Frequently asked questions
We test every game ourselves on real Steam Machine hardware, then publish the settings that hit the best balance of visual quality and frame rate - so you can get the most out of your Steam Machine without spending an evening trial-and-erroring graphics sliders yourself.
Why do you test and publish Steam Machine settings for every game?
Valve's Steam Machine ships with fixed hardware, but every game still exposes dozens of graphics options - and the defaults are rarely tuned for it. We manually test each game on real Steam Machine hardware and publish the exact settings that hit the best balance of visual quality and frame rate at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K, so you don't have to spend an evening trial-and-erroring sliders yourself.
How do you decide on the settings you publish?
For every game we start from a clean install, sweep through the available graphics options at each resolution, and benchmark the results. We favor the highest settings that still hold a stable frame rate, then note anything that needed a workaround (a specific Proton version, a launch flag, disabling a feature that crashes) in the compatibility notes.
What do the status labels (Verified, Playable, Needs Tweaks, Unknown) mean?
Verified means the game runs well out of the box with no extra steps. Playable means it runs, but you may notice occasional hitches or need to adjust a setting or two. Needs Tweaks means it's fully playable but requires a specific fix (a Proton version, a config change) to run well. Unknown covers games we've tested where compatibility is still in flux - for example when a required Proton version or anti-cheat support is still rolling out.
What is Proton, and why does the Proton version matter?
Proton is the compatibility layer that lets Windows games run on Steam Machine's Linux-based SteamOS. Different games work best on different Proton builds (stable, Experimental, or a community GE build), and using the wrong one can mean worse performance or a game that won't launch at all. We list the exact version we tested so you can match it.
How often do you retest a game?
We retest whenever a game gets a major update or a new Proton/SteamOS release changes its behavior significantly. The date shown on each game's page reflects when it was last verified.
What does the performance star rating mean?
Each game's Performance row on its detail page is shown as a 1-5 star rating, based on the tier we test it into - Excellent is 5 stars down to Below Average at 1, colored the same way as on the game page. It's our overall verdict on how well the game runs on Steam Machine - frame rate stability, dips, and any workarounds needed - separate from the specific FPS numbers listed per resolution.