Steam Deck Can Dual-Boot Windows
Video Credit: IGN
I’m gonna repeat myself a lot, but I have to every time the Steam Deck is the subject, to confirm to the readers that it is happening. The Steam Deck is a portable gaming PC… which can be used as a normal PC, not just for gaming. But it is designed for gaming, so it is a gaming PC. You can play your Steam library (not all of it, mind you) on the go, just remember to always bring your charger. While it looks like a pipe dream, most of the prototype demos shown on YouTube confirmed that it is the real deal, a beast that can play anything PS4 and Xbox One offer. Valve even sent out dev-kits (which are more-or-less close to the final version) to developers, who happily confirmed that most of their games do work. It’s so great that fans began to flood social media (and Gabe’s email) with questions about the system. Valve offered a FAQ section that answered many questions.One section, in particular, confirmed that you can dual-boot Windows. Well, not just Windows, but multiple operating systems. Oh, you can even boot an operating system from a microSD, meaning you can still use the SteamOS while simultaneously using other OSs on multiple microSDs. While Valve prefers to use Linux for their products, the Steam Deck will not be a closed platform like consoles and it is a great starting point for PC gaming. The future is now looking up.
The Steam Deck is the system I’ve always wanted and the portable system that will let me play any time I can. PlayStation and Xbox offer great stuff, but with PlayStation you have to own the console to play their exclusives. But PC is different, which Steam took advantage of for a long time. Yes, they failed with the Steam Machine, which helped Valve create the ultimate system for portability, a system that can be customised just as easily. They also made it at a reasonable price point, to make it viable, since we know that what China makes is out of our reach. I won’t buy the Steam Deck right away, but if the finished product is that good… then I’m gonna kiss my Xbox One S goodbye… for a long time.
Anti-Cheat Software Will Support the Steam Deck at Launch
Video Credit: Science and tech news
When the Steam Deck was revealed, there were issues with online games not working with Proton. Valve promised to work with the vendors to tweak those problems before the Deck releases in December. Software BattlEye and Easy Anti-Cheat have recently confirmed they will support the upcoming system, however, it’ll be up to the game developers if they want to allow it or not. Given the Deck’s popularity and some developers even getting to fiddle with the system as dev-kits, those game developers will have to allow their online games to run smoothly on the Deck for any present and new players who will get their hands on the system, be they the people who pre-ordered for December or those who will wait until the second quarter of 2022. The system is super legit and Valve answered every question the people will have about the system, so the Deck is pretty much a guaranteed success - if not a big success for AAA players, then it’ll be a success for gamers, like myself, who want to play games from the past and the present.
Now that’s an obstacle off the Steam Deck. Actually, as in the previous article, you don’t have to use Linux, you can totally use Windows or any of your favorite operating systems. No matter how many naysayers there are and how many comparisons they make with the Nintendo Switch. The Steam Deck is a different beast, a beast with the horsepower of a PS4 and Xbox One, the Nintendo Switch is a platform dedicated to casual players while the Steam Deck is directed at broader gamers, who would rather play the games with beefy specs. It’s a PC which will downsize all other PCs.
Not All Steam Games Will Work on the Steam Deck
Video Credit: gameranx
James B. Ramey, president of CodeWeavers, said it was unlikely that every game on Steam would work on the Steam Deck. People were getting the wrong idea and may be expecting the Steam Deck to be compatible with every game in their collection. It all stemmed from an IGN interview with Valve’s Pierre-Loup Griffais, who said: “This is the first time we’ve achieved the level of performance that is required to really run the latest generation of games without problems. All the games we wanted to be playable is, really, the entire Steam library. We haven’t really found something we could throw at this device that it couldn't handle.” Ramey thinks Griffais didn’t account for issues with Proton compatibility. In a Boiling Steam podcast interview, Ramey said: “I think there are two messages that have been kind of mashed together when people focus and talk on this. The first message is when Pierre-Loup made his announcement and stated that the Steam Deck can support any and all games. I think what he was referencing is — and this is my opinion, this is my perception, this is not something I have talked to him about — but I think he was trying to state that the device itself, the hardware specs on this device, can support any game. I don’t necessarily think he was referencing supporting that game in Proton — I think he was referencing that the device has the horsepower, the video graphics, the RAM, the hard drive space to support any game out there.” As of now, according to ProtonDB, Proton supports over 16.000 games, Ramey is still correct in that this doesn’t include every single game available on Steam. But it’s still a bigger amount of games than what the Steam Machine could offer.
