Does Fallout 4 run on Steam Deck?

Fallout 4 has had a next-gen update nine years after release, but does it still run on the Steam Deck?

Fallout 4 was released almost a decade ago, but with the TV show adaption finally, out, Bethesda has given Fallout 4 a brand-new coat of paint to attract new, and old players alike. But, does the game run well on Steam Deck?

Luckily, the new update is not world-ending for performance on Steam Deck, and Fallout 4 looks to remain a great way to experience the Fallout franchise on the go.

Can you play Fallout 4 on Steam Deck?

Bethesda Softworks

Fallout 4 is playable on the Steam Deck, however, the Bethesda launcher has been removed for the new update.

Bethesda released a “next-gen” update for Fallout 4, likely to tie in with the launch of the brand-new TV show adaption. This new update to the now nine-year-old game was intended to bring new performance improvements to console versions, most notably, to the Steam and PC versions of the iconic title.

The Steam version of Fallout 4 was set to receive stability, mod, and bug fixes, including widescreen and ultra-widescreen support. Yet instead of positively affecting the performance on the Valve handheld, the new update has caused several notable issues for Steam Deck OLED owners.

Before its newly acquired verified state, Fallout 4 still ran well on the Steam Deck. Through our testing since the latest update, the Game of the Year Edition still manages to run between 80 to 90 FPS. However, there are more notable frame rate drops during combat. While fending off a horde of Super Mutants, we saw drops to under 70 FPS, which wasn’t present in its playable state. NPC-heavy areas like Diamond City, will still result in some drops to around 80 FPS.

The new update also removed the Bethesda game launcher. The Fallout 4 game launcher remained the only method of changing the game’s graphical settings. This means that players can no longer adjust the settings to ensure stability. Luckily, there is an easy fix, which Steam Deck owners can implement without much difficulty.

How to fix Fallout 4 Steam Deck game launcher

• Select Fallout 4
• Select the cog icon
• Go to ‘Properties’
• Navigate to ‘General’
• Scroll down to ‘Launch Options’
• Enter: SteamDeck=0 %COMMAND%

To bring back the Fallout 4 game launcher on Steam Deck, first, click on Fallout 4 in your game library to access the game’s splash page. From here, access Fallout 4’s settings by clicking the cog icon, found on the right-hand side of the page.

After a small drop-down menu appears, scroll down and select ‘Properties’ which will bring up the general settings for Fallout 4 on Steam Deck. While hovering over the ‘General’ menu option, scroll down until you find ‘Launch Options’ at the bottom of the page.

Dexerto

In the text box under the ‘Launch Options’ menu, bring up the Steam Deck keyboard, or copy and paste the following text: SteamDeck=0 %COMMAND%

Now, the Bethesda game launcher will return once you next boot up Fallout 4 on Steam Deck. From here, you can adjust the settings from low to ultra, to help improve the experience of playing Fallout 4 on the go. Within these settings, we recommend turning off motion blur and god rays, along with setting the game’s graphical settings to ‘high.’ This will help combat the frame rate drops, which have become more prevalent since the brand-new update.

Fallout 4 required 31.1GB of install space in your Steam Deck, which included all the DLC. Since the update, the storage requirement has been bumped up even further to 36.07 GB. If you have your sights set on the Game of the Year Edition, that’ll demand 86 GB of install space from your Steam Deck.

Picking up one of the best microSD cards for Steam Deck will ensure you have plenty of storage to revisit Fallout 4 and all of its DLC. Especially if you haven’t yet upgraded the SSD, or managed to add the 1TB Steam Deck OLED to your gaming setup.