Nvidia’sGeForce Nowstreaming service now has a streamlined install script specifically for Steam Deck, available fromNvidia’s download page. GeForce Now streaming on Steam Deck is technically nothing new, as our header image andprior postingsshow, but now Nvidia is providing a greatly-streamlined process compared to the previous methods, which required you to install and configure your browser manually.
Basically, you won’t be installing a dedicated Steam Deck application. Instead, Nvidia’srecently-announced scriptassumes you haven’t already installedGoogleChrome through Steam Deck’s Gaming Mode prompt, and part of the script includes installing and auto-configuring a Chrome shortcut to point directly to GeForce Now from Gaming Mode. Like with our pastDOS_deckcoverage, it’s worth noting a setup like this can compromise web browsing without going to Desktop Mode to launch the browser without the now-forced GeForce Now shortcut.
As Nvidia points out in its blog post, this new installation method has dropped to coincide with last week’s GeForce Now update, which improved gamepad support for browser users, including those on Steam Deck. The blog post notes that GeForce Now is also available in-app or install-script form for the other major handhelds, and even provides a manual Steam Deck GeForce Now installation guide.
Since Chrome installed through Gaming Mode is easily the best browsing experience on Steam Deck, we recommend that GeForce Now users could also consider followingNvidia’s manual install guideand using it withMicrosoftEdge instead. Due to the way Steam (and by extension, Deck Gaming Mode) currently works, you can’t configure two shortcuts pointing to the same browser without giving up one of them.
For those curious about GeForce Now on Steam Deck but on the fence, there are some upsides worth considering. As long as your Internet connection can maintain strong low latency with the server, streaming games from a server or home PC is way less intensive on battery life than rendering them on the handheld, even if Deck can handle the game already. At the very least, it should offer longer battery life because your Deck isn’t handling the game.
Get Tom’s Hardware’s best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
Christopher Harper has been a successful freelance tech writer specializing in PC hardware and gaming since 2015, and ghostwrote for various B2B clients in High School before that. Outside of work, Christopher is best known to friends and rivals as an active competitive player in various eSports (particularly fighting games and arena shooters) and a purveyor of music ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Killer Mike to the Sonic Adventure 2 soundtrack.
