Playing on the SteamDeck

Its very easy to get most itch.io games running on the SteamDeck if they have a Linux build. Its actually the very first thing I did after receiving my SteamDeck - I installed the itch client and had a magical experience playing A Short Hike.

In this tutorial we'll just cover the steps to run Linux builds since Midnight T-Rex has one, but there are some great resources on reddit and other sites about the steps necessary to run windows builds as well.

This may look like a lot of steps but it's basically just install the Itch app and add your games as non-steam games:

1. Switch to desktop mode on the SteamDeck.
2. Open a browser and navigate to https://itch.io/app 
   1. (there may also be  a banner to get the app from the home page).
3. Download the Linux version of the app.
4. Once you open the Itch app - download the Linux build of Midnight T-Rex!
5. You could play the the game at this point in desktop mode, but its much more convenient to be able to play from the full-screen SteamOS UI.
6. Open Steam while still in desktop mode:
   1. Click Games in the menu up top.
   2. then click Add a non-steam game to my library.
   3. Add the Itch app
   4. OPTIONAL: Add any itch games you've downloaded here as well if you'd like easier access to launch them.
7. Update the launch options for the Itch app to be: LD_PRELOAD=%command%
   1. The app may not launch in full-screen with out this. 
   2. From Desktop mode: 
      1. right-click Itch in your library and go to properties.
   3. From SteamOS mode: 
      1. select/hover over the itch app from home or library.
      2. use the start button (tripple bar ≡) to open options.
      3. select properties.
8. Open full-screen SteamOS mode and you should find the itch app there as well as any other games added.
9. If you forgot to add games, or want to play a new game you can also play it right from the itch app without adding it as a non-steam game.

One downside to this approach is you have to use the touch-controls while in the Itch app when launching from SteamOS mode, but that hasn't been too much of an issue for me.

Enjoy!