Switch Pro Is Here but It's Steam Deck

Such perfect timing. After the recent announcement of the OLED version of the Nintendo Switch that had the Nintendorks plunging into the deepest and darkest depths of depression, Valve just announced a much better alternative. It's a portable Personal Computer custom built for gaming on the go that looks like a Switch, only it's infinitely more awesome and it's called the Steam Deck!

Stealing Nintendo's thunder like a... wait for it, pro.

I know there are those who claim that they prefer to play their games on their handhelds over the big screen and Valve apparently knows that these people do exist. That's probably also the reason the Steam Deck looks a bit like the Switch. Sure the Deck has more inputs, with trackpads, touchscreens, extra buttons, and even gyro but I am worried about those small face buttons on the top right hand corner of the Steam Deck. Apparently, Valve didn't learn the lesson from their Steam Controller, which does feature a similar design. Those buttons will be uncomfortable to use because they are crammed onto a hard to reach area on top of being too small themselves to begin with. Judging from the tech specs, it's easy to see that this thing is going to run even the latest games wonderfully while using it as a portable device because of its 1280 x 800 resolution. In a comical reversed situation compared to the Switch, the Deck will probably struggle if you are going to push the resolution all the way up to 4K - or even just to 1080p - on your big screen while trying to match the same graphical fidelity with what you are able to get away with at 800p. The cool thing of course is that the Deck is pretty much a PC and you can do PC things with it like browse the Internet, download software, etc. and it will be easily compatible with anything USB. Steam Deck is coming out in December of this year and pre-orders will be open tomorrow July 16th via Steam. There are 3 different tiers to choose from starting at $399. Good luck with pre-ordering to those who are interested and I will leave you with this funny detail from the announcement as Valve attempts to stick the final nail in the Switch's coffin.

Valve was like, okay we'll have a dock for it too even though it's not needed.