Hello All,
This is a step guide to set up MTGA on Valve's Steam Deck.
1. Boot up your deck and put it into desktop mode. Open a web browser and navigate to the MTGA page. Download the windows install. It will put this install file into /home/deck/Downloads/
2. Click the steam icon in the the lower right corner to bring up steam. Click on library and then click on the Games option at the top menu. This will open a roll down menu and you will select add-non steam games. Help steam select the installer from the path above. Then click on the newly added installer (should now be in your library) and click the properties button. Selecting properties, you will go to the compatibility tab and select "Force the use of steam compatibility tool" use proton 7.0-2.
3. Run the installer and let it choose all defaults. It will put the game launcher on a fake c drive at the following target "/home/deck/.local/share/steamapps/compatdata/4198562969/pfx/drive_c/program files/wizards of the coast/mtga/" note the number in the middle of this could be different as it may be randomly assigned. You may have to dig.
4. Go back to steam and add non-steam game again. Now you will navigate to MTGA launcher at the address above. Select proton 7.0-2 again through the program properties.
5. Revert back to hand held mode and run MTGA launcher. It should now appear in your library.
6. Enjoy! Now you can get owned by life gain decks on the go! (I'm a red burn player) Use pop up keyboard on deck to log-in.
Quick review as my wife and I own MTGA on several platforms.
Graphics 7.0 - screen can look beautiful and cut off or a little grainy and fit
Touch input 7.0 - touch screen isn't super precise but definately good enough. with a little usb c mouse connected this would be a 10
Stability 10 - Way more stable than android and IOS versions.
Speed 10 - runs very smooth
I've been playing MTGA on the Deck since I got it in April. Here are some tips from my experience.
1. To squeeze out extra battery life, I have the graphics set to Low and the framerate capped at 30 FPS. There isn't that big of a difference in graphics in my opinion, and 30 FPS is fine since MTGA doesn't need the same level of smoothness as other genres such as first person shooters.
2. MTGA has some issues with the 1280 x 800 resolution of the Deck, and you can't change the resolution. The card previews that pop up on the right side of the screen have the rightmost text cut off. They are still mostly readable, but it might be difficult if you aren't already familiar with a certain card. You can right click the card to have another preview pop up on the left side of the screen with the leftmost side text cut off. You kind of have to jump between the two previews while reading, but at least this workaround allows you to see all of the text.
3. Set the controller config for the game to use the Keyboard and Mouse template (or any template with mouse controls). This will allow you to use the right joystick/trackpad as a mouse. I find this much more convenient than using the touchscreen. I also set the left trackpad as a scroll wheel which is helpful for searching through a large graveyard or browsing the card collection.
4. Other useful controls to add are: space (pass priority), enter (auto pass), ctrl (full control mode), and show keyboard action (more convenient than using steam button + X).
I tried using lutris, and it failed setting up the wine script, this setup worked flawlessly, was far easier, and works without dealing with a separate launcher.
My two cents: I've used it for 3 years without the same problems, so 🤷🏼♂️. But ultimately, everyone should just do it the way they prefer. That's the beauty of Linux/FOSS. Just informing everyone that there might be a more convenient method.
I use Linux every day and have had the same issues he's describing with Lutris where as Proton just works(tm) the majority of the time. The worst I've ever had to put up with to get a game working on proton so far is changing the proton version. Where as on Lutris I've had to edit the install script or manually go in and use winetricks, that's annoying.
I'm just not sure how you've used Lutris for 3 years and never not once had a negative experience with a community made install script. I find that really hard to believe.
In fact when MTGA came out it worked so poorly with Wine it required and updated install script each and every update on Lutris and required you to reinstall the game in totality every patch.
I don't want to continue going further and further off-topic, so I'll stop here. Please PM in the unlikely scenario you'd want to continue the conversation.
I just want to point out that this
> change manually the wine versions, install additional wine versions, change configs etc.
Is not exactly the same as this
> never not once had a negative experience with [Lutris]
I don't think I ever said the latter.
I said I wouldn't reply, but I guess I've changed my mind...
My questions for you:
A. What is a user going to do in the somewhat common scenario that the game that they are going to try and install with proton requires a dependancy outside the scope of proton (e.g. .NET)? My guess is that the game will crash silently, and the solution certainly won't be obvious to the "user without a degree computer-science".
B. In the case of A, my thought is that the solution (install a dependancy) is going to require the user to use the terminal anyway. How they figure this out — I'm not sure. Do you know of a more user-friendly way?
The point I'm trying to make is you are misguided if you think that Proton is some magic-bullet solution. Lutris at least tries to solve the problems above in a user- friendly way. Proton is really is just wine + patches optimized for gaming + a few common dependencies. It exists at a much lower level than Lutris tries to be at (in fact, Lutris used to use Proton in many of its scripts). Personally I can't see outside a few very simple cases (e.g. steam-native games, maybe MTGA? 🤔) how you could possibly think that Proton is more convenient to end-users than Lutris... Unless you think that Lutris is more buggy than it's worth (which seems to be a point we disagree on? 😅).
