Rockstar recently added BattlEye Anti-Cheat to GTA 5 and GTA Online in a patch released on Tuesday, September 17th. While the update includes an option to disable the anti-cheat for Story Mode when using the Rockstar Games Launcher or third-party launchers, it has effectively ended support for Steam Deck users. According to the patch notes, “Steam Deck does not support BattlEye for GTA Online. You will be able to play GTAV Story Mode but unable to play GTA Online.”
This situation is puzzling, especially since BattlEye can be configured to work on Steam Deck. Although the Linux-based SteamOS doesn’t support BattlEye by default, it can be made compatible by contacting BattlEye’s vendor. The compatibility issue arises due to Proton, Steam Deck’s Windows compatibility layer. Given that GTA Online was previously one of the most-played games on Steam Deck, this change has caused frustration among players.
In their update, Rockstar shifted responsibility for the issue to Valve, stating, “GTAV and GTA Online are not officially supported on Steam Deck and all technical support questions should be directed to Valve’s Steam Deck support.” Valve, meanwhile, has reportedly been in contact with Rockstar to find a solution, according to a redditor who claims to have spoken with a Valve representative.
While the decision has left many players confused, it’s not uncommon for major publishers to hesitate when it comes to running anti-cheat software on Linux-based systems like the Steam Deck. For now, players may still be able to access GTA Online by dual-booting Windows on their Steam Deck and bypassing Proton.
The one thing everyone agrees on? GTA Online has a well-documented cheating problem, and it remains to be seen how Rockstar will address this, especially with GTA 6 on the horizon.
