Steam Deck

Yeah, it's spectacular for your exact use case. Plus, a cheap dock/hub can let you play multiplayer pc games like duck game (with mods!) on your TV!

I love my steam deck and got it for exactly the same reason. I love being able to sit with my wife or kids and play my games while they play their own or watch TV. We can still interact and I get to play a lot more games than I used to.

I don’t have one yet and I think it’s worth it. I will be getting one shortly, everything I have read and seen shows it’s truly one of a kind.

Once I get my money it will be purchased.

If your PC is much more powerful than Steam Deck you should be able to play on it remotely from the Deck. I recently do all my gaming remotely on a PC in a different room, from my laptop. In my case both are running Linux, but Windows PC should work as well for this purpose.

Definitely worth it. I got mine not long after we had our baby as I missed gaming and wanted to squeeze in a few minutes to pick up and play games when I could; as others have said the suspend feature is really useful for that. Also emulators opens up a whole new level of choice and recently I got Xbox gamepass ultimate and I haven't really noticed much lag or performance issues from streaming.

I’ve never been a PC gamer (mainly cause I have always been in the Apple ecosystem), but have always wanted to get into it. Have felt like I’ve been missing out a lot.

I’ve considered a Steam Deck, because I’ve heard so many great things, including that it’s helped reignite passions for gaming in many people! But my concern is that I already am so busy and struggle to find time to sit down and game with my Switch or Xbox…I don’t know if getting a Steam Deck would even really make much of a difference in helping me play more at this point. Could be a pretty costly investment for myself if I don’t end up using it a ton.

Anyway, that’s my two cents. If you are gaming regularly and want to be able to do more “mobile” PC gaming, it’s probably a good option!

Honestly since I got mine a few months after they started shipping my gaming PC has mostly been collecting dust. I don't play a lot of MP games anymore, and the ability to just sit on the couch with the wife and game while she's watching TV or whatever is the best.

The 2-4 hours of battery I get has never been a problem, I'm usually ready to put it down by the time the battery is running dry.

I think for people who want to be a little more flexible with their gaming it's really the perfect system for it.

Steam Deck got me back into gaming. It has gotten to the point that if I can't play it on the Deck, I won't play it at all. I have a PC, Ps5, and a Switch and the SD has become my primary device. I absolutely LOVE it and it has been one of the best purchases I've made in years

I personally find it uncomfortable. I tried a couple of games on my boyfriend's Steam Deck. I didn't really like the controls for either game, they were probably more designed around keyboard and mouse so it was awkward to play them. Overall it wasn't comfortable to hold and I haven't had any desire to use it again. On the other hand, my boyfriend uses his all the time now. The biggest problem I currently have is constantly trading the power cord because he always needs to keep plugging it in, the battery life seems abysmal.

I suppose keep in mind what kind of interface the games you like have - do they play well with a controller or do you need to add in a keyboard and mouse to your family room setup? With games that require controllers, I prefer the Switch for comfort (downside is buying a whole separate set of games from PC). My hands are tiny, so the detachable Switch controllers suit me well, plus I like holding one Joycon in each hand so I can hold my arms in different positions instead of holding onto one joined controller with both hands. For keyboard and mouse games, I don't mind playing PC games on my laptop when I feel like playing on the couch because that doesn't strain my wrists like the weight of the Steam Deck does.

I don't play much, mostly because of work and life...but partly because the time I have to spend with the family is short and my gaming pc is remote from where we all hang out. I got a set of Shokz bluetooth headphones to pair with my deck, and it's made gaming in the living room a nearly friction-free event. The headphones mean that I can hear the game as well as everyone in the room, but they don't have to listen to my gaming - they can have the TV on or be reading a book or surfing. The pause functionality (for single player games, of course) means I can look up and become part of the conversation almost as easy as if I was reading a book. If it's not a financial burden, I'd say go for it.

I bought it last year, and I could not have been happier. It is awesome. Although I also have a gaming laptop, I reach for Steam Deck more often - it's because of it being a hand held.

The moment that there will be a next version of Steam Deck, I am ordering it.

Steam Decks are one of the best handles Ive ever held. The whole set of controls is just amazing. The trackpads are just great. Being able to sleep at anytime like a Switch is amazing.

On the other hand... it is heavy, not all games work great, and controls can be iffy on some games. But Community Controls fix most of that.

Easily the smartest purchase I've made in a decade. Primarily a console player, but I love modding, so this thing seemed like a slam dunk. I've had mine for almost a year and it is an absolute champion, I'm seriously thinking about abandoning my main PC even for normal PC functions and just going deeper down the Linux rabbit hole, because the Deck has been such a treat.

You're probably not going to find many people recommending against the Steam Deck on a Steam Deck forum, but they're a wonderful device. My beefy desktop PC is still my main gaming rig, but the Steam Deck is awesome for travel or just being present in the room while my wife is watching TV or something.

Totally worth it IMO. If you are not a mobile gamer it can still serve as fairly inexpensive gaming PC with the help of the dock. The bonus is, you can take this PC to play on a couch with you ;)

I really like my steam deck. But if you have problems with your eyes, they get tired very soon (especially after a long day at work). My most played games are No Man's Sky and Dead Cells. No Man's Sky has sometimes much text, which isn't really comfortable on the deck for me. The best advice is to consider which games you're gonna play on the deck. I can't recommend it for games with much text.

I like my steam deck. It is a big device. The other thing to consider is the games you will be playing. It runs steamos out of the box, so not every game works on it. It is a decent amount, but something also to consider.

I got the Steam Deck in November 2022, and it was all I played games on until this month. What they've made is really amazing, it'll run just about anything from any launcher and more. I recently beat Dusk on there, and I would have never imagined playing a game like that with a controller, but the touchpad and back buttons made it so easy. It's the most versatile game system I've ever owned.

I like it but I have only been playing cyberpunk and harry potter. The hardware is pretty good for the price. I got the top one for more drive space since I want to play around with it as a sorta laptop replacement. If I ever get my lazy but in gear on it. If your just using games I don't see the need to have more than a few on it at any particular time (at least large main ones) so I would think the base woudl be fine.

I'm considering getting one as well. Putting it off until a gifting holiday as they're expensive. Only debating between the cheapest and second cheapest size - I would get a microSD expansion either way but I'm not sure if it's better to have the additional space or not. Odds are I would only have two or three games installed at a time really.

I'm generally a console gamer because I like joysticks and not fussing with software installations. That being said I love my steam deck and I am overjoyed at the ability to play PC games. Steam and the community really make gaming easy for folks who might need more help.

I was in exactly the situation you're in. Do it. You'll get your pc gaming time back. I went from "I never play anything" to "daily gaming again"