I wasn't really sure where to post about this, but Valve is releasing the Steam Deck tomorrow morning and I wondered if anyone here was interested in it? https://www.steamdeck.com/en/ They sent us a review unit so I've been using one for the past few weeks, and it is really something. I'd be happy to answer any questions after the embargo time is up at 10am PT on Friday.
Very much interested! I have one on order but no idea when it’ll arrive. I don’t have a gaming PC so Steamdeck should broaden my gaming horizons. The initial question is will most Steam games run ok, or only those which are converted to Steamdeck OS? I wouldn’t expect it to have the same performance as a Ninja PC but would hope that there’ll be access to all of the Steam store.
Label me Steam Deck curious . I’ve also been looking at the Odin Pro, which has a more attractive form factor for me. Would definitely want to hear more about your experiences, Boardumb.
Looks very promising and a decent price. I like looking at these small handheld devices but some of the ones on kickstarter still cost quite a bit. Very tempted by this Valve one
I'll be completely honest and say it's made me somewhat regret my decision to go all in on GOG as far as PC gaming goes. No turning back now though.
GOG.com is basically an alternative to Steam. Whereas Steam games (for the most part) have DRM (y'know...they have to be tied to your Steam account), GOG offers DRM-free games: Ones that you can download and run with no sort of outer shell. Ones that you LITERALLY own with no fear of fine print bullshit. GOG started out as Good Old Games and harbored (and maintained) tons of classic PC games that otherwise would've been left to rot. They've expanded in recent years and now offer modern games (albeit not quite at the same level as Steam) and you can forget about manually downloading and updating games (IF YOU CHOOSE!) with an optional (OPTIONAL!) program called GOG Galaxy where your games are updated automatically, and you can play multiplayer games, dabble in achievements, etc. GOG is also run by the same folks who run CD Projekt RED (of Witcher fame)! Why does this read like an informercial? Yeah, so, I committed to GOG eons ago, while my Steam library is laughably small...and I can't imagine switching over after all this time.
I’m a Mac guy, so I don’t do a lot of “PC” gaming, but I’ve split my collection between classic games (GOG) and new titles (Steam). Now, considering the open architecture, it’s probably possible to install Windows on the Steam Deck. If that’s the case, you should be able to import your GOG games, since they are DRM free. You won’t get the fancy interface, but that’s not why people play on PC, right? I would be surprised if someone has not figured this out yet.
Thanks for the explanations. Being always tied to Apple, I won’t have issues with Steam DRM, and was expecting to just download their games anyway, but if Windows can be run then that would be a bonus. As I understand it, the Steam Deck somehow emulates Windows to run their software. I’m really looking forward to accessing the Steam current and back catalogue with it’s many innovative games, if indeed we’ll have full access. Still not clear on that point.
The Odin looks really cool. I keep track of all these wacky handhelds that have been coming out the past couple of years, but the only one I ended up buying was the Win Max from GPD. It's an awesome device, but requires a heavy investment of time and energy to get things set up and running to your liking. I think an Android based device would be much simpler, but then I worry about it because it's an Android based device So far the Deck is the perfect blend of being a full PC experience but streamlined like a game console. I too have games spread across Steam, GOG, Epic, Amazon, Ubisoft, Origin, etc. On my Windows PC I use a program called Playnite which you can plug all those services into and then manage all your games in one giant library. It's amazing. But, nothing like that on Steam Deck, at least AFAIK. You can however add non-Steam games to Steam, and then they'll show up in the Deck's UI. I have been able to do that with RetroArch and it works really well. However, I'm having trouble adding a GOG game to it, mostly because the Linux launcher for GOG is kind of confusing. I think it's an operator error issue, and I'm certain people will be able to start adding games from any service to play on the Deck. Kind of. If you've ever used Wine, the Steam Deck uses something called Proton which is basically a fork of Wine that allows for Windows games to be played on Linux, aka what the Steam Deck's operating system is built on. Similarly to Wine, not everything will work, and some things will work but not perfectly. That is what Valve's Deck Verified program is all about, testing every Steam game and then assigning it a rating based on how well (or not) it runs on the Deck. Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel You can technically install any Steam game to the Deck regardless of its verified status, and I've personally tried out probably a dozen games that had an Unknown status with all but a couple not working right out of the box. I think eventually the list of playable games will end up being like 90% of Steam, but there will likely be certain games that will just never run for one reason or another.
I’m also a GOG pc gamer, and though GOG say they are not ‘Officially’ supporting the SteamDeck, it may still be possible to run our GOG library through Proton and have it show in Steam UI. it depends on how open SteamOS is. personally I’m more interested in the file structure because I tend to mod my games a lot. If it means having to run the SteamDeck in the ‘desktop’ mode to set up GOG and mod games than switch to handheld I’m ok doing that.
I finally bought a Deck and have spent the last couple of days going deep into setting up CryoUtilities and Decky Launcher and EmuDeck and installing GOG Galaxy and yeah, this thing *owns*!
