Jul 19, 2021 What Games You Cant Play on Steam Deck. Games That Are Not Available on SteamOS. Steam Deck is supposed to run a Linux-based SteamOS as its official operating system. SteamOS ships with our Steam Client program, which is proprietary software, in addition to proprietary 3rd party drivers. In the SteamOS standard configuration, the Steam Client program serves as a user interface and provides connectivity to our Steam online services. That being said, you can still access the standard Linux desktop.

Steam Deck is a handheld gaming PC based on Linux that allows you to play Steam games along with the feature of portability. Now, players can get their Steam Library wherever they want but which are the best PC games to play on the Steam Deck from Day 1? Which major games will actually be able to run on this console? We’ve listed some of the best ones right here.

Advertisement

Which are the Best PC Games to Play on Steam Deck?

There is no dearth of Steam games you can play on Steam Deck but these are the best PC games you can try out first. With these, you can get the best gaming experience on Valve’s console. Since the games have to run on Steam OS, we’ve compiled this list of games that are fun to play in “handheld” mode and compatible with SteamOS.

List of 20 Major Games you CAN play on Valve Steam Deck

Games that can Run on Steam Deck (SteamOS)	Genre
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI	Strategy, Historical
Stardew Valley	Farming Sim, Life Sim, RPG (Pixel graphics)
Valheim	Open World Survival, Online co-op
Terraria	Open World Survival, Sandbox, 2D
ARK: Survival Evolved	Adventure, Survival, Action, Massively Multiplayer
Factorio	Automation, Base Building, Resource Management, Sandbox
Left 4 Dead 2	Zombies, Co-op, FPS, Multiplayer
RimWorld	Colony Sim, Base Building, Survival, Strategy
Carrion	Villain Protagonist, Action (Pixel graphics)
Hollow Knight	Metroidvania, Souls-like, Platformer, Great Soundtrack
Plague Inc: Evolved	Strategy, Simulation, Outbreak Sim, Indie
Dying Light Enhanced Edition	Action, Zombies, RPG, Parkour
Crusader Kings III	Strategy, RPG, Simulation, Medieval
Don’t Starve Together	Survival, Open World Survival, Multiplayer Co-op
Wildermyth	Story Rich, Party-Based RPG, Choices Matter, Turn Based Tactics
Overcooked! 2	Multiplayer, Online Co-op, Local Co-op D31
Total War: Warhammer III	Strategy, Action, Turn Based Strategy, Grand Strategy
Euro Truck Simulator 2	Transportation, Automobile Sim, Driving, Open World
Last Epoch	RPG, Action, Hack and Slash
Cities: Skylines	City Builder, Simulation, Building, Strategy

We will be adding more games to this list, so stay tuned. Now, let’s look at some of the major games that you won’t be able to play on Valve’s console.

Advertisement

Also Read: Steam Deck Specs Vs Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S

Games you Cannot Play on Steam Deck

At the time of writing, these are some of the most popular games you unfortunately can’t play on Steam Deck.

• DayZ
• Dead by Daylight
• Rainbow Six Siege

Be sure to check back soon for a more updated list! For everything else related to gaming, stick around on Gamer Tweak.

Steam is the most popular PC gaming platform. If you want toplay PC games on Steam, or you bought a game that needs to be activated onSteam, this is how to do it.

Step One: Download the Steam Client

To play games on Steam, you have to install the Steam client.You’ll use the client to manage your games, track game achievements, and more.

Go here to download and install the Steam client. Click on the INSTALL STEAM button to kick off the download.

You’ll see some impressive numbers – millions of gamersonline and playing games.

Step Two: Create a Steam Account

There are two ways to create a Steam account. If you’ve installed the Steam client, run it. When you see the login page, click on the Create a New Account button.

The second way is through the Steam website. Click here to go to the Steam login page. Once you’re there, click on the Join Steam button (it’s in the CREATE section) to create an account.

Step Three: Buy a Game

To play a game on Steam, you have to buy it first. If you already have a Steam key that you want to activate, you can skip to the Activate the Game on Steam step.

There are three ways to buy games for Steam. This is true even when the game you want to play on Steam is free.

