Guide

Steam Deck and Steam Machine compatibility

Valve now reviews your game once and rates it for three kinds of hardware: Steam Deck, Steam Machine and other SteamOS devices. The rating is shown to every player browsing on that hardware. It never blocks your release, but a Verified badge costs little if you plan for it, and a bad one is easy to avoid.

The four ratings

BadgeMeaning
VerifiedPasses every check. Everything works with no setup from the player.
PlayableWorks, but the player has to do something: pick a community controller config, open the keyboard manually, or use the touchscreen for a launcher.
UnsupportedDoesn't run on that device, usually because of a Proton or hardware incompatibility.
UnknownNot reviewed yet.

Deck and Machine ratings are separate, but the checks overlap heavily, and a game Verified on Steam Deck is automatically Verified on Steam Machine. None of this affects whether players can buy or play your game, only how it's presented.

The Verified checklist (Deck and Machine)

1
Controller support by default

The default controller configuration must reach all content: Deck's built-in controls, or the Steam Controller's (nearly identical) inputs on Machine. Players must not have to change a setting to turn controller support on.

2
Correct glyphs

On-screen button prompts must match the controller in use. Don't show keyboard or mouse prompts to a controller player. The Steam Input API handles this for you.

3
Text input without a keyboard

If players ever type (naming a save, a character), open Steam's on-screen keyboard through the Steamworks API (ISteamUtils::ShowGamepadTextInput or ShowFloatingGamepadTextInput) or provide your own controller-friendly entry.

4
Playable framerate out of the box

The default settings must hit 30fps: at 800p on Steam Deck and 1080p on Steam Machine.

5
No compatibility warnings

Don't tell the player their OS or GPU is unsupported.

6
Launchers

Any launcher must meet all of the above, including full controller navigation. Better still, don't have one.

If Proton has a bug that blocks your game, it's rated Unsupported and the issue goes into Valve's tracker. When it's fixed, Valve re-tests automatically and lets you know. A native Linux build isn't required.

Steam Deck display checks

These are tested on Deck only. Steam Machine connects to screens of every size, so display checks don't apply there.

CheckRequirement
ResolutionMust run at a supported resolution. Native 1280×800 is preferred, 1280×720 is fine.
Text sizeNo UI character smaller than 9px tall at 1280×800. Aim for 12px. A text-size option is strongly recommended.

Getting reviewed

Games reach the review queue in three ways: automatically, when a back-catalog title matches Valve's heuristics; when Valve decides a game matters to Steam hardware owners; or by requesting it yourself through the Steam Hardware Compatibility Review link in the Technical Tools section of your app landing page. That link isn't available to every partner yet, and Valve is widening access over time.

1
Pass normal build review first

You can request a compatibility review before launch, but only after your game has passed its standard build review.

2
Results in about a week

You get an email and a point-by-point breakdown for Deck, Machine and other SteamOS devices, plus a preview of the badges players will see.

3
You have about a week to act

Publish the results, push a fixed build and request a re-review, or dispute a result you think is wrong. Do nothing and the results publish automatically after roughly a week.

Want to explain a Playable rating or share plans? Post a Steam event about compatibility, then paste its URL into the Steam Hardware Compat Info field in your store page's Basic Info tab. It gets linked from your game's compatibility details.

Quick wins

Common Playable causeFix
Keyboard prompts shown to controller playersUse Steam Input, or swap glyphs based on the last input device.
Name entry needs a physical keyboardCall the on-screen keyboard API when a text field is focused.
UI text too small on DeckScale UI with resolution and add a text-size option.
Launcher needs a mouseRemove it, or make it fully controller-navigable.
Default settings too heavyDetect the device and pick a lighter preset on first launch.
Next step: add "request a Deck/Machine review" to your plan once build review passes. It sits alongside achievements and controller setup in the launch checklist.