Klay - Play your games on KDE

I built Klay because I love Linux and I am also a huge gaming nerd. I recently switched to Bazzite (based on Fedora, btw.), and my game library was scattered across too many places.

Some were in Steam. Some were cloud-only in GeForce NOW (thank you anti-cheat), and some were from Heroic, Lutris, Bottles, itch, or random desktop launchers. I wanted one launcher that felt native on KDE and gave me one clean library to manage. I was tired of the different ways to launch games. I used Cartridges for a long time, but I felt the time was right to go in a different direction. Something that suited me, and something I am proud to share in case it helps others as well.

I use this application/code daily because it solves a real need / want for me. I will continue to evolve it based upon feedback and things that I would use daily as a bazzite gamer!

Are you looking for a great game launcher and manager for Linux?

Klay is that project.

It is heavily inspired by Cartridges for GNOME, but built around a Qt/KDE workflow.

Why I Built Klay

• I wanted one place for all my games on Linux.
• I wanted it to feel right on KDE, not like a GTK app bolted on.
• I wanted better control over covers, metadata, categories, and launch behavior.
• I wanted GeForce NOW support that works with how Linux users actually run it (Flatpak + cache data).

Who Klay Is For

Klay is for you if:

• You game on Linux (especially KDE/Bazzite) and use more than one launcher.
• You are tired of hunting through Steam, Heroic, Lutris, and desktop entries just to find what to play.
• You care about organizing your library (covers, categories, metadata) instead of just launching binaries.
• You want a local-first launcher that still supports online metadata when you opt in.

Klay is probably not for you if you only use a single launcher and never want to customize your library.

What It Does

• Qt desktop app (PySide6) tuned for KDE workflows
• Imports from:
  • Steam
  • GeForce NOW
  • Lutris
  • Heroic
  • Bottles
  • itch
  • Legendary
  • RetroArch
  • Flatpak
  • Desktop Entries
• Main library cover grid with animated cover support (.gif, animated .webp)
• Game details page with metadata and quick actions
• SteamGridDB + IGDB integration for covers and metadata (you provide your own API keys)
• Playtime on game cards when source data is available
• Category management (create, rename, delete, assign, custom icons)
• Optional splash screen + startup sound

Screenshots

Download (Flatpak)

Latest releases:

https://github.com/gshipley/Klay/releases/latest

Install from a downloaded release asset:

flatpak install --user --reinstall ./com.grantshipley.Klay.Devel.flatpak
flatpak run com.grantshipley.Klay.Devel

Build From Source

meson setup _build
meson compile -C _build

Run:

./_build/klay/klay

Runtime Dependencies

• Python 3
• PySide6 (Qt frontend)
• PyGObject (gi, GLib/Gio bindings used by import backends/settings)

Fedora:

sudo dnf install python3-pyside6 python3-gobject

Pip (user install):

python3 -m pip install --user PySide6

Optional:

• ffprobe for accurate splash sound duration detection

CLI Options

• klay --search "term": open with a pre-filled search term
• klay --launch GAME_ID: launch a game directly by id

Using Klay

Import games

• Use Import from the main UI.
• Enable/disable sources in Preferences -> Sources.
• Configure source paths if your launchers are in non-default locations.
• You can trigger an on-demand import from Preferences -> Import -> Import Games Now.

GeForce NOW notes:

• Requires NVIDIA GeForce NOW Flatpak (com.nvidia.geforcenow) installed.
• Imports linked GeForce NOW library entries from local GeForce NOW cache:
  • ~/.var/app/com.nvidia.geforcenow/.local/state/NVIDIA/GeForceNOW/CefCache/Default/Service Worker/CacheStorage
  • ~/.local/state/NVIDIA/GeForceNOW/CefCache/Default/Service Worker/CacheStorage (fallback)
• Uses the GeForce NOW catalog API to resolve launch-route metadata (cmsId, shortName, parentGameId, store variant ids).
• Launches through the GeForce NOW Flatpak entrypoint with --url-route:
  • flatpak run --command=/app/cef/GeForceNOW com.nvidia.geforcenow '--url-route=#?cmsId=...&launchSource=External&shortName=...&parentGameId=...'
• Supports linked store variants present in your GFN library (Steam, Epic, Xbox/Game Pass, Ubisoft Connect, EA App, and other stores exposed by GFN variants).
• Persists store metadata on imported games so details can show source + store (text and logo when a logo asset exists).
• Re-import does not create duplicate entries for existing IDs; it refreshes launch/store metadata when values change.
• Installed Steam titles are still considered.
• Steam games you own but do not have installed are read from local Steam data (userdata/*/config/localconfig.vdf) when available.
• Public Steam profile lookup is only a fallback when local Steam ownership data is unavailable and GFN library cache data is unavailable.
• By default, GeForce NOW entries appear under the GeForce NOW source filter and are not included in All Games.

