Steam Deck: The Second Opinion
Katharine gives us her first impressions of Valve's handheld hardware
Valve recently ramped up production for the Steam Deck, with more and more pre-orders being fulfilled every single day. As a result, a few of us here at the RPS Treehouse have finally received that much anticipated email letting us know that our little handheld baby is ready to be personally delivered by Gabe Newell dressed like a big stork. Editor-in-chief Katharine was the first to receive their shiny new Steam Deck, following hardware editor James who's had a review copy since February, so we were keen to hear her first impressions of the console.
In the video above, James and I ask Katharine all the important questions you'd expect to give to a fresh faced Steam Deck owner. What do you think of the battery life? How many visual novels have you already installed? Do you use the track pads? No seriously, Katharine, just how many visual novels do you have on there already? The result is a very nice conversation about the Steam Deck between someone who's just begun their handheld PC journey and a relative veteran who has been using one since just before launch. Also, I'm there, quietly seething that I pre-ordered mine too late and still haven't got it yet.
Well, I say that. We actually recorded this all the way back in May, but between Geoff-Fest and a bout of annual leave it's taken me the best part of two months to edit this video together. It took me so long, in fact, that I've receieved my own Steam Deck since recording. The result is a video that includes both footage of me playing a Steam Deck as well as audio of me whinging that I don't have one yet. It's like watching time collapse in on itself, where the past and present play out simultaneously without anyone truly comprehending what's happening. It's sort of beautiful, really. Or maybe this is just my way of justifying taking two months to edit a pretty simple video together. Who knows.
If you're looking for more Steam Deck coverage, I recently challenged James to play ten games from ten different genres on the handheld to see what works best. And if you're lucky enough to own a Deck of your own, why not consult our list of the 30 best Steam Deck games to play on the go to make sure you're making the most of your shiny new hardware?
