No doubt windows is still better (or more seemless) overall in regards of gaming especially since Linux kinda emulates (but not really) a windows environment which requires some fiddling here and there and there are still some issues with some Anti Cheat powered games. But still you technically can game on Linux 😄
By now you can use Linux for gaming too. Compatibility layers like Wine or Proton came a long way thanks to the steam deck.
I absolutely respect your effort regarding privacy! I honestly don’t want to know how much data about me is collected by companies monitoring the internet even though I barely post anything on social media. And I believe most people - me included - are just too lazy to really take care of their own (internet) privacy and/or think „I have nothing to hide anyways“.
Anyways what I was trying to say is that the fight shouldn’t exist. Everyone should use what they want without having to argue why this or that is better or not.
There’s a market for the smallest niche. The most important thing is that you are happy with the setup you’re running. It doesn’t matter if it is Android, iOS, Mac OS, Windows, Linux… if it works for you it’s good. Sadly people still fight about what’s better - especially when it comes to phones. And I was part of that fight. But from todays standpoint it just doesn’t make any sense. Use what suits you.
I was a die hard Android fan boy switching my phones every 9-12 months, rooting them, flashing custom ROMs and customising them in general. I was basically the most anti Apple guy you can imagine and mocked everyone who bought Apple devices.
4 years ago I got my hands on an iPhone XS Max for a few quid. Thought might as well try the device out which I’m making fun of just for the sake of it.
4 years later I’m sitting on my iPhone 14 Pro Max, my 2020 iPad Pro 12.9, AirPods Pro 2, Apple Watch 6 and 2 Apple TV boxes.
Apple really knows how to hook their users. The ecosystem is by far the best and won’t ever be reached by Android due to the simple fact that every device is made by one manufacturer.
For example: you setup the Apple TV box and it detects a nearby iPhone and offers quick setup. Setting up the second Apple TV box it even asks if it should mirror everything from the first Apple TV. I put my AirPods in my ears and Apple TV detects them and asks if it should connect to them even though they were never connected.
Another example: I’m watching a movie on my iPad with my AirPods in ears. I get a voice memo on WhatsApp on my phone. I play the memo and the AirPods switch instantly to the iPhone and after playing the memo back to the iPad.
These are only two examples about how well the ecosystem works. Yes, it’s kinda a loophole, once you’re in it, you can barely escape it. But I appreciate that shit just works. You have to experience it to really understand. Also I don’t feel the urge to switch the phone so often anymore, not only because there are not many models to choose from but the UX is so nice and smooth feeling, even on older devices. Not to mention the clean UI that isn’t cluttered and packed with ads like on some Android phone OSs or the Fire TV OS (I believe Xiaomi does this?).
To clarify a few of your points: No you don’t need to pay for OS upgrades. Support for older devices is good. The latest iOS 17 is available on the iPhone XR from 2018. Not to mention that you don’t need the latest OS version to have a fully functional device. Apple devices don’t really have bloatware on them. Only some Apple made apps like Books, Health etc. which can be fully uninstalled. Ecosystem is pretty closed yes. While you can use, let’s say, third party smart watches or Bluetooth headphones, the experience will not be as smooth as it’d be with AirPods. Apple finding fancy names for normal stuff is just their marketing strategy of making you or their products feel special. Not a fan of it either but don’t really care tbh. Also never really cared about the screws they use on the devices since I never had the urge to open them.
I use Playnite. It automatically adds all you games from all famous launchers, lets you add games manually, download the meta data for it and has theme and plugin support.
No I’m not. I also have Cryoutilities installed with 4GB VRAM enabled.
I used my credit card (Visa by Klarna) and it worked just fine. But it’s been a while since I’ve been there, maybe they changed something?
I do but I got it „on my holiday“ in India
You have to exchange the RDR2 exe with the launcher exe to stay in the same environment. Otherwise it just creates a new environment like you said.
Change the desired settings and then replace the launcher exe with the game’s exe again.
Lmao that’d be hilarious!
I am curious how Apple will get around that this time. I’m almost sure this will be as funny as the whole story about the USB-C cables
I don’t even think it’s going into the lungs especially with non smokers. If you try to inhale smoke as a non smoker you’ll most likely cough your lungs out. They’ll most likely suck the smoke into their cheeks and blow it out from there.
You’re absolutely right. For some reason I had Steam pre-installed in my head, probably bc the SD is the only Linux device I’m using
Shreddit is what I used to clean them all
While that’s absolutely true (and that method should work on other Linux devices too) it’s kind of a hassle when you have to change the exe path multiple times just to install the game and it’s dependencies like dx, visual c etc.
I’d recommend that method only if you’re a purist (and a bit of a masochist :D ) and you want to keep the machine as bloat free as possible at any costs
There are multiple game launchers that are able to run windows games and programs: Lutris, Heroic, Bottles, just to mention some of them. I played around with all of them on my steam deck and found that Heroic works the best for me in terms of reliability and convenience.
You click on „add game“ and a window pops up prompting you to input the game name, where to create the prefix (basically a virtual windows environment), and the path to the executable. If the game isn’t pre-installed you can hit the „run installer first“ button and install the game and any dependencies beforehand and add the executable after the successful installation.
I don’t think we’ll see a Steam Deck 2 anytime soon.
Is the Deck the best handheld on the market in terms of performance? No.
But if you ask me, it provides the most polished experience with SteamOS and probably has the best price to performance ratio, especially when on sale. If you want to check if your favourite games work on the deck refer to ProtonDB.
Plus you’re not limited to PC games, the Deck is also very good at emulating games. Mario Kart 8, Zelda Breath of the Wild or some PS2 classics like the Burnout series - it will do them all.
It all comes down to your expectations but if you want one, buy it now. Or buy it on the next sale. I got mine in May and I don’t regret the purchase whatsoever. Love to use it for quick couch gaming sessions, on the balcony or when travelling.
Also kinda unrelated but referring to your view on PC parts: yes new generations are released pretty quick compared to consoles but a build using components that are a couple of years old can still be equally powerful to a PS5 for example.
Karen, you forgot to take your pills.
Good luck trying to wipe my hard drive fuckers 🖕🏻