Valve introduces Steam Deck

I have one. Never touched a PSP in my life but I had the Vita. And I loved it.

I know, I’m still mad it failed.
I have a soft spot for the Vita. It had good hardware, a good screen, was fun to hold. The indies did drop the ball pretty hard and Sony stopped supporting the console though.

The Switch has a similar problem, a lot of indie games run like ass when they have no business running like that to begin with. A bunch of them are indie pixel retro crap and manage to lag out a tegra X1. The Switch is also really uncomfortable to hold; it has little to no grip and a big elongated shape.
 
That got me thinking, how many people actually use a Switch outside their houses?

Personally I hate using a Switch outside of my house. Compared to a DS or a Vita it's too much to lug around when going out somewhere.

So I don't really the appeal of getting a Steam version, it's not like there's alot of Steam games I desperately want to play on the Go and even if I did I wouldn't wanna put up with lugging something this around when I don't even like taking the switch out.
 
Personally I hate using a Switch outside of my house. Compared to a DS or a Vita it's too much to lug around when going out somewhere.

So I don't really the appeal of getting a Steam version, it's not like there's alot of Steam games I desperately want to play on the Go and even if I did I wouldn't wanna put up with lugging something this around when I don't even like taking the switch out.
Same here. When I got my Switch, it was very novel and fun to bring it with me in public places or in a long range bus ride. But it's such a large device to lug around, its screen is also vulnerable to scratches and the like. The 3DS was great because you could just close it on its clamshell design and throw it in your pocket. The PSVita was manageable. The Switch is just too large, including the Switch lite.

I suppose the other problem with the Switch Lite is how annoying Nintendo made it to have two switches. The Switch Lite inevitably suffers from joycon drift as well, and replacing the joystick on the one side is a chore, while the other one is easy to replace.
 
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This is kinda what the Steam Machines, Valve's first big hardware venture, should have been imo.

I think it's a pretty nice deal. With the ability to use SD cards for extra storage and functionality of a regular PC, you have pretty limitless options. It'd probably be a dream for emulation as well.

Ultimately though I think it's gonna end up like the Steam Controller - awesome functionality but short lifespan due to its small niche fanbase
this, fixed hardware this time most of all (although no many options for portable anyway).

sadly valve pissed away quite a lot of goodwill, gotta have to wait and see if they could possibly pull an apple where their simps buy it on brand name alone (because lets face it, in white with a fruity logo that shit would fly off the shelves).
or just wait till someone runs BOTW on it and nintendies lose their shit so hard even normies might take note...

It also has a 16:10 aspect ratio display, which is a really strange choice and it'll introduce black bands in a lot of games. OLED is fine for black bands, but it's very irritating on a LCD display.
?
variable resolution has been a thing on pc since forever (unless it's some jank nip pc port). outside some extreme cases like multi-monitor setups and UI scaling in 4k that's not even a problem for most people.
and even if, with a display that size majority won't even notice slight stretching, it's not like care they when they blow up 4:3 to 16:9 because "muh fullscreen".

This thing is clearly not intended for AAA games. Just look at the specs.
most modern AAAs are shit anyway and hardly fit the form factor anyway. no one's gonna play call of duty on the go, as memey as it might be.
and with a screen that size you can easily go with 900p or even down to 720p and most won't notice, with it's fixed hardware you can optimize for it just like they do for consoles already. question is if devs will do the extra works, probably depends how much demand there will be. outside of AAA most stuff isn't heavy in 3d to begin with since the majorities of indies etc simply lack the budget and manpower for it. heck unity is right next door to valve, if valve's smart they push for proper support hard and if they bundle it with steam incentives timmy tencent style things could get interesting.
 
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Fuck valve will push out this product that no one asked for but refuses to make more of those streaming hard drives that will stream steam straight from your computer to the tv for maximum comfy couch coop
 
Fuck valve will push out this product that no one asked for but refuses to make more of those streaming hard drives that will stream steam straight from your computer to the tv for maximum comfy couch coop
>implying steam deck won't work as a steam link too

but seriously, just build your own.

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I'd guess they mean on medium-low settings, but that's still a tall order for a portable computer, even one this enormous.
you can ditch a lot of graphical fidelity with that screen size, it's not like nintendo games are super realistic 8k games either but they still sell. only people really giving a crap about "muh graphics" are the same people that spend retard money on flagship GPUs. majority doesn't care, they play with cinematic 24fps@900p on console every day.
 
Is in-home game streaming any good now? I tried it a long time ago and it looked awful. Something like this would be pretty cool to use around the house if you can get a reliable stream over wifi. If they stripped down the hardware to just what's needed to stream it from my computer I would be interested. As it is I don't need a $400 toy with a fraction of the power (and ROM) of the computers that I already have.

Oh and the dpad. If they've joined the ranks of every other manufacturer in deciding that dpads are obsolete they can go fuck themselves. I've been using a janky setup with a hori wii controller and a USB adapter for it because no one else makes dpads that are worth a shit anymore. Its location shoved over on the edge of the controller does not inspire confidence in me.
 
Is in-home game streaming any good now? I tried it a long time ago and it looked awful. Something like this would be pretty cool to use around the house if you can get a reliable stream over wifi. If they stripped down the hardware to just what's needed to stream it from my computer I would be interested. As it is I don't need a $400 toy with a fraction of the power (and ROM) of the computers that I already have.
It's graduated to playable in my experience. I've had the most success with a Windows host machine assuming there's not too much network activity and wireless interference isn't an issue. Audio will sometimes stutter but input latency is generally fine.

Wouldn't bother with anything where milliseconds matter like fast racing games, first-person shooters or anything with multiplayer. Until the speed of light increases that's not happening with streamed gameplay.
 
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This thing is fucking hefty, nearly twice the volume and weight. I guess they really needed the space for those specs at that price.
Honestly it's what I was kinda hoping the switch upgrade would be, you need it to be that size for the hardware.

The Switch already needs a messenger bag to transport it, so having the steam deck be bigger doesn't change much since they're both already too large to fit in your pocket,
 
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The Nvidia Shield failed, the Nvidia Shield tablet failed, the Razer tablet failed, the Vita failed, and barring handheld stuff Valve's last few attempts at remaking other people's hardware/aping trends failed like the Steam Controller (though it helped make Gyro aiming more mainstream) and their most colossal failure in a while the Steam Machines. They hyped those up to all hell, multiple companies were hopping on the train making hardware for them, and it still flopped. I like seeing competition in this market but all signs point to it being nonsensical. A small percentage of Switch users use it for mobile gaming anyway, and Valve already has most of their market share in desktops or large laptops. This makes no fucking sense. The Switch is lightning in a bottle aided by Nintendo's brand recognition in the console and handheld markets and exclusive games.
 
I know it's not going to kill the Switch
But I do want it to do fairly well, not only would it make Nintendo a little less comfortable (yes, I have be feed up more that a little with the big N's BS now a days) it would give another much needed push to mainstream Linux gaming. If you still haven't pick up a Switch by now, you would have to have a sub room temp IQ to pick up a Switch over this!
 
I know it's not going to kill the Switch
But I do want it to do fairly well, not only would it make Nintendo a little less comfortable (yes, I have be feed up more that a little with the big N's BS now a days) it would give another much needed push to mainstream Linux gaming. If you still haven't pick up a Switch by now, you would have to have a sub room temp IQ to pick up a Switch over this!
It's agitating the Nintendo fans and they're now starting to turn on PC gaming. It's no longer "NINTENDO AND PC IS ALL YOU NEED!" it's now "Just Nintendo, Only Nintendo®".
 
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