|OT| Valve's Steam Deck - OLED refresh shipping to folks

Ge0force

Excluding exclusives
Jan 12, 2019
3,984
13,796
113
Belgium
Nice! Have you tried 40 Hz by chance?
Yes I have. While 40-45Hz gave me great results for certain other games, it lead to much higher temps and battery usage for Kiwami 2. Not sure what caused this, but 30fps is fine for me for 3rd person games on a small screen. 1st person games and racers definitely benefit from higher framerates.
 

LEANIJA

MetaMember
May 5, 2019
2,949
7,386
113
Austria
Looks like an update to the 2K Launcher broke Civ VI on Deck.

Fuckin’ 2K!
same thing happened with The Quarry (on my Linux laptop, no the Deck, but Im not playing the game on Deck because it doesnt support Steam Cloud, and I like to switch between laptop and Deck) – this workaround helped me: in the launch options, I added this

bash -c 'exec "${@/2KLauncher\/LauncherPatcher.exe/TheQuarry.exe}"' -- %command% -dx11
check if there is a similar way to get around the 2K launcher for Civ6.

someone on ProtonDb listed this:

eval $( echo "%command%" | sed "s/2KLauncher\/LauncherPatcher.exe'.*/Base\/Binaries\/Win64Steam\/CivilizationVI.exe'/" )
https://www.protondb.com/app/289070#GP4yXYME6b
 
  • Like
Reactions: C-Dub

Joe Spangle

Playing....
Apr 17, 2019
2,417
8,223
113
Gah i hate all those extra launcher screens that companies put on their games, often ages after they were released. I went to fire up XCom 2 and found some shity launcher that i couldnt control with my joypad so i have to get up, get the mouse, get it working, click 'play'. Such a faff.

Boo to stupid launcher screens.
 

C-Dub

Makoto Niijima Fan Club President
Dec 23, 2018
3,992
11,886
113
same thing happened with The Quarry (on my Linux laptop, no the Deck, but Im not playing the game on Deck because it doesnt support Steam Cloud, and I like to switch between laptop and Deck) – this workaround helped me: in the launch options, I added this



check if there is a similar way to get around the 2K launcher for Civ6.

someone on ProtonDb listed this:



https://www.protondb.com/app/289070#GP4yXYME6b
Thanks for the tip. But it looks like they already fixed it with an update. Will try it again soon.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LEANIJA

Guilty of Being

META MAN
Dec 5, 2018
1,607
3,971
113
Texas
I ended up not going through with the Steam Deck I ordered. I may, in the future get one. I had to first, however, get a new PC. I haven't heard a single negative thing from my friends that ordered one. I may put my name in the hat for the next batch, but more than likely I'll wait until '23 to consider getting one.
 

ExistentialThought

Coffee Lover ♥☕
Feb 29, 2020
1,561
4,836
113
Quickly tried it and Warriors Orochi 3 works on experimental without videos. If you use Proton GE instead, then videos work too. Proton 7 otherwise hangs after the developer logos. (Then again, maybe this is another AI: The Somnium Files, where it works for some folks out of the box).

On first launch the resolution is super low, but easy to change. It also forces vsync to either 30 or 60 FPS, not sure why. It is possible under some combination of settings the option to turn it off is available, but at least on my settings I cannot completely turn it off. I should try it on my PC, but I do not want to redownload it right now. Consequently, you cannot use a 40-59FPS/Hz mode. I have not messed around with settings too much, but a solid 60FPS would require turning down a decent amount from what I can tell (edit: also seems a bit stuttery at 60FPS vsync), so 30FPS it is, but I wish I could turn off the in-game vsync and then I could use a slightly higher rate.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: lashman and Cacher

Ge0force

Excluding exclusives
Jan 12, 2019
3,984
13,796
113
Belgium
Last night I tried to run The Witcher Enhanced Edition (2008) on the Deck with a few mods that replace the textures, interface and character models. It took me a while to get it done and to find a community made control scheme that it liked (the game has no controller support), but the result is absolutely worth it. This is what makes the Deck so awesome compared to console handhelds! 🥰
 

