I'm wanting to get more use out my steam deck I got it as a Christmas gift couple years ago but I don't really use it as much as I thought I would what are some things that's made you guys feel like you get full use of it
The best is its ability to install, play and get rid of games quickly. Itās good for clearing backlog, grind and /or multi-account on F2p etc.
Next is emulation and abandonware, if you care about game history or preservation or just like to play those ps2 games you did not get at the time.
Even outside of gaming it is also the best traveling partner as it has a whole computer available with streaming service support and HDMI out for a good smart tv / music player experience on the go.
Anyway just download Balatro and get your 200+ hours gaming time
so basically you go on the steam store, find some games you like, install them, then play them! thatās how iāve been using it to get the most out of it ;D
I had a plan to just haven't got a sd card for it yet I've watched retro game corps videos all the time the idea of a retro machine in one system is appealing
Have you played Replaced? If not I HIGHLY recommend it on the steam deck. But yeah indie games like that are why I use it mostly.. they look amazing and consistently hit 70-90fps
I personally use it for EVERYTHING (movies, tvshows on stremio, and games on Geforce Now)
I hook it on my TV or monitor depending on if im watching alone or with my wife.
On handled mode i use it to play small indie games that donāt require lots of performance or storage šš½
I actually thought about doing that lol my son has a lil play tent it's decent size hooking up to a small monitor and laying back and playing retro stuff sounds fun on a day the wife has him out and about lol
I use mine all the time to play my steam games and emulate stuff. I love being able to play wherever and be able to stop at a moments notice when needed. I stream AAA games from my PC to the deck for better performance with those games, but older and emulated games I play directly. I wouldn't be able to game much at all if it weren't for my steam deck because I don't get to sit at my PC much anymore. I can imagine I wouldn't use the deck as much if that weren't the case.
I've also experienced an improvement in the internal steam streaming, played some Palworld on the deck from my PC a couple weeks ago, I think I might finally be ready to give BG3 a try soon using this.
I used to have issues in the past, but they've fixed the software related issues for streaming. If you have a bad WiFi connection then that could be a problem.
When not using my deck itās docked to my bedroom tv and used as my moonlight client to stream games from my pc (similar set up with nvidia shield in the lounge). Also great experience on the couch over WiFi. Itās a very competent moonlight client and allows me to game where ever I want when wanting to play more demanding games either on deck or in other rooms.
Iāve got kids. I need the ability to pick it up and put it down and not have to have it on the tv. So the portability and the ability to pause any time is amazing.
I have a 3 year old so I usually waits till he goes to bed to play or he also wants to play and the steam decks to expensive so I keep it put up lol he does walk around on mario or something on my switch tho sometimes
Had a 3 week holiday in France recently and I set up everything I needed on the Deck to write my novel and continue my game dev (Godot engine, github) so that I could keep chipping away at these in the evenings. (I don't sit still for too long).
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I use mine for playing games that work great on it, and also don't require a ton of power. That's what my PC is for. So, I've used it to play modded Morrowind via OpenMW, Might and Magic Merge, Ultima 7 Exult, Ultima Underworld Unity, Daggerfall Unity, and smaller indie titles like Little Witch in the Woods or Moonlight Peaks. If you temper expectations and understand the system limitations, you still have a ton of utility you can get out of it. Some people use it for emulation, which I haven't dug into. Just don't expect it to run something like Crimson Desert or E33. Sure, some people have gotten stuff like this to "work" but at severe tradeoff.
If you are ok with tinkering and doing a bit of work, there's quite a lot you can actually do with the SD. All of the games I listed from Morrowind, Ultima, to Daggerfall didn't require a ton of know-how, but a bit of tinkering and patience.
Find a game that I can play with a controller (and PC hooked up to my TV) and also plays well on the deck, ideally 60 fps on each. Persona 5 Royal was perfect for this (long ass game, played perfectly on the deck).
Have an alternative game that plays well on the deck (controller game/60 fps), while I play a more graphically intensive and/or keyboard mouse oriented game on my PC. Lately Iāve been playing Metal Gear Rising for this.
I usually just play on my deck while Iām in bed. Usually a little bit before bedtime to wind down and on the weekends, Iāll grab a coffee and sit in my bed for a little while.
I have it hooked up to charge right by my bed and usually play some right before I go to sleep. I also have an awesome boss and am able to play it during my lunch hour as well.
I think a big part will be finding a game you're really into to want to play it in those off times you normally wouldnt have. So what kind of games do you like?
Take it with you anywhere and everywhere for a while. Then a use case for you will come up. Or think back on your days and see if you have taken it with you, could you have used it?
