Baldur’s Gate 3 has launched on Steam. But how well does the game run on the Steam Deck? MeinMMO editor Benedikt Schlotmann has tried the game and explains how well it works.
By now you can play Baldur’s Gate 3 on the Steam Deck. The system requirements for Baldur’s Gate 3 are moderate, and the game runs on older systems as well. But what about the Steam Deck?
For a test, I installed Baldur’s Gate 3 on the Steam Deck (256 GB). My first impressions are positive, but it’s not perfect.
Last updates: 03/19/24, 08/06/23
Partially very dark and high temperatures
Does Baldur’s Gate 3 run without issues? Baldur’s Gate 3 is now officially “verified” for the Steam Deck and therefore works without any major difficulties. With the first build, I still had significant problems, but after switching to the “experimental Proton build” from the developer mode, the game ran smoothly and started flawlessly.
By now, Baldur’s Gate 3 runs very stable and without serious crashes on the Steam Deck. You shouldn’t have to make any custom settings. I still claim that the game runs a bit cleaner with the experimental build.
How is the performance? Basically, the game runs at stable 30 FPS on my Steam Deck. The problem, however, is the consistently high temperatures. Officially, AMD’s APU in the Steam Deck is also designed for temperatures over 90 degrees.
- The processor and graphics chip consistently range between 80 and 90 degrees, and the fan in the Steam Deck is working quite hard. The load on the GPU and CPU is around 70 to 80%.
- Accordingly, the battery life is also quite short. I can’t get more than 90 minutes of playtime, even though I’m playing with low settings, FSR, and frame lock (30 FPS).
- Baldur’s Gate 3 now also supports the newer version FSR 2.2. Unfortunately, the latest version FSR 3.0 is not supported yet, but FSR 2.2 is still a significant improvement over FSR 1.0. The image quality increases a bit, and especially faces no longer look so blurry.
- Another option is to limit the TDP of the chip to 15 watts. This can be done through the settings in the Steam Deck. While this reduces the thermal load, the game does not run as stable for me afterwards.
Good port with pleasantly readable menus and controller support
How does Baldur’s Gate 3 play on the Steam Deck? Otherwise, Baldur’s Gate plays quite well on the Steam Deck. The game natively supports controller support, and the game immediately recognizes the inputs from the Steam Deck right at the start of the game. Therefore, I don’t need a community layout to play, and the controller glyphs are displayed correctly.
The menus in the game are well-readable, and the interface is pleasantly visible despite the small display. Other games, such as XCOM 2, are significantly harder to read because the text is really small in the alien strategy game.
Especially the initial areas in Baldur’s Gate 3 appear very dark on the Steam Deck; I had to either increase the brightness or find a dark corner to play in.
Overall, it’s worth setting the gamma settings, which are shown upon the first start, a bit higher than usual.
Baldur’s Gate 3 on the Steam Deck: Good port, but short battery life
Is the Steam Deck worth it for Baldur’s Gate 3? Considering the high temperatures and the relatively short battery life, Baldur’s Gate 3 is not a game I would play continuously on the Steam Deck. I’d rather stick to relatively undemanding indie titles or older AAA games.
In my opinion, Baldur’s Gate 3 is definitely not a perfect game for the Steam Deck. Other games, like Persona 3: Reload, Age of Wonders: 4, or Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous benefit much more from the Steam Deck and do not stress the battery as much.
The high temperatures bothered me already with New World on the Steam Deck. The high noise level, especially, is not fun without good noise-canceling headphones.
Therefore, I would only give Baldur’s Gate 3 a limited recommendation: Yes, the game runs stably and smoothly on the Steam Deck, and the controls work perfectly. On the other hand, the battery is empty in no time without a power socket nearby, and the temperature development is also no fun. And always carrying a power bank with me is also not a real alternative.
Especially if you have a powerful gaming PC at home, the Steam Deck is not a permanent option for Baldur’s Gate.
Is the game worth it at all? Whether the game is worth it for you can be read in the following article on MeinMMO. Here we explain the pros and cons of the RPG in a detailed overview:
Is Baldur’s Gate 3 worth it for you? The brief check before release
