I've always been a PC gamer, ever since I was five or six years old, playing Day of the Tentacle in ScummVM on my grandparents' computer. I would sometimes play the PlayStation 2 or even the Nintendo Wii a couple of years after that came out, but games like Portal, Team Fortress 2, and even Minecraft were what had me coming back to my PC. It's where my favorite games were, and the ability to play with mods was something that I couldn't get elsewhere.

However, as years went by, I found myself only playing one or two games with my time. I'd play games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, but would spend my waking hours elsewhere. I didn't want to sit at my computer all day, especially given that my computer is also where I work. However, with an ever-growing backlog of games, I was left in a situation where I had games I wanted to play but never really could find the time or the energy to do so.

Thanks to the open availability of the Steam Deck, though, I've been able to play through games that I've been meaning to for years. Rather than sitting at my PC even after I finish work, I can move elsewhere with my Steam Deck and bring the games I want to play with me. I can lie in bed, on the couch, or take a train up to Dublin and play games like Half-Life. It's even given me the ability to spend more time with my girlfriend, who enjoys watching a lot of the games that I play.

About this editorial: I purchased the Steam Deck for myself when pre-orders opened. Valve had no input into the contents of this editorial.

Valve's Steam Deck solves a problem that a lot of gamers have

I feel like my experience with the Steam Deck isn't unique. I have 203 games in my Steam library, including games I've been meaning to get to for years — like Portal 2 or Half-Life 2 — but I didn't want to spend my free time at my computer (unless I was playing multiplayer games like Counter-Strike or VALORANT with friends). After getting the Steam Deck, I beat Portal 2 in just a couple of days. While only 46 games in my library are Deck Verified at the time of this writing, many others still work without any modifications, so there are a lot of options for continuing through my backlog.

Where it gets even better is the modding potential. Valve's Steam Deck is, at its core, a portable Linux-based computer that uses Proton, a compatibility layer that helps it run Windows games. There's a desktop mode where you can install programs to your heart's content, and you can set yourself up with great projects like EmuDeck to emulate some of your favorite consoles from the past. They're not ancient consoles either: you can even play some PS3 games on the Steam Deck. I can also play the free games I get through Epic Games, as the Heroic Game Launcher works with Proton.

In essence, the Steam Deck has completely changed some of the games I play and how I've played them. We've all heard the stereotype of the PC gamer with hundreds of games in their library who never plays any of them. That was me, and the Steam Deck is giving me the ability to finally make a dent in that.

The future of Steam Deck

I love my Steam Deck, but there are definitely ways that Valve could make it an even better device. For starters, the specifications that it has punches well above its own weight. It uses an integrated AMD APU for graphics, packs 16GB of RAM, and up to 512GB of storage. It can run quite hot and loud, and the battery won't last very long with the most intensive games. I can play a game like GTA V on the go, but it says I'll only get about two hours of battery life.

The Steam Deck could do with a better screen and a more power-efficient chipset. However, it's tough to find a balance between power efficiency and actual performance, and I don't have a lot of complaints about what it's capable of currently. Aside from that, I would also love to see the company build a device with better ergonomics. Those with smaller hands, like myself, might have issues with some games. I gave a friend my Steam Deck to use, and she struggled with Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered because she had smaller hands.

The other issue I have is the button placement. I often slide across the touchpads when I'm playing games, and for games that actually use the touchpads in-game, it can cause conflicting inputs. Left for Dead 2 makes use of these touchpads to quick-access certain equipped items, and I keep sliding across it when moving around with the left thumbstick. It's not a big deal since it doesn't confirm the input until I click it, but I can see it causing issues in other games.

Even still, I'm really happy that I picked up the Steam Deck. I'm exploring titles in my library that I never had before, and I'm enjoying games that for years I've wanted and never found the time to. The Steam Deck has changed how I play games, and being able to play AAA titles on the go is something that I never experienced, not even with my Nintendo Switch. Valve is coming out with updates frequently for the Steam Deck and adding features that people request, like custom boot animations and more. There's a lot to love about this little device, and I'm glad I bought one.