Blades of Fire targets stable 30 FPS on Steam Deck

Blades of Fire is coming to Steam on May 14, and MercurySteam is adding specific support for Steam Deck.

The game originally launched through the Epic Games Store, but the new Steam release will arrive alongside a major update with more content. Ahead of launch, MercurySteam co founder and CEO Enric Alvarez shared more details on what the team changed to make the game run on Valve’s handheld.

The short version is that Blades of Fire is aiming for a stable 30 FPS on Steam Deck. The game will render internally at 960 x 600 and upscale to the Deck’s 1280 x 800 display.

MercurySteam says frame rate stability was the main priority, especially during combat. That makes sense for Blades of Fire because its combat depends on timing, weapon handling, and smooth input response.

To reach that target, MercurySteam simplified lighting and made several optimizations in specific areas. The team tried to preserve the visual quality it was comfortable with, but the Steam Deck’s limited processing power forced some tradeoffs.

The developer also had to adapt some graphical features because of Proton’s abstraction layer. On top of that, the Steam Deck’s shared memory architecture limited the texture quality the team could use.

One thing MercurySteam did not want to change was the game world itself. Alvarez said the team could not simplify the world or its inhabitants because they are deeply tied to the game’s design.

That is a good sign. It means the Steam Deck version is not cutting back the structure of the game, even if visual settings are reduced.

The game will also support the Steam Deck’s 16:10 aspect ratio, so players should not have to deal with black bars on the top and bottom of the screen.

The default Steam Deck preset will be applied automatically the first time the game launches on the device. All graphics settings will be set to minimum by default, which should help avoid extra tweaking for players who simply want to start playing.

Steam Input support is more limited. MercurySteam could not implement native Steam Input because it would have required major changes to the game’s input system. However, the team has provided a recommended layout that uses the Steam Deck’s back buttons as extra inputs.

That is not as flexible as full Steam Input support, but it is still useful.

Blades of Fire is not the kind of game where high frame rates were likely on Steam Deck, so a stable 30 FPS target feels realistic. The important part is that MercurySteam is prioritizing consistency rather than pushing visuals too far and letting combat suffer.

For Steam Deck players, this sounds like a sensible handheld version. It will use lower settings and upscaling, but it supports the Deck’s screen properly, includes a dedicated preset, and is being tuned around smooth gameplay.

Blades of Fire launches on Steam on May 14. For players who wanted to try MercurySteam’s weapon focused action game on the go, the Steam Deck version should be ready with realistic settings from day one.