Valve’s Steam Deck is an awesome handheld PC for modern triple-A games. Its library includes shooters, RPGs, and platformers, among other genres. The Deck can also run many current-gen games and is an impressive emulation machine that can play many retro consoles.
This is a good way to play some classics without spending extra money on an Anbernic.
Luckily, emulation for Valve’s handheld is easier than expected, though some extra steps to play these systems might annoy fans. While we can’t tell you where to get ROMs, this guide will detail the basics for getting most retro systems to work. If there are any classic games you haven’t played yet, that’s about to change.
Now, without further ado, here’s our guide for Steam Deck emulation.
EmuDeck
The easiest way to organize all your emulators is to download EmuDeck on your Steam Deck. This fairly painless process ensures gamers have all their systems in one place.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Press the “Steam” button and go to Power
- Once you’ve pressed Power, pick “Switch to Desktop.”
- In Desktop Mode, go to a browser like Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome
- Type EmuDeck and go to its official website
- Go to download and pick the file for Steam OS
- After the download is completed, double-click your file to install EmuDeck
- Choose which emulators and frontends you want on your Deck
Install everything
Picking your emulators
Now that EmuDeck has been installed, Steam Deck owners should select the emulators they want on their system. There are many systems to choose from, but most classic ones will be relegated to Retroarch.
BIOS files will also be needed for PS1, PS2, and Xbox. Sony's official firmware for PS3 and PS Vita can be legally downloaded.
Let’s get started. Here are the proper emulators to get on EmuDeck:
- Retroarch (NES, SNES, SEGA Master System, Genesis, Game Gear, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, and more)
- DuckStation (PS1)
- PCSX2 (PS2)
- PPSSPP (PSP)
- Dolphin (Gamecube/Wii)
- Xemu (Xbox)
- Melon DS (DS)
- RPCS3 (PS3)
- Xenia (Xbox 360)
- Cemu (Wii U)
- Citra/Lime 3DS (3DS)
- Vita3K (PS Vita)
Almost every game, from Batman on the NES to Dragon Quest 8 on the PS2, should work on Valve’s handheld. Some games might need tweaking, but most of these titles can play on Steam Deck just fine.
Plenty of PS3 and Wii U games will work, though certain top-tier titles will be difficult to emulate. Xbox 360 emulation is still pretty complicated, and players will only have a few games to play.
Emulation Station and Steam Rom Manager
Now that you’ve chosen your systems for Steam Deck emulation, it is time to pick how these games are featured. Emulation Station is a front that can show off your classic games without adding them to your Steam library. For those who want to show their classic games, Steam Rom Manager will let you do just that, grouping these games in their collections in your library.
Both options can be chosen on EmuDeck, so players must choose which frontend they want. If they pick Emulation Station, gamers can choose that on their Steam library, choose various themes, and decide how their games are presented. Steam Rom Manager will present your classic games as if they’re in your Steam library, complete with art, so choose wisely.
The Steam Deck is getting older, with more games slowly becoming unplayable on Valve’s handheld. It might be easy to replace this with an ROG Ally X or Lenovo Legion Go, but there’s still a place for the PC handheld that started it all. Emulation will keep this system alive, even when its eventual successor comes out.