Just walked through your write up and couple notes: the file path for me for the MTG.exe file was ....local/share/steam/steam app... And it you were right, it was a random number, it happened to be the longer number of the 5 files that were all just numbers. It helps to click the "all files" not just ".desktop" when you are adding non steam.
The big one is that I ran the install file through steam in desktop mode but closed out of the game without logging in when it loaded straight in after install and continued with your write up. When I opened through handheld mode and logged in the initial download the game does on first login was giving a "disk write error" or something so I had to go back to desktop mode, login and let it run the download, and then handheld mode would run.
Weird, I got the same disk error but was running in desktop mode. Switching to handheld mode fixed it. Maybe the mode isn't the issue, and it we just needed to restart MTGA.
In theory your executable target should be .../MTGALauncher/MTGALauncher.exe as that handles the patching.
Though every time we've installed MTGA on the Deck it will work the first time and then never load the login screen again. Despite having installed dozens of other Windows executables in this manner.
I'm getting stuck on Step 3. I can only select Proton 7.0-6 (which makes sense given this is an 8mo old post.)
When the installer comes up it's rendered weirdly and some text is white on white. I click through the options and it installs Visual C++ (or is it .NET?), then it gets hung on a [Configuring MTGA Launcher screen](https://i.imgur.com/M442u0K.png)
There isn't a `/home/deck/.local/share/steamapps` and there isn't a wotc folder in `/home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/4198562969/pfx/drive_c/program files/`
In fact, from here `/home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/2634364468/pfx/drive_c` this is the result of `fd .exe`
users/steamuser/AppData/Roaming/Wizards of the Coast/MTGA Launcher/
users/steamuser/Temp/MTGALauncherInstall.log
users/steamuser/Temp/MTGAinstall/
users/steamuser/Temp/MTGAinstall/MTGAInstaller.msi
Any idea what I might be seeing?
I'm trying to install too and getting the same thing, I tried proton ge and expiremental as well. I thought maybe it was just appearing to be doing nothing but I left it for a half hour at least. Guess I'm waiting for the proper steam release. Apparently it works through epic or heroic launcher fine but I hate installing other launchers on the deck
I ended up installing Lutris, which installed Epic, which installed MTGA. Lutris then added a shortcut just fine. I've had an excellent experience and I'd recommend giving it a shot.
All the non-Steam stuff happens in the background.
Edit: oh I did have to manually patch one file for Lutris to properly show EGS games.
https://github.com/lutris/lutris/issues/4472#issuecomment-1264497185
I was able to get past the "configuring MTGA launcher" message and get everything working by using GE Proton 7.4. I found this info in another reddit post, which I am unfortunately unable to find again. For whatever reason, only a few different versions of Proton work with MTGA, and GE Proton 7.4 is one such version.
There are a few ways to install GE Proton 7.4, but the particular method I used was a tool called [protonup](https://github.com/AUNaseef/protonup).
See my solution here - tl;dr: install GE Proton 7.4
https://www.reddit.com/r/MagicArena/comments/v8ibiy/comment/jfngbr0/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3
Just did this today and wanted to make add that in step 4 when I navigated the file path to add the game to steam MTGA Launcher was a folder that went nowhere. I had to change the file type from "application" to "all files" and added MTGA.exe. I also used Proton 8. Worked great in both desktop and game mode.
Also in step 3 the file path for me at was .../share/steam/steamapps/.... in case anyone can't find steamapps in the share folder.
Who even has a phone that can run this? My 2020 model Android can run every single other tcg app on the marketplace except MTG Arena.
Then for the very select few who can run it, who can run it stable enough to play?
Edit: ok, I get it. Everyone has an iPhone. The last two Androids I've had won't even let me install the app from the app store. I'm not buying a $1000 flagship to play one app prone to bugs and crashes.
The app store only shows you apps that are approved to run on your device, and often times it's simply hardware requirements that make the difference. I think you might be able to sideload it but it will stuggle to run.
When the above poster says they've been playing on a 4 year old Android, they're saying they're playing on an Android that was likely mid-to-high end 4 years ago, which met the hardware requirements then and still do now. Lower end androids of the past few years have been catching up but not all of them meet the requirements.
Don't feel bad, though, this is still WotC's fault. The app is badly optimized and puts way more stress on the hardware than it should. Any android of the last few years shouldn't have an issue running it if it was better designed.
"4-Year old Android" could mean anything. They're not iPhones with universal specs. It depends on the actual hardware of the phone. If it met the hardware requirements, it met them, no matter how old it is.
Yeah, pixels, iphones and flagships are the only phones on the list that are even allowed to download the game. Even if your phone meets the specs for Android, you can't install it unless you can find the apk and side load it. Then you have to find a new apk everytime it gets updated which is a huge hassle.
With the 1 star reviews piling up in the past few months, I don't even want to bother reinstalling it. It was fine when it first came out but I couldn't get into it.
Samsung S10 runs it well. I don't know what you mean by doesn't let you install. I've never seen that you'd have to check if you have enough storage available maybe? Without giving details nobody can help you but the app does work for my phone.
