How to play Honkai Star Rail on the Steam Deck

HoYoverse’s newest galaxy-trotting adventure, Honkai Star Rail, offers beautiful 3D visuals paired with amazing combat and lore. The game has been making waves worldwide since its April 26, 2023 release. Due to its roots as a mobile live-service game company, HoYoverse’s games have always been designed for portable gaming devices, such as phones.

With the arrival of the Steam Deck, players have been eager to try their favorite titles on the beloved handheld PC. Unfortunately, Honkai Star Rail does not natively run on Valve’s Linux-based handheld. However, players can install Windows onto the Deck and get the game running.

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How to install Windows on the Steam Deck to get Honkai Star Rail working

Windows, running on the Steam Deck (Image via YouTube/TA Tech)

Players will need to complete the following steps in order to install Windows onto the Steam Deck. This process is necessary as Honkai Star Rail’s proprietary anti-cheat solution is incompatible with SteamOS.

1. For this guide, we will opt to dual-boot Windows and SteamOS. While it is possible to replace SteamOS with Windows entirely, it is not recommended. Windows on the Deck is still quite unpolished compared to SteamOS.
2. Grab a MicroSD card of a minimum 64 GB capacity before proceeding further.
3. Download the Windows 11 ISO from the official Microsoft website. Windows 11 is recommended due to its UI improvements allowing a smoother touchscreen experience.
4. Use Rufus to write the ISO installer onto the MicroSD card. Make sure to select the “Windows To Go” option under the Image Options.
5. Head to the Steam Deck Windows Resources page and download all relevant drivers. Extract all the archives into a single folder in the root of your MicroSD card. Insert the MicroSD card back into the Deck.
6. Reboot into the bootloader of your Steam Deck by holding down the Volume Down and Power buttons simultaneously - after a complete shutdown.
7. Select your MicroSD card as the boot device in the bootloader. Hit the A button to continue.
8. Connect to a Wi-Fi network and finish the Windows installation process.
9. Manually install all the drivers previously extracted to the root of the MicroSD card. Your Steam Deck should now be ready for Windows.
10. Download the PC launcher for Honkai Star Rail from the official website URL, https://hsr.hoyoverse.com/en-us/, from the “PC Client” button.
11. Install the client and download all required files.
12. Boot up the game and log in to your HoYoverse account. The game should now work without any issues on the Steam Deck.

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Additional tweaks to get Honkai Star Rail working efficiently on the Steam Deck

While Windows on the Steam Deck works fine with driver updates these days, there is a distinct lack of fine-tuned control that is otherwise present on SteamOS. Players can refer to the following tips to enhance their Honkai Star Rail experience on the Deck:

• Download and install Handheld Companion to restore TDP control and other handheld-specific functions to Windows.
• Adjust your in-game settings to run the game more efficiently. Consider lowering TDP to 10 or 9 Watts and running the game at the Low or Medium preset.
• Locking the frame rate to 30 can provide a stable experience and lower battery consumption.
• Use appropriate debloater scripts to squeeze out as much performance as possible from Windows.

Keep in mind that the Steam Deck was never meant to run Windows, and as such, support for it is quite limited. While Honkai Star Rail can run on the Steam Deck via Windows, eager players may find it better to completely avoid the intricacies of a dual boot system and play the game on their main PC. An alternative is to use a handheld PC that supports Windows natively out-of-the-box, such as the ROG Ally and GPD Win 4.