Buy Games from the Steam Store

The easiest way to buy games is right from the Steam store, which you can do using the client. Click on STORE, the first item on the large menu at the top, and you’ll be taken to the Steam store. Go to the sales page for the game you want, add it to your cart, pay, and you now own the game. Congrats!

If the game you want to play is free, you’ll do the same thing, except you won’t have to pay for it. Just find the game’s sales page and then skip to the Install the Game step.

When you buy games through the Steam store, the game is automatically activated, so you can skip the next step about activating your key and go right to the Install the Game step.

Buy Games from a Third-Party Seller

You can buy Steam games from third-party online sellers. Themost popular ones are Fanatical, Green Man Gaming, and Humble Bundle, but thereare others.

When you buy a game at another seller, you’re actuallybuying a Steam key. If you buy from a reputable seller, the keys are legal. Thegame publishers have provided the keys to the sellers.

When you buy a game from third-party seller, make sure you don’t buy a game that you can’t play in your region. Click here to check out my in-depth post on region locking.

Can Play Steam Games Offline

Once you’ve completed your purchase, you’ll receive the key,which you’ll find in the keys section (or something similar like “purchases” or“my games”) in your account at the store. You’ll now have to activate the key onSteam, which you’ll do in the next step. You can skip to that step now.

Buy a Physical Copy of a Game from a Retail Store

You can go to stores like Best Buy, Staples, and Amazon and buy the retail version of the game. If the game can be played through Steam, the game box will say something like, “Steam account required to play” or “You must activate the game on Steam.”

When you buy the retail version of a game, you’ll get a Steam key.

Step Four: Activate the Game on Steam

If you bought the game from the Steam store, you can skipthis step. Games bought at the Steam store are automatically activated.

If you bought the game from somewhere else, you should have a Steam key. To activate the key, click on Games in the menu at the very top of the Steam client. On the menu that’s displayed, click on Activate a Product on Steam…

Click next, and accept the subscriber agreement on the nextscreen by clicking I Agree. On the next screen, type in the Steam keyyou have for the game (if you bought the game at an online store, you can copythe key there and paste it in here).

Then click next. Steam will show the title of the game that will be activated. Click Finish, and the game will be added to your Steam library. At this point, the installation process will start. You can install the game right away by following the prompts (basically just keep clicking next). After the game is installed, you can skip to the Play the Game step.

If you don’t want to install the game right away, that’s fine. You can cancel out of the install and do it later by following the instructions in the next step.

Step Five: Install the Game

You’ll use the Steam client to download and install the game.

If the game you want to play is free, find the game’s sales page in the Steam store and click on the Play Game button. This will kick off the installation and add the game to your library.

If you bought the game, go to your game library by clicking on LIBRARY in the Steam client. You should see the game you want to install. If you don’t, try searching for it using the search bar at the upper left. If you still don’t see it, try clicking on GAMES AND SOFTWARE and check everything in the dropdown choices.

Click on the game to select it. You’ll see the game’s library page on the right-hand side of the library area. Click the blue INSTALL button. Steam will now download and install the game.

If you need to pause the download for some reason (maybe you want to do something else that requires Internet and the download is slowing it down), it’s perfectly fine. The download won’t start over from the beginning when you resume. To pause the download, press the PAUSE button. To resume it later, press the RESUME button.

In fact, the Install, Pause, and Resume buttons are one and the same button. The text and button colour changes depending on whether the game is installed, being downloaded, or ready to play.

Step Six: Play the Game

You’ve finally reached the point where you can play the game. To do so, select the game in your game library and press the PLAY button. This button is the same button used for Install, Pause, and Resume.

Can't Play Steam Games Online

If you’d prefer to have a desktop shortcut that you click onto play the game, you can create one by right-clicking on the game in yourSteam library. On the menu that comes up, click on Manage, and thenclick on Add Desktop Shortcut. You can also click on the gear icon onthe game’s information page in your library, hover over Manage, and clickAdd Desktop Shortcut.

Now you’ll be able to click on the shortcut to play the game, but keep in mind that you still have to be logged in to Steam to play the game. If you’re not logged in when you start the game, Steam will try to log you in. If the login fails, you won’t be able to play the game.

Congratulations. You are now a Steam gamer. Enjoy your game!