Can you play FFXIV on Steam Deck?

Do you want to play FFXIV on your Steam Deck?

The Steam Deck is arguably one of the most high-powered PC gaming handhelds available. The Deck allows you to natively play your vast Steam library of games on the go, while also acting as a portable desktop PC. Given how portable it is, you might want to run dungeons or raids while on the move.

Ever since the handheld was released, gamers have wanted to know if they can play Final Fantasy 14 on the go with the Steam Deck.

Here’s what you need to know about whether or not you can play the massive MMORPG on your Valve handheld.

Key art from the FFXIV 'Dawntrail' expansion.
Square Enix

Does FFXIV have Steam Deck support?

FFXIV is playable on the Steam Deck and the MMORPG has received a ‘playable’ acclamation from Valve.

The Final Fantasy MMO narrowingly misses being fully verified on the handheld. According to Valve’s testing, this is due to the game occasionally requiring the use of the on-screen keyboard for entering text.

While FFXIV benefits from the games default graphics performing well on the handheld, as well as the in-game text being fully legible, any connected Bluetooth/USB controllers also require manual switching in the quick access menu settings, which may have prevented the game from receiving Valve’s highest commendation.

When FFXIV originally launched on Steam, there were issues with the launcher working on the Steam Deck through Proton Experimental. As is stands, those problems have now been fixed making the massively popular MMO available on the Valve handheld for anyone who wants to catch up with their dailies, and raid with friends on the go.

How to Install FFXIV on Steam Deck

The simplest way to get the FFXIV on the Steam Deck is by purchasing the game via your Steam account.

If your Wi-Fi speed isn’t stable enough for the hefty 80GB download, we recommend connecting the Deck directly to the router via an Ethernet cable. Since Steam Deck has a limited number of ports, you can always get yourself an external dock.

That’s all, once the installer finishes its job, you can enjoy the game on your favorite PC gaming handheld.

If you’re a FFXIV veteran, and previously started your MMO adventure on PC, you won’t be able to use the same service account on Steam. Both versions of the game on Windows and Steam are identical, but any previously purchased expansions on Windows won’t be playable on the Steam version of the game.

If you have a previously played FFXIV account, and don’t want to rebuy the game on Steam, you can install the XIVLauncher on the Steam Deck to continue your MMO adventure on the go.

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