I suspect it's more about the server component there. Whether EA, Epic, Ubi or whoever, the servers all run on Linux, of course.

But maybe I'm wrong and Ubi will actually offer some support for Linux clients in the future. That would be super great.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Even Nintendo has five to ten times the turnover of Valve. Microsoft and Sony are completely out of reach. These are large listed corporations. Valve is basically a family business. It is 100% owned by GabeN and his family. It's pretty unique that a company that runs a platform as significant as Steam is organised like that to this day. That is simply a fact.

I am glad that Valve has remained Valve until today and has not gone the way of Blizzard and others. But when distributing a console, it is not only the product that is decisive, but also the retail trade. For this, you have to pre-produce large quantities, advertise them and put them on the market where they may then lie for months. Around the world. Customers can also simply order the Steam Deck from Amazon or wherever else they like.

Whether Valve will be able to establish such a distribution network remains questionable, as this will presumably require billions in investment. Nintendo and others get this money from the shareholders. Valve simply has to earn this money (first).

The question is also whether they want to turn such a big wheel at all. Three million is already a big challenge for an owner-managed company like Valve. Warranties, repairs, customer enquiries, support, etc. are all tied up in that.

If Valve were organised differently, they could sell many times more. Even notorious console players are very positive about the Deck when they get their hands on one.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

The game does not reach 60FPS, at least in WQHD with a 67xx XT, even with DXVK/Proton. Is the performance the same under Windows? How are things on the Deck? As a German, I would like to support the studio. Unfortunately, we don't have that many in Germany (any more).

View this comment - View article - View full comments

I only found out about it by chance at the end of 2014. Before that, I hadn't played commercial games for over 15 years. I've been using Linux since the mid-90s and at some point I got tired of the dual boot installation. It was a weird feeling for me at first to pay for a game. My first game was Tropico 5, which I even bought at full price. I can still remember hovering over the buy button for a while, wondering whether I should really do it.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

I play Mineclone with my nephew, who currently only has a Raspi 400. Mineclone runs much better on the device than Minecraft. Plus the server side mods are great when playing with kids. The kids just have to connect to the server and not install anything locally. And it doesn't cost any money. Although I might donate a bit.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Quoting: Craggles086So the entire Pixel Jam catalogue is on sale currently on Steam,

Thanks for the tip.

Like the music. Yes, I admit it. :)

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Shouldn't it be time for version 8 by now?

View this comment - View article - View full comments

QuoteI did have a weird one recently with sleep / wake. One of my Steam Decks would wake up by itself, and it happened multiple times in a row.

This is critical because I suspect it overheats easily in its closed box.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

After all, there are numerous titles that I can only play portably on the Steam Deck. GTA V, for example. If that's not enough, no artificial exclusive titles will do. Exclusive titles only serve to make a platform attractive that would otherwise be insufficiently attractive. Valve takes a completely different approach. They establish a new class of devices. Like Apple back in the day. The first smartphones with touch displays appeared in the 90s. But it was Apple and iTunes that turned it into a new class of devices. Valve is trying something very similar with the Steam Deck and mobile gaming PCs. Without having exaggerated ambitions and without business practices from the 80s.

View this comment - View article - View full comments

Call me crazy. But it has a touch of Alien Isolation in it.

View this comment - View article - View full comments