The Steam Deck - a Switch competitor coming in december 2021

[ldev]

Being able to play pc games on the go at $400 is a huge deal. Not many laptops at that price range can perform well enough, just need to see how well this performs and it could be gaming laptop killer.

Well it's sub HD resolution, that doesn't take much power. But I just imagine installing a new game and then having to go to settings and adjust everything. Like... peak of user experience right there. xDD

[MrPaladinGuy]

I have no interest in games on a screen that small unless they were meant for it (remember first person triple AAA titles on the Vita ?), however, that's a great console for 2D platformers and games like Stardew Valley. If it can at least output to 1080p then it's worth connecting to a display and I think that functionality itself will be the reason people buy it (aside from playing emulators). Whether or not your entire library will work by default will also matter a great deal. It's absurdly overpriced though and storage is a severe issue.

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Well it's sub HD resolution, that doesn't take much power. But I just imagine installing a new game and then having to go to settings and adjust everything. Like... peak of user experience right there. xDD

1280x800 is basically the 16:10 version of 720p, which is HD, but not Full HD

https://pointerclicker.com/1280x800-resolution/

[Ivarr]

I'm not sure if gaming laptops can ever be killed. The Steam Deck uses a new mobile chip, but there's nothing stopping laptops from using this chip as well. In fact I think we'll be seeing more of these chips in laptops and tablets as well. It's not just for gaming but augment reality as well.

And maybe that's the real strategy behind the Steam Deck. Valve isn't interesting in capturing the mobile market. They're interested in making sure the mobile market is captured by 'mobile pc devices' and Valve is willing to push the innovation further.

Now that they've broken this lance, we'll be seeing more mobile pc's from all kinds of manufacturers in the coming years, which keeps Steam relevant for mobile gaming.

Valve isn't competing just against Nintendo, they're competing against Google and Apple app stores. They're seeing where the market is heading and can't afford to remain confined to desktops.

[exochaft]

Being able to play pc games on the go at $400 is a huge deal. Not many laptops at that price range can perform well enough, just need to see how well this performs and it could be gaming laptop killer.

If there is any competition to be had, it would be people who buy gaming laptops just for gaming only. If you need to do anything else other than gaming on-the-go, you'll go for a laptop still. I still think there's going to be all the standard limitations of mobile devices in terms of overheating/throttling that work against this device, as well as the actual performance likely being much lower than due to sacrifices that have to be made for battery life and thermals.

Furthermore, while Steam is heavily touting this as buying a PC, there's no one I know out of my customers in the past few years (I build PC's for people on the side) who would want to buy a Steam Deck over spending the extra money for a desktop. If people are wanting to buy a PC for gaming, one thing that comes up quite often is "Will I be able to upgrade my hardware in the future?" While I'm not sure if you can physically change out the NVME's in the Steam Deck, every other hardware aspect of the Steam Deck cannot be upgraded and will be as good as it gets. While some aspects of a desktop PC would require some extra purchases to upgrade (for example, if a new CPU comes out that uses a new socket that your mobo doesn't have), a desktop offers way more flexibility in terms of upgrade paths. Storage is way more flexible when it comes to desktops compared to the Steam Deck as well... especially if you think of how large games can be nowadays. I suppose the short answer is that the main selling point of the Steam Deck is portability, and that's usually a really low priority for people looking for a gaming PC.

Currently seeing news from people testing the Steam Deck that the default Linux-based OS for the Steam Deck is running into issues right now, especially with anti-cheat verifications despite the press releases saying it works fine, to where pretty much all the popular games crash or will not. While you can change your OS, your average user is not going to do that. I imagine they'll will address it, but how well it performs in the end is anyone's guess. However, there's another issue with this once that gets fixed: the number of games that require an internet connection or 3rd party launchers/verification. I'm under the assumption you can connect the Steam Deck to your phone if you make it a hotspot, but in my region the cell service is very spotty... so I can't see any game with these requirements working well or at all. Hardware discussions aside, the way many popular games are designed will likely restrict nominal gameplay to being in your own house or area with reliable WiFi.

I think that's the ultimate issue with the concept of this sytem: it's targeting an audience it already has with a device that would have limited use within said audience. Their audience already has PC's in their home, the location where this device would work optimally. Not saying it can't be handy on-the-go, but there's no draw beyond portability... while portable systems like the Switch/Vita/etc. have portability and exclusive titles that cannot be found elsewhere.

While I think they may be trying to target the mobile gaming audience as a long-term goal, I think it runs into issues again with the internet connectivity aspect and its dependence upon an external device to connect to the internet. The Steam Deck is not a phone, and that's where the mobile gaming audience really is anyways.

[Video Games]

That was an awful 22 minutes, but i managed to get one

[Edge-]

Well it's sub HD resolution, that doesn't take much power. But I just imagine installing a new game and then having to go to settings and adjust everything. Like... peak of user experience right there. xDD

It's a 7" screen, you don't need super high pixel densities with a screen so small. If they'd packed at 4K or hell, even a 1080p screen on there you likely wouldn't even be able to meaningfully tell the difference.

And given that games already usually auto-detect your resolution and set it accordingly, I don't think that'll be necessary. Most games adjust settings automatically overall, but you'll still be able to tweak them beyond that.