Arc

MetaMember
Sep 19, 2020
2,648
10,043
113
I finally got mine and spent a few hours playing it today. Just a few rambling thoughts:
-It's large, but not as large as I had envisioned.
-The screen looks crisper than I would have imagined.
-The analog sticks are nice, but I wish they were a bit more convex in design.
-The face buttons slightly too squishy for my taste, but I'm a big fan of clicky buttons. The shoulder buttons and triggers are both great though.
-The UI and UX are both wonderful. One of my biggest fears was that the experience would feel kind of janky, but it has a very streamlined and console-like feel.
-I've only played a few games (Binding of Isaac, DJ Max, Final Fantasy VI and Monster Hunter Rise) and they all worked great
-Playing Monster Hunter Rise at 60 FPS at max settings is impressive, but as that only gives about 2 hours of battery life, I decided to lower the FPS to 40 and lower settings so I can squeeze another hour of battery life. For what it's worth, Final Fantasy VI appears to have about 5 hours battery life which seems pretty good.

It's an impressive little toy all things considered.
 

skLaFarebear

MetaMember
Dec 4, 2019
653
1,230
93
Very annoying bug rn with the Steam Deck and Yuzu, where booting up any game started giving me crackling audio. Couldn't figure out what was causing it, but in order to fix it for that session only, you have to click the audio devices (the audio icon at the bottom) in desktop mode and that'll resolve it. Of course this is useless in game mode. It wasn't doing this a couple weeks ago, which leads me to believe an update with Yuzu must've broken it.

Not sure if doing a clean reinstall of Yuzu will fix it or not, don't really care enough to try since I'm only playing Mario 3D World on it atm. This might also be a bug specific to me cuz I haven't heard of anyone else's Yuzu giving them audio troubles on the deck.
 
Last edited:

Joe Spangle

Playing....
Apr 17, 2019
2,417
8,223
113
My main criticism is that my fingers dont really land on the back buttons/paddles very well so they are difficult to use. Thankfully no game ive played yet really uses them so no real big deal.
 
  • Like
Reactions: lashman

Knurek

OG old coot
Oct 16, 2018
2,438
6,000
113
My main criticism is that my fingers dont really land on the back buttons/paddles very well so they are difficult to use. Thankfully no game ive played yet really uses them so no real big deal.
Where are you trying to press them? If I try to hit them on the sloped sections, they are terrible, but as soon as I shifted fingers to tap them on the back plate, it's been peaches.
 

Mivey

MetaMember
Sep 20, 2018
3,962
11,271
113
Where are you trying to press them? If I try to hit them on the sloped sections, they are terrible, but as soon as I shifted fingers to tap them on the back plate, it's been peaches.
This is something that can be hard to grasp, as intuitively you'd press them into the grips and not into the back of the display. I like the back paddles, but I think Valve could improve their design a bit in a Deck 2.0
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe Spangle

MomoVideo

ķ͕͕̍̅͋ḭ̼͂̕lļ͓̞̙̀͗͆̊ ͉͛m͕̲̮̆̒̐̍͢e ͠
Apr 5, 2021
816
2,315
93
Note: This update is for the Steam Deck Client Beta channel, and includes new features that are still being tested. You can opt into this in Settings > System > Steam Update Channel.

  • Fixed a bug where some flatpak applications (like Edge) couldn't successfully quit
  • Fixed some issues with claiming Steam Deck digital rewards
  • Updated keyboard behavior for improved fast typing on trackpad and touchscreen. (pressing a key while holding another key will now commit the held key instead of waiting for first to release)
 

Joe Spangle

Playing....
Apr 17, 2019
2,417
8,223
113
Where are you trying to press them? If I try to hit them on the sloped sections, they are terrible, but as soon as I shifted fingers to tap them on the back plate, it's been peaches.
This is something that can be hard to grasp, as intuitively you'd press them into the grips and not into the back of the display. I like the back paddles, but I think Valve could improve their design a bit in a Deck 2.0
You know what, I've been trying to press them into the grips like you say, just played around with them a bit and clicking into the back plate is definitely easier. They aren't quite in the best position for my fingers but i can see using them a bit better now. Thanks.
 

