{"id":32686,"date":"2025-05-16T07:36:36","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T12:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/?p=32686"},"modified":"2025-05-16T07:36:38","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T12:36:38","slug":"classics-on-deck-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/news\/classics-on-deck-10\/","title":{"rendered":"Classics On Deck #10: Freelancer (2003) \/ Open Rollercoaster Tycoon 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>If you haven't yet, follow us on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SteamDeckHQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">X (Twitter)<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.world\/@steamdeckhq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mastodon<\/a>, or&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/steamdeckhq.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Bluesky<\/a>&nbsp;to know when we post new articles, and join our&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/steamdeckhq\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Reddit<\/a>&nbsp;or Subscribe to us on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@steamdeckhq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">YouTube<\/a>&nbsp;to check out our content and interact with our awesome community. Thank you for supporting us!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-1024x576.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-32875\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-1024x576.webp 1024w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-300x169.webp 300w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-768x432.webp 768w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-1536x864.webp 1536w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10.webp 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>We're back with another Classics on Deck after taking a break last week. This week, we're looking at Freelancer from 2003 (by Michael Baker) and Open Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 (by Oliver Stogden).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><h2>Classics on Deck #10:<\/h2><nav><ul><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#u\">Freelancer (2003)<\/a><ul><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#p\">Installation<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#p-1\">Steam Deck Performance &amp; Issues<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#g\">Gameplay<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#b\">Open Rollercoaster Tycoon 2<\/a><ul><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#i\">Installation<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#s\">Steam Deck Performance &amp; Issues<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#g-1\">Gameplay<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"u\">Freelancer (2003)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Digital Availability: None. Used Physical Disc.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Version Tested: Latest Version of the game<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Wine\/Proton Version Used: Proton Experimental<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:17px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"p\">Installation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Freelancer is one of the most prolific video games ever made, and we wanted to see how it plays on the Steam Deck. Getting your hands on it can be a little tricky, as there\u2019s no digital version anywhere, but the installation process is fairly easy with a physical copy of the game. Freelancer has a big modding community even today, but I\u2019ll just try the vanilla game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have a physical disc of the game, you can install it on a USB DVD drive and Lutris. Insert the Freelancer disc into your USB DVD Drive and select \u201cInstall a Windows game from an executable\u201d when adding a game to Lutris. I named my folder \"Freelancer\u201d, but you can name it whatever you want. Proceed along the Lutris steps. Select the \u201cSetup.exe\u201d file on the root of the disc as the setup file for the game when Lutris prompts you for one. Proceed with the installation as usual. It will take a while.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve saved the new configuration, you can boot the game as normal from Steam if you made a Steam Shortcut, or from Lutris otherwise. If all else fails, or if you run into a problem with Lutris, you can have it installed on another platform and transfer the installed folder to the Steam Deck through a flash drive, then make a shortcut through Steam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For a controller profile, a few custom configurations are already available for Freelancer. The Keyboard WASD and Mouse stock profile works well enough, but Freelancer has many other tools that require more fine-tuning. I used the profile by -Clayer3.UK-.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:17px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"p-1\">Steam Deck Performance &amp; Issues<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>A couple of alarming notifications come up when booting Freelancer. First, you will get a warning that the graphics card is not recognized, but this will not hurt the game. No wonder Freelancer doesn\u2019t recognize the card! Just click okay, and the game will boot into a fuzzy screen of rainbow lights. Again, no reason to panic! This is the intro movie bugging out, but wait a few moments, and the main menu will load.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-1-1024x640.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-32689\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-1-1024x640.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-1-300x188.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-1-768x480.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-1.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>With the controller profile mentioned, Freelancer plays very well. I had no issues with the controls, although the complexity takes some getting used to. Freelancer\u2019s stock resolution is 1024 x 768, but this is enough. Even at the highest settings, the Steam Deck chews through Freelancer like a dream. I will note that during cutscenes and in the station menus, the game is locked to 20FPS even with an unlocked TDP, but the action sequences are a butter-smooth 60FPS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Freelancer is a pretty lightweight game. Even without any TDP tweaks, I found the game to average around 10 watts, providing an average battery life of 5 hours on the Deck. However, it was perfectly stable with a 5-watt TDP, which lowered the average power draw to 7 watts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:16px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"g\">Gameplay<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>To call Freelancer prolific is putting it mildly. To put it politely, Chris Roberts is taking his sweet time with Star Citizen, but 2003\u2019s Freelancer release, while not a huge seller on launch, has a big cult following. Exploring the galaxy in single or multiplayer and fighting pirates while taking on odd jobs is the big draw. While Freelancer\u2019s vast ambition struggled, I still think the game is a vital part of gaming history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-2-1024x640.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-32688\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-2-1024x640.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-2-300x188.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-2-768x480.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Freelancer-2.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>To this day, Freelancer has tons of mods available that greatly expand the gaming experience. Space sims are hard to make, which is probably why we haven\u2019t seen a true successor to Freelancer today. Being able to play it on the Steam Deck is pretty awesome!