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Thread: Steam Deck

  1. #11
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    [QUOTE=Demon Cleaner;56634]
    Quote Originally Posted by J T View Post
    I'm assuming that increases performance but also drains the battery quicker (and makes it get warmer). Does it make much noticeable difference?
    Exactly. I didn't try yet.

  2. #12
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    So far so great with the One XPlayer, I'm running Forza Horizon 4 perfectly in 1280x800, and GTA V runs even smoothly in 2560x1600. I showed it to some friends at work and they were quite amazed, and also think that it is not overpriced, considering its built quality and performance. One even said it looks nicer than the games on his PS5

    I didn't try any other games yet, but I guess they will also run fine, most of them having even lower specs than Forza. Didn't try Cyberpunk yet though, as I didn't start it up once yet, plus I will not consider playing that on the handheld. Although the advantage of having cloud saves makes a lot more sense now

  3. #13
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    https://youtu.be/SElZABp5M3U

    This video has been out for a few days now but it's the best hands on I've seen yet for the Steam Deck.

    The Vlogger is one of the few to so far ne invited by Steam to try out a pre-production unit, and it looks impressive. Innitially they seemed aprehensive to allow him to do too much, but he somehow managed to convince them to allow him to test it quite extensively. Including a tbermal camera, screen colour and lighting tests, as well as connecting an array of devices and testing it connected to external displays, and yes it can output 4k 60pfs on a monitor, which is cool.

    The fps on the Deck itself seemed quite impressive. And the screen looked impressive in games. I dunt think we need to worry about the 1280x800 resolution. He run The Witcher on Netflix and instantly noted you could tell the resolution want 1080p, but as he also said, are you likely to actually watch video on the Deck? Most of us have a smartphone with a higher resolution (mine is higher than 4K) or a tablet for that on the move.

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  4. #14
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    There is going to be a slight delay on the Deck shipping from what I've heard. Sometime in Q2 or just after. That's ok with me.

    Problem is I'm also now tempted by the Ayn Odin Pro. But I don't need one, just it looks really nice in both design and spec for its price.

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  5. #15
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    Now the Steam Deck is released development on the Steam OS has seen a fair few updated. They already fixed many teething issues with OS updates, and the OS interface works really nicely for any form of input and control. Especially like rhe pull up control panel to adjust system performance and also monitor fps and other stats in any game.

    And surprisingly, this week Microsoft posted information on how to run Xbox Gamepass on the Steam Deck. It's not yet quite directly supported. I was expecting them to say you would need to sacrifice Steam OS and install Windows 11 to run it. But no. They have detailed instructions on how to install Microsoft Edge on Steam OS, and then launch Gamepass through it. Apparently it works pretty well. But they also mentioned a proper Steam OS app is in development. That says a lot because it means Microsoft have noticed how big the potential is with the Steam Deck and direct support for Xbox Gamepass will instantly open up their subscription service to a new handheld gaming market.

    This is great news because installing Windows on the Steam Deck was something I wanted to avoid. Currently games running in Steam OS have massive performance gains compared to Windows on the system. Elden Ring for example runs smoothly at 60fps, whereas in Windows 11 it chugs along in the mid 20s and drops into the teens when mignon quickly, so is unplayable. Mad when you consider Steam OS is running a Windows game in an abstraction layer in Linux. Shows the work Value have put into this system.

    Just have to wait now for my pen Steam Deck the preorders have been put back to Q3 now. Not one of the lucky early receivers of the system. That has mainly been reviewers, content creators and developers. And some even have multiple systems such as the Youtube guy Linus Sebastian. But then he is rolling in money and is a really good reviewer and did the best Deck preview I saw by some margin.

    If you haven't played a classic game in years, it's never too late to start!


  6. #16
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    Finally got my invitation email from Steam saying my preordered Steam Deck is now available. So completely the order and it is on its way.

    Very excited. But not so much for running current games. More to try out emulation.

    If you haven't played a classic game in years, it's never too late to start!


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    Getting 0ld0r is mandatory - Growing up is just an option.

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    Indeed. Over a year from the preorder. And I'm one of the first after the preview reviewer order level got their Decks.

    Anyone who ordered the 512GB top level version is having to wait until Q4, maybe even December. And other then the etched glass over the screen and larger ssd storage there is no difference. And Valve even endorce swapping out the default built in storage for a different ssd, so not really worth the extra. Thry are even making video tutorials for owners in how to do it.

