Can you play Overwatch 2 on Steam Deck?

Can you play Overwatch 2 on your Steam Deck? If you’re unsure whether Blizzard Entertainment’s multiplayer shooter will run on Valve’s handheld console, here’s everything you need to know.

Overwatch 2 arrives on several platforms on October 4, as Blizzard Entertainment unleashes a new era for their flagship multiplayer franchise.

Not only does its arrival mark an exciting chapter for returning players, but new players will get the chance to experience all the incredible abilities, heroes, and more that the Overwatch universe has to offer.

If you’ve managed to get your hands on Valve’s Steam Deck, here’s what you need to know to get playing on the powerful handheld.

How to play Overwatch 2 on Steam Deck

Yes, you can play Overwatch 2 on your Steam Deck. As the game doesn’t use kernel-level anti-cheat tools, this makes it far easier for the game to be accessible.

Games like Fortnite and Fall Guys are initially difficult to get working on the handheld, due to the anti-cheat parameters used outside of Steam’s onboard launcher.

This means you won’t have to mess around with installing Windows 11 on your handheld. However, you will have to install Activison’s Battle.net launcher to download the game and add it to your Steam library.

How to install the Battle.net launcher on Steam Deck

Installing different launchers such as Origin or Battle.net may seem daunting, but it’s actually fairly easy to get them up and running on the Steam Deck. While there are a few steps involved, here’s what you need to do:

1. Go into ‘Desktop Mode’ on your Steam Deck
2. Open up your internet browser of choice
3. Go to Blizzard’s website and download the Battle.net launcher
4. Open up Steam and click ‘Add a Non-Steam Game to My Library‘
5. Find your EXE file in /home/deck/Downloads or your preferred save destination
6. Select the ‘Battle.net.setup.exe’ file and click ‘Add Selected Programs’
7. Right-click the EXE in your Steam Library and go to ‘Properties’
8. Click ‘Compatibility’ and select ‘Force use of Specific Steam Play Compatibility Tool’
9. Use either ‘Proton Experimental’ or ‘GE-Proton7-10’
10. Boot up the EXE and complete the setup process
11. Once this is done, go to ‘Add a Non-Steam Game to My Library’
12. Find ‘/home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata’
13. Open the most recently modified folder and open the PFX folder inside
14. Navigate to pfx/drive_c/Program Files (x86)/Battle.net and you’ll find the launcher
15. Add it to your Steam library

It may seem like there is a lot of work needed to get the Battle.net launcher in your library, but a little patience will get you through the process.

Be sure to keep up with all things Overwatch 2 as we cover all the latest heroes, abilities, and more.