The recently revealed Steam Deck looks like an evolved version of the innovative Nintendo Switch. The new handheld from Valve allows you to play games from your Steam library on the go on a device that appears to be near as powerful as a gaming PC, according to the reported specs. What may come as some surprise to those not familiar with Valve’s previous products is that the Switch-like Steam Deck seems to be a combination of the Steam Controller and Steam Link.
The Steam Controller and Steam Link both seem to have paved the way for the Steam Deck, showing that Valve learned from their previous hardware failures. The Steam Link would eventually be replaced by a software version that functioned incredibly similarly and didn’t require a separate device to function while the Steam Controller, according to a survey conducted by Valve, saw as much use as the Xbox 360 controller but sold far fewer models, leading to the device ceasing production in 2019.
The Steam Deck is clearly looking to do a similar job to the Steam Link, allowing gamers to play games from their Steam libraries portable. There’s a ton of games that, for a long time, have only ever been available on consoles or PC. The Steam Deck and the Steam Link let gamers play their Steam libraries away from their computers without a complex setup. However, the Steam Link had fairly limited uses and still required a fairly powerful PC to run (not to mention it worked best when both the PC and Steam Link were hardwired into the Internet). The Steam Deck fixes some of these issues while improving on the overall concept of the Steam Link, as it has its own dedicated hardware which allows it to be a truly portable gaming PC, but it also can connect to a TV through its dock, allowing players to run their games on a TV like a normal system. Players don’t even need to use the dock to hook their Steam Deck to a display, as the Deck itself can easily be connected.
The Steam Deck is the next step after the Steam Link that can let players take their Steam libraries with them and play them whenever they want, without requiring a bunch of cables or a powerful PC. These two issues were the biggest problems with the Steam Link that kept many from picking up the device, greatly limiting the audience for the Steam Link. The Steam Deck is far more accessible, even if it’s a bit more expensive than the Steam Link. As for the Steam Controller, there’s a lot of similarities between the design of the Steam Deck and the Steam Controller. For one, both the Controller and the Deck have a similar shoulder button design and the same face button orientation, with analog sticks and the d-pad both positioned fairly high compared to other controllers.
As far as improving on the Steam Controller, it’s important to first talk about its issues. The Steam Controller started off rocky; in addition to its unusual design, which replaced the second analog stick with a touchpad (meant to simulate a mouse for games that did not have controller support), it was the subject of controversy following a lawsuit over trademark infringement, when a judge found Steam violated a patent owned by Ironburg Inventions. Beyond that, the Steam Controller was simply lacking support for many games and did not have a wide enough market to really make an impact, despite the Controller’s ability to give nearly any game controller support. The Steam Controller had a dedicated fan base, but many users found difficulty with the steep learning curve associated with setting up the controller, not to mention adjusting to using a touchpad in place of a second analog stick.
In contrast, the Steam Deck incorporates the design and purpose of the Steam Controller into the system, giving tons of PC games native controller support. While most modern games already have controller support, older titles have their keyboard and mouse controllers converted to work with the Steam Deck. Players can also connect a mouse and keyboard to the Linux-ran Steam Deck if they want to, but the Steam Deck again makes use of touchpads that can simulate a mouse (though the Steam Deck does make use of two analog sticks).
While the Steam Link and the Steam Controller may not have made the impact Valve wanted on the gaming world, they have clearly inspired the Steam Deck. Valve learning from their previous mistakes is letting them make something that’s revolutionary. It’s also setting an example for other game development companies that they can learn from mistakes and use them to make something new and exciting.
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