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Released in 2017, Nintendo Switch has been a massive success, selling more than 146 million units, according to Nintendo’s annual report. It is the second biggest console after Playstation 2, with a great library of fun and amazing games and a relatively long lifespan compared to other game consoles.
In 2022, Valve, one of the biggest and most prominent PC market players, responsible for games like Half-Life, Counter-Strike, DOTA and others, has tried their chops at making a gaming console. After years of experimenting and trying out different kinds of hardware (a VR headset, a gamepad, a dedicated station for TV to play your library of games you own on Steam), they presented their very own console – a portable computer on Linux you can put in your bag called Steam Deck.
Valve has always wanted to take the hardware niche and excel in it as well as they excelled in software development. Steam Deck has allowed them to create a beloved and successful hardware.
If you check out the way both consoles look, it’s pretty obvious what the inspiration for Deck was. According to Valve, Steam Deck has been a massive success as well, considering the niche they decided to take, making a little portable player for all your games on Steam.
Both of these consoles have been pretty popular among players. One of them provides a unique experience and access to an exclusive library of hand-crafted games. The other is a great way to play your favorite games you already own everywhere.
Which one should you choose - Steam Deck or Switch? Let’s take a look at both consoles’s pros and cons and see what console you should acquire in 2025 if you’re looking for a nice portable experience.
Let’s kick off by comparing Steam Deck vs. Switch on a technical level.
Here’s a little table for your convenience with all the necessary specs:
In addition to Steam Deck specs vs. Switch comparison, we decided to compare both consoles in terms of the experience they provide, their game libraries and their potential to be great consoles in the following years.
How comfortable it is to use each of these consoles? What kind of unique experience do they provide for a passionate player? Let’s look closer.
Switch allowed you to “switch” between handheld mode and deck mode easily, which in 2017 was a great and refreshing take on what an entertainment system is.
Nintendo has always been a company that cherished the gameplay over everything else. Perhaps that’s why their games are so loved by all ages: they put a smile on your face. Switch has two so-called “joycons” on both sides that you can detach with a satisfying click, making each side a separate controller you can share with your friends. And now you can play the game together, sharing fun and excitement.
And did we mention that Nintendo has always been known not only for home consoles like Gamecube, Wii, Nintendo 64 but also for portable consoles like GameBoy and Nintendo DS, which were even more popular than the home consoles among customers?
You can do the same with Switch, picking it up with you anywhere you go or playing it at home on a bigger screen, putting it to a special deck station, enhancing performance and quality.
In 2003 Valve created Steam, an online platform for getting games on PC that is still the most popular and cherished online service ever created, breaking online players’ records from time to time. Steam Deck is run on Linux and provides you with full access to your Steam library and even allows you to run executive files, just like a portable computer, powerful enough to boot up some pretty heavy games. Ever dreamt about playing Cyberpunk 2077 while commuting? Steam Deck allows you to do that.
Steam Deck takes a similar approach to Switch: “Play on the go, anywhere you want”. It does not provide you with detachable controllers but compensates for it with pretty powerful hardware, fully customizable controls, additional triggers on the back and trackpads – you can set it up fully for your needs however you want, to make the experience as comfortable as possible.
All your progress will be saved in the cloud so that you can continue playing at home on your desktop PC. Steam Deck’s screen size also allows you to enjoy picturesque games: the seven-inch display is not too big, but also not too small.
After all, gaming consoles are about games, right? Let’s see what both consoles offer.
Nintendo Switch has a very distinct feature that makes it a great investment if you enjoy playing games on the go: Nintendo is not only a publisher, but also an award-winning game developer, producing games like the Mario series, The Legend of Zelda series, Donkey Kong series, Metroid series and many others. It’s not only a heritage of cult classics, but it’s also a great collection of games you can play: most of these series’ entries hold a very rare Top-10 place on Metacritic, marking Nintendo as a developer of not just critically acclaimed, but beloved games, series and characters.
If you want to be a part of players who have enjoyed these games, you need to get Switch.
If you are an enthusiastic gamer, chances are that you have a very big Steam library after all these years. Most of these games are compatible with Steam Deck, except for some heavy modern games. That being said, gorgeous-looking games like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Cyberpunk 2077 are compatible with Deck and can be comfortably played.
Another key aspect of the Deck library is an expansive collection of indie games. Back in the day, Steam has become a very popular platform for publishing indie titles. A lot of interesting indie games are still released on it to this day and Deck is frequently called “an indie machine”, for the convenience of playing these games in various places, be it a subway train or a bench in your park. Is the Steam Deck worth it? In terms of the library – definitely.
RocketBrush Studio has published our indie project called The Unliving on Steam, easily playable on Steam Deck. It’s a stylized pixelated 2D roguelite, providing players with challenging and very engaging gameplay.
Valve has always wanted to take the hardware niche and excel in it as well as they excelled in software development. Steam Deck has allowed them to create a beloved and successful hardware.
How long will both consoles last? Let’s take a look at what’s in the cards for the future…
The bad news is that Switch turns eight years old next March. The good news is that Nintendo is slowly but surely preparing to present a new installment in their consoles, nicknamed by fans simply as… Switch 2. What does it mean for us fans and players? Only great things: new fantastic games and more powerful hardware. According to leaks, Nintendo will debut it in January and the long-awaited Switch successor will look similar to the predecessor but will have new buttons on controllers and magnetic attachments instead of the rail-based one that Switch has.
After two years of its initial release, Deck is still in high demand. In 2023, a new version with an OLED screen and additional hardware improvements was released. It’s a great device a lot of gamers want for holidays, and Valve will probably do its best to keep the momentum going. They released new colorways and hinted they are going to continue doing so. In addition, considering how popular Deck is, you can expect Valve to come up with a more powerful successor eventually.
It’s up to you to decide which console to choose, based on all these aspects we mentioned in this blog post. While Steam Deck is a “portable PC”, Switch is all about exclusive first-party games and sharing the fun with friends.
Both consoles have changed the way we think of portable gaming, by allowing you to take them wherever you go. While Nintendo is preparing its next big hit (and it will undoubtedly be a massive hit), developers at Valve keep their chin up and successfully take a share of the market by producing a convenient solution for players who want to take their games with them.
We wish them both good luck and can’t wait to see what they’re cooking for the following years!
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