    But I think it will be worth the wait. Valve have been putting a lot of work into the Steam OS development. Updating and adding features and extensive bug fixing. And this actually means a lot for the Linux community because it means a Distro commercially developed for gaming.

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    My Steam Deck finally arrived today. It was shipped from The Netherlands so not too long considering.

    I've not had time to even turn it on yet, but I quickly took it out of the box to take a look. Initial impressions are very good. Feels really comfortable in the hand and the build quality feeks really nice. It's also not as heavy as I thought it was going to feel, so that's great. It is big for a handheld though so that might take a bit of getting used to and the screen feels very large for a handheld.

    Will have time this evening to power it up and hand an initial play. Can't wait. Going to try a few games, then in the next few days I want to test some emulation. You can install Retroarch directly from Steam, so that's going to make things easy to begin with. But you can actually even install emulated Switch games and have them appear in Steam. Amd launch directly as if they were native. Looking forward to trying that out. You can configure other emulated games the same way too, so I will be building a shortlist of my most played tetro games to have permanently added.

    If you haven't played a classic game in years, it's never too late to start!


  10. #20
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    So far very impressed with the Steam Deck. Great form factor. Very comfortable to hold with a great control layout. Really nice screen that's large, but not too big. It's also light enough for extended sessions.

    I've tested a few games from my Steam library that are Deck verified and all worked perfectly.

    I also followed the official Microsoft guide and added Xbox Gamepass Ultimate Cloud gaming to the Steam Deck. It is a bit fiddly to do, but once setup the homepage link appears just like any game in Steam. And it works seemlessly. I've tested Gamepass streaming before on both my Tablet and phone. It was ok on both but was a bit clunky to use. On the Steam Deck once setup the keys map perfectly to the Xbox controller layout of that games and the Deck is a perfect setup for it. I tested a couple of games and they all streamed and played perfectly. No buffering or stuttering and the controls felt responsive and the graphics looked great. I couldn't feel any lag either. Even Fonza Horizon 5 ran fine.

    I also installed Retroarch, but haven't had time to add any time yet.I

    Battery life has seemed good so far. I was running Steam games, setting up stuff in the Steam OS desktop and testing out Gamepass Streaming. It's had it on for annoy 4 hours and still had 20% battery left. So happy with that. Will need to test a gaming sessions running a single game to see how long the battery lets for a single task. 3D intensive games will obviously drain it faster.

    The system does get a bit hot underneath where some of the exhaust vents are. You can hear the fans kicking in rhythm you have been played a had for a bit. It never feels hot how you hold it for the controls, but move your hand to the middle underneath and it can be wide warm, so probably not good for testing on your lap. But you are never naturally going to do that anyway.

    One negative thing and there are not many. The on-screen keyboard takes s bit of getting used to, and it doesn't work as seamlessly or perfectly in desktop mode. In Steam gaming mode it's more responsive and fine. But if you need to edit and test in Desktop more it can be a bit off a chore. I had to enter some Linux commands and edit the config for a game entry in Steam and that was hard work. Connecting a real keyboard and mouse for desktop mode is highly recommended.

    Finally Steam OS. Valve have done an amazing job with this OS. I never thought anyone would ever create a Windows PC Game compatible OS that just works without the hassle of Windows. Valve really have. And it really does give the feel of using a games console. You select play game, it asks if you wish to install. If it isn't fully verified it shows a list of any known issues (so far it has mainly just been the need for a game to need text input, which isn't actually much of an issue). You then get to pick where to install it to. Internal or SD and the OS gets I with it in the background. I noticed it installs extra supporting libraries and things for specific games as it's installing. Obviously part of the Steam OS Proton compatibility layer. And that just works really well so far. It's just like on a console. If you have ever used Steam that's the interface. You navigate to a game, select play and it just loads. No Windows drivers or messing around. And just hit the Steam key, much like the PS button on Playststion, and it gives you puns to return to the game, so back to the Steam Homepage, quit the game or shut down the system.

    With how well Steam OS now works it would work really well using the same Deck hardware as a standalone console to plug and play like any games console. Steam could even make that a lot cheaper then the Deck because there wouldn't be a screen and the controls would be a separate controller. I wouldn't be surprised if they did that later. I know they tried out before but the older Steam IS could only run Linux games and was limited. With Proton that's all changed now.

    What the Steam Deck does is show you no longer need Windows to run PC games, and Steam OS is stable. And even Microsoft are supporting it. Giving official guides on setting up gamepass. A portable Xbox is unique in this regard. Microsoft have never attempted that themselves.
    Last edited by Harrison; 19th August 2022 at 04:02.

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