2024 has seen a string of unlikely occasions. Eternally in-fighting Britpop band Oasis reformed and set its sights on a world tour, human-sized Cheeto Donald Trump secured a second time period within the White House, and Valve introduced that it was lastly releasing the Steam Deck into the Australian market, delighting Aussie avid gamers and certain placing the noses of gray importers firmly out of joint. As of earlier this week these Aussie Steam Decks have began transport out directly from Valve’s local warehouse full with an Aussie energy provide and offered at a worth level that considerably undercuts the inflated expenses of each gray importer we checked on the time of writing. So, when you have been planning on getting a Steam Deck then shopping for one immediately from Steam is a no brainer, however two and a half years after the system’s authentic launch – do you wish to purchase one in any respect?
Let’s rewind just a little. When the unique LCD Steam Deck launched in February, 2022, IGN’s reviewer Seth G. Macy stated:
It’s value stating that quite a bit has modified within the couple of years since. Valve has rolled out a whole lot of system updates to the Deck, bettering every little thing from software program compatibility to growing battery life and even minimising the whine of the inner fan, no {hardware} mods required. In late 2023 it additionally launched a second SKU, the Steam Deck OLED, which launched a barely bigger and eminently extra vibrant display screen, in addition to a barely beefier battery amongst different tweaks to the {hardware}. Here’s what IGN’s reviewer Bo Moore stated on the time of the Steam Deck OLED’s North American launch:
The Steam Deck is launching in Australia with three completely different SKUs: the 256GB LCD model for $649, the 512GB OLED model for $899, and the 1TB OLED model for $1049. The 512GB OLED mannequin would look like the candy spot, because it boasts each the higher display screen and bigger battery capability, and will 512GB of SSD storage show to be too restrictive on this period of ever-growing sport set up sizes it’s value noting that each one three Steam Decks may be expanded with more and more inexpensive microSD playing cards. You also can open up your Steam Deck and swap out the SSD when you’re tech savvy sufficient, though Valve doesn’t suggest it and doing so could void your guarantee even throughout the cozy embrace of Australia’s appreciable shopper safety legal guidelines.
The OLED fashions present plenty of different benefits over the bottom LCD mannequin too – they’re round 50g lighter which interprets to a surprisingly extra snug system to carry, the again paddle buttons really feel just a little firmer, and the audio system sound just a little clearer at increased volumes. But past these tweaks (and there are a selection of others), the OLED display screen is only a substantial step up from LCD, and one value paying the extra $250 for.
What About the Competition?
A prolonged delay to the Steam Deck’s native launch has given a headstart to the likes of ASUS and Lenovo to make a play for the commute-based gaming time of Australians. However, although the ASUS Rog Ally and Legion Go could promise increased decision shows and terror-inducing terraflop counts, most of them are hamstrung by their reliance on Windows for his or her working system. And to talk plainly, Windows may be okay powering your desktop PC or Xbox, however it’s presently fairly unwieldy to work with on a gaming handheld. Updates to make its UI higher optimised for handheld gaming are supposedly on the best way, however in the intervening time these gadgets are simply too painful to make use of in contrast with the extra console-like expertise of SteamOS on the Deck.
SteamOS’s UI is snappy and straightforward to navigate, and to be sincere so a lot of its preliminary tough edges have been smoothed out by this level that it’s very troublesome to seek out fault with it. Since receiving a overview unit from Valve a few weeks in the past, the Steam Deck has shortly turn into a terrific device for trawling again by way of my gaming pile of disgrace. Games that I’ve pushed to the aspect lately in favour of creating time on the sofa for hardware-pushing AAA titles have lastly grabbed my consideration both briefly bursts on the sofa whereas I’m ready for a pot to boil or in lengthier periods on practice rides, and I’ve lastly been capable of find time for the likes of Dave the Diver, Dead Cells, in addition to newer releases like Lorelei and the Laser Eyes.
At the identical time, I’ve additionally been chipping away at Rockstar’s just lately launched Red Dead Redemption PC port, which runs brilliantly on the Deck with visuals which might be considerably sharper than these discovered within the comparatively smudgey Switch model. Surprisingly, although solely round 10 per cent of video games on the Steam retailer are deemed both ‘playable’ or ‘verified’ on the Deck, I’m but to seek out many video games that I wish to play that don’t work – formally verified or not. Even each Silent Hill 2 and Horizon Forbidden West, that are presently listed on Steam as being unsupported, appear to run pretty easily on the Steam Deck with just a little little bit of tweaking to the settings, for instance.
That stated, there are some apparent limitations to the {hardware}. The display screen decision is barely 1280×800, which is definitely sharp sufficient for the Steam Deck’s seven-inch display screen, and it additionally means the system’s GPU doesn’t must push as many pixels as your desktop PC or gaming console. However, some extra graphics intensive video games wrestle to hit even that comparatively low decision, with the likes of Hogwarts Legacy just a little gentle of their presentation. Even so, when you can’t go into the Steam Deck anticipating it to deal with completely every little thing you possibly can throw at it, however when you’re something like me you may be shocked at simply how succesful this attractive lapwarming slab may be normally.
There is after all the query of a possible Steam Deck 2. Valve has indicated that it’s engaged on a handheld successor, however in an interview with Reviews.org final month, designer Lawrence Yang stated that his staff desires “to attend for a generational leap in compute with out sacrificing battery life earlier than we ship the true second era of Steam Deck.” Just how lengthy this generational leap will take to reach is anybody’s guess, however you’d must assume that the shiny new Steam Deck you pickup in November 2024 is unlikely to be outmoded any time throughout the subsequent couple of years no less than. (Or certainly, uninteresting new Steam Deck when you spring for the highest of the road 1TB OLED mannequin with the matte end on its show.)
So is the Steam Deck nonetheless value it as of November, 2024? I might argue sure. Though it might lack the facility to run a few of this 12 months’s beefiest titles like Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 at a playable framerate, it nonetheless helps a staggering variety of video games – sufficient to refill 1000’s of practice rides or journeys to the bathroom – and, do you have to go for an OLED mannequin, it runs them with sufficient battery life that you just’ll not often really feel the should be tethered to a USB energy twine. Australians ought to rightly really feel aggrieved that we’ve needed to wait this lengthy to purchase a Steam Deck with out resorting to eBay sellers or counting on American buddies to ship one over to us, however there’s an upside right here – two and a half years of system updates and one {hardware} refresh implies that these of us who waited shall be getting our first arms on with the Steam Deck in its most optimum type.
Tristan Ogilvie is a senior video editor at IGN’s Sydney workplace. He’s more and more afraid of social media, however on the uncommon event he does tweet yow will discover him here.
