’ve been working on GameVault. When we first built it, it was just a small project for the two of us, written with the tech we knew at the time. Over the years, especially here on Lemmy, people gave us plenty of criticism for the tech stack and the UX, because you guys love to use linux. And honestly… fair enough. We knew it wasn’t great.

The new Web UI is our way of addressing all the feedback we’ve received and setting the stage for the future. It’s not just a nicer interface. This also represents the first building block for a new cross-platform client that we’re working on.

The Web UI acts as a cross-platform core, which means that in the future we will be able to package GameVault to run both directly in the browser as well as a native application on Windows, Linux, or even mobile devices. This upcoming client will be built on the same foundation, ensuring a smoother and more unified experience whether you’re on a desktop OS or just checking your vault from your phone.

Right now, we’re planning to expand the Web UI continuously and figure out how to handle the legacy windows desktop client moving forward. The technology underneath is much cleaner now, so we finally have the freedom to iterate and improve without being stuck in the past.

Anyway, we’re really excited about this step. It feels like a true milestone for the project, and we’re looking forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback. If you’re self-hosting and love gaming, give it a try, I’m curious what you think.

You can also check out a live running demo version on demo.gamevau.lt
Username: demo
Password: demodemo

geteilt von: https://lemmy.world/post/1995344

Hi guys,

we’re excited to reconnect with you all here on Lemmy after our project “Crackpipe” generated quite a buzz recently. With its brand new name, we proudly present “GameVault”!

In case you missed our, let’s say - “controversial” debut on reddit and lemmy, let us give you a quick rundown of what GameVault is all about:

GameVault is a fantastic gaming platform that you can host yourself, allowing you and your friends to enjoy “alternatively obtained” games on your own terms. It simplifies the whole gaming experience by organizing, downloading, installing, playing, and tracking your favorite games right on your file server. GameVault automatically detects game files, builds a metadata database, and offers a user-friendly client for seamless downloading and gameplay. Imagine having your own personalized Steam for games stored on your file server!

Linux users, please note that we don’t currently have a native client available. However, our documentation includes a community-driven approach to running the client on Linux, which you can find under “Advanced Usage.”

Are you ready to add another Link to your Dashboards?

Feel free to pay a visit to our website and join our Discord and Lemmy Community to become part of an awesome community!

Hi guys,

we’re excited to reconnect with you all here on Lemmy after our project “Crackpipe” generated quite a buzz recently. With its brand new name, we proudly present “GameVault”!

In case you missed our, let’s say - “controversial” debut on reddit and lemmy, let us give you a quick rundown of what GameVault is all about:

GameVault is a fantastic gaming platform that you can host yourself, allowing you and your friends to enjoy “alternatively obtained” games on your own terms. It simplifies the whole gaming experience by organizing, downloading, installing, playing, and tracking your favorite games right on your file server. GameVault automatically detects game files, builds a metadata database, and offers a user-friendly client for seamless downloading and gameplay. Imagine having your own personalized Steam for games stored on your file server!

Linux users, please note that we don’t currently have a native client available. However, our documentation includes a community-driven approach to running the client on Linux, which you can find under “Advanced Usage.”

Are you ready to add another Link to your Dashboards?

Feel free to pay a visit to our website and join our Discord and Lemmy Community to become part of an awesome community!

Hey folks,

our team has worked tirelessly for a year to bring you Crackpipe, the open-source, decentralized, and liberal alternative to conventional cloud-based game platforms like Steam and Origin. We’re thrilled to announce that Crackpipe is now available for everyone, and we’re delighted to share it with the community as an open-source project.

With Crackpipe, you and your friends can enjoy playing and tracking games on a shared file server, free from the restrictions of traditional platforms. Embracing “alternatively obtained” games, including DRM-free titles, Crackpipe offers a flexible and open approach to gaming - think Jellyfin, but for Videogames.

Take full control of your gaming experience with Crackpipe’s self-hosted approach. Explore your server’s game collection, securely download, launch, and play games, and monitor your playtimes and progress - all even when the server is offline. Compare stats and play states with other users on the server for added fun.

Our server features include automatic indexing of games, metadata enrichment with RAWG API, multi-user authentication, configurable logging, health monitoring, full-text search, filters, sorting, pagination, and a fully documented API. Crackpipe’s high configurability ensures it fits your specific needs.

Join us on this journey to embrace a more open, flexible, and enjoyable gaming experience for all. Try Crackpipe today and share your contributions, feedback, bug reports, and feature requests.

Link: https://crackpipe.de/

You can also check out our launch at producthunt: https://www.producthunt.com/posts/crackpipe

UPDATE: here