How to play GTA 5 on the Steam Deck with the best settings

With the launch of Steam Deck and Valve’s confirmation of the smooth running of GTA 5 on the console, gamers around the world are excited to try it. After Steam Link, it is the first time the game can be entirely run and played on a hand-held portable device.

However, getting a smooth gameplay experience similar to that of other consoles or PCs could be a little tough with the smaller console. This article provides some changes and tweaks in settings that can help in the smooth running of GTA 5 in Steam Deck.

Note: This article reflects the writer's opinions.

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Best settings to play GTA 5 on the Steam Deck

GTA 5 is almost 72 GB on Steam, and scaling down such a massive game to a small form factor like the Steam Deck will certainly affect some areas of the gameplay. Some users reported that the recent update has caused the game to run out of memory and crash randomly.

Still, playing a major game like Grand Theft Auto 5 smoothly on a portable hand-held device is every gamer's dream. Realizing the issue of lags and crashes on Steam Deck, Redditor VanishedMC shared a video of them playing GTA 5 in 60FPS on Steam Deck with some alterations in the settings.

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GTA players can adapt to these settings on the Graphics tab for smooth gameplay:

• DirectX Version - DirectX11 (lower if needed)
• Screen Type - Fullscreen (change to Windowed Borderless for maximum FPS)
• Resolution/Aspect Ratio - Set to native resolution
• FXAA - Off
• MSAA - Off
• NVIDIA TXAA - Off
• VSync - On
• Population Density- 50%
• Population Variety- 100%
• Distance Scaling - Maximum
• Texture Quality - High
• Shader Quality - Normal
• Shadow Quality - Normal
• Reflection Quality - Normal
• Reflection MSAA - Off
• Water Quality - Normal
• Particles Quality -Normal
• Grass Quality - Normal
• Soft Shadows - Soft
• PostFX - High
• Motion Blur/Depth of Field - Set according to preference
• Anisotropic Filtering - X2
• Ambient Occlusion - Normal
• Tessellation - Normal

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Another YouTube video shows the game running in max settings and getting a consistent 60 FPS gameplay.

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Steam Deck is a powerful portable computer run by an AMD APU processor. Though it is bulky in size and shape, the Deck only contains a seven-inch 1280 x 800px display with a 16:10 aspect ratio. The resolution is only slightly higher than the standard 720p.

These specifications make the game look smooth and sharp besides being in a lower resolution than the standard 1080p or 4K. Users can adjust their game settings according to their preferences and still get a smooth running experience.

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Steam Deck provides a fresh new experience to GTA 5 players

The Steam Deck became an instant success after its launch in February 2022. Although it is being launched in selected countries and there are no official numbers given by Valve yet, it is estimated that around one million devices could be sold by 2023.

Many popular titles like Stray, Elden Ring, Spider-Man Remastered, and The Witcher, to name a few, can be played on the console. Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto 5 and Max Payne 3 also come under the Deck’s Playable category. This makes Deck the first ever portable platform to run GTA 5.

However, Valve warned that minor graphical issues could be there in the game and that players might have to use the touchscreen of the Deck to operate, which might make it difficult to navigate. GTA 5 is still one of the most played games on the platform.