PC & saves
Steam Deck settings and menu controls: a cautious playable setup
Start with a modest frame-rate target and keep touchscreen or trackpad mouse input available for menus. In the October Steam Deck discussion, one player reports roughly 20–45 FPS depending on area at High settings after early patches; another reports a better experience around 30 FPS after a recent patch.
Those are personal observations on unspecified builds and Deck variants, not our benchmark or a promise of 30 or 60 FPS everywhere. The same thread describes a disappearing menu cursor and gives input fallbacks.
Nivalis Nights / Steam Deck
Frame pacing and menu input.
- Record the build and model
Player reports do not specify every variant.
- Compare one repeatable route
A 30-FPS cap is a starting test, not a promise.
- Keep menu input available
Touchscreen or mouse trackpad fallback.
On this page
Test one demanding route before changing everything
- Record the installed game version, Deck model, display refresh rate and current game settings.
- Choose a repeatable busy district and a quieter interior. Compare the same routes.
- Try a 30-FPS cap as an editorial starting comparison, then watch frame pacing and the lowest points rather than only the peak counter.
- If performance is still uncomfortable, lower one graphics option and repeat the route. Keep resolution and other settings recorded.
- Test the same menus before relying on the setup for a long session.
Use the settings reports within their limits
The original poster prefers High, a wider field of view, VSync off and 90 Hz where the device offers it. Treat these as optional personal preferences to compare, not a verified optimal preset. A Deck without a 90-Hz display cannot use that setting, and a wider field of view is not established as an FPS fix.
Another commenter recalls Medium near 30 FPS with drops into the teens, but explicitly had not played the latest patch. That older experience must not be presented as a current counter-benchmark. Update 5 documents startup, memory and NPC-stutter work; it does not promise a Deck frame rate or prove an official compatibility rating.
Menu cursor disappears or controller navigation stalls
- Use the touchscreen to make the immediate menu selection if the cursor is lost.
- Back out and reopen that menu; a player reports this as another fallback.
- If you need mouse input, use Steam Input to map the right trackpad as a mouse and an accessible rear button as a left mouse click.
- Test selection, scrolling and closing the menu before saving the layout.
One commenter uses mouse sensitivity 330 and the upper-left rear button for the click. That exact sensitivity is their preference, not a required fix. Keep your original layout available so an uncomfortable mapping can be reversed.
Separate a usable workaround from compatibility claims
A useful result is a route you can comfortably play and menus you can reliably operate. Record the specific screen if only one menu fails; do not replace every input mapping to address one cursor issue.
This page supplies no custom Proton command, unofficial executable or unsupported performance mod. If the game fails to launch, this thread does not establish its cause. For long-session loading or review-history changes, see the Update 5 save changes.
Sources & version
Use the version and source dates listed for this article. Developer fixes, dated creator demonstrations and player reports are distinguished; a current review does not turn an older source into a new-build gameplay test. We do not claim our own gameplay reproduction.