The Steam Deck ‘launch lineup’: What we’ll play on day 1
We’ve been joking that if the Steam Deck were a console, it’d have the best console launch lineup in history. Over two decades, Steam has grown from a Counter-Strike updater to PC gaming’s Library of Alexandria: the largest single collection of major and minor PC games in one client. And all of those games will be available for purchase and download on Valve’s handheld PC.
They won’t necessarily all run optimally on a Steam Deck though. Based on what we know about the Steam Deck’s specs, we think something like Cyberpunk 2077 could make it sweat, though Valve says that the little machine has handled everything it’s thrown at it. There’s also the matter of total storage space (512GB on the top model of the Deck), the 1280×800 resolution screen, and battery life. Controller compatibility is a consideration too. Just because the Deck has track pads and theoretically can play anything on Steam, doesn’t mean it’s an ideal fit for a handheld.
Valve’s Proton compatibility software that makes Windows games work on SteamOS (the Linux-based operating system Steam Decks ship with), is another factor. Valve has planned to slap a rating on every game in the Steam library with its Steam Deck verified program by launch. Some games are already confirmed verified by SteamDB. Until Valve has given every game on the platform a rating, current user reports for Proton can clue us in on how well these Steam Deck games will likely play.
With that and more in mind, here are the games we’re planning to play on the Steam Deck right away:
The big, obvious picks:
- Skyrim: Why not play it on yet another platform?
- Stardew Valley: The perfect amount of chill for a handheld.
- Hades: The perfect amount of no chill for a handheld.
- Half-Life 2: Just updated with increased FOV and bug fixes.
- Portal: Another Valve classic that still plays well.
