Have you found Steam Deck under the tree and would you like to receive some useful advice for taking your first steps with the Valve portable console? Then you have come to the correct place.
Game Compatibility
As you well know by now, on Steam there is a list that divides the products sold on the platform into ‘compatible’, ‘verified’ and ‘incompatible’ with the portable console. Although the list is excellent and allows you to get an idea of which games can be used on Steam Deck, it would be advisable not to blindly trust the sticker, since there are numerous video games that can run on the machine despite the absence of a certification. Therefore, if you are interested in a game that is not compatible, we suggest you give it a try, as the result may surprise you.
Emulators
It is very probable that Steam Deck owners don’t want to use the console only for the most recent productions, but are willing to exploit the hardware also with emulation. In this regard, one of the best software is called EmuDeck and is an all-in-one application that allows you to emulate a large number of devices without the need to install software for each machine. Installing EmuDeck is simple, since Steam Deck is similar to a normal PC and in its desktop mode it allows you to move files and install them in a similar way to what normally happens on Windows.
GOG games and Epic Games
Other very important software for Steam Deck owners is Heroic Game Launcher, an application that allows you to access GOG and the Epic Games Store to download all the games you have purchased or redeemed for free (including Death Stranding, given away at Christmas on the Fortnite creators’ store). Although it works perfectly with almost all games, this software should be used with caution, as some online products such as Fortnite and Destiny 2 do not support operating systems other than Windows (due to anti-cheat) and the use of this app it could get you banned. In short, try to use this system exclusively for single player titles or titles that fully support Linux.
Controller configuration
Those who want to play in the best way shouldn’t even ignore the presence of a section of the menu dedicated entirely to community-created command presets. More often than not, the personalized scheme shared by other players manages to be more effective even than the one created by the developers. To use one of these presets, just click on the controller-shaped icon corresponding to the games in the menu: just press a button to download and activate that scheme.
40Hz mode
The last piece of advice we will give to new Steam Deck owners concerns the graphics settings, since there is the possibility of change the refresh rate of the small screen of the portable console. Since many games struggle to hit 60 frames per second and a high framerate has a major impact on battery life, it might be a good idea to enable 40Hz modewhich is a perfect middle ground between 30 and 60Hz both as far as the fluidity that for theinput lag.
Did you know that Vampire Survivors and Elden Ring are among the most played of December 2022 on Steam Deck? We also remind you that, to date, there are more than 7,000 games compatible with Steam Deck.