Galdere

MetaMember
Oct 20, 2018
24
51
13
Did any of you get those deck protect packs from china with the trackpad stickers in etc? I'm reluctant to use the vent dust covers as I think they will block too much air flow. Who else has tried the soft silicone and tpu covers? I have both and think I prefer the silicon but haven't tried the other much.
 

Galdere

MetaMember
Oct 20, 2018
24
51
13
only got the tpu one for now and so far so good , ordered the silicone one too but that hasnt arrived yet
I'd be interested to know how you find it. I like that the silicone one covers the front as well and has some grip to it, although I prefer the feel of the TPU one but haven't used it much.
 

skLaFarebear

MetaMember
Dec 4, 2019
653
1,230
93
After trying to make non steam games work through Steam Remote Play for a couple hours, I've come to the conclusion that it's simply better to just use Moonlight. There's of course a few disadvantages with this. You have to make multiple controller profiles for Moonlight and swap to them rather than just each game having their own like with regular Steam games, but the trade off is that your controller profiles actually work, where I could never get it to ever work using SRP.

The second, and more minor, is the resolution settings. Unfortunately there's no resolution per game setting which wouldn't normally be a big deal if ur just using 720p or 1280x800p for most stuff, but for playing stuff that's 4:3 like older visual novels, you'll have to manually change it to 800x600 to get a good resolution. Not a deal breaker, but it would be nice if Moonlight had per game settings.

On the plus side, I've noticed Moonlight has a bit quicker response time, looks a fair bit clearer if you set the bitrate higher, is less prone to disconnecting, and drains the battery a bit slower than using SRP.

I haven't tried using SRP on anything that's actually a Steam game because I haven't played anything yet that's on Steam that doesn't run natively on my Deck, but I imagine it works much better than non steam games. For non steam games, I highly recommend just using Moonlight unless they actually improve Steam Remote Play.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Galdere

MomoVideo

ķ͕͕̍̅͋ḭ̼͂̕lļ͓̞̙̀͗͆̊ ͉͛m͕̲̮̆̒̐̍͢e ͠
Apr 5, 2021
816
2,315
93
I was getting very annoyed at my left stick, which had this rubbing feeling when moving it. It got progressively worse as I used it. I almost bought a new analog stick from iFixit, but when I saw the final price with shipping I quickly said no. I even started thinking about RMA'ing my unit, but I thought before I did that I will try opening it one last time. I removed the analog stick, I sprayed it very generously with compressed air from all sides, inside and outside, and now it feels buttery smooth. It looks like something got stuck inside the analog stick when it was assembled because this analog stick felt terrible to use since I got it.
 

Galdere

MetaMember
Oct 20, 2018
24
51
13
I've changed to to a anker nano II 65w charger which works well and fits in the bag and case space better. It allows me to use a longer cable and I've gone for one of the those magnetic detachable 60w rated c to c ones with 360 degree swivel on it which is much better to use.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pommes

Amzin

No one beats me 17 times in a row!
Dec 5, 2018
1,001
2,110
113
Is there a way to submit feedback for "unknown" games when they work perfectly start to finish for me? Or do they only check for feedback when they think it's verified already?
 
  • Like
Reactions: lashman

Cacher

Romantic Storm
Jun 3, 2020
4,133
12,610
113
First impressions:
  • the size is huge, but surprisingly it is much lighter than I expected. Very easy to hold, too!
  • the software is a bit buggy. I encountered some minor bugs already (eg. after turning off the performance overlay the framerate count didn't disappear)
  • BUT the games I have tested, either verified or unsupported, ran flawlessly during my brief testing
  • Even rather old games like Deadrising which was released during the 360/PS3 era looked pretty good on the screen. Able to run in 60fps locked, too!
  • Slay the Spire ON THE GO, WITH MODS.
  • The Witness looks like something directly made by Jesus himself. Looks absolutely gorgeous.
  • Regarding tinkering.
-> I followed this guide and managed to add a window-based Japanese visual novel demo to the steam library. Run flawlessly and look gorgeous on the screen. That satisfaction when it booted up felt better than gaming itself.
-> I also did this: (the game is Sakura Taisen 1 & 2 on PSP)


Conclusion:
The machine is a great handheld out of the box. But if you want to unlock its true potential, you better learn from Thanos:

And the result? One of the best (or the best) handheld ever made. I am now genuinely scared by this bad boy. It allows me to play nekopara on the train.
 

Arc

MetaMember
Sep 19, 2020
2,648
10,043
113
I spent a good hour getting Xcloud set up since I kept on messing things up. It was worth it though since I played an hour of Power Wash Simulator in bed before going to sleep. It's the first time I can say Xcloud was an enjoyable experience since the video quality always looked poor on my TV and desktop monitor and playing on my phone with touch screen controls always felt janky and not worth it.

Going on a tangent: in my personal experience, the rigmarole of getting Xcloud set up is an argument, for me, against bothering with any other services. I like the console-esque experience that is the default. I know I can tinker, but at the same time I'd rather be playing games instead. Mower power to the folks that want to mess around, and props to Valve for making it an option, but it isn't for me.
 

LionelInoe

Linux Advocate
Jul 13, 2022
39
100
33
Is there a way to submit feedback for "unknown" games when they work perfectly start to finish for me? Or do they only check for feedback when they think it's verified already?
You could try finding the game listed on Proton's github issues page and just submit that everything worked for you in the comments. I do wish there was a way for users to use steam itself to send this kind of information since it's probably important for the team to hear these types of things from deck users directly.

Obviously, if the game isn't listed, I would just leave it. Maybe leaving a good review from the deck on steam would be good enough to get their attention.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cacher

kio

MetaMember
Apr 19, 2019
1,447
4,656
113
Probably a stupid question but since there's a lot of knowledgeable people here I might as well ask.
How do you "alt tab" to another app, like a browser for instance, while within the deck steam ecosystem? Is it possible?
 

lashman

Dead & Forgotten
Sep 5, 2018
30,370
85,146
113
Probably a stupid question but since there's a lot of knowledgeable people here I might as well ask.
How do you "alt tab" to another app, like a browser for instance, while within the deck steam ecosystem? Is it possible?
press the steam button, then go to your library, and launch whatever else you need
 
  • Love
Reactions: kio

Amzin

No one beats me 17 times in a row!
Dec 5, 2018
1,001
2,110
113
Probably a stupid question but since there's a lot of knowledgeable people here I might as well ask.
How do you "alt tab" to another app, like a browser for instance, while within the deck steam ecosystem? Is it possible?
To add to what lashman said, the "gaming mode" and "desktop mode" seem to be semi-isolated instances, so you can't open something on desktop and tab to it from gaming mode (it's not the equivalent of big picture mode on Windows which I long assumed). However you can add programs running Steam in desktop mode as non-Steam games and then launch them inside gaming mode and they'll be listed if they're open when you hit the Steam key.

You can also probably just use the Steam client in the desktop mode and actually tab around maybe but I haven't tried it and seems like more trouble than the other way
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: kio and lashman

C-Dub

Makoto Niijima Fan Club President
Dec 23, 2018
3,992
11,886
113
To add to what lashman said, the "gaming mode" and "desktop mode" seem to be semi-isolated instances, so you can't open something on desktop and tab to it from gaming mode (it's not the equivalent of big picture mode on Windows which I long assumed).
I learned this when I was wondering why Syncthing wasn't working in Gaming Mode at first. But I found a solution on Reddit, so all's good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: lashman

C-Dub

Makoto Niijima Fan Club President
Dec 23, 2018
3,992
11,886
113
Put a couple of hours into Stray and I absolutely adore it. The controls are really satisfying, I love exploring the slums and it's very pretty.

No opinion on the story yet, but I'm intrigued by the world and its mysteries.

Plus I just love cats.