One area where the Steam Deck has an edge over other handheld devices is the direct access to your Steam library! The fun does not stop there and you also have the option to add other non-steam games to your Steam library just like how you would do with a PC setup. But there is a catch here, sometimes, mostly after an update, the same non-steam games that were running fine on your deck earlier may refuse to launch. When that happens, here is what you can do.
Non-Steam games not launching on the Steam Deck is a recurring issue and even worse, it can affect various titles without any clear pattern. Whether you’re facing this problem with a specific game or multiple games, with a particular .exe or a game launcher, there are several potential fixes you can try. Let’s get into it.
Steam Deck non Steam games not launching: How to fix it
Since this issue can affect any random game, we haven’t shared game-specific workarounds. For game-specific solutions, we recommend visiting the ProtonDB page of the game to see what other players have done to address similar issues. But before you do that, here are some potential workarounds that are not specific to any one game but general fixes and are worth trying first.
Basic Checks
First things first, start with trying to launch the game a few times and if that does not work, move with restarting your Deck. A restart might be all that’s needed to get rid of the issue.
Proton fix
Perhaps there have been some issues with the proton version that you have been using to run the game. So, what you can try is to go to the game’s Properties menu via the Steam client, and in the Compatibility tab, try different versions of Proton. Try choosing multiple versions before you move on to the next workaround.
Update SteamOS
Keeping your SteamOS updated is important to receive fixes for various issues, including those related to non-Steam games. To check for updates, go to Settings > System > Software Updates and ensure you have the latest updates installed.
Verify Game Files
For non-Steam games added to your Steam library, verifying game files isn’t directly available like it is for Steam games. However, you can manually check the game files’ integrity by using the game’s launcher or checking for any corrupted or missing files in the game directory.
Disable Steam Overlay
The Steam Overlay can sometimes interfere with non-Steam games. To disable it, right-click on the game in your Steam library, go to Properties, and uncheck the “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game” option. This can help resolve issues related to game performance and crashes
Adjust Launch Options
Sometimes, tweaking the launch options can help run non-Steam games on the Steam Deck. Right-click on the game in your library, go to Properties, and in the General tab, add specific launch options. Common options include -windowed for running the game in windowed mode or -novid to skip intro videos, which can sometimes cause crashes.
Install Necessary Dependencies
Some non-Steam games require additional dependencies. So, make sure you have all these dependencies installed. You can usually find installers for these dependencies on the game’s official website or through a quick web search.
Decky Plugins
If you are using an emulator like Dolphin to run old games on the Deck and are encountering this issue, some players have shared that reinstalling the Decky plugins fixed the issue for them. So, give this method a try too.
Well, these are some general workarounds that you can try before you go checking the forums for game-specific workarounds to fix the non-steam games not launching issue on your Deck. But, we hope that won’t be necessary. Anyway, if you find this guide informative, keep a tab on DigiStatement for more daily gaming reads! Read more: Roblox Error Code 0: Is there any fix yet
