Steam Deck is a Test for the PC Industry; Epic Games CEO Praises Valve's Move
Steam Deck is supposed to be a test for the entire PC industry. Gabe Newell wants to see if there is room in the market for portable PCs. The head of Epic Games praises him for this move.
- The head of Epic Games praises the announcement of Steam Deck;
- He believes it to be a chance for greater openness of the video game market.
Yesterday's announcement of a portable PC from Valve in the form of Steam Deck surprised many users. This was despite the rumors that have been circulating online for some time. Gabe Newell has high expectations and hopes that the hardware will sell at least a few million units. On paper, the project looks promising. It also met with a rather warm reception.
During an interview with IGN, Valve's boss admitted that the most important thing was to design a device that offered the best performance - price was secondary. The company spent a lot of time thinking about the right price point to hit the PC market. The final decision was made thanks to a selection of components that are not too expensive, but at the same time offer good performance.
For Gabe Newell himself it is also a big test if the PC market is ready to evolve and move towards portable gaming on powerful hybrids of consoles and PCs. The reception from the players and the sales of the device will ultimately show whether the market responds only to stationary machines adorned with RGB.
Interestingly, the Valve's biggest competitor - Epic Games - also spoke warmly about this approach and announcement. Its founder and head - Tim Sweeney - paised his rival in a post on Twitter.
"Amazing move by Valve! A handheld PC/console hybrid running the SteamOS fork of Arch Linux, and it’s an open platform where users are free to install software or their choosing - including Windows and other stores."
Some may find such an entry extremely strange, but it fits into the trend (even if only apparent) of Epic Games' fight for "openness" in the video game market. The ongoing dispute with Apple over the ability to install apps from outside their store needs constant PR fuel, and tweets like this can definitely help create the right image of Epic Games as gaming's good uncle.
Steam Deck will be available for pre-order today on the official website. The cheapest model is priced at $399. The top set costs $649.
