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I’ve Become a Steam Deck Fangirl

Posted on February 13, 2026 by Aywren

I’ve been exploring my Steam Deck for soon to be two months now, so I finally think it’s time to write about my initial impressions. To be completely honest, it’s blown all FOMO for the Switch 2 out of my mind because I’ve fallen completely in love with the Steam Deck’s functionality.

It seems that might be the case for folks in general right now as I’ve heard the Steam Deck is currently sold out in all of its iterations in both the US and Japan. No one really seems to know why – is it a sign of a new incoming Steam Deck? Is it due to the RAM shortage? Could it be Valve redirecting resources to the upcoming Steam Machine?

Outlook is uncertain.

What I am certain of, after having deep dived into this little machine, is that I feel incredibly lucky to have been gifted the chance to learn about it. And I love what I’ve found so much.

Steam OS

The heart of the Steam Deck experience is the fact that it’s a handheld PC. It runs the Steam OS, which is based off of Linux.

I’ve had little experience with current day Linux installations. A couple years ago, I did install Mint Cinnamon on an old laptop to revive it, but that’s a post for another day. I’m happy I did fiddle with that because I recognized the Linux applications (such as the UI to download and update programs) on the Deck immediately.

As a heavy Windows user, I was still able to pick up Steam OS without a hitch. In fact, I was already diving into discovering what all I could do in terms of installing emulators, learning how to play games from GOG and Epic on the Deck with Heroic Launcher, and tweaking things using Steam Homebrew with Decky Loader.

I’ll have to go into more details about all of that later. But suffice to say, this is not your Switch 2 handheld environment where Nintendo bricks your system should you attempt to do anything outside their definition of “the box.” And I LOVE it for that! Once I recognized the depth of what I could do with a Steam Deck, I was instantly a fan.

In fact, I love the environment so much that I pulled out my Linux laptop and started exploring more about Linux in general. I wouldn’t even be sad if Steam OS and Linux became the future of PC gaming.

Before, I said I didn’t know what place a Steam Machine would have next to my Windows gaming computer. Now, I understand much, much better. I don’t think it could completely replace my Windows rig yet, but my respect for Linux has grown in leaps and bounds.

Amazing Cozy Gaming

That’s not even talking about the Steam gaming I’ve done on it, now is it? I’ve cleared a little corner of my couch next to a small end table where my Steam Deck lives. Thanks to the deck’s dock, I can easily plug it in for charging, and I’ve assigned a set of Bluetooth headphones to the Deck for the best sound.

Most of the games I’ve played on it so far have been small, indie, cozy games. Things like Squeakross, Tiny Bookshop, Minami Lane, and Cast N’ Chill. All of those games will have reviews forthcoming soon! I’ve put more time into them than I expected simply because they’re on my Deck. I get under my heated blanket for half an hour before going to bed and just unwind with a good chill indie game.

Since the majority of my backlog is filled with said indie games, and most of them are in some way compatible with the Deck (I’ve installed Proton DB Badges for a better measurement system), I have so, so many games available to me. Not to mention due to sales and bundles, the cost of these games is super affordable.

I was also able to install some old SNES ROMS and get the emulators running. The performance was quite flawless here, and honestly, a superior experience to playing them on the PC.

I’ve yet to explore a lot of the functionality when it comes to playing GOG and Epic Games on the Deck. I have both Heroic Launcher and a Decky Loader plugin, Unifideck, that both provide this capability. I just have so many games in my Steam backlog that poking at even more games on other stores is not at the front of my mind. But I’m thrilled that the option is there.

This completely dwarfs the Switch library I was building last year. And seeing that it’s evident that Nintendo has dropped Switch 1 in the dirt as far as new game releases, I’ve buckled down even more into my Steam library with no desire for paying up for a Switch 2.

I’ve completely turned tables where there was a time I’d pass up the Steam version of a game for the Switch version. Now, I’m pretty sure the next SquareEnix game I pick up will be from Steam instead of Nintendo.

All that being said, I haven’t as of yet tested all the functionality of the Deck Dock, which my sister so kindly provided me with. I have plugged in a USB 8BitDo controller that I’d originally bought to use with my PC, and that appeared to work fine. So, I should, in theory, be able to hook up the Steam Deck to my TV and play that way, as well.

Truth be told, I have so few HDMI slots available on the TV that I’d have to juggle what’s connected to it in order to properly try it. But hey, I suppose I could always unplug my Switch 1 for now (said snidely as I do have a second dock hooked to my PC monitor for when I want to play the Switch on a bigger screen).

Overall thoughts – I’m now a HUGE fan of the Steam Deck! I feel like every time I turn around, I learn something new about its functionality. I was blessed to receive this as a gift, and I’m putting it to great use on a consistent basis.

Steam Deck has transformed my thoughts on handheld gaming completely. Even the Switch was unable to do that for me as I held on to it as a TV console. The best part is that I no longer feel like I care if I’m missing out on Switch 2 released because I now much prefer my handheld Linux PC.

((No, I’m not selling my Switch, though!))

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