Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Steam Release Troubled by Steam Deck Compatibility Issues

Frontiers of Pandora has finally arrived on Steam, offering Avatar a new world to explore. However, this may come as disappointing news for Steam Deck owners.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora has made its much-anticipated debut on Steam, becoming available for PC players after previously being exclusive to the Ubisoft Store. This follows a trend of major Ubisoft titles, such as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, eventually making their way to the platform.

Despite its benefits for Steam users on PC, the same cannot be said for Steam Deck owners. Despite the game now being available natively for the first time, it remains almost unplayable on the handheld.

Previously, the only way to play Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora on the Steam Deck was through Ubisoft Connect. However, similar to using Xbox Games Pass on the handheld, it involved a lot of technical adjustments and expertise to successfully run. Nevertheless, playing Frontiers of Pandora on the go was not the most optimal experience.

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Previous posts on r/SteamDeck indicate that the device was capable of running at approximately 30 FPS, but in actuality, it consistently performed at 20 FPS or lower. In some instances, the game would even crash upon launch. However, with the recent release of native support for the Steam Deck, there was optimism that these issues would finally be resolved.

Unfortunately, this has not been the case. According to GamingOnLinux, the game is unable to launch. Regardless of the Proton version used, whether it be Proton 9 or Proton Experimental, Frontiers of Pandora will not start up. In the rare instances where it does manage to run, site owner Liam Dawe reports that the performance is “unplayable”. Even with the new native version available, the performance is still comparable to its Ubisoft Connect

The malfunction on Steam Deck was not exclusive to them. Other users, such as Steam Deck Gaming, also shared their experience playing Frontiers of Pandora on the handheld. They took to X/Twitter to explain that the game was even more broken than the Ubisoft version.

A fellow X/Twitter user asked if they were going to make a review video, to which they responded that the product doesn’t even launch in the first place.

At present, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora has not yet undergone Valve’s testing process for the Steam Deck. However, due to its near unplayable condition, it is unlikely to receive full verification anytime soon. We can only hope that, like Kingdom Hearts on the Steam Deck, it will eventually become the ultimate version to play on the go.