Gabe Newell explains what advantages the Steam Deck offers. Especially compared to console, there is a significant advantage. This is mainly attributed to the openness of the Steam platform.
Who is Gabe Newell? Gabe Newell is the head of Valve, which also includes the Steam platform. Already about the price of the Steam Deck, Newell had commented and described the price as “painful”.
What does the boss say? In a video interview with IGN, he spoke about Valve’s new console “Steam Deck”. Among other things, he discussed what advantages the “Steam Deck” can actually offer and what role the console should play in the future (via IGN.com). Newell explains:
I don’t want to hear that someone has a Trojan horse trying to lock me out. I want to hear what I can do. If there’s hardware, I want to connect it. If there’s software, I want to install it.
How is this to be understood? Newell means that, for example, on traditional consoles, there is little influence on what can be installed and used there. Because consoles rely on a restricted, more isolated system that prevents general gamers from having any influence.
In contrast, the PC is a much more open system. Newell explains in the same interview:
We believe that the openness of the PC ecosystem is the superpower from which we all benefit.
And this openness is the big advantage of the new Steam console.
The big advantage of the Steam Deck is supposed to be its openness
This is supposed to be the advantage over PS5 and Xbox: The Steam Deck, as an open platform, fundamentally offers the possibility to install anything that interests you. And this is a significant advantage over consoles:
- PS5 and Xbox rely on their own proprietary operating system that only developers can access.
- Certain devices are also limited to the consoles. For example, the PS4 and PS5 do not support Bluetooth headsets from third parties without a dongle.
- On the PS5 and Xbox, you can only install software that is intended for it. For example, you cannot install Discord on the PlayStation.
SteamOS is installed on the Steam Deck, but according to Valve, you can also install other operating systems or programs on it.
Newell therefore compares the Steam Deck significantly with the gaming PC. Because on PC, you are not as restricted; you can open up the PC, swap hardware, or install new hardware, or install a new operating system at any time if you are unhappy with the current system. Consoles do not offer these advantages:
I mean, there have been attempts to offer mobile gaming platforms for a long time. And for someone like me, who is used to high-end desktop PCs and console gaming, it always felt like a compromise.
Whether everyone interested will get a Steam Deck at release remains questionable
But one question remains unanswered: Can Valve really meet the high demand for the Steam Deck? The demand is evident on eBay and other trading platforms.
Because here, scalpers are already trying to sell pre-orders for the Steam Deck at high prices. They are hoping for a new lucrative business with Valve’s consoles after their successes with graphics cards and next-gen consoles.
Meanwhile, there is at least a bit of relaxation in the hardware market. Graphics cards are still very expensive and often hardly available, but at least prices for graphics cards are currently decreasing again. Many are now hoping that prices will return to a reasonable level during 2021 and 2022.