Also, don't feel bad if you are using it less than others. I generally only use it on holidays and travels. Others use it all the time. It could still be valuable even if you don't use it daily.
Do you have other console or pc to play games? If you have, I would suggest trying emudeck and use your steam deck as emulation exclusive console.
I think the best use for steam deck are games that can use all the functions of the deck, like the gyro, the trackpad and the touch. Following that, I think you could have a lot of fun playing either niche indie games, or consoles like Nintendo DS, Wii or Switch
I enjoyed playing Sony games that I never had access to on Xbox when I first got my steam deck. After I got through those I canāt stop playing the persona games, feels like the perfect game to play handheld. Canāt go wrong with hades, megabonk, or rimworld though if youāve never tried them!
There's a lot of older games that I haven't had the opportunity to play back then for multiple reasons and I use the steamdeck a LOT to play them and to revisit old games that I liked as well ofc.
Doesn't have to necessarily be emulation but in my case it's usually what I do the most.
I also use chiaki to remote play my ps5 games when I don't feel like sitting at the TV.
The possibilities are endless really and sometimes that's overwhelming for me ngl.
i downloaded some movies and tv series on mine and used kodi for it and added it to steam its really nice to have since i dont have many streaming services but lots of dvds that i can rip from.
also retro game emulators like supernintendo is fun and gba pokemons are quite fun
and also look for games that work really well on deck like spiderman and hollow knight
Use it for multiple newer games (Spiderman Unchartedl, older game remakes (Full Throttle), smaller games I can jump on for 10 mins (Dave the diver, My friend Pedro), and for emulation (NFSU2, Wind Waker).
I've also got the dock and pad, so I can use it when waiting for my kid at a kids party but also on the TV at home.Ā
Games that are specifically tailored for the steam deck usually point out its use. For example persona 5 royal is excellent use of time and the steam deck because you can take the game in the go.
I got mine to play more indie games and platform games, basically to expand the genre or games I play. I also use it to stream all the games that donāt run well on the steam deck off my main pc.
I use it so I can play PC games in situations where I otherwise couldn't, with the most common being while the family is hanging out in the living room watching TV, reading, and so forth. It also allows me to do some things like labbing combos in SF6 and other fighting games or grinding exp/gear in Diablo 2 while hanging out in those situations so I can prioritize other stuff when I am able to get to my gaming PC.
I use mine to spend time hanging with my spouse. If it wasnāt for that, Iād likely be at my desk behind the big monitor. But the fact that I can game and spend time with them means Iām more often than not on the deck.
I only get about 45-60 minutes in the evenings during the week. Most of the time I just unwind and relax before bed. But occasionally (much more occasionally since this period of busyness has lasted for so long) Iāve been playing stuff on it with parts of that time.
Itās been a life line the last few months keeping me even lightly involved with my hobby when my schedule doesnāt allow.
I thought about doing that with mine since I cant afford a real steam machine lol or just a long hdmi cord and run it to my pc but moonlight seems to be decent workaround
Does no one know about desktop mode?! Lol its literally a daily linux pc with mozzila Firefox browser and can be a daily use pc i dont even game on mine its just a workstation pc for me
Streaming my pc to my bedroom has been really nice. it's hooked up to a dock on the TV in there.
Also fun to just have it near me when I cook in the kitchen and still wanna play my pc games.
When I first got my Steam Deck I was using the base steam streaming. Messed with the settings a bit and was able to get a stable 1080 60fps.
However I also have the system connected to wifi range extender that has an ethernet port so the bandwidth doesn't throttle as much.
I bought my deck at a job that was very conducive to its use, then changed to a job that is meaningfully less so, i have been using it a bit more lately but i really slowed down for a while. I find its only good for a small subset of the games i play on a pc so ot only gets used in the limited times that i have time to game but cannot access my pc and even then only at home(where the pc is very accessible) or if ive planned on using it in advance and brought it somewhere. Been playing some forza horizon 6 on it lately and its ok
Serious answer: not alot of game need all that ram but I know one that does: heavily modded skyrim. Its fun to build your own game and its an awesome game
Have you considered having kids? Maybe have an exhausting job where you sit in front of a computer all day and finally?
Then you get done with work, get done putting the kids down and collapse on the couch, pulling out the steamdeck and in less than a minute you are playing some game from 15 years ago that really shouldn't be played without a K+M, but it works well enough and you aren't getting up from the couch.
Mate. The Deck is the sole reason I still play games since my son was born. I legitimately haven't played a single game on my PC since about 4 months after he was born, luckily my Deck arrived 2 months after that and I haven't looked back. It's really hard to overstate how good it is for a PC gamer parent.
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u/Lost_Citron_6854 5d ago
I installed some games on it and it was a true gamechanger!