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Xbox head Phil Spencer tweeted recently that he met with the team behind Steam Deck, including Gabe Newell, the co-founder and president of Valve. He also played Xbox games on the device.
PC video game marketplace titan Valve recently announced a new handheld console, the Steam Deck. Capable of running AAA games at a smooth, playable resolution and framerate, the device carries over the entire Steam Library. At a reasonable price, the Steam Deck is everything a PC gamer would ever want.
However, the one thing fans were a bit skeptical about was the playable library.
Phil Spencer confirms Xbox games and xCloud for the Steam Deck
Since the announcement of Steam Deck, fans have been excited to play their games on a properly handheld device. However, game support is a primary concern.
On its own, Linux has always lagged far behind Windows in terms of supported games. While SteamOS, based on Linux, brings the Proton API, which will translate and run native Windows games, the extent is unknown.
Phil Spencer tweeted:
"Was @valvesoftware this week talking w/ Scott, Erik, Gabe about Steam Deck. After having mine most of the week I can say it's a really nice device. Games with me on the go, screen size, controls are all great. Playing Halo and Age feels good, xCloud works well. Congrats SD team."
The tweet has sent excitement for the Steam Deck through the roof. For a few years now, Xbox and Valve have had a strong working relationship. The former has not only brought first-party games to PC and promises to do so in the future but has also brought it through Steam.
As promised, xCloud indicates that a Game Pass is coming to Steam Deck, so the library for the device increases ten-fold.
Xbox also includes a massive library of Bethesda games and an EA Play library (Game Pass Ultimate).
Ubisoft has previously stated that they’ll bring the Ubisoft library if the handheld has a big enough userbase. Considering the massive hype coupled with pre-orders selling out within minutes, it does indicate a prosperous future for Steam Deck.
Has Steam Deck finally resolved the issue with Easy Anti-Cheat and other anti-cheating software?
One major caveat that came forward in the discussion regarding Proton in SteamOS is that of anti-cheating software.
While Valve will obviously support its own Valve Anti Cheat (VAC), other well-known anti-cheating software such as Epic’s Easy Anti-Cheat, Riot Games’ Vanguard, and BattleEye do not work with Proton.
In the above tweet, Phil Spencer also stated that he enjoyed playing Age of Empires and Halo. The associating picture does show Age of Empires III Definitive Edition and Halo Master Chief Collection.
While this could have been played through xCloud, it does indicate native support.
The PC version of the Halo Master Chief Collection, available through Steam, utilizes Easy Anti-Cheat. Does running the game natively indicate Steam Deck finally supporting Easy Anti-Cheat and other anti-cheating software? Fans will find out soon enough.
