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Everyone is using their Steam Deck like a better Nintendo Switch

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August's most played Steam Deck games make the distinction clear.

Valve Steam Deck in use while sat outdoors
(Image credit: Future)

Steam Deck s, despite owning a surprisingly powerful handheld PC, are primarily using it like an upgraded Nintendo Switch.

Valve released Elden Ring that didn't run like trash or via cloud streaming.

The Steam Deck is truly the answer for a Nintendo Switch form factor that can handle modern games. The only real caveat is that its beefier hardware impacts the battery life, so everyone combing through Elden Ring or other newer games have to keep it juiced up.

Unsurprisingly, none of the games in the list, except Skyrim, are first-person, and none of Steam's most popular competitive FPS games are on it either. Trying to do the finger gymnastics to compete in a CS:GO match against mouse and keyboard players seems futile. Non-FPS games make more sense: Multiverse has cross-play with consoles, so playing it on a Steam Deck isn't as punishing.

Games with anti-cheat software require punish you if you try to play it.

Not only is the Steam Deck a better Nintendo Switch, it can also literally be a Nintendo handheld too—via emulation. Earlier this week, Twitter GameXData showed a 3DS game on the Steam Deck that also emulated its second screen. Nintendo's own console can't even do that.

fantastic emulation capabilities, it really seems like the handheld to get.

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Tyler Colp

Tyler has covered videogames and PC hardware for 15 years. He regularly spends time playing and reporting on games like Diablo 4, Elden Ring, Overwatch 2, and Final Fantasy 14. While his specialty is in action RPGs and MMOs, he's driven to cover all sorts of games whether they're broken, beautiful, or bizarre.