Steam’s Switch-like portable console launches this December

By Andrew Zucosky July 15, 2021

Steam revealed a new portable console called the Steam Deck, which will be available to purchase this December. The Steam Deck is a handheld system that allows players to play their Steam games on the go. There will be multiple versions of the console available starting at $399 and players can currently reserve one in specific regions.

Steam's new handheld console, the Steam Deck.

The Steam Deck, which looks quite similar to the Nintendo Switch, is a way for players to carry around their Steam library wherever they go. The device features a custom APU that was created with AMD. The portable device will also have a dock for players to connect the system to a television set or other external display.

The Steam Deck is not just a portable device that can play Steam games. Valve says that it is a full gaming PC, just in the shell of a handheld console. The Steam Deck has a Linux-based desktop that can be used as a web browser and can download third-party applications. Along with the expected buttons and triggers for a console in 2021, the Steam Deck also has two touchpads right below the joysticks as well as a touchscreen.

There are currently three pricing options for the Steam Deck. The first option is the $399 version that includes 64 GB of internal storage as well as a carrying case. The next step up is a $529 option that has 256 GB internal storage, a carrying case, and an exclusive Steam Community profile bundle. Finally, the last version is a $649 option that boasts 512 GB of internal storage, an anti-scratch screen, an exclusive carrying case, a virtual keyboard, and the exclusive Steam Community profile bundle. Each version of the console will also include a microSD slot.

Currently, reservations are available in the United States, Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom.

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My perspective changed when I chatted with Jacob Roach. Digital Trends’ Computing senior staff writer. As a PC gamer, his read on the system was entirely different from mine, focusing on game-changing features that I haven’t gotten much use out of. What became clear from that conversation is that the Steam Deck is a very different device depending on whether you’re coming at it from a PC or console background.

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The latest indie viral success on Steam is Goose Goose Duck, a free-to-play Among Us clone about geese trying to avoid being murdered by a couple of ducks in their midst. At the time of this writing, over 457,000 people were playing the game on Steam.
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As was the case with Among Us, Goose Goose Duck's viral success comes a while after launching, as Gaggle Studios' title first launched in 2021. V, a member of South Korean boy band BTS, started playing Goose Goose Duck late last year, and its player base has skyrocketed as the game caught on in Korea, China, and now, the U.S. Following a long string of games like Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, Among Us, and Wordle, it looks like Goose Goose Duck is gaming's next viral hit.
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On the surface, Goose Goose Duck is a pretty blatant Among Us clone. It's a social deduction game where players must complete tasks around a map while some other players are actually trying to kill those other players but blend in well enough not to be voted out. I played a couple of matches after hearing about its virality, and while it's a good time, the only things that really stand out about it over Among Us to me is how players draft subroles ahead of every match to get unique abilities and the mode variety.
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