While not every game will play well in Proton, Proton is a project separate from the Steam Deck. It existed before the Steam Deck! Whenever I see a game I want, I check for compatibility on ProtonDB, and if it’s either Platinum (runs great) or Gold (it’ll run great through some tweaks), I’ll buy it. But it doesn’t mean I’ll buy it right away: once the Steam Deck proves legit publicly, first I buy the Deck, then I’ll buy more games. I don’t aim to get every game Steam offers, I’ll just buy one game, finish it, then I buy the next game. By the time I finish a game, Proton should add more compatible games, its list growing more and more. In retrospect, if your game isn’t compatible with Proton, don’t fuss. Get the next game that’s Platinum, this way you can abide your time until the game you originally wanted gets Platinum. Do it to expand your tastes.
Sonic Colours Ultimate Has Problems on the Switch
Video Credit: Sega
Sonic Colours Ultimate is the same Wii game upgraded for modern hardware and available on the PS4, Xbox One, PC (via Steam) and the Nintendo Switch… the Switch port has problems. According to some users, the game has numerous glitches and even a seizure-inducing moment. To be fair, the game was played on Yuzu, a Nintendo Switch emulator, but the fact is that if the glitches exist, they can still become a problem. Some people even reported that the game also has problems on other platforms. Even worse, Blind Squirrel Games, developer behind Ultimate, somehow forgot to credit the creator of the Godot Engine, which they promised to fix in a patch. It’s gonna take more than a credit fix to save the game, though. Sega has yet to comment on these problems, but they should, so they don’t ruin the 30th anniversary.
While the current pandemic has caused delays in the game industry, Sega definitely isn’t doing any better. They released a game that had problems, but hey, those problems will be rectified in a future update. Hopefully. Even so, that’s not very consumer-friendly when the game is $60. You’re lucky to just wait for a sale. Some companies are not as careless, but others are just as greedy. Business does what business does. But seriously, Sonic deserves better, especially on his anniversary.
N64 & Sega Genesis Games Will Come on Nintendo Switch Online... As an Expansion Pass
Video Credit: GameSpot
Nintendo announced they will add a membership tier to NS Online which will include games from the Nintendo 64 and (unexpectedly) the Sega Genesis. The tier, Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass, will be released in late October. No price was confirmed as of now, but Nintendo did share what games will be available and will come to the platform in the future. These are:
N64 Games at Launch - Super Mario 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Mario Kart 64, Star Fox 64, Sin and Punishment, Dr. Mario 64, Mario Tennis 64, WinBack, Yoshi’s Story.
N64 Games To Be Added Soon - Banjo-Kazooie*, Pokemon Snap, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, Mario Golf, Paper Mario, F-Zero X
Sega Genesis Games at Launch - Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Streets of Rage 2, Ecco the Dolphin, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Contra: Hard Corps, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, Golden Axe, Gunstar Heroes, M.U.S.H.A., Phantasy Star IV, Ristar, Shining Force, Shinobi III - Return of the Ninja Master, Strider
* This is the first time this game became available on a Nintendo platform since Microsoft acquired developer Rare in 2002.
Just like NES and SNES, Nintendo will also sell wireless versions of the N64 and Sega Genesis controllers at $49.99 for NS Online subscribers. Other information, such as the price, will be revealed by Nintendo ahead of the launch date of the new tier and current subscribers can upgrade to the new tier.
While we were expecting games from the Nintendo 64 to come to NS Online (especially because not everybody is lucky enough to own Super Mario 3D All-Stars), it was a shocker to see that games from the Sega Genesis will also join the online platform. But it remains to be seen if it will justify the price of the tier. Or, Nintendo should let us choose which games from which platform to play from our subscription. But it’s still a great addition to the amazing library of Nintendo Switch Online, one which will draw even more people towards the Switch. It’ll be very tempting.
Favorite Game - Haven
Yu and Kay are two lovers who, unsatisfied with the Apiary’s matchmaking system, run away to a planet named Source, where they live happily ever after… almost. While they gather food to survive, they stumble on a flow portal that takes them to another landmass of Source. While they work together to search for items and other resources, they fight against hostile lifeforms and robots from the Apiary, sent by people who seek to separate Yu and Kay. You, the player, can decide the fate of these lovers, if they stay together or let the oppression win.
Haven is an RPG game developed and published by The Game Bakers. Whether you play alone or with your special someone, you glide through the landmass via gravity boots powered by flow threads. The combat system is similar to a rhythm game, as you use the characters’ moves in synchronisation to achieve high damage. As described by the team, this is the first game that depicts the romance between two characters with great maturity. The game is very good and it’s available on Xbox One/Series S/X (also available for free on Game Pass for Console and PC), PlayStation 4 & 5, PC (via Steam) and the Nintendo Switch.
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