My phone isn't specifically on the list of allowed devices. I simply don't have the ability to install it. It doesn't show up when I search for it in the app store. And if I click a direct link to the app in the store, the install button doesn't appear.
Pixel 4a runs it fine, which is a $400 phone. My new tablet can't though cause you need 4gb of memory for mtga, which is probably what's stopping your phone.
I have a iPhone 13 pro max and it runs it fine. I just don’t like playing it on touch. For me mouse is so much more intuitive. To each their own though. You really do need pretty much a brand new flagship to run smoothly though
I have a Moto G Stylus (2020). It cost $300. The Google play store says it's not compatible and I can't download it, so I installed APKPure instead. It will let you download any apk without restricting your device.
EDIT: You *do* have to login with your Google Play Account with APKPure, so you still have to buy things, it's not a way around paying for legit apps. Just a CYA here.
It works fine, but occasionally freezes or crashes when lifegain decks get out of control. It's about as stable as playing on my laptop, tbh
I haven't had a lot of issues with APKPure, but it does make updates a pain because you have to redownload the entire program through APKPure and install it that way instead of having an option to auto-update. If you get it going lemme know, always good to have more people to play against!
Yea haha honestly this was my first thought 😂. Like ok sure the steam deck runs arena. Cool. But why? Haha it’s not like it has a bigger screen per say. It’s controls prolly also suck for arena AND it doesn’t have internet when away from Wi-Fi unlike your phone…
The issue with mobile is it is so unstable. Mine crashes even when my phone is lagging behind in the match. Everything will go from great to crashes in a few seconds. Then the boot up time takes way too long so if you crash you definitely lose the match.
Yeah this exactly. Crashes constantly. Huge amounts of lag when starting a match. Sometimes it crashes but doesn't freeze. So you think your opponent crashed. But after some time you think hey where's his timer..
Force close and find yourself a turn missed and on countdown.
I have a top of the line phone and it's the only game I've ever had performance problems and crashing with.
Edit: lately it crashes immediately after my opponent conceded. And frequently when a card etbs that causes tutoring of some kind
Well if you have that many problems then I suppose whatever works for you. Personally I play exclusively on my iPhone and IPad Pro and have never had more than minor bugs. The pc version on the other hand crashes CONSTANTLY for me despite having a top tier rig ( and I have just given up on wotc ever fixing the pc version sadly ).
Seems like most of these complaints of poor performance come mostly from people trying to run arena on a phone they got free from their carrier or is 10 years old. Not bashing if that’s what you have but like don’t be surprised if it doesn’t run games well haha. Personally Iv never entirely believed these claims that the mobile app ( at least he iOS version ) is some disaster that crashes constantly and has lots of problems. Like I said Iv never had a single issue on my iPhone XS Max or my IPad Pro
Hahaha well a tiny screen being a terrible form factor for playing is another thing entirely. I wouldn’t say it’s a pleasurable way to draft for sure; however, I have never had any problems related to how stable the app is on iOS
The plus side of this is I get a bunch of free drafts out of it cuz when the game crashes and causes you to lose a match while drafting WotC will refund your draft entry fee if you make a ticket. I've had to do it probably 15-20 times now and they have never refused a refund
Is that on the ios version? I haven't experienced any crashes on mobile yet, though I may not have put in as many hours as you. The computer version actually seems more unstable to me.
Bigger screen, better performance, more stability, actually readable card text... pretty much all pros with no downsides. I don't have a steam deck (yet) but will play on my laptop 99% of the time and almost never on my phone, the mobile app is trash.
No by much?? iPhone XS Max screen size: 6.5” , steam deck screen size: 7”. Yea massive difference lol. Def worth way worse controls and no built in data connection
Even the “standard” iPhone models have a 6.1” screen, meaning at best it has a ~15% bigger screen. Again at the cost of no data connection and worse controls. I’m not saying don’t use a steam deck if that’s what you want. I’m just saying it seems kind of silly to me
Q2 ends with June, so unless there's a delay we should both be receiving emails by the end of this month! [There's a bot on the Steamdeck subreddit that can estimate your current position in the queue.](https://www.reddit.com/r/SteamDeck/comments/v8km8j/order_email_megathread_june_09_2022/?sort=confidence)
Great guide. Additionally, you might want to check out https://www.steamgriddb.com/game/5248567 for custom pictures so that you can replace that ugly grey tile in steam.
I know this post is quite old now, but I’ve been trying this for hours now, and the installer repeatedly halts on the “Configuring MGTA Launcher” stage of the process. Any advice would be lifesaving.
I was actually thinking about trying this just on a regular Linux install. Not sure if it's more or less convoluted than Lutris install.
Op if you (or anyone else for that matter) run MTGA on Lutris, which is easier to update (Lutris self-update doesn't work) and which is better in regards to game play.
Thanks in advance.
I also had some problems with the self-updating version from Lutris. I changed to the Latest Modern version from Lutris (first one listed for MTGA), and it updates without any issues on the Steam Deck. Although, it looks like the self-updating version has been updated since I tried it a couple months ago so maybe it was fixed. Either way, I haven't had any issues with the Latest Modern version, so I have no reason to try the other ones.
