Arc Raiders & Steam Deck: Unlocking the UE5 Magic (With a Secret Proton Handshake, Of Course!)
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
Arc Raiders runs surprisingly well on the Steam Deck, provided you apply the "Proton Experimental" compatibility fix, offering a solid 40-50fps experience even with optimised settings thanks to James Archer's tinkering at Rock Paper Shotgun, despite its online-only nature and battery thirst.
Alright, mates, let's talk *Arc Raiders*. You know, that extraction shooter that’s been doing the rounds, promising all sorts of robot-blasting chaos. Now, I’ll be honest, my thumbstick skills usually lean more towards accidental self-destruction than precision aiming – a bit like a spell gone wrong, really. So, when Rock Paper Shotgun decided to dive into *Arc Raiders* on the Steam Deck, I was intrigued. Especially since their Deputy Editor, James Archer, confessed to a similar thumbstick affliction! But here's the kicker: even with dodgy aim, it's clear *Arc Raiders* and the Steam Deck are shaping up to be a surprisingly good combo. A bit like pairing a rogue AI with a retro gaming console – unexpected, but potentially brilliant.
Before you can even begin your robot-slaying escapades, there's a tiny, crucial bit of digital wizardry required. See, at the time James was poking around, *Arc Raiders* wasn't exactly keen on launching straight out of the box. A bit like trying to cast a spell without the right incantation, eh? But fear not, future heroes! The fix is simpler than finding an ancient artifact: you just need to tell your Deck to use "Proton Experimental." Think of Proton as Valve’s compatibility magic — and Experimental is the bleeding-edge spellbook. Just pop into the game’s Properties, hit the Compatibility tab, and select Proton Experimental. Boom! Digital gates open, no arcane rituals or sacrificed goats required. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.
Once you're past the compatibility handshake, it's smooth sailing. James noted that the game smartly defaults to the Steam Deck's native 1280x800 resolution and a "Low" quality preset, which is always a good sign. It's like the game itself knows its audience and tries not to overcook things. And fair play to the devs, the gamepad controls aren't an afterthought – contextual inputs, radial menus, and even using the Deck’s touchpads for a D-pad mirror (left) or alternate aiming (right) are all baked in. For us thumbstick-challenged folk, that right touchpad aiming is a godsend, truly. And here's the kicker: for an Unreal Engine 5 title, it performs rather decently, often flitting around the 40-50fps mark. Bloody hell, who’d have thought UE5 could play nice on a handheld, eh?
Now, it wouldn’t be a true gaming adventure without a few dragons to slay, would it? *Arc Raiders* does have its quirks. James observed some fleeting traversal stutters, and apparently, tinkering with graphics mid-match can sometimes send you straight back to SteamOS – a bit like accidentally teleporting yourself into a wall. And then there's the battery. Oh, the battery! Your original LCD Steam Deck will be looking for a power outlet faster than I'd look for coffee on a Monday morning – James clocked it at a brisk 1 hour and 21 minutes from full to flat. *However*, here's where my optimistically chaotic side kicks in: since it's an online-only affair, you're probably never too far from a mains socket anyway, are you? And if you do crash out, the game's smart enough to let you reconnect to your session, saving your precious loot from the digital void. Phew!
But wait, there's more! James Archer, over at Rock Paper Shotgun (big shout out to James, mate!), didn't just report on the default experience. He rolled up his sleeves and tinkered, finding a sweet spot that makes *Arc Raiders* look and feel even better. His approach? "Prettier yet upscaled." By leveraging AMD FSR 3 (which, to his eyes, beats out TAAU for clarity without the performance hit of TSR), he managed to bump up several quality settings to Medium. It's like finding a hidden cheat code in the matrix of game settings! Here’s the digital scroll of his recommended spells:
* **Resolution scaling method:** AMD FSR 3 * **AMD FSR 3 Quality:** Balanced * **Motion blur:** Disabled (always, for the love of all that is holy!) * **Nvidia RTX Global Illumination:** Static * **View distance:** Medium * **Anti-Aliasing:** Medium * **Shadows:** Medium * **Post-processing:** Low * **Texture:** Medium * **Effects:** Low * **Reflections:** Medium * **Foliage:** Medium * **Global illumination resolution:** Low
With these tweaks, James found similar 40-50fps performance, occasionally hitting 50-55fps in quieter zones, but with a "noticeable detail upgrade." Fair dinkum, that’s impressive. It sails past the usual 30fps struggle for many UE5 titles on the Deck, showing that with a bit of know-how and Valve's compatibility magic, modern games can genuinely shine on handhelds.
So, what's the takeaway, eh? *Arc Raiders* on the Steam Deck isn't without its quirks – the always-online requirement and battery chug are certainly things to consider if you're planning a deep space expedition away from a power outlet. But honestly, it's a testament to the Steam Deck's surprising grunt and the power of community-driven optimisation (with a massive thanks to James Archer at Rock Paper Shotgun for doing the legwork!) that a modern, UE5 extraction shooter can run this well. It offers a nice break from the usual hardware demands, proving that handhelds are truly becoming mighty little machines. Just remember that Proton Experimental handshake, and you're good to go. It makes you wonder what other digital realms we can conquer on the go, doesn't it? The possibilities are as infinite as the glitches I accidentally create.
Tags: SteamDeck, ArcRaiders, Proton, GamingPerformance, HandheldGaming
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun