The Steam Deck now holds the ‘Best Gaming Hardware’ title, as it earned Valve a Golden Joystick at this year’s celebratory event. As a result, fans of the handheld gaming PC are celebrating on social media, sharing their thoughts on why the portable deserves the prestigious award.
Valve’s portable powerhouse might be the best gaming PC for on-the-go players, but it faced stuff handheld competition at last night’s Golden Joystick Awards. It also wasn’t the only portable gaming device to receive a nomination, as both the Analogue Pocket and Playdate earned a spot on the shortlist.
Image source: Twitter/GoldenJoysticks
Speaking of which, here’s the full nominee list:
- Playdate
- Steam Deck
- Analogue Pocket
- Backbone One: PlayStation Edition
- Roccat Kone XP
- WD Black SN850 (PS5 SSD)
During the event, Valve CEO Gabe Newall accepted the award “on behalf of the gaming community,” while claiming the Steam Deck wouldn’t be possible without its support.
Over on Twitter, Steam Deck enthusiasts are sharing their support for the handheld, with one fan stating that it’s a “gamechanger for PC gaming.” The community even managed to throw in a few RTX 4000 gags for good measure, including a few references to RTX 4080 pricing and melty RTX 4090 adapters.
It usually takes years for a platform to make an impact within the gaming scene. Yet, Valve has already built good foundations for the Steam Deck 2, especially when it comes to supported games. Sure, Valve’s debut device is far from perfect, and using the best Steam Deck dock isn’t quite as seamless as the Nintendo Switch, but it offers incredible portable performance at a nifty price.