Primarily in my life ive been a console gamer. Starting with the ps1 and owning every system released since. Never did much pc gaming even when i had access to a decent rig. For the past few years ive been a collector. Going for rare and cool retro games i always wanted to own. After about a year with the steam deck it all feel so… archaic? Like, i went and hdmi modded my ps2, but i find the idea of booting up pcsx2 on deck more appealing. I dont feel the need to have a new game in my hands physically, when i know its gonna take me months to play it anyway, i can wait for a sale, get it cheaper, play it portably with mods. Console gaming, especially in the last 2 generations, feels like a hinderance more than anything. Why would i want to be tied to one piece of hardware, with a dubious at best chance of carrying my games forward to the next gen every 6 years? The steam deck feels like its released me from the shackles of console gaming. I dont think ill get rid of my whole collection… but my ps5 and xsx have been doing a lot of dust collecting these days.
Anyone else feel the same? Or have i just had an existential gamer crisis?
I used to be like you when I purchased the deck a few months ago. But now I am trying to distribute my time between my consoles and the Deck as I have a huge backlog that I need to tackle.
Also the fact that handheld gaming feels more immersive somehow. I can’t wait to relive my 20s and binge hundreds of hours of monster hunter freedom unite and peace walker on the couch and lying in bed.
I actually got a gamecube after trying some gamecube games on steamdeck. I decided I wanted to play the games with my sister.
Unfortunately she’s moved to the USA so that probably won’t happen anymore… but she got me a dock on her way out, so if ever I want to use the steamdeck for multiplayer, it’s possible now.
I’ve never really understood the appeal of collecting physical games. They cost SO much money second-hand a lot of the time, if they’re on disk, they better be in great shape, you need the original console in working condition, you need to store all those games in a storage shelf or something that takes up so much space, you need all those consoles to be plugged in to some sort of complicated AV switch system or something, and after all that, you get to play your retro game collection at glorious 480i 30fps, if that.
Or, you can put practically every retro game on a few micro SD cards, and boot them up on your Steam Deck or PC, often running flawlessly and with enhancements. Or better still, they have a native PC version!
I’ve been having a hard time lately trying to enjoy gaming like I used to. Idk blame it on age but even with access to a good pc for gaming, my backlog has grown exponentially over the years. I JUST beat BotW on my pc after like 6 years, lol.
I bought the OLED on impulse and since receiving it in the mail, I’ve been having so much fun using it.
Easy to say that my SD has 100% reignited my interest in games and I only hope that with updates the software continues to improve the experience and further fuel that interest.
Its not changed my outlook, but its more not needing a console (though I still have several). Im going to build a steamOS based console for the home theatre over chrissie.
No it’s a fucking piece of plastic and electronic stop simping
Oh yeah my ps5 outside of FF16 “spider-men” 2 aint been used.
Absolutely and I never would have expected it. I’ve had consoles and PC dating back to NES as a kid. The SD has changed my entire outlook. And now, I find that I don’t care so much about the next generation of console gaming quite as much. I’m much more fascinated by what we could expect out of the SD2 and beyond.
Bro this is where it’s going. pay attention to linux. Valve is genius. The more freedom they give us the better its going to get.
There’s a lot of smaller pc games that I never pay any attention to because a game has to be really worth it to make me want to sit at a computer again after sitting at a computer all day. The steam deck lets me play those games instead of waiting forever for a console release.
I know I’ll likely never purchase a headless console (ie. one that NEEDS a seperate display) ever again lol; and being locked into their closed eco systems and platform tax is good riddance.
And won’t buy a laptop again for a long time unless it’s for something work-related.
Carrying around my Steam Deck in a casual sling-bag is all I need with me; for gaming or general computer use. And when I am at home, using a USB-C hub to my TV/Monitor is perfect too.
I used Stadia before and that streaming tech, convenience, and accessible it was amazing, and better than the rest; Google’s poor management of the platform business model not withstanding. Steam Deck was more expensive than I wanted initially, but I don’t regret all that I gained in the transition.
Nice call out to that sling-bag. How is it’s fit? Does it securely fit only the bag?
I initially used it in the sling-bag bare with the screen facing the back, before I got my case. But now I use the case you see in these pics; feels more comfortable since I can orient it any way now.
The protective case is listed at $19 now, but it often drops on sale for $8.36 US; it was a few days ago even.
Some other links to the lanyard tabs I used for the straps.
I’ve been mostly a PC gamer for years now, the steam deck finally bringing it to a convenient handheld package has only rekindled my love for it. That being said I did go out and buy a PS3 last week because I wanted to play some exclusives and they didn’t emulate well
I just hope I recover my passion on gaming after getting mine. These last year’s I haven’t been able to hook onto a game for long times.
Oh 100%. I was always a console gamer, but that route got so expensive for me… I was a physical>digital guy for the longest, I amassed a video game collection worth 36k retro and new. I recently sold it off to buy wifey a new car and with the economy in shambles, rent being so high, I went ahead and sold it off. I hated the idea of going ALL digital, like I would have NEVER consider it. And now owning the Steam Deck it seems like the perfect gaming device ever to convert me to go all digital especially with all the digital steam sales going on. Also I was technically being a hoarder, games and collector’s edition would sit on shelf and not be played. Physical would still be new in plastic. I’m glad I made my Steam Deck purchase I can clear out some backlog on a lot of older gen stuff from ps3, 360 era that look way better on Windows/Steam since PC version is superior.
Thank you Valve for coming up with such a neat hardware.