A Steam Deck gives the games you bought years ago another chance to become tonight's favourite. The RPG you never found an evening for suddenly looks rather inviting from the sofa, while a familiar farm or another escape from the Underworld no longer means going back to your desk. Before downloading half the collection, though, it helps to know which games are ready for the move.
Finding Steam Deck compatible games starts with your existing library. Valve's compatibility ratings show which games are Verified, which may need a little adjustment and which still have questions hanging over them. Once you understand those labels, you can spend less time checking badges and more time finding something you actually want to play.
Check your Steam library before buying anything new
You can start before the Deck even arrives. Sign into Valve's Your Library on Deck page to check the games attached to your account, then investigate the ones you have been meaning to start. On the Deck itself, your Steam library also shows compatibility ratings and lets you filter by them, so there is no need to work through every store page just to build a first shortlist.
When something catches your eye, open its compatibility details in the library or store. That extra look is especially useful for a Playable game, because a launcher that needs the touchscreen is a different proposition from text you will spend the entire evening trying to read. It is worth knowing whether that adjustment is something you will do once at the start or keep running into while you play.
What the Steam Deck compatibility ratings mean
Verified is the most straightforward place to begin when you want to install something and get on with playing. Valve has checked that the game meets its Deck requirements, including controls, display and the software needed to run it. You should not have to find a controller layout or work around an awkward launcher before the adventure can begin.
Playable means the game works but may ask you to do some of that work yourself. Bringing up the keyboard manually or using the touchscreen for a menu may be a small inconvenience in a game you love, so read the reasons before ruling it out. If you want the easiest first evening, start with Verified and come back to those possibilities later.
Unsupported means Valve's review found that the game does not currently function on Deck, while Unknown means it has not completed that review. An untested game has not necessarily failed, but its badge cannot offer the same reassurance. Valve explains all four categories in its Deck Verified guide, and continues reviewing games as they and the Deck's software change.
Windows games can belong on your Deck too
The Deck runs SteamOS, but that does not limit your collection to games with a native Linux version. Many Windows games run through Proton, the compatibility software Valve uses to bring them to SteamOS. For a Deck shortlist, look at the Deck rating rather than treating a Windows logo as a reason to move on.
Keep performance expectations separate from that first check. A Verified badge does not promise your preferred frame rate, graphics settings or battery life in every situation. If one of those matters to the evening you have planned, look for recent information about that particular game before a large download, especially when an update has changed how it runs.
Pick something you want to hold in your hands
Once the technical questions are out of the way, think about the kind of attention you want to give the screen. In Hades, an escape attempt becomes a succession of fast decisions as you dash through attacks and build around the blessings you find. An unexpected combination can change how you approach the next room, so a familiar escape route becomes somewhere to try a new plan even when the last attempt ended badly.
Disco Elysium finds its chaos in the conversation instead, because your detective's own skills join in with suggestions that are not always helpful, and following one conversation can leave you with several new reasons to doubt yourself. That is a wonderful invitation when you fancy lingering over dialogue, but a rather different evening from fighting your way through the Underworld.
Then there is Stardew Valley, where watering the crops can turn into a plan for the season, a trip to the mines or a visit to someone in town. A familiar routine can be exactly what you want after a busy day, especially when an old favourite is getting a new place to live.
Find your own Deck shortlist with VaultShuffle
If your account has accumulated more possibilities than you can sensibly compare, VaultShuffle can narrow the choice to games in your own public Steam library. Its Steam Deck filter includes games listed as Verified or Playable by default, while your session, mood and goal help decide which of those belongs in tonight's draw.
- Bring in your games. Continue with Steam from the VaultShuffle homepage or enter your public Steam profile. Your profile and game details need to be public for the import.
- Choose Steam Deck under Device. You will find it in Global filters on the Dashboard. The setting applies to the Vault and Library as well; the separate Linux option checks native Linux support instead.
- Make a draw in the Vault. Choose your session, mood and goal, then check the suggested game's current Deck details on Steam before installing it.
This uses recorded compatibility information rather than testing games on your machine, so keep Valve's current details alongside the suggestion. If you would rather browse a few ideas first, our short Steam Deck games guide has ten adventures with an ending you can reach without committing the next month to them.
Let the first download be something you will start
You can fill the storage later. For now, choose the game whose next half hour sounds most appealing, check its details and get it ready while you still have time to enjoy it. If several equally good choices remain, our guide to choosing your next Steam game can help with the final decision. Then take it to the sofa and see where that first session goes.