Valve doesn’t need to compete with Nintendo Switch 2 right now, suggests poll

Do you think Valve should release Steam Deck 2 now that Switch 2 has been revealed?

  • Yes, Valve needs to compete with Nintendo Switch 2

  • No, Valve should wait for better hardware

Results are only viewable after voting.
Yoboman said:
So Steam deck is basically the Xbox of the handheld space

A complete sales failure and irrelevant in userbase size but we've got the US gaming media pretending that isn't the reality
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Valve can stop making them right now and the hit to PC gaming and Valve themselves would be close to insignificant. Steam Deck isn't a separate platform or the primary way of playing PC games. The Steam Deck is an accessory for most people.
 
Deck 2 is going to be 2028+ I expect. I want to believe 2026-2027, but it's Valve.

Also Deck 2 might be around the same time as Deckard, if it's possible to make it priced low enough, if not, it'll be Deckard then Deck 2 a year later.

Deck is already close enough to Switch 2 (in the sense it can run the same games, albeit worse) that there's no pressure to iterate from Switch 2 IMO.
 
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Minsc said:
Deck 2 is going to be 2028+ I expect. I want to believe 2026-2027, but it's Valve.

Also Deck 2 might be around the same time as Deckard, if it's possible to make it priced low enough, if not, it'll be Deckard then Deck 2 a year later.

Deck is already close enough to Switch 2 (in the sense it can run the same games, albeit worse) that there's no pressure to iterate from Switch 2 IMO.
Click to expand...

Valve is also putting its full support behind third party handhelds. Lenovo and Asus are set to have Steam Deck OS as an option this year so Valve's dependence on new handheld hardware is pretty much non-existent. Of course, the entire handheld market could disappear and Valve would be fine.
 
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I hope they wait for a significant hardware upgrade, not just more power but a significant, paradigm-shifting feature... and for my wallet to recover from Switch 2.
 
They barely acknowledge each other. The only time being when Nintendo asked Valve to take down the Dolphin emulator on its store.
 
Good thing about Steam is that the Deck is like an add-on or something, PCMR is the primary way to play games, so Valve should wait for better HW in the near future, no need to rush
 
Valve doesn't compete with Nintendo period.

they sell less Decks in 2 years than Nintendo sells switches in 1 quarter.
the Deck is an enthusiast product, the Switch/Switch 2 is a mainstream product.
 
I'm eagerly looking forward to my first SD which hopefully will be the SD2. Therefore, I hope they release it before end of 2026.
Actually, I don't need a powerful SD2 so I rather see they release a SD Light which would be light and thin made for indie games.
And I believe such a console should be possible to release sooner than a beefed up SD2
 
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Gabe, I know you be lurkin' here. As much as I'd love to see a SD2 soon-ish we both know SteamOS is where you need to pour all of your R&D resources.

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Steam deck isn't a dedicated platform it's just one way to play PC Games.

The comparisons to consoles make no sense to me.

However having said that… many Deck fans seem to think the sales of PC handhelds rival that of consoles and it's far from true lol
 
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Yoboman said:
So Steam deck is basically the Xbox of the handheld space

A complete sales failure and irrelevant in userbase size but we've got the US gaming media pretending that isn't the reality
Click to expand...

lol you can be sure that Valve does not see the SD as a sales failure. They jumpstarted a new hardware industry, and every handheld PC sale from their "competitors" is another 30% profit in Valves pocket on every game sold. It's like if 90% of games on every gameboy knockoff and microsoft/sony console were purchased through the E-shop.
 
Steam Deck is what pulled me back into PC gaming. I don't think the purpose ever was to try to sell a hardware platform as much as it was to get more people interested in buying games on Steam and I have to believe it was successful at that.
 
The interesting stat would be to see if PC handhelds are actually increasing game sales on Steam. They likely are for sure, but it's not like a console platform where it's the only option to play those games. Some people bought a Steam Deck and haven't changed their purchase habits at all, some were existing PC Gamers who might have increased their purchases because of a new way to play, and some are people attracted to PC gaming because Deck/other handhelds came out and were pretty high quality.

