Steam Deck

So, I wanted to share some knowledge and awareness about Nested Desktop. What it is, and if you're interested, how to set it up.

What it is: Nested Desktop allows you to access Desktop Mode functionality while you're still in Gaming Mode / Gamescope, and acts like any other game you'd run from there.

Think of it as your "Desktop Mode emulator for Gaming Mode". It lets you access Desktop Mode files, apps, and functionality just like you were using Desktop Mode natively, WHILE you're already in another game using Gaming Mode (so for instance, you could pull up Nested Desktop to get easier web browser access to look up something for the game you're playing). It's also much faster than rebooting natively into Desktop Mode when you need to use it.

I use Nested Desktop all the time! I find it to be a handy tool to have access to.

How To Set Up: Native Steam Deck screen (800p)

The native app always pulls up in 800p resolution, regardless of your display resolution. If you are on your 800p-screened Deck itself this is perfect; if you're docked or have a different resolution replacement screen, and want a different resolution, I'll cover that later.

Steps:

1. Reboot into native Desktop Mode. Hopefully this will be the last time you have to do that for awhile!

2. Use your application launcher in the bottom left corner. Navigate: All Applications ~ scroll down to N's ~ Highlight Nested Desktop ~ RIGHT click ~ choose menu option "Add to Steam."

3. You're done and can go back to Gaming Mode! You can now run Nested Desktop right out of the non-Steam section of your library. Note: You do NOT have to set any launch properties or Proton options to run this.

When you are done using Nested Desktop, you can close it either with the standard STEAM button menu, or by double clicking the Return to Gaming Mode option on the desktop.

How To Set Up: For Other Resolutions

This was the part that took me forever to find out how to do searching online. I was VERY frustrated figuring this out, so I wanted to share to give others the resource. And sadly no, you can't just pick your preferred resolution from the normal launch options on the regular Nested Desktop app.

Steps:

1. Reboot into native Desktop Mode.

2. Use your application launcher in the bottom left corner. Use it to navigate to and open a new document in your text document writer (the default is KWrite). Copy all the text between START and END below and paste it into your new document:

START

#!/bin/sh unset LD_PRELOAD

rm -rf /tmp/desktop-mode mkdir -p /tmp/desktop-mode cat > /tmp/desktop-mode/kwin_wayland_wrapper << EOF #!/bin/sh $(which kwin_wayland_wrapper) --no-lockscreen --width 2560 --height 1440 --x11-display $DISPLAY $@ EOF chmod +x /tmp/desktop-mode/kwin_wayland_wrapper

kwriteconfig5 --file startkderc --group General --key systemdBoot false PATH=/tmp/desktop-mode:$PATH startplasma-wayland kwriteconfig5 --file startkderc --group General --key systemdBoot --delete

END

NOTE: The height and width numbers in the code above are the resolution that the Nested Desktop will open in. This example is from my 1440p display, but change these to whatever resolution your display is.

3. Save this document under any name that makes sense to you. This will be what you see in your library. For example, I named mine "Nested Desktop 1440" to distinguish it from the regular Nested Desktop I use when I'm handheld.

Also, be sure to save this somewhere that you can easily find it. I recommend the standard Documents folder.

4. Navigate to the file where you saved it. RIGHT click it, choose "Properties" from the menu. Under the Permissions tab, check the "is executable" box, and click OK.

5. Finally, RIGHT click the file again, and pick "Add to Steam."

6. You can now go back to Gaming Mode, and run this whenever you need.

Thanks everyone, I hope you find this useful!

It's debatable whether this belongs in the Steam Deck community, but these are all high profile games, and having to login with additional online accounts is a significant barrier to play on the Deck.

Could anyone please suggest a good micro SD card that is reasonably priced and is great for the steam deck? You go to Amazon and you find a gazillion brand with many different prices. Plus all the horror stories I've seen online with all the fake storage people buy from Amazon. So, if you guys have a suggestion I'd really appreciate some links/names. I'm open for best buy and micro center and even Walmart if I needed to. I'm looking for a 1TB card and I don't care about the brand as long as it works well. Thank you all in advance.

You can check battery health in desktop mode, by clicking on the battery.

I've had my OLED deck for a little over a year now, and it's still reporting 100% battery health.

The article includes a table showing games with some pretty major fps gains, but those are mostly just for wine. Using Proton there will be minimum fps gains, but it should improve compatibility.

This new Decky plugin lets you have a floating web view for watching Netflix and other video sites while you play.

Is this completely unnecessary? Probably, but some very low-intensity games will probably benefit from it. Being able to watch subway surfers while playing should also increase it's appeal to Gen Z.

I'm thinking about replacing my main PC for a steam deck.

Guy modded his steam deck be as small as possible, with the only intended use to be to play with an external controller and AR glasses.

Finished photo:

I really liked Midnight Club back on the PS2. Would be cool to find similar for the Deck.

Any racing games that the community finds good on the Deck? Is it arcadey or realistic in the mechanics?

Decky Power Tools already offers this, and I believe there's a desktop setting for it as well. Still very nice to have though.

Please do not share any links. I just want to talk about the game.

I managed to get it running under Bottles, but the controller doesn't work. It's basically GTA: Vice City running under the GTA4 engine and honestly- the amount of effort they put into this is insane.

New launchers are for:

• Boosteroid Cloud Gaming
• Stim.io
• Venge.io
• Rocketcrab.com
• WatchParty.me

Basically for games that only support DLSS, it's long been possible to replace the DLSS files to force the game to use FSR 2/3 instead. It's a pretty common mod available for many games on Nexus mods.

Sometimes it works well, other times you get weird blurring or other effects.

This is an interesting-development deck plugin that will greatly simplify the installation of these mods to games, letting us benefit from FSR upscaling and frame gen in DLSS only titles.

In last year's survey, 66% of developers reported working on games for PC, while this year's number is significantly higher at 80%. In comparison, 38% of developers said they were working to put their game on PlayStation while 34% said they were developing for Xbox.

Now, GDC clarifies that "Steam Deck" was not specifically listed as a platform option in the survey. However, when answering which platforms they were developing for, 44% of respondents who chose "Other" did mention "the Steam Deck as a platform they’re interested in," which potentially shows a significant focus on Valve's handheld.