If SHE WAS 98 freezes or crashes on your Steam Deck, there is no confirmed game-specific fix in the available developer discussion. Try the general Steam Deck troubleshooting steps below one at a time; they are diagnostic suggestions, not guaranteed fixes. Start by noting exactly when the failure happens, since players have described several different symptoms.
What is known about SHE WAS 98 crashes on Steam Deck?
SHE WAS 98 is a first-person psychological horror game released on Steam on January 14, 2026. Its Steam listing names N4bA and Notex as developers and publishers, and lists Windows 10/11, an AMD Ryzen 5 / Intel i5-class processor, 16 GB RAM, an NVIDIA RTX 3050, and 5 GB of free disk space as minimum PC requirements. Those are the store’s Windows requirements, not a Steam Deck performance guarantee. Check the Steam listing for current game details.
In a Steam Community bug discussion, individual players have reported freezes when choosing New Game or during the intro, crashes, stuttering, and trouble reopening the game after switching applications. One player described the screen stopping while audio continued. These reports show differing failure patterns, not how often the issue occurs across Deck owners.
Developer N4bA said in the discussion: “We don’t fully understand the cause of the game crashes and freezes, and we’re unable to reproduce them.” The developer asked affected players to send details to help investigate. The discussion does not establish a game-specific fix, nor does it confirm that changing Proton or another Deck setting resolves the problem. Read the Steam Community discussion for the developer’s current response and contact details.
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Try these seven general Steam Deck troubleshooting steps
Valve’s recommendations address Steam app or system instability generally; they are not a patch or a set of fixes verified for SHE WAS 98. Try them in order, and change one thing at a time so you can tell whether anything affects your particular failure.
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Record when the failure happens
Note whether the game crashes on launch, freezes at New Game, stops during the intro, stutters after starting, or becomes difficult to reopen after you switch applications. Also note whether audio continues and whether the Deck returns to Steam or becomes unresponsive. This detail helps distinguish different symptoms when reporting the issue.
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Install SteamOS updates and restart
Open Steam > Settings > System > Software Updates, install any available update, then restart from that page or choose Steam > Power > Restart. Valve recommends updates and a restart as first steps for system instability. See Valve’s Steam Deck troubleshooting guidance.
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Temporarily disable third-party Desktop Mode apps
If you installed third-party apps through Desktop Mode, disable them temporarily, restart the Deck, and check whether the behavior changes. Valve includes this as a general step for Steam app instability; the available evidence does not identify a particular app as the cause of SHE WAS 98 crashes.
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Check the game’s current Deck compatibility information
Look at SHE WAS 98 on its Steam store page or in your Library for the current compatibility status and any listed requirements. Valve’s labels are Verified, Playable, Unsupported, and Unknown. Playable means some manual configuration may be needed; Unknown means Valve has not tested the title. A label is guidance, not a diagnosis of a freeze, and the game’s current rating is not established here. Learn how Steam Deck Verified ratings work.
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Test the latest Proton version, then undo the change if needed
For a reversible compatibility test, open Library > select SHE WAS 98 > Properties > Compatibility, enable Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool, and choose the latest Proton version available. Try the game, then return to the same menu and disable the override if it makes no difference or worsens the behavior. Valve suggests trying the latest Proton for Steam apps when appropriate, but there is no evidence this setting fixes this title specifically. Valve’s troubleshooting guide explains the compatibility-tool step.
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- The Steam Deck is outfitted with a 7-inch touchscreen, and two trackpads under the control sticks that allow gamers to operate games never designed outside of mouse and keyboard capabilities.
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Lower graphics settings if you can reach them
If the game opens far enough to expose its graphics options, lower the preset or individual settings and see whether the in-game behavior changes. Valve recommends lowering graphics settings to reduce system load. This cannot address a freeze that happens before you can access those options, such as at launch or New Game.
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Send useful details to the developer or Steam Support
If the failure persists, send the developer a concise report through the contact listed in its Steam Community response. Include the Deck model if known, SteamOS and Proton versions, the exact trigger, what happened on screen and in the audio, and which troubleshooting steps you tried. For broader or continuing Deck instability, Valve directs users to Steam Support.
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How to choose the next step
The order above moves from low-impact checks toward changes that affect game compatibility. If the game fails before reaching its menus, prioritize the update, restart, Desktop Mode app, compatibility-status, and Proton checks; graphics changes require access to the game’s settings. If the problem happens only after switching apps, include that trigger in your report rather than assuming it is the same failure as a New Game freeze.
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