Valve just released the most played Steam Deck games for May 2024, and Hades 2 has claimed the top spot despite only entering its early access phase on May 6. Ghost of Tsushima and Animal Well also feature in the latest list, while huge games like The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2 have fallen out of the top 20.
It’s been a busy month for Steam Deck games, leading to a lot of movement on the list of top games for the best handheld gaming PC. Valve releases this list every month and it’s determined by the number of hours played in each game.
Here are the most played Steam Deck games in May 2024:
- Hades 2 (NEW)
- Fallout 4 (No change)
- Stardew Valley (Down two)
- Hades (Up 14)
- Baldur’s Gate 3 (Down one)
- Balatro (Down three)
- Elden Ring (Down one)
- Fallout: New Vegas (Down one)
- Diablo 4 (NEW)
- Helldivers 2 (Down five)
- Fallout 76 (Down one)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (Down four)
- Vampire Survivors (Up four)
- Grand Theft Auto V (Down five)
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition (Up one)
- The Binding of Issac: Rebirth (Down five)
- Animal Well (NEW)
- Slay the Spire (Down four)
- Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut (NEW)
- Monster Hunter: World (Down eight)
The games missing from last month are Red Dead Redemption 2, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor, and Fallout 3 – Game of the Year Edition.
Given that the first Hades game is still really popular on Steam Deck, it’s no great surprise to see its highly anticipated successor do well early on. Topping the list this early on, however, is an amazing feat for Hades 2.
Ghost of Tsushima does well to make the list as well, given that Valve rated it as Unsupported, and it was only released in the middle of the month. This one again should highlight to Sony that PC porting is crucial for its first-party games.
Diablo 4 also returns to the most-played games list, thanks to the season four update, which brought some huge community-requested features and changes to the hellish ARPG.
Elden Ring continues its trend of losing places, but with the Shadow of the Erdtree release date due in June, I can see that game rocketing back up to challenge for the top spot soon. Another notable drop comes for Monster Hunter: World, but with the recent Wilds trailer during the Sony State of Play event, and more news expected during Summer Games Fest, it too could experience a revival.
The games that didn’t make the cut are surprising, especially given the ongoing appeal of The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2 as large open-world experiences. We’d be surprised if they didn’t appear again during quieter periods, but it’s surprising not to see them anywhere on the list at all.
If you’re still not part of the handheld ecosystem, you can read our Steam Deck OLED review to see if you should take the plunge. Otherwise, check out our list of the best Steam Deck games to see how many of the most-played games are featured.