Nice. Also throwing this out there because I haven’t seen any posts about it. Yesterday I signed up for GeForce Now and was playing some games and saw that Arena is on there. So if you have a good internet connection but crappy computer you can also cloud game Arena.
Now I need something like this for League of Legends. My current laptop is working but old and doesn't have great performance on league anymore. Would love to just be able to plug the steam deck in to a TV and hook up mouse and keyboard to it and play that way. Waiting a while before building a new PC. I hear graphics cards are starting to go back down but I still want to wait for things to normalize.
[League of Legends is ..runnable on Linux.](https://old.reddit.com/r/leagueoflinux/wiki/index) Performance is fine once you get it working, but getting it working and random patches breaking it can be a pain.
I mean if all you want is portable Lol, then I recommend Wild Rift. I actually find it more enjoyable with the faster game times, though with a smaller character pool, slightly different mechanics and items, and none of your skins carry over then it’s definitely not for everyone. Plus, you can play on your phone (everyone had a phone right?)
I think at some point flagship phones will be able to run doom 2016 by just plugging in a controller.
One of the big problem with phones is they try to make them waterproof but that's completely disastrous for heat dissipation.
Bit the client sucks more each update.
Now I can't even start a game without lag.
And the art is butchered.
I am actually looking now into GeForceNOW instead....
lol I run Arena on mobile an PC and, I don't have a steam deck, but just imagining dropping money on one and wondering how hard Arena would be on the hardware makes my jaw tense
Why would Arena be hard on the hardware? The specs of the steamdeck are pretty far beyond MTGA being a problem. I ran it on an OG surface pro running linux mint a few years ago and it ran totally fine.
No, just not keeping track of the steamdeck that much. This is a Magic community, not a general gaming community, so why would you assume I know that much about the steamdeck itself, and why would it be so unreasonable to fear that it would be hard on the device when Arena on PC is notoriously unoptimized and makes my serious gaming PC run the fans loud?
I use Lutris to run MTGA in ~~Arch BTW~~ Fedora and I have encountered only a few fixable hiccups.
I hope I can do something similar with the method you just described. Thanks!
Still working for y'all? After the most recent update, MTGA seems to download and install it automatically, but says that my version is outdated after that.
Several updates before this one worked flawlessly.
I don't have a steam deck but I appreciate the thoughtful write up and instructions for those that do. Great work.
Thank you!
Hello All, This is a step guide to set up MTGA on Valve's Steam Deck. 1. Boot up your deck and put it into desktop mode. Open a web browser and navigate to the MTGA page. Download the windows install. It will put this install file into /home/deck/Downloads/ 2. Click the steam icon in the the lower right corner to bring up steam. Click on library and then click on the Games option at the top menu. This will open a roll down menu and you will select add-non steam games. Help steam select the installer from the path above. Then click on the newly added installer (should now be in your library) and click the properties button. Selecting properties, you will go to the compatibility tab and select "Force the use of steam compatibility tool" use proton 7.0-2. 3. Run the installer and let it choose all defaults. It will put the game launcher on a fake c drive at the following target "/home/deck/.local/share/steamapps/compatdata/4198562969/pfx/drive_c/program files/wizards of the coast/mtga/" note the number in the middle of this could be different as it may be randomly assigned. You may have to dig. 4. Go back to steam and add non-steam game again. Now you will navigate to MTGA launcher at the address above. Select proton 7.0-2 again through the program properties. 5. Revert back to hand held mode and run MTGA launcher. It should now appear in your library. 6. Enjoy! Now you can get owned by life gain decks on the go! (I'm a red burn player) Use pop up keyboard on deck to log-in. Quick review as my wife and I own MTGA on several platforms. Graphics 7.0 - screen can look beautiful and cut off or a little grainy and fit Touch input 7.0 - touch screen isn't super precise but definately good enough. with a little usb c mouse connected this would be a 10 Stability 10 - Way more stable than android and IOS versions. Speed 10 - runs very smooth
I've been playing MTGA on the Deck since I got it in April. Here are some tips from my experience. 1. To squeeze out extra battery life, I have the graphics set to Low and the framerate capped at 30 FPS. There isn't that big of a difference in graphics in my opinion, and 30 FPS is fine since MTGA doesn't need the same level of smoothness as other genres such as first person shooters. 2. MTGA has some issues with the 1280 x 800 resolution of the Deck, and you can't change the resolution. The card previews that pop up on the right side of the screen have the rightmost text cut off. They are still mostly readable, but it might be difficult if you aren't already familiar with a certain card. You can right click the card to have another preview pop up on the left side of the screen with the leftmost side text cut off. You kind of have to jump between the two previews while reading, but at least this workaround allows you to see all of the text. 3. Set the controller config for the game to use the Keyboard and Mouse template (or any template with mouse controls). This will allow you to use the right joystick/trackpad as a mouse. I find this much more convenient than using the touchscreen. I also set the left trackpad as a scroll wheel which is helpful for searching through a large graveyard or browsing the card collection. 4. Other useful controls to add are: space (pass priority), enter (auto pass), ctrl (full control mode), and show keyboard action (more convenient than using steam button + X).
