In today's overkill digest, we look at the upcoming Switch 2 rumors, at the SteamOS release, and dive into the Steam Deck Survey results.
Hi, hello, and welcome to a new edition of the overkill digest newsletter, the go-to source for everything handheld gaming (and then some). Before we start, some updates.
This is the last issue for the year, before I go on a vacation. I'll be offline for the next two weeks and will be back with a new email for you on January 12th. So see you again then, happy holidays and may 2025 be the year of the handheld.
We're also today launching the results of the State of Steam Deck survey for 2024. We had around 3,800 people answer this year, and with over 50 questions we learned a lot — like how many people now own an OLED Steam Deck, what people want to see in a next generation device, what the most played game is, and what other hardware products people want to see from Valve. You can learn that and much more at the link:
Kevin Wammer
Also, as you may be new here – perhaps from our recent dbrand survey giveaway (winners will be contacted next week, by the way) – here's what we're about: Every Sunday, this newsletter dives into the week's most interesting handheld gaming news and I share it all with fellow enthusiasts like yourself.
Think of this as your weekly digest of everything worth knowing in the handheld gaming world (here are older issues). While you can unsubscribe anytime using the link below, I have a feeling you might want to stick around. I'm biased, but I think this newsletter is really good!
Finally, I have a 🎁 special gift for our premium members. Everyone who signs up for a year-long subscription (including those of you that already did), will receive EmuDeck Early Access for as long as they are subscribed. EmuDeck EA gives you access to CloudSync for save transfers, early access to the Decky plugin, and more. So whenever your overkill Premium membership renews, you'll get to keep EmuDeck EA for another year. (I am working on more perks like that, so stay tuned.)
Ok, phew! That's a lot. Let's dig into this week's newsletter!
🗞️ This Week in Handhelds
🚀 Big Handheld Moves
- The next Switch might be called the 'Switch 2'. More and more leaks (all originating on Reddit) seem to point to the same thing. Nintendo's next console will mostly be a 'Switch 2', both in name and in what it means — simply a more powerful version of the handheld we currently own: better performance, better screen, better Joy-Con, and a better dock that will let the handheld run faster. Currently, the rumour mill expects Nintendo to unveil this new handheld in January, and to me, it feels like this might be the Switch Pro that we originally hoped for.
- Exclusive Xbox games will be the exception. It is clear that Microsoft is playing a different game here. They want Xbox to be everywhere: console, PC, cloud, and mobile. The goal? To maximize revenue and survive in the stagnant console market. Xbox believes the future lies in device-agnostic gaming, where “everything is an Xbox.” (Microsoft CEO Nadella said as much recently.) If it succeeds, they could dominate every screen out there, but if it fails, Microsoft risks turning Xbox into another game publisher. It's a risky move, but at least we get to play games on whatever platforms we own.
- Valve will be Lenovo’s ‘special guest’ at Lenovo Legion event. Honestly, it couldn't be more obvious. We learned last week that the Lenovo Legion Go S has a dedicated Steam button, which pointed to an upcoming release, but knowing now that Pierre-Loup Griffais himself (the face of SteamOS at Valve) will be part of the presentation is the equivalent of a big neon sign saying "Yes, we're releasing SteamOS!!!" What interests me the most is whether this is just a release of SteamOS for other manufacturers, or if we can finally download and install proper SteamOS on hardware ourselves. I currently think it will be the former, since there’s simply too much different hardware out there. We'll learn more on January 7 (I chose the perfect week to come back from vacation).
🚀 Platform Updates
- Voting in the 2024 Steam Awards is now open. Voting ends on December 31, and you can vote in eleven different categories, like Best Game on Steam Deck, which will probably be 🃏 Balatro, let's be honest.
- Valve's Steam Replay 2024 is live. Valve is back to shaming us all and reminding us how we definitely didn't make a dent in our Steam backlog. I most certainly didn't, which might be because my most played game this year was, again, Skyrim...
- Nintendo's eShop is a mess that sorely needs fixing. While Nintendo is busy working on the Switch 2, Chris argues Nintendo should also invest in fixing the eShop, which is plagued with fakes and ripoffs.
- Sony becomes the "largest shareholder" in FromSoftware owner Kadokawa. Sony didn’t buy FromSoftware’s parent company Kadokawa like we feared, but they’re getting cozy. Sony is becoming their largest shareholder, giving them around 10% ownership by early 2025. The deal is a “strategic capital and business alliance,” which is corporate-speak for 'let’s make cool stuff together'. Sony now has access to Kadokawa’s rich catalog of IP — think manga, light novels, games, and anime. But still no Bloodborne remakes announced (sorry).
🚀 Hardware Corner
- AFMF 2 is here for ROG Ally and ROG Ally X. AFMF2 (AMD Fluid Motion Frames 2) is AMD's equivalent to Nvidia’s Frame Generation. This tech allows games to run at higher framerates by interpolating and generating additional frames between rendered frames (compared to FSR2, which focuses solely on upscaling existing frames without generating new ones). In FPS terms, you can expect around double the FPS in games like Cyberpunk 2077. In return, you may have to live with increased latency and worse visual fidelity because of ghosting, smearing, or visual artifacts.
🚀 Gaming News
- The best games under $10 in the Steam Winter Sale. As is tradition, whenever Valve launches a major Steam Sale, Chris and I look for the best deals under $10 for Steam Deck. The recommendations are still good, but this sale feels a bit icky, as it launched just two weeks after the last one ended. Valve clearly wants to bank on the gift cards people will get for Christmas. It runs until early January.
- Balatro is rated adults-only by PEGI. The indie cult hit got slapped with an 18+ rating, frustrating its anonymous developer. He called out the irony on social media – games like EA Sports FC, loaded with real gambling mechanics for kids, hold a 3+ rating, while his roguelike faces stricter restrictions.
- iOS emulator dev is stuck in App Store review hell. It looks like Provenance, a multi-emulator frontend, might not come to the Apple App Store after all. The dev reported being stuck in review hell, seemingly bankrupting them. They plan to try submitting the app one more time by adding open-source ROMs, as the reviewer was apparently unable to add ROMs. I'll be blunt: Apple is being a f*cking idiot here.
🚀 Quick Links
- The M-Con PSP Go-Style iPhone Game Controller Moves One Step Closer to Reality. Since we last saw this project (here is a video by Russ), the M-Con gained an official corporate backer: OhSnap, the maker of PopSocket alternatives, who will now build and sell this controller going forward. We will learn more during CES, hopefully including its price.
- The Nvidia App is tanking your performance. If you have Game Filters on, turn that feature off immediately (NVIDIA App Settings > Features > Overlay > Game Filters and Photo Mode). It'll tank your performance by 15% (percent, not FPS!).
- This tool lets you control your Windows PC with a controller. When I watched this video by The Phawx during breakfast, I dropped what I was doing and immediately installed it. It's good, like really good. You can completely control your PC with just one controller, making it especially handy when your PC is connected to your TV (which is the case for me, and since I use an Nvidia GPU and want to keep access to Game Pass, I can't opt for Bazzite).
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🔒 overkill Premium Deep Dive — The Steam Deck Survey Results: A love letter to beautiful contradictions
There's something peculiar about Steam Deck owners. Here we are, three years into this handheld PC, and every survey reads like a collection of contradictions.
Last year, the community rated the Steam Deck 8.94 out of 10, while simultaneously crafting a wish list of improvements longer than the terms and conditions nobody reads.