The Best HDR Games for Steam Deck OLED – DOOM Eternal, Death Stranding, Armored Core VI, and More – TouchArcade
Back in November, I wrote about the best games and the best indie games to play on Steam Deck OLED. Since then, I’ve had some folks reach out asking about the best PC games with native HDR support to play on Steam Deck OLED. Here we are. The games I’ve featured here have some overlap with the prior lists, but I’ve focused on highlighting games that look and run great with native HDR on Steam Deck. Steam doesn’t make what games have HDR support obvious, and you usually need to rely on the forums or the developer pages to find out in addition to fantastic PC game resources like PCGamingWiki. This list is in no particular order.
Best HDR Games To Play on the Steam Deck OLED
Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 with its Phantom Liberty expansion and all updates finally sees the game reach its true potential not only on consoles, but also on PC and Steam Deck. It was a technical mess at launch, but now is a game worthy of following up The Witcher 3. One of the most surprising things is how good it looks and runs on Steam Deck even with its newest updates. Jared has been enjoying this on Steam Deck OLED quite a bit, and it even works perfectly with native HDR now. Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the most next-gen experiences you can have on Steam Deck right now.
Cyberpunk 2077 is Steam Deck Verified
No Man’s Sky
I always enjoyed No Man’s Sky right from the start, but right now it feels like it has the quality of four or five full games put together with Hello Games going above and beyond constantly for the game and the community. Calling it a labor of love would be an understatement, but it really is an incredible experience on just about every platform. I adore playing it the most on Steam Deck and Switch, but it really is a perfect experience on Deck. No Man’s Sky also has native HDR support making it look even better on the Steam Deck OLED screen.
No Man’s Sky is Steam Deck Verified.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Around launch, I played Ori and the Will of the Wisps on Xbox One X, and it wasn’t a good experience. It did, however, look incredible. I’ve since played Ori and the Will of the Wisps on Steam Deck and Switch, and it is another amazing showcase for great screens with HDR. I hope we see a third game in the Ori series, but we always have Microsoft’s Ori and the Will of the Wisps to replay until then. This is definitely one of Microsoft’s best looking games ever.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is Steam Deck Playable.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
I already covered how good Insomniac Games’ Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart was through its PC version in my best games to play on Steam Deck feature, but it is another stunning showcase for good HDR implementation on PC. The original game was a tech showcase for the PS5 when it came out in 2021 for its use of the SSD and its visuals, and that holds true for modern PC technologies as well. While the launch was a bit rough on Steam Deck, it is in a very good place right now. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart’s native HDR support and the gorgeous visuals are another perfect way to show off your Steam Deck OLED screen. It also happens to be a really fun game from start to finish.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is Steam Deck Verified.
Tetris Effect: Connected
Originally a showcase for the Nintendo Switch OLED, Tetris Effect: Connected remains a game I tell everyone to try out. I have it installed on all platforms, and it remains a joy to play on a portable device. It feels great on the regular Steam Deck, but with the Steam Deck OLED, it finally comes into its own with higher refresh rate and native HDR support for the display. If you enjoy Tetris or just want one of the most brilliant gaming experiences, Tetris Effect: Connected is for you. Go buy it now for whatever device you play on.
Tetris Effect: Connected is Steam Deck Verified.
Viewfinder
Viewfinder is a game I hadn’t played until a few months ago, and I’m glad I finally got around to it. It isn’t a game you see in many lists, but is one of the best looking recent indie games. Viewfinder will make you rethink reality, perception, and more. It is definitely one of the most interesting puzzle games out there, and it shines on good screens. Viewfinder has native HDR support and also supports frame rates higher than 60fps. Combined with its colorful visuals and game quality, it adds up to be a great showcase for the Steam Deck OLED screen. Reshape the world with your camera and Steam Deck OLED.
Viewfinder is Steam Deck Verified.
DOOM Eternal
DOOM Eternal is a gorgeous game that runs super well on all kinds of PC hardware. DOOM Eternal is also a fun game to revisit with all of its DLC. It has native HDR support, but also shines at higher refresh rates on the Steam Deck OLED. If you’ve never played this, it is incredible. I just wish the soundtrack was available officially to buy and stream. Unfortunately Bethesda refuses to sort that out. Back to the game itself, DOOM Eternal is regularly discounted, but is a superb release in every way.
DOOM Eternal is Steam Deck Verified
Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon
Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon is FromSoftware’s best modern PC port by a huge margin. While Elden Ring was an amazing game, the PC port was not great. Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon on the other hand delivered an amazing conversion that shines on Steam Deck with its native HDR support and gorgeous visuals. I enjoyed playing this quite a bit on my LCD Deck last year. In addition to Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon, I’d also recommend checking out Sekiro on Steam Deck OLED if you own it. Consider this cheating because I included a second game here.
Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon is Steam Deck Playable
Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade
The road for Final Fantasy VII Remake on PC has been quite a long one. The base game debuted on PS4 before seeing an enhanced release with added content on PS5 titled Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade. This was then released on the Epic Games Store before finally coming to Steam with a Steam Deck Verified rating. Final Fantasy VII Remake is a true next gen feeling experience, and it feels and looks great on Steam Deck. It has native HDR support as well. Just keep in mind it is a big download.
Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade is Steam Deck Verified
Death Stranding Director’s Cut
Death Stranding Director’s Cut has one of the best implementations of HDR, and it is also a fantastic game to play on Steam Deck. It was a tech showcase for the PS4 console when it launched, saw an awesome PC port, then an enhanced PS5 release, and finally saw all the new features added back to PC in the Death Stranding Director’s Cut release which is also coming to iPhone 15 Pro in the near future. Death Stranding Director’s Cut is one of the most gorgeous games out there, and it looks amazing on Steam Deck. Give it a go if you have the Steam Deck OLED to see how good the native HDR is.
Death Stranding Director’s Cut is Steam Deck Verified
Bonus: Like a Dragon Gaiden / Infinite Wealth Demo
I can’t talk about Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth yet, but you can sample the studio’s HDR with Like a Dragon Gaiden, a game that bridges Yakuza: Like a Dragon (the seventh main game) with Yakuza 6 and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (the eight main game) in the series. It even has a demo for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth included and is Steam Deck Verified. The reason I didn’t include this as a part of the main list is because I wanted to include the demo as well as this game, which is shorter than the usual Like a Dragon / Yakuza games. I loved my time with it, but this has a lot of prerequisites to be an enjoyable experience with the games you need to have played.
Like a Dragon Gaiden is Steam Deck Verified
There are a few other games I wanted to include but didn’t because I either can’t talk about them yet, or because they are saved for another Steam Deck feature coming in the future. Stay tuned for them. Hopefully this feature introduced you to something you don’t own or haven’t heard of yet, and it helps you get the most out of your new Steam Deck OLED with that superlative display. Keep up with all our Steam Deck coverage on our hub for all things Deck here. If you’ve been enjoying something else on Steam Deck and think more people should try it, let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading.