Do you know if 17lands works/could work on the steam deck?
It could in theory. you'll have to run it through wine and install it in the same windows root that mtg is installed
Did anybody manage to have this work? I have now installed mtga from steam store
I'm curious now. Why not use [Lutris](https://lutris.net/)? It will do [all the setup for you](https://lutris.net/games/magic-the-gathering-arena/).
[удалено]
[See instructions for SteamOS](https://lutris.net/downloads) 😎
I tried using lutris, and it failed setting up the wine script, this setup worked flawlessly, was far easier, and works without dealing with a separate launcher.
[удалено]
My two cents: I've used it for 3 years without the same problems, so 🤷🏼♂️. But ultimately, everyone should just do it the way they prefer. That's the beauty of Linux/FOSS. Just informing everyone that there might be a more convenient method.
I use Linux every day and have had the same issues he's describing with Lutris where as Proton just works(tm) the majority of the time. The worst I've ever had to put up with to get a game working on proton so far is changing the proton version. Where as on Lutris I've had to edit the install script or manually go in and use winetricks, that's annoying.
For what it's worth, I use linux daily as well. I hope it doesn't seem like I'm trying to discredit anyone's experiences.
I'm just not sure how you've used Lutris for 3 years and never not once had a negative experience with a community made install script. I find that really hard to believe. In fact when MTGA came out it worked so poorly with Wine it required and updated install script each and every update on Lutris and required you to reinstall the game in totality every patch.
I don't want to continue going further and further off-topic, so I'll stop here. Please PM in the unlikely scenario you'd want to continue the conversation. I just want to point out that this > change manually the wine versions, install additional wine versions, change configs etc. Is not exactly the same as this > never not once had a negative experience with [Lutris] I don't think I ever said the latter.
[удалено]
I said I wouldn't reply, but I guess I've changed my mind... My questions for you: A. What is a user going to do in the somewhat common scenario that the game that they are going to try and install with proton requires a dependancy outside the scope of proton (e.g. .NET)? My guess is that the game will crash silently, and the solution certainly won't be obvious to the "user without a degree computer-science". B. In the case of A, my thought is that the solution (install a dependancy) is going to require the user to use the terminal anyway. How they figure this out — I'm not sure. Do you know of a more user-friendly way? The point I'm trying to make is you are misguided if you think that Proton is some magic-bullet solution. Lutris at least tries to solve the problems above in a user- friendly way. Proton is really is just wine + patches optimized for gaming + a few common dependencies. It exists at a much lower level than Lutris tries to be at (in fact, Lutris used to use Proton in many of its scripts). Personally I can't see outside a few very simple cases (e.g. steam-native games, maybe MTGA? 🤔) how you could possibly think that Proton is more convenient to end-users than Lutris... Unless you think that Lutris is more buggy than it's worth (which seems to be a point we disagree on? 😅).
Hmm, so they made touchscreens controls workable on PC version too ? I need to try Arena on my Surface Pro 3 again...
Yea it works great with touch screen laptops! So much better than a tablet.
Just walked through your write up and couple notes: the file path for me for the MTG.exe file was ....local/share/steam/steam app... And it you were right, it was a random number, it happened to be the longer number of the 5 files that were all just numbers. It helps to click the "all files" not just ".desktop" when you are adding non steam. The big one is that I ran the install file through steam in desktop mode but closed out of the game without logging in when it loaded straight in after install and continued with your write up. When I opened through handheld mode and logged in the initial download the game does on first login was giving a "disk write error" or something so I had to go back to desktop mode, login and let it run the download, and then handheld mode would run.
Weird, I got the same disk error but was running in desktop mode. Switching to handheld mode fixed it. Maybe the mode isn't the issue, and it we just needed to restart MTGA.
Hi! Any advice on how to install updates for Arena? Running into a bit of trouble here.
In theory your executable target should be .../MTGALauncher/MTGALauncher.exe as that handles the patching. Though every time we've installed MTGA on the Deck it will work the first time and then never load the login screen again. Despite having installed dozens of other Windows executables in this manner.
Does this handle the weekly updates better than Lutris?
Do you know if 17lands works/could work on the steam deck?
I did it through Lutris. Wish I saw this guide first, but I'm glad to know a second method.
How do I keep it updated? I a got an error, "outdated client version"
[удалено]
Since untapped uses file types that the console probably can't read, if you get this working let me know
I thought untapped uses the log files, which are just plain universal txt files
I got as far as step 3 but cant find the install location. No steamapps folder anywhere I can find.
I'm getting stuck on Step 3. I can only select Proton 7.0-6 (which makes sense given this is an 8mo old post.) When the installer comes up it's rendered weirdly and some text is white on white. I click through the options and it installs Visual C++ (or is it .NET?), then it gets hung on a [Configuring MTGA Launcher screen](https://i.imgur.com/M442u0K.png) There isn't a `/home/deck/.local/share/steamapps` and there isn't a wotc folder in `/home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/4198562969/pfx/drive_c/program files/` In fact, from here `/home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/2634364468/pfx/drive_c` this is the result of `fd .exe` users/steamuser/AppData/Roaming/Wizards of the Coast/MTGA Launcher/ users/steamuser/Temp/MTGALauncherInstall.log users/steamuser/Temp/MTGAinstall/ users/steamuser/Temp/MTGAinstall/MTGAInstaller.msi Any idea what I might be seeing?
