Valve puts up a Steam Deck trailer and the head of Xbox seems to really like it

The point of my criticism is MS refusing to join the collaborative effort when they very well knew it was happening, and pushing lock-in instead.

That would be a criticism of Steve Ballmer and Satya Nadella, not the person in charge of Xbox.

It's just visiting Netflix with Steam's built-in browser and adding a bookmark.

For you and me sure, but users will expect something similar to a android app. So you can expect someone to built an electron app with a shinny N icon on it (or maybe a flatpak), which in practice it's the same thing

That would be a criticism of Steve Ballmer and Satya Nadella, not the person in charge of Xbox.

I doubt Nadela makes such decisions for them (Ballmer was already gone at that point). It pretty much fits the authority of Xbox head. But who knows.


Last edited by Shmerl on 15 August 2021 at 6:22 pm UTC

It's just visiting Netflix with Steam's built-in browser and adding a bookmark.

For you and me sure, but users will expect something similar to a android app. So you can expect someone to built an electron app with a shinny N icon on it (or maybe a flatpak), which in practice it's the same thing

The demo units they gave to journalists already had the bookmark made.

The demo units they gave to journalists already had the bookmark made.

Nice to know Valve is somewhat worried about it this time, I hope this doesn't involve too much typing with those controls (I don't remember if it's touch screen).

But personally I still expect to some kind of dedicated app (and maybe even inside steam client in the future, who knows...)

Also, you have to understand that companies as big as MS plan things many years in advance. DX12 was probably planned and approved as a long term strategy for a long time before that happened.

It was a reactionary effort driven by Mantle proposal from AMD. MS literally used Mantle itself for DX12 (I linked the evidence above). So they could simply join Vulkan collaboration instead, but their lock-in mentality still prevailed there.

It worked out better for OpenXR - MS for a change did participate in it.


Last edited by Shmerl on 15 August 2021 at 7:10 pm UTC

It's just visiting Netflix with Steam's built-in browser and adding a bookmark.

For you and me sure, but users will expect something similar to a android app. So you can expect someone to built an electron app with a shinny N icon on it (or maybe a flatpak), which in practice it's the same thing

... just without the security fixes. Oh man, I hate this trend.

... just without the security fixes. Oh man, I hate this trend.

Unless we have official support from them, which I find it odd that we don't have this partnership yet between Valve and those third parties, considering that Steam is one of the most famous stories of the world.

if i can imagine playing Hades on it, i would forget playing cs:go or any FPS with those sticks.

It's just visiting Netflix with Steam's built-in browser and adding a bookmark.

For you and me sure, but users will expect something similar to a android app. So you can expect someone to built an electron app with a shinny N icon on it (or maybe a flatpak), which in practice it's the same thing

The demo units they gave to journalists already had the bookmark made.

Well that's a good thing, then.

That last bit is one question mark I still have about this device, actually.
Well, I mean, it's a PC--obviously in general, in the abstract, you can install third party apps (and OSes!) on it. But I'm talking, certain popular third-party things like Netflix, with an absolute minimum of effort, in ways that are downright user-subservient.

You can expect youtubers making videos like "HOW TO INSTALL NETFLIX IN YOUR STEAMDECK!!!" which in practice is just they teaching how to get through some aur package.

Personally I'm ok with that, This way only people interested in tweaking the device will mess with this part, and can encourage users (who are willing to) to learn something from Linux as result.

And of course, giving a hypothetical success scenario, third party companies will start to support those apps officially.

Netflix seems to work through BPM's browser... so there's that.

It's just visiting Netflix with Steam's built-in browser and adding a bookmark.

For you and me sure, but users will expect something similar to a android app. So you can expect someone to built an electron app with a shinny N icon on it (or maybe a flatpak), which in practice it's the same thing

The demo units they gave to journalists already had the bookmark made.

Well that's a good thing, then.

Oops, I posted too soon. But yes, it just needs a bookmark...

The demo units they gave to journalists already had the bookmark made.

Nice to know Valve is somewhat worried about it this time, I hope this doesn't involve too much typing with those controls (I don't remember if it's touch screen).

But personally I still expect to some kind of dedicated app (and maybe even inside steam client in the future, who knows...)

This is one of the things I really hate about Android / Mobile devices. There's an app for everything... including things you'd just normally use a web browser for.

I never use the YouTube app (for example) as you can't use ublock to block the ads :P

Also, you have to understand that companies as big as MS plan things many years in advance. DX12 was probably planned and approved as a long term strategy for a long time before that happened.

It was a reactionary effort driven by Mantle proposal from AMD. MS literally used Mantle itself for DX12 (I linked the evidence above). So they could simply join Vulkan collaboration instead, but their lock-in mentality still prevailed there.

It worked out better for OpenXR - MS for a change did participate in it.

MS probably knew about Mantle before it has been made public and by then, they could have work on DX12.

MS probably knew about Mantle before it has been made public and by then, they could have work on DX12.

AMD didn't exactly keep it a secret. They wanted to make it a base for the common API from the early on. Everyone collaborated on it. MS and Apple pushed their NIHs instead knowing very well that it will slow down progress.

Not really. DX12 was a thing before he got put in charge of Xbox, and Xbox being a thing to push DirectX ("DirectX box") was a thing long before he was in charge.

...
So he totally was in charge of making the decision whether to collaborate or to push lock-in. And we know what MS did.
...

Being possible and being practical are two completely different things. Do you seriously expect anyone to scrap everything after investing a ton of money with it?
Especially someone new.
In all likelyhood he couldn't have stopped it even if he wanted to. He'd rather have been replaced with someone else.

Also, you have to understand that companies as big as MS plan things many years in advance. DX12 was probably planned and approved as a long term strategy for a long time before that happened.

PS: I'm not trying to defend him (I know next to nothing about his person, and I am certainly not trying to defend M$.
All in all I think M$ would have still done DX12 and not join Vulkan regardless of timing.

I don't expect scrap it. but what he can probably do is allow vulkan support on xbox...

[quote=Nocifer]

Not to mention that it works far better as a marketing strategy to precede a new and totally unknown thing with a real-time showcase of how good it is compared to the existing solutions, instead of trying to convince people to trust you and change their habits based only on the potential that this new unknown thing will turn out to be good.

I can't count* the times I've had people asking me to switch them to Linux after watching me working on my PC and liking what they saw, compared to the times I was successful in convincing someone to switch to Linux because "it's better, you'll see".

(*OK, actually I can count the times because they're really not that many, but hopefully you get my drift :P)

Totally agree!

valve was quite smarth in only mentioning "it can play steam games" this time.
if everyone purchased with this goal, people would be less likely to install windows on it.

The news and announcements before were really for the hardcore users. Someone watching Linus Tech Tips to find out about the Deck IS going to ask 'can I put Windows on it?', whereas the kinda person watching an ad on TV? They only need to hear, "Buy this, play your Steam games on it". Totally different demographics, so I get why Valve went with different messaging this time.

Good sign at least, that Valve have thought through the marketing on this device. Because I really want it to be a success.

microsoft handheld incoming

did he say he used STEAMOS, or was it win11?
i mean why would he have a deck? valve said they working with MS cause of win11, so i guess he has some beta windows11 version on his deck


Last edited by mylka on 16 August 2021 at 12:51 am UTC

Given Phil Spencer is probably the reason MS didn't back Vulkan but pushed DX12 lock-in instead, it's interesting that he has some positive comments about Steam Deck which relies on breaking that very lock-in.

Or in getting people to install Windows on it. Preferably the super locked-down Windows S.