I’ve now had my Steam Deck for four years.
When I first got it, I thought, “If this thing only plays a tiny fraction of my PC game library, it will be so worth it!”
Little did I realize it would play nearly all of my library. Sometimes better. As in, some games that no longer work on Windows still work on my Steam Deck.
Now the stereotype with PC gaming is that it’s all about specs. As in, chasing pixel counts and framerates. And for some people, that is the appeal of PC gaming.
But let me tell you, my Steam Deck has been locked at 800p and 60fps – except on the very rare occasions I docked it to a TV. And the experience has been nothing short of magical.
You know how amazing it is to play Commander Keen on a handheld? Or Serious Sam? Or Septerra Core?
And it’s not just about old games. There are indies like The Binding of Isaac that really come alive with a handheld.
Admittedly, I don’t play a whole lot of recent AAA titles. But Battlefield 4 on the Steam Deck? Amazing.
“Amazing” pretty much the word to sum up everything. I’ve got far more out of my Steam Deck than I ever dreamed.
Comparing my Steam Deck to newer handhelds like my wife’s Legion Go, it’s clearly showing its age. But I ain’t letting it go. Not for any time soon.
There’s too many memories wrapped up there. I spent days on my porch, enjoying the sunset. Nights spent on a park bench. Visits to the beach.
But also, keeping my old friend around gives me an opportunity I never had previously: the ability to go multiplayer with my wife.
That’s right, while on vacation, I’m looking forward to PvP sessions. Perhaps while sipping lattes in a hotel lounge. Or right by a pool.
It’s been worth it.
I no longer really use the deck to play games stored on the device when I’m at home. I set up game streaming from my ageing gaming rig, 32gb ram and a super 2080.
I stream using moonlight on the deck and Apollo on the rig, the rig does all the heavy lifting.
If u set the streaming resolution to 2560x1600, double the deck resolution it looks awesome.
The only other setting to really change is to set the deck as the only monitor not multiple monitors and to set always use virtual display.
The other thing I did initially was set up a hotspot on the rig to connect the deck to like it’s own Lan for the traffic to go through. I later changed this by plugging an old Asus router in ap mode via ethernet in to rig and the main router to connect to it so the router deals with the traffic.
Was playing atomfall last night for first time after buying it as a discount.
Plays great no lag very smooth great visuals.
Playing this way I can still play new titles with no issues.
If u have a rig and a deck I would encourage you to play this way.
The deck will last me years more using it this way and the battery life while streaming is fantastic.
Do you have any good guide links? Specifically the hotspot sounds interesting