Can you play THE FINALS on Steam Deck?
If you're looking to take THE FINALS on the go with you using the Steam Deck, you might be sorely disappointed - here's what you need to know.
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THE FINALS is the latest free-to-play shooter to hit Steam, and if there’s one thing that I’d love to do it’s take it with me on the Deck.
While not the ideal platform for playing fast-paced first-person shooters, the Steam Deck is still a mightily capable machine. I might not perform quite as well on the smaller screen, but it’s great to have the option to play on it to complete my daily challenges while away from my desk.
However, THE FINALS has a fatal flaw when it comes to running on the Steam Deck - and it’s not just down to performance.
Can you play THE FINALS on Steam Deck natively?
Sadly, it’s not possible to play THE FINALS natively on the Steam Deck. Like a few other multiplayer first-person shooters, this is because of the anti-cheat software that the game uses. Due to the Steam Deck using a version of Linux to run its games, the anti-cheat software doesn’t support the Steam Deck as it’s optimised for Windows.
As such, if you want to play THE FINALS on your Steam Deck, then you’ll need to install a version of Windows on your portable device. This is possible to do but will involve lots of meddling with your Steam Deck to get it working. If you’re looking for a pick-up-and-play solution, you won’t find it here.
What happens if you install THE FINALS on Steam Deck?
While the game doesn’t run natively on the Steam Deck, you can still install it from the store to your device from the Library screen.
When you boot up the game, you’ll be warned that Valve hasn’t yet rated the game for whether it’s compatible with the Deck platform just yet. Proceeding further, you’ll briefly see THE FINALS anti-cheat window pop up on your screen before it’s quickly followed with an error.
This is as far as you’ll be able to get when launching THE FINALS on your Steam Deck unless you install it via a Windows install.
Will THE FINALS ever be playable on Steam Deck?
So far, developer Embark Studios has not issued any statement that would imply it is looking to make its game playable natively on the Steam Deck.
However, that doesn’t mean it can’t come to the platform later down the line. THE FINALS uses the same anti-cheat software as Apex Legends, and Respawn has since updated its game to run flawlessly on the Steam Deck.
If Embark Studios does release an update that allows for THE FINALS to run on Steam Deck, we’ll be sure to update this article.
About The Author
Joshua Boyles
Joshua is the Guides Editor at GGRecon. After graduating with a BA (Hons) degree in Broadcast Journalism, he previously wrote for publications such as FragHero and GameByte. You can often find him diving deep into fantasy RPGs such as Skyrim and The Witcher, or tearing it up in Call of Duty and Battlefield. He's also often spotted hiking in the wilderness, usually blasting Arctic Monkeys.
This is part of the ‘THE FINALS’ directory
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