[NihilSustinet]

[Ealyssa]

I’m cautiously interested.

Having a "switch PC" is obviously appealing for a ton of games. The Alienware UFO concept at CES 2020 looked really nice and now Valve is releasing one.
But it’s valve, all their hardware attempt failed. So there’s that.

Wont preorder. But I really really want it to be a success.

[Edge-]

But it’s valve, all their hardware attempt failed. So there’s that.

I thought Index has been fairly successful, no? I know their other ventures fizzled (controller/link, and the third party steam machines), but the Index reviewed very well and seems like it'd done alright (seems because we have no actual data on it that I've seen).

[mitre27]

The base version comes with merely 64gb of memory, literally enough for like half a AAA game.

[Ealyssa]

I thought Index has been fairly successful, no? I know their other ventures fizzled (controller/link, and the third party steam machines), but the Index reviewed very well and seems like it'd done alright (seems because we have no actual data on it that I've seen).

Yeah sure the index is nice. Hope they stay on that line for the Deck.

[Jtbrig7390]

Was able to pre-order the $400 model after fighting with steam for nearly a fucken hour.

Why don't company's just do a que ffs.

So I don't mind that it has 64GB of storage, ill just throw a SD card into it. I also wouldn't be surprised if it has a slot for a M.2 like the other models and ill just have to install one myself.

I don't expect the MOBO to be different between the models, just what they add to them will be. Also at 800p the loading times honestly won't even be all that bad.

Final Fantasy XIV on a handheld will be awesome LOL.

[beanman12345]

The base version comes with merely 64gb of memory, literally enough for like half a AAA game.

I figure it'll be the most popular version. I decided not to skimp and got the 256gb version, SSD speed has spoiled me. And lucky I got it in like 30 second of launch, so seems to be the most unpopular version.

[jellmoo]

It's a 7" screen, you don't need super high pixel densities with a screen so small. If they'd packed at 4K or hell, even a 1080p screen on there you likely wouldn't even be able to meaningfully tell the difference.

And given that games already usually auto-detect your resolution and set it accordingly, I don't think that'll be necessary. Most games adjust settings automatically overall, but you'll still be able to tweak them beyond that.

Pretty much this. There's a reason why the Switch went with 720p as well. It gives you better battery life and better performance. This thing is giving you a PPI of 209. A 13 inch 1080p screen is only giving you a PPI of 169. A 2k, 15 inch display is giving you a PPI of 195.

The resolution gives the better balance of power, battery and visuals.

[Tech614]

The base version comes with merely 64gb of memory, literally enough for like half a AAA game.

Yea for shitty unoptimized AAA games.

Meanwhile with kraken compression and state of the art nvme tech PS5 games are like half the size they are on steam. Maybe stop thinking it's ok for games to be the size they are when it's not, they simply don't care cause PC players just take it laying down.

[NihilSustinet]

Yea for shitty unoptimized AAA games.

Meanwhile with kraken compression and state of the art nvme tech PS5 games are like half the size they are on steam. Maybe stop thinking it's ok for games to be the size they are when it's not, they simply don't care cause PC players just take it laying down.

compression is a performance hit by definition, no way of avoiding it. id much rather have uncompressed games on my PC where i have plenty of storage.

[Tech614]

compression is a performance hit by definition, no way of avoiding it. id much rather have uncompressed games on my PC where i have plenty of storage.

False. There isn't even anything like Rift Apart currently available on PC tech wise and it is compressed to a mere 30 gb. You honestly have no clue what you're walking about.

Also lmao at your idea of "uncompressed games" if you had a legit uncompressed game it would be over 500gb, they all use compression just a matter of everyone else is still using ancient ass compression tech targeting shitty mechanical drives while consoles are somehow ahead of PC tech wise here lmao.

[Ivarr]

[QUOTE=exochaft;53285016]If there is any competition to be had, it would be people who buy gaming laptops just for gaming only./QUOTE]

I don't think Valve minds people buying gaming laptops. After all, those are all playing Steam games on them.

Valve is worried about Android and Apple games. Every mobile phone and tablet targeted at a gamer is a potential lost user to Steam.

[NihilSustinet]

False. There isn't even anything like Rift Apart currently available on PC tech wise and it is compressed to a mere 30 gb. You honestly have no clue what you're walking about.

are you seriously saying that the ratchet and clank game looks and performs better than anything you can possibly play on any PC? and im the one who doesnt know what im talking about. the new consoles, like always, still dont even belong in the same conversation as top end gaming PCs when it comes to visuals and performance. and compression by its very definition IS a performance hit. its literally impossible for it not to be, unless they managed to break physics.

[jellmoo]

Yea for shitty unoptimized AAA games.

Meanwhile with kraken compression and state of the art nvme tech PS5 games are like half the size they are on steam. Maybe stop thinking it's ok for games to be the size they are when it's not, they simply don't care cause PC players just take it laying down.

Completely agree that PC game file sizes are way out of control. But do remember that assets for modern consoles are going to max out at 4k. Assets for PC games can easily be included at 8k to accommodate highest end rigs. You can scale down easily, not up.