Steam Deck BattlEye Proton support has expanded with the addition of four more games that use this anti-cheat system -- including the popular survival game DayZ.
The Steam Deck is Valve's take on a handheld gaming PC. First announced earlier this year, this new system sold out all of its reservations in around a day -- not a surprise to anyone who has tried to buy the latest tech when it launches.
A key challenge (and perhaps a key advantage) for the Steam Deck is its use of Linux and Proton for the upgraded version of SteamOS that serves as the backbone for the console. While this makes the background processes light, it also presented a problem -- some popular anti-cheat solutions don't play well with Linux.
That's exactly why Valve announced an initiative to improve anti-cheat support for Linux and introduced the Steam Deck Verified Program to make it easy to tell what is playable on the handheld gaming PC (and what is not). Now, those efforts to expand anti-cheat support have bore fruit with the addition of four new major titles (making for a total of six).
Here Are the Steam Deck BattleEye Proton Supported Games
Previously, Steam Deck BattlEye Proton support included Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord and Ark: Survival Evolved. Four more heavy hitters have been added to the list today according to a Steam news post (via The Verge):
- Arma 3
- DayZ
- Planetside 2
- Unturned
This may seem like a short list because, well, it is. However, it looks like Steam Deck BattlEye Proton support has reached the point where developers don't have much work to do to actually get their games working on the Deck.
"As we mentioned previously, BattlEye on Proton integration has reached a point where all a developer needs to do is reach out BattlEye to enable it for their title," read the Steam news post. "No additional work is required by the developer besides that communication. Partners have started turning on BattlEye support for their titles, meaning these games are now working on Steam Deck."
A quick Steam Deck update for you all - our DV units have arrived! We'll be using these for additional testing and for developer kits, but we also took some nice sneak preview photos of what the final packaging will look like.
— Steam Deck (@OnDeck) December 2, 2021
Learn more here: https://t.co/cOVWm5sa3S pic.twitter.com/Jujnvbf6BY
Also: Your First Look at the Steam Deck Box and Packaging
Aside from the expansion of BattlEye support on Proton, the Steam Deck box and packaging was also revealed yesterday as seen in the images above.
The Steam Deck ships in a simple brown box with a whole bunch of warning labels on the side -- that's not a surprise considering the potentially fragile nature of its contents. The inside lid of the box has text in dozens of languages and a quick start guide rests on top. Below that is the power supply and the Steam Deck itself within a protective carry case.
It should be noted, however, that this packaging is an early version for the Steam Decks that are being sent out to developers and testers; Valve believes that this is representative of what customers will see when they actually get their machines early next year, but something could always change in the time between now and then.
For now, it looks like the Steam Deck is shaping up pretty nicely. Those of you who were lucky enough to order one will have to wait until February 2022 at the earliest before you can get one. If you haven't yet put in an order, you can reserve a Steam Deck now for just $5.00 to get the option to order one sometime after Q2 2022.
What do you think of the expansion of Steam Deck BattlEye Proton support? Do you like the look of the packaging? Let us know in the comments below!