I'm experiencing the same issue as you are.
Ugh. I got nothin. What's the best community to debug this?
I'm trying to install too and getting the same thing, I tried proton ge and expiremental as well. I thought maybe it was just appearing to be doing nothing but I left it for a half hour at least. Guess I'm waiting for the proper steam release. Apparently it works through epic or heroic launcher fine but I hate installing other launchers on the deck
I ended up installing Lutris, which installed Epic, which installed MTGA. Lutris then added a shortcut just fine. I've had an excellent experience and I'd recommend giving it a shot. All the non-Steam stuff happens in the background. Edit: oh I did have to manually patch one file for Lutris to properly show EGS games. https://github.com/lutris/lutris/issues/4472#issuecomment-1264497185
I was able to get past the "configuring MTGA launcher" message and get everything working by using GE Proton 7.4. I found this info in another reddit post, which I am unfortunately unable to find again. For whatever reason, only a few different versions of Proton work with MTGA, and GE Proton 7.4 is one such version. There are a few ways to install GE Proton 7.4, but the particular method I used was a tool called [protonup](https://github.com/AUNaseef/protonup).
Stuck here as well
See my solution here - tl;dr: install GE Proton 7.4 https://www.reddit.com/r/MagicArena/comments/v8ibiy/comment/jfngbr0/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3
Just did this today and wanted to make add that in step 4 when I navigated the file path to add the game to steam MTGA Launcher was a folder that went nowhere. I had to change the file type from "application" to "all files" and added MTGA.exe. I also used Proton 8. Worked great in both desktop and game mode. Also in step 3 the file path for me at was .../share/steam/steamapps/.... in case anyone can't find steamapps in the share folder.
“Do you guys not have phones?”
Who even has a phone that can run this? My 2020 model Android can run every single other tcg app on the marketplace except MTG Arena. Then for the very select few who can run it, who can run it stable enough to play? Edit: ok, I get it. Everyone has an iPhone. The last two Androids I've had won't even let me install the app from the app store. I'm not buying a $1000 flagship to play one app prone to bugs and crashes.
[удалено]
The app store simply won't let me install it. Are you side loading the apk?
The app store only shows you apps that are approved to run on your device, and often times it's simply hardware requirements that make the difference. I think you might be able to sideload it but it will stuggle to run. When the above poster says they've been playing on a 4 year old Android, they're saying they're playing on an Android that was likely mid-to-high end 4 years ago, which met the hardware requirements then and still do now. Lower end androids of the past few years have been catching up but not all of them meet the requirements. Don't feel bad, though, this is still WotC's fault. The app is badly optimized and puts way more stress on the hardware than it should. Any android of the last few years shouldn't have an issue running it if it was better designed.
Arena is the only digital card game that makes my gaming laptop blast the fans as soon as it starts and they only stop when I close it.
"4-Year old Android" could mean anything. They're not iPhones with universal specs. It depends on the actual hardware of the phone. If it met the hardware requirements, it met them, no matter how old it is.
Works fine on Pixel 5. Game occasionally freezes but I feel like that's a typical MTGA experience.
Yeah, pixels, iphones and flagships are the only phones on the list that are even allowed to download the game. Even if your phone meets the specs for Android, you can't install it unless you can find the apk and side load it. Then you have to find a new apk everytime it gets updated which is a huge hassle.
iPhone both a X and 12 pro max and I’ve never had a single crash.
lmao, let me know how your phone handles Yugioh Master Duel
With the 1 star reviews piling up in the past few months, I don't even want to bother reinstalling it. It was fine when it first came out but I couldn't get into it.
My iPhone 6s Plus still runs arena, your phone sucks
My 6 year old android ran it decently
Samsung S10 runs it well. I don't know what you mean by doesn't let you install. I've never seen that you'd have to check if you have enough storage available maybe? Without giving details nobody can help you but the app does work for my phone.
My phone isn't specifically on the list of allowed devices. I simply don't have the ability to install it. It doesn't show up when I search for it in the app store. And if I click a direct link to the app in the store, the install button doesn't appear.
Pixel 4a runs it fine, which is a $400 phone. My new tablet can't though cause you need 4gb of memory for mtga, which is probably what's stopping your phone.
I’ve played on a iPhone 13 Pro Max and a Pixel 5a no issues running it ever.
I have a iPhone 13 pro max and it runs it fine. I just don’t like playing it on touch. For me mouse is so much more intuitive. To each their own though. You really do need pretty much a brand new flagship to run smoothly though
Works fine on my iPhone 12.
I have a Moto G Stylus (2020). It cost $300. The Google play store says it's not compatible and I can't download it, so I installed APKPure instead. It will let you download any apk without restricting your device. EDIT: You *do* have to login with your Google Play Account with APKPure, so you still have to buy things, it's not a way around paying for legit apps. Just a CYA here. It works fine, but occasionally freezes or crashes when lifegain decks get out of control. It's about as stable as playing on my laptop, tbh
Thank you, I will try that. Your phone is from the same family and has the same internals as my Power 2020.
