Had some controller issues with your Steam Deck? Valve’s just released a fix

Valve’s Steam Deck is one of the best gaming handhelds you can buy in 2025, but there’ll inevitably be some bugs that owners will experience. Lately, some have found their handheld to be unresponsive after a restart, as well as other issues. A new update for SteamOS, which powers the Steam Deck, was released on May 20, fixing these bugs, as well as refining some of its settings.

A short post on Valve’s Steam site breaks down what the new update entails for one of the best handheld consoles. Here’s a breakdown:

General

• Moved display dim and suspend timeout settings to Settings->Power.
• Moved ‘Show Battery Percentage’ setting to Settings->Power.
• Clicking on the battery header icon now navigates to Settings->Power.
• Proton Voice Files speech synthesis data will now be automatically installed based on Steam Deck compatibility testing results.
• Reduced steamwebhelper memory usage when launching games.
• Fixed pasting from on-screen keyboard.
• Fixed controller not working intermittently after Steam restart.
• Fixed games failing to connect to the Steam process when the Steam process id contains certain values.
• Fixed battery percentage not showing in the header when the battery is full.
• Fixed SteamOS-compatible devices showing Steam Deck Verified installation warnings instead of the SteamOS Compatible version.
• Fixed transitions snapping backwards in the Welcome Wizard.

Steam Input

• Speculative Fix for rare DualSense Edge gyroscope-related bug.

Desktop Mode

• Reduced steamwebhelper memory usage when switching to/from Big Picture Mode.
• Fixed rare steamwebhelper crash when switching to/from Big Picture Mode.

The battery refinements, first made available in a SteamOS beta update earlier this month, also feature here, which makes it easier to manage your Steam Deck’s battery life in one place via the power settings. Other devices, that feature in our guides such as the best gaming phones and the best handheld consoles, have had power settings in one place for years, so it’s a welcome quality-of-life change that brings the Steam Deck in line with other handhelds.

The update will either show up when your Steam Deck is next connected to the internet, or you can go to Steam > Settings > System to manually download and install the update from there.

I’ve been experiencing the same freezing issues when restarting my Steam Deck lately, so I’m glad Valve has been quick to recognize the issue and fix it in quick succession. With my Nintendo Switch 2 weeks away, I know my Steam Deck will be left alone for several months, so I’m making the most of my PC handheld before Nintendo’s console arrives.

Nevertheless, be sure to check out our guides to the best retro handhelds and even the best Steam Deck alternatives if you’re thinking about a change. Or, if you’ve already decided to put in a Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order, take a look at our Nintendo Switch 2 hands-on preview to keep your excitement going in the build-up to its June 5 launch date.