Topic: Valve's Steam Deck console Thread

I've got zero knowledge about modern pc hardware, but I'm having a hard time imagining this thing is going to run silently.

@gcunit
Probably not. My GPD Win 2 fan can get pretty loud sometimes. However, this is a larger device, which means larger heatsink, bigger fan and better cooling. So maybe it'll be a little better.

So, I think this Steam Deck may do pretty well.

Not only did I order one (because of course I did), but my brother ordered one as well, and, my coworker who bought a Switch for Skyrim back in 2017, he also ordered one. Compare that to, say, GPD Win 3. I didn’t order one. Neither did my brother, and my coworker probably doesn’t even know it exists (actually he does because he liked my Win 2, but he never ordered one).

I’ve got a good feeling about this thing. The question is, how many can Valve produce? We got leaked numbers that they had “sold” through about 100,000 units in the first 90 minutes after reservations went live. And by that point it was already pushed back to Q2 2022. So… how many of these things were they planning on making? They better ramp it up from 6 digits to 7 ASAP. The demand is there.

I ordered one, a 256GB model. I'll likely cancel unless the impressions are incredible.

Well, all of you who were expecting 60fps, better keep your expectations in check, because in an interview with IGN, Valve themselves have now said that they're aiming for 30fps for all games, and for native resolutions, it'll be the specific target:

@ThanosReXXX
I mean it's a PC so nobody's aiming for a framerate target. It's a PC so the framerate you'll get will depend on what settings you run it at. The closest spec I can think of to what the Steam Deck has would be something like the Ryzen 5 3400G. The Steam Deck has a slightly better GPU and a slightly slower CPU but it's pretty close.

In modern games at 720p you'll be able to get 60fps in low to medium settings but yeah, realistically on newer titles you'll be going for a stable 30fps. ​Video of some benchmarks, 3400G on the right. Video is comparing it to the 5300G which is goes a tad above the Stream Deck and it's going for 1080p

@ThanosReXXX
Nah, there's no such thing as 30 across the board for PC games. They vary too much and the performance you get will vary from title to title and the settings each one offers.

The response was in the context of being asked about future cutting edge games, they said everything will at least be able to hit 30. So basically- everything can play. Maybe it's at locked 30, but it can play (Control, Jedi Fallen Order, Death Stranding, Cyberpunk, etc). So don't worry about games not running. You'll at least get a minimum baseline 30.

But the overwhelming majority of games aren't that demanding and will easily hit 60. They already showed DOOM Eternal at 60 confirmed by Digital Foundry. Portal 2 confirmed at max settings at 60 and still getting over 4 hrs.

There's not gonna be one framerate for all games. But 90% of my library will do 60 all day. The question isn't can it though, the question is why would you want to when it has such a drastic affect on battery life. Although for Portal 2 and many other games you can have your cake and eat it too- the cake isn't a lie after all. But for more demanding games, dropping to 30 could mean the difference between 2.5 hrs and 4 hrs.

@JaxonH
Also worth noting that on Switch Doom Eternal runs at what you'd probably call "very low" settings and targets 30fps with regular dips to 20fps. That's at 720p but it also scales back the resolution to 540p to maintain framerate. Oh, and this is docked. When undocked 612p is the max and you can drop down to as low as 360p.

So when we say 720p/60fps on Doom Eternal that's the comparison. Also presumably on medium to high settings if my guess of "around the 3400G" is accurate.
https://wccftech.com/running-doom-eternal-on-just-an-apu-how-...

It's worth bearing in mind that not a single game on Steam has been developed with a 7" screen in mind. (I know it's not specs etc but I reckon it's still pertinent.) Text in PC games tends to be small on a monitor lol.

@GrailUK
It’s not nearly as bad as you think. On PC, text scales with resolution. So oftentimes it’s the giant 4KTV that’s hardest to read, while a smaller screen at 720p is pretty close to perfect..

My Win 2 has a 6” screen and I’ve never had any issues, though I have on my 55” 4KTV (But I will say, most of the issues on the big tv were Windows OS context menu related, or old PC games). Considering this is a 7” screen instead of 6” it’s gonna be fine.

If we want to be technical a lot of the releases on the Switch weren't designed with portable play or a 6" screen in mind either. Sure the Switch has the advantage of its releases having to be looked at specifically for Switch releases but even so. When they were developing Bayonetta or Skyrim they wouldn't have been thinking "and how will this translate to a 6" screen?"

