Can Genshin Impact be played on the Steam Deck? That’s what a lot of gamers have been wondering since Valve’s beloved handheld gaming system first came out.
Ever since miHoYo’s free-to-play RPG first came out, fans have enjoyed exploring the game’s world and earning/paying for its characters. Many gamers respect the fact that this is a primarily single-player game that has decent free-to-play mechanics, even if the gacha aspect is annoying.
However, the question remains; can fans play Genshin Impact on their Steam Deck? Do they need to tinker with the Steam Deck to make it work? Here’s what you need to know.
Is Genshin Impact playable on Steam Seck?
Natively, no, players cannot just download Genshin Impact from Steam and play it right away. As of this writing, the free-to-play RPG is exclusive to the Epic Games Store on PC, though it is also available on Android, iOS, PS4, and PS5.
However, there are other ways to bring miHoYo’s free-to-play RPG to the Steam Deck. It’s going to take a lot of tinkering and will even remove things Deck owners are used to. Players who are ready to change their Steam Deck for the sake of this game should read on.
How to install Genshin Impact on Steam Deck
First, players willing to do this will need a USB drive that can install Windows on the Steam Deck. Before we continue, keep in mind that installing Windows will delete the Steam OS from the Deck, so think a bit about this.
Now, for players who really want to play Genshin Impact on the Steam Deck:
- Plug your USB drive into the Steam Deck.
- Hold the Steam Deck’s Power button and Volume Down button at the same time to launch the Boot Manager.
- Select “USB Drive.”
- Restart the Steam Deck to install Windows.
- Once Windows is installed, download Genshin Impact through the game’s website or through Epic Games.
That’s how you can get Genshin Impact to play on your Steam Deck. Hopefully, Steam and miHoYo will get to team up so that the free-to-play RPG can be used on the handheld. For now, that just isn’t possible.