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:47px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"b\">Open Rollercoaster Tycoon 2<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Digital Availability:<\/strong> OpenRCT2 is available HERE. The game requires original RCT2 Files as well, available on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gog.com\/en\/game\/rollercoaster_tycoon_2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">GOG<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Version Tested:<\/strong> 0.4.22, latest Stable as of Writing + GOG.com RCT2 Install.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Wine\/Proton Version Used:<\/strong> None, OpenRCT2 has a native Linux build.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:16px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"i\">Installation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>There is a Lutris installer for RCT2 (GOG) + OpenRCT2; however, it returned a fatal error when I tried to use it, as it requires other dependencies. So, instead, we'll be manually installing Rollercoaster Tycoon 2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Go ahead and link your GOG account to your Lutris install. Then click on Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 Triple Thrill Pack to install it in Lutris. Make sure to select the Wine (auto-generated) installer, and proceed with the install as you would on Windows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the installation, head over to the OpenRCT2 site on your Steam Deck and download the latest stable version, which was 0.4.22 for me. Once the .appimage file is downloaded, you can place the .appimage in a safe folder and execute it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once OpenRCT2 has booted, tell it you already have RCT2 installed, and then navigate to the directory where you installed it. For me, it was <code>\/home\/games\/gog\/rollercoaster-tycoon-2-triple-thrill-pack\/drive_c\/GOG Games\/RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 Triple Thrill Pack<\/code><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can now right-click the .appimage file for OpenRCT2 and click \"Add to Steam\" to boot the game from the Game Mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:16px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"s\">Steam Deck Performance &amp; Issues<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>As you might expect, OpenRCT2 has no controller support, so you'll need to use the Keyboard (WASD) &amp; Mouse controller layout template. Thankfully, it's not a hotkey-heavy game either, with the mouse being the main input method, so you shouldn't struggle with controlling the game if you're ok with using touchpads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once in the main menu, hit the options button at the top right and change it from Windowed to Fullscreen (Borderless Window). This will remove the black borders and let you play with the full display. You can also increase the Window Scale Factor to 1.50 to make reading text easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The game is very easy to run, and applying a 4W TDP limit should provide you with a stable 40FPS, which is what the game will cap itself to by default.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock2-1024x640.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-32872\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock2-1024x640.webp 1024w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock2-300x188.webp 300w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock2-768x480.webp 768w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock2.webp 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>One performance issue I did notice is that if you go back to the main menu from a park, the performance seems to be pretty poor (15-20 FPS) until you reload back into another park or quit the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:17px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"g-1\">Gameplay<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>OpenRCT2 stays very faithful to the original RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 gameplay, which is, in turn, very similar to the original RollerCoaster Tycoon. Expect to start off small with some basic rides and provided amenities like toilets and food\/drink for your guests before getting into the nitty gritty of designing your own custom coasters, monorails, go-kart tracks, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There's a ton of nostalgia linked to these games for me, having grown up with the original RCT, and these games still hold up. Their only real competitor in this genre for me is the Planet Coaster series, and given their increased complexity, there's space for the simpler OpenRCT2 to co-exist and provide some good old-fashioned management fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock1-1024x640.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-32873\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock1-1024x640.webp 1024w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock1-300x188.webp 300w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock1-768x480.webp 768w, https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/OpenRCT2Stock1.webp 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:45px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>That's it for this week's Classics on Deck. We'll return with more classic games on your Steam Deck next week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let us know in the comments below if you want us to check out any specific games, too, and we will add them to the list of games we plan on finding and testing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:100px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>If you enjoyed this article, check out the rest of the content on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/\">SteamDeckHQ<\/a>! We have a wide variety of game reviews and news that will help your gaming experience. Whether you're looking for&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/news\/\">news<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/tips-and-guides\/\">tips and tutorials<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/game-settings\/\">game settings and reviews<\/a>, or just want to stay up-to-date on the latest trends, we've got you<\/em>&nbsp;<em>covered!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This week's Classics on Deck takes a look at 2003's Freelancer and Open RollerCoaster Tycoon 2!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":194,"featured_media":32875,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","inline_featured_image":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[457],"tags":[75],"class_list":["post-32686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-classics-on-deck","tag-steam-deck"],"acf":[],"author_meta":{"display_name":"Michael Baker","author_link":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/author\/thethousandscar\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ClassicsOnDeck10-300x169.webp","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/category\/classics-on-deck\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Classics on Deck<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Classics on Deck<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/category\/classics-on-deck\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Steam Deck<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Steam Deck<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 9 months ago","modified":"Updated 9 months ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on May 16, 2025","modified":"Updated on May 16, 2025"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on May 16, 2025 7:36 am","modified":"Updated on May 16, 2025 7:36 am"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/194"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32686\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steamdeckhq.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}