Steam Deck - Did you get one? Are you on the wait list?

[wayoung]

The last thread on this was pretty old so I didn't want to necro it....

With the vast increase in units being shipped, the opening up in other markets, the months of real world use, testing, reviews, and tear downs, and the news that Valve plans on making this an ongoing product with new, updated models in the future, who here has one? Is on the list for one? Why or why not?

I'm super tempted. Value wise it's a hell of a deal and I'd love to play PC games outside or other locations without lugging a laptop and streaming from my PC. But I have a switch already that I hardly ever use, which is much more portable, although I can't access my PC games on it obviously.

I go back and forth on treating myself and ordering one and feeling like it'll be a huge waste of money (for me).

How about the rest of you?

 

[Haggis and tatties]

Just got my steam deck email today, so goodbye old desktop pc, hello Steam deck, plus i got £120 trade cash for my gpu, and £80 for a old unused 2dsxl still in the box, bringing the real money cost of the SD down to £150, talk about a steal. :-)

 

[Rambaldi]

That was a good way to bring the cost down. I've got mine and got the Spiderman game for it and it plays really well. I'm just unsure what game(s) to go for next as I haven't really been playing many video games over the last few years.

 

[SPCTRE]

I think the Steam Deck looks incredible, I just don't have a use case for it

 

[wayoung]

I think the Steam Deck looks incredible, I just don't have a use case for it

This is me right here. I really want to buy one, and it is an amazing price for the product, but I just don't see me ever using it, especially since I have a switch I never use already. Maybe sitting outside in the warmer months? Even my bedroom if I'm sick I can just stream games from my PC to my laptop.

 

[DonIago]

^Yeah. I bought a PS4 when the pandemic started and...let's not even talk about when I last powered it on. Same for my Switch. I keep saying 'Oh, I'm sure I'll use this new system more!' and it never pans out, so...I don't really want to do that to myself again.

 

[wayoung]

^Yeah. I bought a PS4 when the pandemic started and...let's not even talk about when I last powered it on. Same for my Switch. I keep saying 'Oh, I'm sure I'll use this new system more!' and it never pans out, so...I don't really want to do that to myself again.

Other than Dune: Spice Wars in the spring and Farthest Frontier since August for a couple hours here and there when I get free time I haven't played anything all year. I have been focusing more on physical activities and reading. Vs last year I completed 18 games and 15 the year before that. But then only 2 again in 2019.

 

[DonIago]

Pre-pandemic I'd use my lunch break to read a book, dicker around a bit online and update my blog.

Since the pandemic started and I began working from home, I watch a 30 minute episode of something on TV and go for a 20 minute walk when possible, because god damn I need even that little bit of escape from my apartment time and exercise.

I kind of hate that there are so many things I 'should' do (ooooh, maybe I could actually process and organize some of my darn photos, or learn more about how to properly use my brand new expensive camera, or read a damn book...) that playing games just feels bottom of the barrel unless I find myself with a surplus of free time, which never seems to happen these days.

 

[wayoung]

Pre-pandemic I'd use my lunch break to read a book, dicker around a bit online and update my blog.

Since the pandemic started and I began working from home, I watch a 30 minute episode of something on TV and go for a 20 minute walk when possible, because god damn I need even that little bit of escape from my apartment time and exercise.

I kind of hate that there are so many things I 'should' do (ooooh, maybe I could actually process and organize some of my darn photos, or learn more about how to properly use my brand new expensive camera, or read a damn book...) that playing games just feels bottom of the barrel unless I find myself with a surplus of free time, which never seems to happen these days.

My to do list is insane the last month. I don't know why, everything just seemed to come to a head with fall.

 

[Akiraprise]

^Yeah. I bought a PS4 when the pandemic started and...let's not even talk about when I last powered it on. Same for my Switch. I keep saying 'Oh, I'm sure I'll use this new system more!' and it never pans out, so...I don't really want to do that to myself again.

I sold my PS4 just before the pandemic hit because I never even turned it on anymore. My Switch sits on my tv stand collecting dust with Breath of the Wild silently mocking me for never even starting it. My 15 year old self would be aghast knowing this is his gaming future.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

That was a good way to bring the cost down. I've got mine and got the Spiderman game for it and it plays really well. I'm just unsure what game(s) to go for next as I haven't really been playing many video games over the last few years.

