Fixing GTA V “Buy Now” on Steam Deck (Heroic + Epic) May 2025

Prerequisites

• Steam Deck in Desktop Mode for setup.
• Heroic Games Launcher 2.17 or newer installed.
• GTA V owned on Epic and launched at least once on a Windows PC to confirm the Epic ↔ Rockstar link.

Steps

1. Update Heroic

   Discover → Updates → Heroic Games Launcher
   

   Make sure Heroic shows version 2.17+.

2. Enable Rockstar token fix

   • Heroic → Grand Theft Auto V → ⚙ Game Settings → Advanced

   • Under Environment variables add:

     USE_FAKE_EPIC_EXE=true
     

3. (Recommended) Pick a recent Proton build

   • Still in Advanced set Wine/Proton version to:

     • GE‑Proton 9‑27 or
     • Proton Experimental dated 2025‑03‑21 or later.

4. Launch from Heroic (Game Mode works fine)

   • Do not start the Rockstar Launcher directly.
   • The launcher pops up, minimises, and GTA V loads into Story Mode.

Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Fix | | ---------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Buy Now still shows | Heroic → Settings › Cache › Clear cache, re‑login to Epic, then launch again. | | Rockstar launcher crashes opening Scan for Games | Skip “Scan for Games”; just launch via Heroic. | | Need a clean slate | In Steam: ⚙ Properties › Compatibility › Browse prefix → delete the folder, then re‑launch from Heroic. |

Notes

• GTA Online remains blocked on Linux; Story Mode works once entitlement is detected.
• Both Legacy and Enhanced editions function after the token fix.
• Steps 3–4 improve stability and FPS but are optional if Step 2 alone solved the issue.

Last updated: 24 May 2025