Last week, Valve announced that it was expanding SteamOS beyond its own handheld, the Steam Deck, by allowing Lenovo's Legion Go S to be the first device to come loaded with the OS.
In case you weren't aware, the flood of handheld gaming PCs we've seen recently aren't all created equal; up until now, the Steam Deck was the only one which came with Valve's SteamOS baked-in. All of the others come with Windows, which is both a blessing and a curse – on the plus side, there's the power and customisation of Microsoft's OS, but the software simply hasn't been designed with physical controls or handheld play in mind.
Now, however, Valve is opening up its software to other hardware manufacturers, meaning that it's going to be easier than ever to run SteamOS on portable PCs.
"The same work that we are doing to support the Lenovo Legion Go S will improve compatibility with other handhelds," says Valve. "Ahead of Legion Go S shipping, we will be shipping a beta of SteamOS which should improve the experience on other handhelds, and users can download and test this themselves."
You may well be reading this and thinking to yourself, surely this doesn't matter? Any Windows-based handheld PC can run Steam anyway, right? Well, that's true – Steam is available on multiple systems, including Windows, Mac and Linux – and can even be placed in "Big Picture Mode" to deliver a UX which works well with physical controls. But it's the way SteamOS behaves on Steam Deck that arguably makes the handheld so appealing, even when its rivals offer superior power.
SteamOS is designed to elegantly present a more refined user experience on Steam Deck from start-up, which is something Windows-based devices simply cannot offer, as Steam has to be run as an application. "SteamOS is optimized for gaming and provides a console-like experience that's meant to be used with a controller," explains Valve. "It offers features like quick suspend / resume to get you quickly in and out of games, and offers seamless system and game updates."
While some Windows users might argue that this is a minor advantage, for me personally – having tested both the Steam Deck and numerous portable gaming PCs – SteamOS is the clear winner in this conversation. Not having to wrestle with the Windows UI is a blessing, and Steam Deck can be woken from sleep and load up a game in seconds – something that isn't always possible on a Windows-based portable. Even though Big Picture Mode takes some of the pain away, there's always a little bit of fiddling required to get things up and running.
"SteamOS puts the player directly into Steam, with access to the full Steam ecosystem - your Steam Library, Steam Cloud, Steam Chat, Steam Game Recording, and more," adds Valve. "The user interface is optimized for controller use and it's easy to install and play Steam games. Best of all, users don't have to worry about driver updates and hardware tweaks - all of this is handled seamlessly through built in system updates."
The expansion of SteamOS comes at a critical time in the handheld gaming sector, as Nintendo is to reveal its Switch successor this year. When the original Switch launched back in 2017, it was in a class of its own; it's only since the arrival of the Steam Deck that we've seen an explosion of interest in powerful handheld gaming systems, with the likes of ROG and AYANEO releasing devices which outpace even the Steam Deck in terms of processing power, and simply leave the ageing Switch in the dust.
Even so, it's fair to say that these devices haven't made much of a dent in Nintendo's market share over the past few years for many reasons. Price is one; AYANEO's portable PCs, for example, are often insanely expensive and not mass-market products. Steam Deck, on the other hand, has seen more success – but still not at the level the Switch has experienced.
However, by offering a console-like experience out of the box combined with the biggest video game distribution platform on the planet, manufacturers who embrace SteamOS could find their odds of success massively increased. Many casual players are going to be instantly put off by a handheld gaming PC which expects you to use Windows to launch things, but place a Steam Deck in the hands of a Switch owner, and things are a lot more familiar.
The UI is easy to navigate, and the digital store runs at a much better pace than the (current) eShop – plus, a lot of the same games exist on both. Imagine that spread across multiple device options and SteamOS becomes a lot more attractive as an alternative to Switch 2.
Of course, there are two big caveats to keep in mind here; Nintendo will be able to sell Switch 2 at a lower cost than its rivals because it makes money from both software and hardware (Valve is able to subsidise the cost of the Steam Deck for the same reason). Companies like Lenovo don't make a single penny from sales of games on Steam, so they have to recoup all of their cost (and hopefully generate some profit) from the sale of the hardware itself – which means they can never really compete on price with Nintendo, and have even chance when you consider that these portable computers are packed with cutting-edge tech.
The other big thing is that many people won't be buying Switch 2 purely for multiplatform games – they'll be picking one up because it's the only place they can experience Nintendo's enviable library of first-party franchises, such as Mario Kart, Zelda, Metroid, Animal Crossing and more.
While it's unlikely that SteamOS – even if pre-loaded on a multitude of devices – will realistically challenge Nintendo's astonishing degree of dominance in the handheld sector, it could make a small dent, especially if we see a flood of hardware rivals take up the OS and drive down costs in pricing, as has been the case in the world of PCs and laptops for decades.
One thing is for sure – Nintendo won't have this previously barren part of the industry all to itself with Switch 2.