Wuthering Waves is a very popular RPG that has tons and tons of players on a range of different devices. However, if you are attempting to play it on the Steam Deck, you may have a major problem. Despite being available on Steam, the game currently does not function properly on Valve's handheld device. This guide explains why and what, if anything, can be done about it
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The Game Is Not Officially Supported on Steam Deck
Wuthering Waves is not officially supported on Steam Deck. The developers have not indicated any plans to optimise or verify the game for Valve's handheld hardware. While many games still run well without official support, this title presents a more serious barrier.
How to Fix Wuthering Waves Not Working on Steam Deck
The primary reason Wuthering Waves does not work on the Steam Deck is its anti-cheat system. While the game will install correctly and even allow you to log in, the anti-cheat detects that it is running in a Linux-based environment using Proton. As a result, it will forcibly close the game after you load into the world.
This has been confirmed by multiple users and discussed in depth on Reddit.
You will be able to install the game and log in, but will be booted out by the anti-cheat once you have loaded in. Negative review because I can't imagine any other reason to install this game on Steam over the official launcher.
This anti-cheat behaviour is currently a hard stop for anyone attempting to play the game on Steam Deck, and there is no override or compatibility setting that resolves it.
There Are No Working Fixes as of Now
Despite community efforts, there are no known workarounds at this time that successfully bypass the anti-cheat restriction. Installing Windows on the Steam Deck or attempting to use Proton Experimental, GE-Proton, Wine, or Lutris has not produced stable or playable results. The game consistently crashes or disconnects players due to the anti-cheat.
More details and ongoing user reports can be found here:
Reddit: Has anyone got Wuthering Waves working since launch?
What You Can Do Instead
Until the developers address this issue, here are the only practical alternatives:
Play on a Windows PC
The game functions as intended on Windows machines with no anti-cheat issues. This remains the most reliable option.
Wait for Proton or Developer Support
If the developers update the anti-cheat system to be Proton-compatible or offer native Linux support, it may eventually run on Steam Deck. Similar changes have made other games compatible in the past.
Leave Feedback
If Steam Deck support matters to you, consider leaving constructive feedback on Steam or the official forums. Developer interest is often driven by community demand.
Before you get too annoyed, there's a really solid chance that Wuthering Waves will be available on Steam Deck before too long. It would be silly for the developer to leave such a big market untapped.
