Well today is the big day. Valve has now formally revealed the Steam Deck, a portable handheld gaming console powered by a new version of their Linux-based SteamOS operating system.
"We think Steam Deck gives people another way to play the games they love on a high-performance device at a great price," says Valve founder Gabe Newell. "As a gamer, this is a product I've always wanted. And as a game developer, it's the mobile device I've always wanted for our partners."
Since it's based on Linux, we now know a big reason why Valve has been investing in Linux gaming with the likes of Steam Play Proton. It will play your Linux native titles, with support boosted by Proton. Not only that, Valve said "we're vastly improving Proton's game compatibility and support for anti-cheat solutions by working directly with the vendors". This is pretty amazing, as anti-cheat was the big missing piece. In their FAQ, they make it clear that they are working directly with BattlEye and EAC to get support for Proton.
Anti-cheat support is coming too! That's huge!
The new SteamOS has been optimized for handheld and touchscreen gaming, while it will also have a desktop mode for those who want it. SteamOS 3.0 is also being based upon Arch Linux, with the desktop mode being powered by KDE Plasma.
We also know why Valve has been heavily investing in AMD GPU drivers for Linux too now then. It's a custom APU they partnered with AMD on for Zen 2 + RDNA 2.
Quick specs:
- Powerful, custom APU developed with AMD
- Optimized for hand-held gaming
- Full-sized controls
- 7" touchscreen
- WiFi and Bluetooth ready
- USB-C port for accessories
- microSD slot for storage expansion
- 3 different storage options available
The Steam Deck will also have a dock, much like you see with the Nintendo Switch with more ports to play with like USB, wired networking and enabling external displays. More tech info can be seen here.
It's an open system too, since it's basically a PC in your hands. Valve said "you can install third party software and operating systems".
Valve also did a session with IGN where they answered some questions. IGN also has hands-on video to give a better look at the device.
Steam Deck starts at $399, with increased storage options available for $529 and $649. The two higher models have bigger storage space, plus the two higher models actually use an NVMe drive for faster loading time and the top end has an anti-glare screen too.
Reservations open July 16th at 10 AM PDT; shipping is slated to start in December 2021. Currently it's limited to United States, Canada, European Union, and the United Kingdom with more regions becoming available in 2022.
For developers, Valve put up a video overview:
Direct Link
See more on the Steam Deck website and the Steam Deck store page.
Is this the holy grail of Linux gaming? Could be.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Quoting: KohlyKohlQuoting: Purple Library GuyQuoting: KohlyKohlI'm also concerned about the switch to Arch. I would have preferred a more stable distribution such as Ubuntu.It's not like you're going to be installing a stack of AUR stuff. Someone's carefully set up bare-bones Arch is probably very stable.
Arch is inherently less stable by design. Adding in the AUR just makes it more unstable. Arch has its place I just don't think a consumer device is one of them.
Just because it's based on Arch doesn't mean it needs to have Arch issues. The updates are still tested and controlled by Valve. It is SteamOS, not Arch.
Anyway, I'll be reserving my spot in the pre-pre-order queue come tomorrow, I think this will do me just fine.
Quoting: damarrinUsing this for old games is really not the point, I think.
Why can't it be the point? As long as you can run something on it, someone will run it. And since it's not locked to Steam you can use GOG games, itch games and whatever. Something like OpenMW can work too.
https://www.protondb.com/explore?page=0&selectedFilters=whitelisted
Quoting: damarrinUsing this for old games is really not the point, I think.
Anyway, I'll be reserving my spot in the pre-pre-order queue come tomorrow, I think this will do me just fine.
Why not? I plan a lot of older games on my Switch.
Quoting: jordicomaCan I plug a big harddrive to the usb-c in order to play games? 512GB it's small for a gaming library.
If it can play well, it could be a good alternative between n-switch and ps4/5.
There is a gaming segment, if they do well.
In the Hands-On Video of IGN they say "you can plug any kind of peripherals" to it, so I guess that should be a clear yes here. But you should have a dock anyway for beeing able to use your drive while the deck has power supply ;-)
Quoting: DorritWhy do you guys think they went with Arch? Is it for not needing to eventually reinstall a new OS version?I think it's because of the package manager and because games often need the latest kernel / drivers in order to get optimizations (specially if the hardware is new), and Arch is a distro already prepared to work with the most recent.
InhaleOblivion Jul 15, 2021
Last edited by InhaleOblivion on 15 July 2021 at 10:09 pm UTC
But the move to Arch makes sense to me, and seeing them officially announcing working with anti cheat vendors is good to know, that could make ashes of creation work at some point in time for me (their alpha/beta access is too expensive for me anyway).
Patreon
PayPal
See more from me