According to reports, the Steam Deck is all set to release in February 2022. There are plenty of reasons to be excited about the handheld gaming device from Valve. It is a powerful console capable of being played portably, or hooked up to a television or monitor. The device sports a 7-inch LED touchscreen with a 1280x900 resolution. Connected to an external display, the Steam Deck is capable of 8k resolution at 60Hz or 4k resolution at 120Hz.
The biggest appeal of the Steam Deck is its ability to play most games in the Steam library on the go. Although many portable PC gaming devices have been released and have failed to go mainstream, the Steam Deck seems destined to succeed where others have failed. There is a market where the Steam Deck might find great popularity. Through the device’s amazing capabilities, it may be able to fill a niche that the PS Vita left wide open.
The Rise And Fall Of The PS Vita
Sony’s first dip into the handheld gaming market began with the PlayStation Portable. The device, on top of looking elegant, was a media powerhouse. It could play music and movies either via memory cards or through UMDs, and videos looked gorgeous on the PSP thanks to its premium LCD screen. Most importantly, the handheld had a large library of stellar games that allowed gamers at the time to feel as though they could play the best PlayStation games on the go. Games like Gran Turismo and Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories went on to sell millions of copies, and Sony managed to sell over 80 million PSP units.
With the success of the PSP, it is not unexpected that Sony decided to release a new handheld console years later. The PS Vita is every bit as gorgeous as its predecessor. The PS Vita has far more advanced features than the PSP, and it sports a touchscreen, two analog sticks, front and rear-facing cameras, and a touch-sensitive back panel.
Thanks to the processing power of the PS Vita, gamers could enjoy AAA gaming on a portable device. Games with impressive visuals were developed for the Vita, including Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Need for Speed: Most Wanted. Unfortunately, the PS Vita did not commercially perform as well as the PSP, and it only managed to sell around 15-16 million units. This spelled the end for Sony’s venture into the handheld scene.
The Steam Deck Comes To The Rescue
PlayStation games can be played portably through Remote Play. However, this method is fraught with potential issues. Using Remote Play requires a good, stable internet connection which can be an issue for many gamers. Furthermore, using a device such as a phone or a tablet can be uncomfortable, especially when one has to use the screen to both access controls and view the game.
Fortunately, Sony has been porting many PlayStation games to PC. Iconic PlayStation games such as Horizon Zero Dawn, Days Gone, and Death Stranding have been ported to PC, and plenty more games are on the way including Uncharted 4, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, and God of War.
With the Steam Deck, a sizeable PlayStation library will be accessible on the go once again. It will be as easy as purchasing and playing games on the Steam online store. According to developers that have gotten their hands on Steam Deck development kits, the handheld device can play games on the Steam library quite well, and very few games require further optimization before they can be run on the device.
With rumors of more PlayStation games coming to PC, including Ghost of Tsushima, the Steam Deck may find itself selling well among gamers who long for a portable dedicated gaming device to play PlayStation games on. As comments made by Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan during an interview with Game Informer reveal, Sony is not interested in venturing into the portable gaming market again. However, this may not be a problem thanks to the Steam Deck.
The Steam Deck is scheduled to release in February 2022.