How to Use the Steam Deck to Record Gameplay
Game Mode on the Steam Deck can now be directly recorded by SteamOS (but not in desktop mode). Gameplay recordings can be viewed, edited, saved, and moved to a PC or mobile device through the Steam Deck's Media Library.
If you are using Desktop Mode, you will need to record games using a third-party program. Finally, Valve is releasing official gameplay recording for the Steam Deck, providing a variety of quick and easy ways to share game footage. Here's how to activate the feature, how the video functions, and what to anticipate from it.
Why Should You Record Yourself Playing Games?
You can record your gameplay footage for a variety of purposes, such as making your own content, helping with troubleshooting, or sharing it with the community.
Probably the primary reason is that sharing funny or amazing gameplay moments with other fans is a terrific way to connect with them through online gameplay video. If you are a content creator, you can showcase your gaming to others and compile your clips into videos, which might help you attract more viewers.
The troubleshooting component is another, since gameplay videos can also be used to illustrate glitches, mistakes, crashes, or other technical problems with certain games. You can provide video evidence of these problems to the game's developers or community, and they may respond with fixes or advice to fix the problems. Video footage of gameplay can also be helpful for pathfinding and direction in games, since you can review it to recall where to go or what to do in specific areas.
Using SteamOS, record gameplay natively
With SteamOS, recording gameplay is now possible natively, even when using Gaming Mode. Toggle a certain setting to enable this feature. For now, using it requires opting into beta features, which is a simple process. Pressing the "Steam" button on your Steam Deck will take you to the Settings > System > Beta Participation > Beta screen. From there, choose the option to restart your Deck.
After restarting, return to "Settings" and choose the newly formed "Game Recording" section to choose your preferred recording technique. By default, the past two hours of gaming will be automatically saved for you to examine at a later time. If you choose not to preserve them, Steam will erase them on its own.
As an alternative, you can program your Steam Deck to record gameplay when you hit a particular keystroke (Ctrl+F11 by default). This command can be entered by pressing the Steam button + X to access the virtual keyboard, or it can be remapped to the right side "Menu" button so that a long press will record gameplay.
Return to Settings > Controller, press the "Steam" button, and choose "Edit" from the "Desktop Layout" menu at the very bottom. Choose "Edit Layout" > "Buttons," then "Change Action Set" on "Command 2" when the menu button selections appear at the bottom.
Under the "System" menu, there is a toggle for manual recording. Although you may remap this to whatever button you like, I suggest using the right menu button since it is the most accessible and has just one other use.
Your Recordings: Where Do They Go?
Similar to how images are saved, gameplay recordings are automatically kept in the Media section of your Steam Deck. By clicking the "Steam" button and choosing the "Media" option, you may locate it. Your most recent recordings and screenshots will appear first.
You may watch, modify, and permanently store your clips from this point on. In order to ensure that you only publish the pertinent portions of your footage, you can also use markers to generate timestamps for pertinent occasions. When game recording is enabled, you can also make these in-game by simultaneously hitting Steam+Y. You will only be able to retrieve your recordings from the Deck itself unless you transfer them because Steam's beta recording feature does not currently automatically sync your recordings to your Steam cloud.
Fortunately, Steam includes a built-in method for remotely sending videos to your PC Steam client. To save a video, simply click the scissors symbol located at the bottom right of the recording, use the markers to select the desired clip, and then click the download button. The video will be automatically detected by Steam on your PC and sent there for a period of two days.
You may then permanently save it to your Media folder from there. Moreover, you can use a USB-C flash drive or other simple techniques to move your files from the Steam Deck.
Ways to Record a Screen in Desktop Mode
As the game recording feature only works when you are playing a game, you will need to utilize a third-party program if you wish to capture video in desktop mode. Fortunately, you can accomplish this with a few different apps, which you can install by performing a quick search on the Steam Deck's Discovery app. The GPU Screen Recorder app is what I suggest; it records the whole screen, no matter what is on it at the moment.
Holding down the power button while choosing "Desktop Mode" will allow you to locate it. Following the reboot, look for "GPU Screen Recorder" using the "Discover" icon at the bottom of the screen, click it, and choose "Install."
You may choose the app and screen you want to record by clicking on the drop-down menu once the installer has finished configuring the app for you. After that, it will record anything that appears on your screen, no matter what.
The Media tab does not appear to display the metadata for individual videos or details like the resolution or framerate of a recording, maybe because the feature is still in beta testing. However, transferring it to an external device verifies that the majority of recordings—if not all of them—will output at the native 1280x800 resolution of the Steam Deck.
Currently, instead of just recording the game, the recording capability will also record popups and other items that might be a part of SteamOS or the Steam UI. This implies that notices about friends joining the online group or achievement pop-ups will be recorded in the video.
You could wish to cut them out or turn them off if you do not want to share this with anyone. It is important to remember that before Valve formally releases these features as part of SteamOS, they are still in beta and may change. As a result, there are a few minor problems with the screen recorder, such as difficulty recording games that are not on Steam and inability to display some information.
The SteamOS screen recorder will probably be made available as an official function soon if you do not want to deal with the possible problems that come with beta capabilities. Soon, exactly as on the Nintendo Switch, you will be able to virtually instantly share your gaming on the Steam Deck with anybody.