I grabbed a bt keyboard and mouse and the SD is now my desktop pc. Lol
Can i suggest any of the Borderlands games as they all work great, the portal games, Fallout 3, NV and FO4 all work perfectly, Tinykins(a Pikmin clone that is cracking)......just a few games i have tried to date that have been sitting on my steam account for years. :-)

 

[Rambaldi]

I grabbed a bt keyboard and mouse and the SD is now my desktop pc. Lol
Can i suggest any of the Borderlands games as they all work great, the portal games, Fallout 3, NV and FO4 all work perfectly, Tinykins(a Pikmin clone that is cracking)......just a few games i have tried to date that have been sitting on my steam account for years. :-)

Thank you for the tips, I will check them out. I'm going to look at the later tomb raider games as I've recently got one for free.

 

[BillJ]

I got to play around with my oldest son’s for a little bit yesterday. Quite a piece of nice hardware. Though I’m not sure if it is for me.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

Thank you for the tips, I will check them out. I'm going to look at the later tomb raider games as I've recently got one for free.

I just tested the Bioshock remasters and they all run great, oh and i also just got xbox gamepass cloud, Epic store and my GoG account to run on this, and Forza H4 and 5 streamed to the deck and worked great, and my internet is at best about 63 meg....oh and spotify also works perfectly, just add it to steam as a non steam game, log in and away you go wandering Fallout 3 /4 while enjoying Conlerad sprawled out on the couch or in your comfy chair. :-)

 

[wayoung]

Had some good news regarding insurance coverage for replacing items lost in my house fire so today I ordered the most expensive Steam deck to replace my 12 year old tablet that burned, total cost to me: $60.

I dunno if I'll ever use it once my rig is up and running again but why the fuck not.

 

[wayoung]

 

[TrekPulse]

I bought one during a recent price drop. Got the 64gb and upgraded it to a 1TB. I haven't used it TOO much. I'm a bit of a tech nerd and i already play games on my laptop with monitor and PS5, BUT, the Steamdeck is becoming my cosy sofa gaming device. I have a huge backlog of Steam games, mostly indies, so i think it'll be perfect for that Been playing Little Nightmares 2 recently. I've also been tinkering with a PS3 emulator and it'll definitely be great for playing older titles. I do wish the battery life was a little better but i can live with it. Nice piece of tech

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

What about the rivals like the ROG Ally? How do they stack up?

 

[TrekPulse]

What about the rivals like the ROG Ally? How do they stack up?

I think the Steamdeck is on the slightly inferior side, spec-wise BUT it's way ahead in terms of repairability/upgradeability and how absolutely huge and supportive the Community are. In terms of upgrades, they have partnered with iFixit for parts and repair guides as well as spare parts. There are tons of websites to guide you on best settings/configs and generally great communities to help you with anything you need. Steam itself will show you a verified status beside each game to let you know IF and how well the game is supported on Steamdeck or if a couple of adjustments/observations are needed. If there's a game you want to play or need help configuring, there's definitely been a thread/guide about it. PLUS, Valve appear to have excellent support when it comes to any warranty repairs according to reddit and i've heard some great stories about their flexibility on warranty. OS wise, it runs SteamOS on top of Linux. There's a slight learning curve, as you might expect when it comes to PC gaming, if you want to run games outside of Steam using EPIC or GOG, for example, or if you want to install emulators, but you'll definitely find plenty of support with this one.

ASUS, on the other hand... *mumbles* . It looks really great. The ROG Ally has had some issues with sd cards being destroyed. Not sure if that's resolved yet... Spec wise, i believe it has a better screen and internals AND it runs Windows natively so you can expect a lot more ease to install games in the normal way but perhaps less hand holding/ease when it comes to compatibility. I own an ASUS ROG Zephyrus laptop which i sent away for a spacebar repair a few months ago. It came back with broken speakers/freyed wires, and went back 2 more times until i finally fixed it myself, SO, i definitely don't rate their hardware support. You'll find many horror stories on reddit about their (lack of) support. That said, i do see a reddit community of ROG Ally owners so you'll find some support there. I would just caution anyone against ASUS. They make amazing machines but if you encounter problems, you might expect some headaches.

Don't know enough about the Legion GO yet, tbh. It looks really great and has a much bigger screen. I like the detachable controllers (which you can use as a mouse). I'm starting to see reviews come in as it just came out recently so those are worth a look if you're comparing.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

I am tempted to go for the ROG Ally because I have had no issues with Asus hardware so far