Heroic Games Launcher - Installing games from other stores on the Steam Deck - A comprehensive tutorial

Do you own a Steam Deck and want to play games that weren't purchased on Steam, such as those from the Epic Games Store, GOG, or Amazon? This guide will show you step-by-step how to get games from other platforms onto your Steam Deck. All you need is the Heroic Games Launcher and a little patience.

Enable desktop mode on Steam Deck

To get started, first switch to desktop mode on your Steam Deck. It's easy:
1. Press the Steam button .
2. Select Power .
3. Click Switch to Desktop .

You're now in SteamOS desktop mode. Here you can access additional programs and install the Heroic Games Launcher.

Install Heroic Games Launcher

The Heroic Games Launcher is an open-source launcher that lets you launch games from other platforms on your Steam Deck. To install it, open the Discover Store in desktop mode—SteamOS's app store.

1. Open Discover Store: Similar to Google Play or the Microsoft Store, you can download programs directly here.

2. Search for Heroic Games Launcher: Enter "Heroic" in the search field. The Heroic Games Launcher should appear first.

3. Start installation : Click Install and wait until the installation is complete.

Sign up and set up your game library

After installation, open the Heroic Games Launcher. Now it's time to log in to your accounts (e.g., Epic Games, GOG) to access your games. Logging in can be a bit cumbersome due to two-factor authentication, but after this one-time step, you'll have access to your entire library.

1. Log in to your accounts: Follow the login instructions and complete two-factor authentication.

Log in to service.

Change language. (Optional)

Offer a gaming service. (In our example, GOG)

Verify.

2. Sort your game library: In the launcher, you can filter games by store (e.g. Epic or Amazon), which provides more clarity.

Install games and make them available on Steam

Now it gets exciting: You can select games and download them directly, just like in the Steam library.

1. Select and install a game: Click on the game you want and start the download. Installed games will automatically appear at the top of your list.

2. Add games to Steam: To ensure the game appears in SteamOS Gaming Mode, you can add it to Steam in the Heroic Launcher settings. To do this, go to the settings and enable "Automatically add games to Steam."

Optimize Proton settings

If your game is having trouble launching, switching to a different version of Proton may help. Proton is a compatibility layer that allows Windows games to run on Linux.

1. Switch Proton version: In the Heroic Launcher settings, you'll find an option that allows you to switch between different Proton versions. We recommend switching to the latest version or Steam Experimental .

2. Fix error messages: If errors occur, it often helps to try a different version of Proton and, if necessary, return to the default settings.

Start games in gaming mode

After adding it to your Steam library, you can launch the game directly from Gaming Mode:

1. Switch back to gaming mode .
2. Find your installed game in the Steam library and launch it.

Uninstall games

If you want to remove a game later, you must switch back to desktop mode:

1. Open the Heroic Launcher.
2. Click on the game you want and select Uninstall .

Conclusion

The Steam Deck can do more than just Steam games – with the Heroic Games Launcher, you can get the most out of your game collection. Thanks to its easy installation and the ability to use Proton compatibility settings, playing games from various stores is almost as convenient as playing on Steam itself.