My guess is it's mostly the 1st 2 groups of people and not so much the 3rd though. Valve probably has some metrics trying to track exactly this.
 
You don't need a pool to suggest that. A functioning brain would suffice.

Valve doesn't give a fuck about new Console hardware releases, unless they're somehow related to the Steam backend.

For example, new controller drivers for Steam Input. The new Switch 2 Pro controller will get official Steam Input support, from Valve. That's all they care.
 
They could release a "SteamDeck 3" and it still wouldn't compete with the Switch 2. That thing will sell more than the combined sales of all PC handhelds in its first year.

That said I also think they are very different products. SteamDeck isn't positioned/advertised as a home console, while Switch is.
 
Sevyne said:
They don't need to rush a Steam Deck 2 because everyone else is doing the work for them now. They were just there to give a little push and get the wheels turning.
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Very true.
Goes for Steam in general.

1. Now that both Sony and Microsoft ports their console games to Steam they bring some previous console-only people into PC gaming and more people to Steam.

2. If Microsoft add Steam access as a feature on their next console then that'll be a Steam Machine of sorts and will bring more people to Steam.

3. When ASUS start selling a SteamOS variant of ROG Ally that'll be like a new Steam Deck and will bring more people to Steam.

Valve don't have to react to anyone.
 
Jeff Goldblum What GIF by The Late Late Show with James Corden


If we think about this ongoing consolidation, the market leaders are:

PS = Home Console
Nintendo = Handheld
PC = Steam
Mobile = Android/Iphone.


The Switch was the consolidation of Nintendo's pathetic home console market share with their dominant handheld market share. I think one of the main reasons Nintendo was able to thrive in the handheld market was its affordability AND its ability to consistently offer something that has been irreplaceable over the years: family-friendly software: games for children usually in tandem with corky hardware 🤷‍♂️.

If the market (Steam and PlayStation) realizes that handhelds/cloud devices are extensions of their storefronts, Nintendo could face the same battle it had to fight against PlayStation and Xbox all over again (but now, with Steam instead of Xbox). :goog_eek::goog_eek::goog_eek::goog_eek:...If Nintendo's software is so special and magical, why wasn't it enough to save their home consoles? (Makes you think, huh?)

Nintendo games are often overrated by nostalgic fans, and while "special" in the Nintendo way, they've managed to thrive because they're paired with affordable hardware (albeit weak) that showcases the hardware's capabilities; making them the best experiences you can have (which explains their crazy attachment ratio)

Have you noticed how, with the Nintendo Direct drama, the Switch 2 discourse has become part of the console wars, while for years Nintendo was on its own island, let alone?

what I'm saying is:

With a Nintendo console that's much more capable of running current-gen games, comparisons between third-party titles across "Steam hardware" and PlayStation hardware are going to be inevitable. Looking at the smashing success of the original Switch (which didn't have the strongest third-party support):

Who is the Switch 2 speaking to, in terms of third-party games on its console?

Either the Switch 2 helps make portable gaming go mainstream (in terms of "big boy games") and, in turn, boosts the market share of Steam hardware and a potential PlayStation portable (at the expense of the Switch 2's own share), or it reaffirms Nintendo's dominance in the handheld space where, (if the price is in the same ballpark), Nintendo's software will need to achieve what it couldn't in the home console space

shit is going to be very interesting.
 
The only thing I need from Valve is a much better form factor with their next offering. My Steam Deck looks like a Sega Game Gear 2.0 compared to every other sleeker, thinner model that has come out after it.
 
How could they "compete", if they can't mass-produce the thing. But more importantly,, who would buy them?
 
Sales-wise, Steam Deck doesn't compete with Switch. Steam Deck 2 probably wouldn't compete with Switch 2.
They have different libraries, too.
 
I've been looking on Steam for a refurb Steamdeck 512GB OLED the last month or so and haven't been able to get it. Evidently people like it.

Nonetheless, if the SD2 hardware isn't quite available yet, a small price drop would be nice.
 
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Are people seriously under the impression that Valve is any way, shape or form is trying to compete with Nintendo on anything? It's like saying "Someone should watch out and compete" because another person is also breathing
 
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