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Windows Central

Technology

Sean Endicott

We waited 14 years to get Red Dead Redemption on PC, and we'll have to wait even longer to find out how well it plays on Steam Deck

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What you need to know

Red Dead Redemption is now available on PC and can be purchased through Steam, the Epic Games Store, and the Rockstar.
Despite making the game available through Steam, Rockstar did not test Red Dead Redemption on Steam Deck.
The game should work on Steam Deck thanks to the handheld console's use of Proton, but surprisingly, Rockstar did not test the game for such a popular device.
Red Dead Redemption launched 14 years ago on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
The game was ported to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in 2023 and is playable on Xbox Series X|S through backward compatibility.

Red Dead Redemption finally launched on PC today. In a wait that makes Sirius Black's time in Azkaban seem like a short stint, PC gamers have had to wait 14 years to play Red Dead Redemption, at least officially. The game's PC launch is good news, but it's accompanied by a bit of a strange development. Despite Rockstar's deep pockets, the developer of Red Dead Redemption has not tested the game's compatibility on Steam Deck.

The Red Dead Redemption port has many PC features to ensure the best experience, including support for 144Hz, ultrawide monitors, adjustable shadows and draw distance, AMD FSR, NVIDIA DLSS 3.7, and frame generation. The game is available through Steam, the Epic Games Store, and the Rockstar Store. It also includes the Undead Nightmare expansion.

If you hop over to the Red Dead Redemption listing on Steam, you'll see a question mark and "Unknown" under Steam Deck compatibility. Unknown does not mean unsupported; it just means that Valve does not have enough information on the game. Rockstar could have helped Valve by testing Red Dead Redemption on Steam Deck, but instead, we'll have to wait for the community to rank compatibility. I doubt there will be a shortage of players willing to share opinions, but it's still disappointing that Rockstar did not handle that before launching the game on Steam.

PC gaming on Steam Deck

Valve's Steam Deck can play thousands of games, but Red Dead Redemption has not been tested for the handheld console. (Image credit: Rebecca Spear / Windows Central)

Valve's Steam Deck runs on a variation of the Linux operating system rather than Windows, but the handheld console can play thousands of PC games. The not-so-secret secret sauce of the Steam Deck is a compatibility layer called Proton. Technically, Proton is not an emulator. Instead, it translates APIs such as DirectX to make them compatible with SteamOS. Proton is a fork of WINE (Wine Is Not an Emulator), which is one reason I highlighted that game compatibility is achieved through translation, not emulation.

Many don't care about the method used to get games to work; they care that games work. Luckily, that's the case with Proton and the Steam Deck-specific charts, where you'll see many of the best PC games, including Diablo IV, Elden Ring, and Baldur's Gate 3.

What's up Rockstar?

I'm sure Rockstar is busy, but people have waited a long time to play Red Dead Redemption on PC. I know that Steam Deck runs on Linux, but it's one of the best gaming handhelds, and many people use it to play PC games. It would have been nice to see verified Steam Deck support when Red Dead Redemption launched.

Even though there's a good chance Red Dead Redemption will run fine on Steam Deck, people shouldn't have to take a risk, especially not for such a well-known title.

If you don't want to risk compatibility issues related to playing PC games on Steam Deck, check out the best early Black Friday deals on gaming handhelds. Devices like the Lenovo Legion Go run on Windows and are versatile.