I really want GTA 6 to run on my Steam Deck. Yeah, I know that's as absurd as wishing Game Pass would go back to its old pricing, but a man can dream.
We are here for the steamy stuff
This hope I have that I might be able to play GTA 6 on Valve's handheld is simply because of the hardware convenience—and the fact that I already own one. Playing any game on my couch on the Steam Deck is much better than sitting in front of the PC I use for work every day.
Thousands, if not millions, of other players agree with me and also want to use the Steam Deck to play more GTA, because they already are. The two versions of GTA V, Legacy and Enhanced, are the only two titles listed as "unsupported" on the Steam Deck that are in the top 100 most played games on the handheld over the last month. That means even though the Deck's best features aren't available for GTA V, players still find a way to make it playable and enjoyable on the console.
GTA fans are sending a message to Rockstar that they would play GTA 6 if it were released on the Steam Deck. But there's a big issue with making that happen, and it's not whether Valve wants to support it.
The Steam Deck would heat until it turned into a flamethrower if it tried to run GTA 6. Its hardware will likely not meet the game's minimum requirements. The handheld's processor and GPU are already insufficient to handle recent AAA releases like Borderlands 4, or to run the likes of Monster Hunter: World and Resident Evil: Village above 30 FPS. Since expectations for GTA 6's scope are already through the roof, it's reasonable to think it will be more demanding than all the games I've mentioned.
One way to make it work
The only hope is that the Steam Deck 2 is released in the meantime. A new version would be the only way to have a hardware upgrade big enough to run GTA 6. But for such a big Valve launch to happen, the company would have to make a surprise announcement within the next month or two so that preorders and production have enough time to deliver the console close to GTA 6's release.
But there's no indication a new Steam Deck is coming. The most we've heard so far is rumors that the Steam Deck 2 could come in 2028, and that's not an official announcement. We also have no idea when GTA 6 will be out on PC, because the May 26, 2026 release date is exclusive for PS5 and Xbox consoles, with Rockstar saying a PC version will come at a later, undefined date.
Luckily, there's an alternative for people like me who are stubborn enough and really want to run GTA 6 on the Deck. To do so, you need to have a gaming PC that can run GTA 6 when it's out. Then, use Steam Link to stream the game to your Deck, which requires a decent internet connection on both devices. Then, you'll be offloading all the hard work to run the game to your PC while playing it on the Deck.
While that's not the optimal solution, it will probably be the only one to play GTA 6 on the Steam Deck close to its release date. Or maybe just hope Valve's competitors are quicker and release a more powerful handheld PC in 2026.
The post I’m not alone in my impossible GTA 6 wish, and there’s only one way it happens appeared first on Destructoid.