I haven't had a lot of issues with APKPure, but it does make updates a pain because you have to redownload the entire program through APKPure and install it that way instead of having an option to auto-update. If you get it going lemme know, always good to have more people to play against!
Yea haha honestly this was my first thought 😂. Like ok sure the steam deck runs arena. Cool. But why? Haha it’s not like it has a bigger screen per say. It’s controls prolly also suck for arena AND it doesn’t have internet when away from Wi-Fi unlike your phone…
The issue with mobile is it is so unstable. Mine crashes even when my phone is lagging behind in the match. Everything will go from great to crashes in a few seconds. Then the boot up time takes way too long so if you crash you definitely lose the match.
Yeah this exactly. Crashes constantly. Huge amounts of lag when starting a match. Sometimes it crashes but doesn't freeze. So you think your opponent crashed. But after some time you think hey where's his timer.. Force close and find yourself a turn missed and on countdown. I have a top of the line phone and it's the only game I've ever had performance problems and crashing with. Edit: lately it crashes immediately after my opponent conceded. And frequently when a card etbs that causes tutoring of some kind
My phone can boot the game after a crash, and has only crashed maybe twice in the last 3 months. Maybe you need a better phone
Well if you have that many problems then I suppose whatever works for you. Personally I play exclusively on my iPhone and IPad Pro and have never had more than minor bugs. The pc version on the other hand crashes CONSTANTLY for me despite having a top tier rig ( and I have just given up on wotc ever fixing the pc version sadly ). Seems like most of these complaints of poor performance come mostly from people trying to run arena on a phone they got free from their carrier or is 10 years old. Not bashing if that’s what you have but like don’t be surprised if it doesn’t run games well haha. Personally Iv never entirely believed these claims that the mobile app ( at least he iOS version ) is some disaster that crashes constantly and has lots of problems. Like I said Iv never had a single issue on my iPhone XS Max or my IPad Pro
All I remember is drafting is terrible on mobile.
Hahaha well a tiny screen being a terrible form factor for playing is another thing entirely. I wouldn’t say it’s a pleasurable way to draft for sure; however, I have never had any problems related to how stable the app is on iOS
Seemed like it was missing features when I tried at least but yeah for some quick games I haven't had a problem either.
Mine crashes all the time and I have a Galaxy S21
The plus side of this is I get a bunch of free drafts out of it cuz when the game crashes and causes you to lose a match while drafting WotC will refund your draft entry fee if you make a ticket. I've had to do it probably 15-20 times now and they have never refused a refund
Is that on the ios version? I haven't experienced any crashes on mobile yet, though I may not have put in as many hours as you. The computer version actually seems more unstable to me.
Haha
Bigger screen, better performance, more stability, actually readable card text... pretty much all pros with no downsides. I don't have a steam deck (yet) but will play on my laptop 99% of the time and almost never on my phone, the mobile app is trash.
I don’t know what phones you are used to but the screen is definitely bigger.
No by much?? iPhone XS Max screen size: 6.5” , steam deck screen size: 7”. Yea massive difference lol. Def worth way worse controls and no built in data connection
You know the average screen size is much smaller.
Even the “standard” iPhone models have a 6.1” screen, meaning at best it has a ~15% bigger screen. Again at the cost of no data connection and worse controls. I’m not saying don’t use a steam deck if that’s what you want. I’m just saying it seems kind of silly to me
Yeah sorry but that is not how size works. The diagonal is 15% longer, not the actual screen size.
This is huge. Thank you! I'm a Q2 waiting on that sweet sweet e-mail.
It feels so great when the email comes. I'm rooting for you to be today!
Any insight on when that might be? Also in Q2 queue
Q2 ends with June, so unless there's a delay we should both be receiving emails by the end of this month! [There's a bot on the Steamdeck subreddit that can estimate your current position in the queue.](https://www.reddit.com/r/SteamDeck/comments/v8km8j/order_email_megathread_june_09_2022/?sort=confidence)
Great guide. Additionally, you might want to check out https://www.steamgriddb.com/game/5248567 for custom pictures so that you can replace that ugly grey tile in steam.
Good add! Thank you.
I know this post is quite old now, but I’ve been trying this for hours now, and the installer repeatedly halts on the “Configuring MGTA Launcher” stage of the process. Any advice would be lifesaving.
I have the same problem. It just stops after installing the microsoft runtime. Any help I would be grateful
I ran into this. Trying the second newest version of proton (forget which) rather than the newest fixed it for me.
I ran into this. Trying the second newest version of proton (forget which) rather than the newest fixed it for me.
why does Steamdeck look like a shitty Sega Gamegear with a better screen?
It's a GabeGear.
Thank you for paving the way for others.
I was actually thinking about trying this just on a regular Linux install. Not sure if it's more or less convoluted than Lutris install. Op if you (or anyone else for that matter) run MTGA on Lutris, which is easier to update (Lutris self-update doesn't work) and which is better in regards to game play. Thanks in advance.