Preferences -> GeForce NOW includes:

• Include GeForce NOW games in All Games
• Close GeForce NOW after stream ends (best effort)

Browse and filter

• Left nav shows:
  • All Games
  • Added
  • source groups
  • custom categories (if assigned)
• Search filters by title, source/store metadata fields, and categories.
• Sort modes include A-Z, Z-A, newest, oldest, and last played.

Game details

From details view you can:

• Play
• Edit
• Hide / Unhide
• Remove
• Search external databases
• Refresh metadata
• Change cover
• Manage categories
• View GeForce NOW source + store badges (for example Steam, Epic, Ubisoft, Xbox) when store metadata is available

Click outside the details card to return to the main library.

Covers and animation

• Supports static and animated covers.
• Cover picker shows candidates in card form and marks animated options.
• Animated covers are prioritized when enabled.
• Custom chosen covers are preserved and not overwritten by startup auto-import.

Metadata providers

Preferences -> SteamGridDB:

• Add SGDB API key
• Enable cover lookup
• Prefer SGDB covers
• Allow animated SGDB covers
• Optionally include image updates during metadata refresh

Preferences -> IGDB:

• Provide Client ID and either:
  • Access Token
  • Client Secret (Klay can fetch token automatically)
• Enable IGDB metadata enrichment
• Refresh metadata on demand

Categories

• Assign categories per game from details view (Categories) or right-click menu (Categories...).
• Manage definitions in Preferences -> Categories:
  • Add
  • Rename
  • Delete (with confirmation)
• Customize category icons in Preferences -> Categories:
  • Pick from built-in icon set
  • Upload your own icon
  • Clear custom icon and fall back to default

Category filters show up in the left nav only when games are assigned to that category.

Preferences

General settings include:

• Dark mode
• Splash screen + startup sound
• Auto import on startup
• Exit after launch
• Cover click launches game vs opens details
• High-quality image preference
• Remove missing imported games

GeForce NOW settings include:

• Include GeForce NOW games in All Games
• Optional auto-close of GeForce NOW when a stream ends (best effort)

Data Paths

Klay uses its own namespace:

• Config: ~/.config/klay/
• Data: ~/.local/share/klay/
• Games JSON: ~/.local/share/klay/games/
• Covers: ~/.local/share/klay/covers/

Troubleshooting

IGDB metadata not loading

• Verify Client ID is set.
• Provide either a valid Access Token or Client Secret.
• If using secret-only mode, ensure outbound access to Twitch token endpoint is allowed.

Cover picker appears slow

• First open may fetch and cache provider results.
• Subsequent opens use local cache and should be faster.

A launcher game is missing

• Confirm source is enabled in Preferences.
• Verify source path values.
• Re-run import and check status output in the import dialog.

GeForce NOW game is missing

• Confirm GeForce NOW source is enabled in Preferences -> Sources.
• Confirm com.nvidia.geforcenow Flatpak is installed.
• Launch GeForce NOW once and open Library so local cache data is populated.
• For non-Steam titles, make sure the platform account is connected in GeForce NOW and the game appears in your GFN Library.
• Ensure Steam has logged in at least once on this machine so local ownership data exists under userdata/*/config/localconfig.vdf.
• If local ownership data is missing, Klay falls back to Steam profile lookup.
• If import reports duplicates for GFN games, that is expected for already-imported entries; Klay still refreshes metadata such as store/source/executable.

GeForce NOW auto-close not working

• Enable in Preferences -> GeForce NOW -> Close GeForce NOW after stream ends.
• This is best-effort behavior based on runtime/log signals and can vary between GFN client versions.

Project Notes

• App ID: com.grantshipley.Klay
• Binary: klay
• Python namespace: klay
• Extension docs: docs/klay.md