The bigger issue will be titles that are clearly PC first. Strategy games and the like, those kinds of games do exist on console but usually they don't translate to a controller well. How well will they translate to the Steam Deck touchpads? There will be some that won't but at least you'll have the option of KB/mouse if you want

@JaxonH Interesting. This was also my biggest concern. Do you mean even for quite text-y games (thinking about strategy/management type games such as: Civ, Stellaris, Crusader Kings, Endless Space/Legend and the like)?

EDIT: really want to stick Cities Skylines and tons of mods for it on mine! But that isn’t so text heavy.

I’ve chucked down the £4 deposit for the reserve, availability says its Q2 2022 now though. I wish I had done it sooner but I was skeptical about it’s battery power and settings.

@Needeep
Notice how much harder it is to read that text on my 55" TV at 2160p (4k) versus my 6" Win 2 at 720p.

Just keep in mind, many games made in the last decade function fine on the TV also as their UI is larger and doesn't need to scale. The easy fix for the TV for older games like Dragon Age Origins which weren't designed in the 4k era and have micro text on the TV, is to just render it at 1440p or even 1080p, which makes the text way larger and readable. And frankly it still looks amazing so...

My 55" TV at 2160p

My 6" Win 2 at 720p

Many games have UI designed for consoles also, which looks fine on a smaller screen (7" will be even better). I'm not sure how SIM games will fare but I would think they'd be playable.

Batman Arkham Asylum on 6" Screen at 720p

DOOM Eternal running at 60fps on medium settings means probably 98%+ of games will run at 60fps on this thing. Obviously, no one is expecting legitimately next-gen experiences to run at 60fps or even high settings on this thing.

Rather, we're going from Switch being able to run certain eighth-gen experiences with heavy downgrades to this thing likely being able to run even the most demanding modern games in at least a playable state. I do hope there's some sort of option in the OS to cap framerates, though. I usually need to rely on third-party software on my PC to do that.

My only concern is that this thing is going to be uncomfortable to hold, use, and transport, which is why I'm glad I'll have time to read the impressions of players on the weight and the controls. If it's bulky enough that I won't be playing it out of the house at all, then investing in a video card for my PC might be the better option. We'll see.

@Ralizah
Most games let you set Framerate right in the settings. Older games may have 30, 60 and Unlimited options. Newer games (like MH Stories 2) has 30, 60, 90, 120, 144. But almost all let you target the Framerate you want in the settings menu.

I do think weight is a legitimate drawback. That’s my biggest criticism. Mind you, it’s not enough to deter me from buying. This feels like a once in a lifetime opportunity- the first and only PC handheld with gyro recognized in Steam input configs. But it’s definitely not a pocketable device. And for that reason alone I will continue buying whatever 3rd party games release on Switch with relatively stable framerates. Pocketable games provide a massive advantage. Even Doom Eternal, for example, despite its low res drops… is incredible to play on the Lite (smaller screen helps with pixel density also). Although, that’s a game I’ll probably play on both. But ya. Tony Hawk, Sniper Elite 4, Trails of Cold Steel 3/4… these will remain Switch games for me. Witcher 3, Ys 8/9, Outer Worlds… these will become Deck games.

I’m convinced it’s very comfortable though. It’s just weight that sucks. Then again, put your cell phone on your Wii U gamepad screen- that’s roughly the weight of the Deck. It’s definitely heavier than I’m used to but it’s also not impossibly heavy. It’s usable, and tbh I think it’s gonna feel extremely light weight for the size of the system, similar to how light Gamepad felt for its size.

@JaxonH In my experience, relying on in-game settings to cap the framerate below your screen's refresh rate often leads to it feeling choppier than equivalent settings would on console, for some reason. Which is why third-party framerate limiters are often used instead. I just hope Steam has some sort of custom tool or setting built into the OS in this regard.

@Ralizah
Riva Tuner for Windows is the best but it’s not on Linux. There are ways to do it through Proton though, and a program called strangle.

I’m sure once the Deck is out there’ll be step by step tutorials for the best option. For now though, here is a quick solution I grabbed from a discussion on this

• Install libstrangle through SteamOS (it's in aur so should be a single click install)
• right click the game you're having trouble with, edit the launch options, change it to "strangle 30 %command%"

@Ralizah
If Valve were smart they’d think about that and add a GPU-level option in the SteamOS UI to easily enable a frame limit on a global setting and on a game by game basis.

@JaxonH

https://www.pcgamer.com/valve-steam-deck-30-fps-target/

What's more, Griffais says the Steam Deck will include "an optional built-in FPS limiter to fine-tune perf vs. battery life." Presumably the limiter can be enabled through the overlay, and ideally it will remember a player's chosen setting for each game.

Joined the SteamDeck subreddit, and it was literally the first item, lol.