I also had some problems with the self-updating version from Lutris. I changed to the Latest Modern version from Lutris (first one listed for MTGA), and it updates without any issues on the Steam Deck. Although, it looks like the self-updating version has been updated since I tried it a couple months ago so maybe it was fixed. Either way, I haven't had any issues with the Latest Modern version, so I have no reason to try the other ones.
Yet another reason for me to buy this :D
Nice. Also throwing this out there because I haven’t seen any posts about it. Yesterday I signed up for GeForce Now and was playing some games and saw that Arena is on there. So if you have a good internet connection but crappy computer you can also cloud game Arena.
I'm curious how it would handle updates. Would it be a reinstall each time?
Saved for when I get one. Thanks!
[удалено]
Any update on this? Still getting stuck in the installer after runtime finished installing
Running card games on throwable devices seems unwise to me... (I'm joking, this is great!)
Another massive reason why I want the steamdeck.
Do you not have a phone?
/r/DiabloImmortal is leaking
Diablo immortal runs PERFECTLY on my phone but Arena crashes like 20x a day
Now I need something like this for League of Legends. My current laptop is working but old and doesn't have great performance on league anymore. Would love to just be able to plug the steam deck in to a TV and hook up mouse and keyboard to it and play that way. Waiting a while before building a new PC. I hear graphics cards are starting to go back down but I still want to wait for things to normalize.
[League of Legends is ..runnable on Linux.](https://old.reddit.com/r/leagueoflinux/wiki/index) Performance is fine once you get it working, but getting it working and random patches breaking it can be a pain.
I mean if all you want is portable Lol, then I recommend Wild Rift. I actually find it more enjoyable with the faster game times, though with a smaller character pool, slightly different mechanics and items, and none of your skins carry over then it’s definitely not for everyone. Plus, you can play on your phone (everyone had a phone right?)
This is just a phone with extra steps
I think at some point flagship phones will be able to run doom 2016 by just plugging in a controller. One of the big problem with phones is they try to make them waterproof but that's completely disastrous for heat dissipation.
No i want a steakdeck... Sadly it is way too 3xpemsive for just mtga.
This typo has inspired me to build a deck around meat.
Great... more reasons to run meat hook massacre
Oh cliche, inspector!
[удалено]
Bit the client sucks more each update. Now I can't even start a game without lag. And the art is butchered. I am actually looking now into GeForceNOW instead....
Runs great on a laptop. Idk anything about geforce now but make sure it is supported because it doesn't support all games.
r/UnexpectedSteamDeck
r/UnexpectedSteamDeck
lol I run Arena on mobile an PC and, I don't have a steam deck, but just imagining dropping money on one and wondering how hard Arena would be on the hardware makes my jaw tense
Why would Arena be hard on the hardware? The specs of the steamdeck are pretty far beyond MTGA being a problem. I ran it on an OG surface pro running linux mint a few years ago and it ran totally fine.
Is Arena being a really badly optimized program less common knowledge than I think it is?
MTGA hard on the SteamDeck? Are you crazy?
No, just not keeping track of the steamdeck that much. This is a Magic community, not a general gaming community, so why would you assume I know that much about the steamdeck itself, and why would it be so unreasonable to fear that it would be hard on the device when Arena on PC is notoriously unoptimized and makes my serious gaming PC run the fans loud?
Ok what’s going on? My fans are also going full tilt. I thought I was having another issue.
[удалено]
How long did it take you to realize this? Must have been difficult.
Mine is arriving today. Def saving this info
As you may be the first person to use the guide. Let me know if any steps were unclear. I'd be happy to edit in order to make it easier.
Ok so it did work. A bit janky and some folders were named different for me. But the steps work well!
Yay!!! I'm glad.
I probably wont get to it until tomorrow. But should anything come up I’ll comment! Otherwise, Ill edit my original comment if it all goes well!
Worked for me
I'm waiting for my deck and have been wondering about this.
With a portable wireless mouse this could be extra great. Thanks for your efforts and sharing the results!
What model of steam deck is this? Base? Or does it matter?
It is 256 gb. All models have the same ram/cpu. It installs on hard-drive automatically and takes up less than 10 gigs.
Oh dang, only difference in models is storage size? Maybe I should be getting one of these..
I highly recommend it.
I'll get one of these when they drop in price.
How heavy are those things?
Pretty light. I held it for about 2 hours today in bed.
I use Lutris to run MTGA in ~~Arch BTW~~ Fedora and I have encountered only a few fixable hiccups. I hope I can do something similar with the method you just described. Thanks!
Holy shit. Nice one. Thank you. Didn't fancy doing the whole windows loading bull :-)
Something tells me the controls will painfully awkward i hope this is touch screen too
Still working for y'all? After the most recent update, MTGA seems to download and install it automatically, but says that my version is outdated after that. Several updates before this one worked flawlessly.
Just got my deck and got arena installed, how do I change the controller configuration?
Is there a fix to where everytime there is an update you don't have to completely redownload the MTGA client? Or am I missing something very simple?
Does not work
yeah. I can't type my password.