Can You Play The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck? Best Settings & Performance Guide

Wondering if The Outer Worlds 2 runs on Steam Deck? Here’s how it performs, plus the best settings for smooth handheld gameplay.
Playing The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck
Image via Valve and Xbox

Can You Play The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck? Best Settings & Performance Guide

Wondering if The Outer Worlds 2 runs on Steam Deck? Here’s how it performs, plus the best settings for smooth handheld gameplay.

You might be wondering if you can play The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck, because it seems like the perfect handheld RPG. While the game currently has an Unknown Steam Deck compatibility rating, that doesn’t mean you’re out of luck or stuck waiting for official support. Plenty of titles with the same rating work just fine, and The Outer Worlds 2 is no exception. In fact, the reality might surprise you.

Is The Outer Worlds 2 Steam Deck Compatible?

Playing The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck during review.
Screenshot by Nux Game Guides

Yes, you can play The Outer Worlds 2 on Steam Deck, despite its current Unknown rating. It’s actually one of the best-performing games I’ve tested this year. Even on Very High graphics, the experience is smooth, visually impressive, and stable. I didn’t encounter any stutters, crashes, or performance issues during my playthrough for The Outer Worlds 2 review. Everything ran smoothly from start to finish with a few tweaks.

Best Steam Deck Performance Settings

Use these Steam Deck system settings for a great balance of visuals and battery life:

  • Refresh Rate: 60 Hz (90 Hz for OLED)
  • Disable Frame Limit: On
  • Allow Tearing: Off
  • Half Rate Shading: Off
  • TDP Limit: Off
  • Manual GPU Clock: Off
  • Scaling Mode: Auto
  • Scaling Filter: Linear

Best In-Game Graphics Settings for Steam Deck

To get the most out of The Outer Worlds 2, use these in-game graphics settings:

  • Window Mode: Fullscreen
  • Resolution: 1280×800
  • Frame Rate Limit: Unlimited
  • Vertical Sync: On
  • Upscaling: AMD FidelityFX 4
  • FSR Super Resolution Quality: Balanced
  • FSR Sharpness: 0%
  • Motion Blur: 20%
  • Gamma: 2.10
  • Hardware Raytracing: Off
  • High Dynamic Range (HDR): Off
  • Graphics Quality Preset: Very High
  • Field of View: 84
  • Chromatic Aberration: Off

Final Thoughts

Now that you know The Outer Worlds 2 plays beautifully on Steam Deck and how to tweak it for the best experience, you’re ready to enjoy Obsidian’s latest RPG wherever you go. For more settings guides, quest walkthroughs, and decision breakdowns, like The Outer Worlds 2 Difficulty Settings Explained, check out our The Outer Worlds 2 Hub.

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