Steam Deck Fans Might be In For a Treat
A while back, we reported on the Steam Deck’s “dev kits” being sent out to developers. It was a move designed to get more games on the platform, which Valve obviously likes the sound of, but it was contingent on how well-received those kits were. After all, if developers didn’t react strongly to the kits, there wouldn’t be a huge day-one library of games for the Steam Deck. Luckily for Valve (and anyone looking to pick up the console), the kits have become beloved.
“I was surprised how well games work on it without any changes, and how good it feels to play on it.” Said Jonathan Smårs from Iron Gate, in an interview with PC Gamer. “Valheim worked from day one on Steam Deck”
“The graphic settings need to be set down a bit compared to my high end PC of course, but I’m still impressed with what such a small handheld can handle without any platform specific optimizations,” Smårs said.
Other game studios are reporting minor hiccups, but nothing that’d significantly slow development. Overall impressions have been very strong and very positive.
If you’re worried about PC-focused games not translating well to a platform without a mouse-and-keyboard, one developer’s statements may put you at ease.
“I did have some issues with controls, but my game is not designed for a controller at all, it doesn’t even have the code to detect/respond to controller inputs,” Raymond Doerr, owner of SixtyGig Games and developer of Rise to Ruins, told PC Gamer. “The touchpad for the mouse, I dare say, might be one of the best I’ve ever used. I’ll need to design a controller layout for it, as well as write controller support for the game, but I suspect my game will be playable on it when that’s done.”