How The Steam Deck Is Changing Console Gaming

Kurt indovina = internet

Strange article.

It's my go-to platform for gaming these days, especially now that I have Windows sideloaded for gamepass games. It really is a sweet little system.

Steam Deck's biggest impact will be that it erodes Microsoft's dominance in the PC gaming space.

Every game that works on the Steam Deck via Proton is also a game that suddenly will run great on a Linux desktop, no longer needs Windows

Not a fan of Steam, though I enjoyed Portal and Half-Life. But it's good that others are taking the portable space seriously like Nintendo.

Maybe the Steam Deck will encourage Nintendo to try harder with the successor to the Switch.

Nice video. Did y'all hear that? He called it a competitor to the Nintendo Switch.

Thank you.

Yes, as a deck owner, I have to say it's super flexible. I love playing gamepass on deck, then moving over to my TV and continuing on my Xbox.

The funny thing is there's no way in hell Sony would even think of releasing their games on pc, if it wasn't for Xbox making all their games multiplat day1 and day1 gamepass, for the last 5 years and gaining massive pc marketshare. Heck, I bet one thing motivating steam to release the deck was also gamepass and the threat they felt from the Microsoft gaming scene. One thing is for sure, gamers need to thank MS.

I love that it's the most open and flexible gaming device on the market, and it has strong hardware and software support, and strong third party support. It is showing that the console-ization of PC gaming is possible, and that there is a demographic that wants this to happen. And it doesn't take anything away from traditional PC gamers.

Open operating system, does not lock the user in to a particular OS or store, allows the user to load their own OS and apps and configure the device the way they want. Excellent support by Valve that are quick and consistent to add and refine features and game compatibility. Third parties are eager to get their games Deck Verified on day one. Having an officially supported hardware spec for developers to target means that consistent performance and compatibility can be achieved like on a console.

The one thing that can be improved is how Steam manages family game sharing. Steam should allow families to each play a different game on their devices from the same digital library at the same time. But currently, as per the Steam FAQ, this is not possible:

"Can two users share a library and both play at the same time?

No, a shared library may only be accessed by one user at a time."

So for a family that is typically about 4-5 people you will not be able to have a single library of digital games and play at the same time. Instead you have to manage who buys what and who can play what at any given time.

This has yet to be addressed by any digital storefront, aside from DRM-free GoG purchases. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft also need to address this on consoles. As more digital purchases are made, and more people become gamers each with their own devices, it is important to address the limitations of digital purchases in a family setting.