“Shares Some Traits With a Switch”- Valve Executive Chimes in on Steam Deck vs Nintendo Switch Debate

Valve made a rather surprising announcement earlier in the month by unfurling Steam Deck. The American game development studio is preparing to step into the world of handheld gaming devices with its own console. The Nintendo Switch has been dominating the market ever since its release back in 2017.

The Japanese studio Nintendo has thus far managed to sell millions of copies worldwide. It is still dominating the Japanese market and is among the two highest-selling consoles in Europe and North American region as well.

The community assumed that Valve’s latest project aims at tapping into the handheld gaming market. It is also being said that the studio is trying to enter the market to offer an alternate option for gamers. However, the studio’s president and an executive have offered clarification about the ‘Steam Deck Vs Nintendo Switch’ argument.

video source: IGN

 Steam Deck is for a different audience than Nintendo Switch

Valve’s executive Greg Coomer sat down with IGN to shed light about Steam Deck. He cleared the air and stated that this device only shares some cosmetic similarities but it is the extent of it. The studio is planning to offer the same experience that fans are used to on top-end PC. but in this case, it will be through a mobile handheld device.

“We tried to make all the decisions really in Steam Deck that targeted that audience and that served the customers that were already having a good time interacting with the games that are on that platform, on our platform. That really was how we were making our decisions.

“We’ve ended up with a device that cosmetically shares some traits with a Switch, but that just was… it’s kind of an artifact of how we’ve proceeded down the design direction.”

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Gabe Newell promises their device is different

In a separate interview with IGN, Valve’s head Gabe Newell shed light on the comparison between Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch. He praised the Japanese gaming studio and also stated that the two devices aren’t similar.

“So I think Nintendo does a great job targeting the audience they do with the content that they have. And that’s going to be different. Like when you pick this up, it feels much more like the ergonomics for somebody who’s used to playing with an expensive game controller, right? Because it’s bigger and it’s bulkier than a Switch. And if we’re right, that’s the right trade-off to be making for the audience that we’re going after.”

Valve has hammered the idea home that the community is comparing apples to oranges. The Switch is aimed at a particular audience but Steam Deck is simply going after the everyday PC users.

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