Welcome to this week’s early version (I believe I’m transferring it to earlier within the week going ahead) of the Steam Deck Weekly. Forward of Gamescom 2024, some notable bulletins, trailers, releases, and new Steam Deck Verified video games are the main focus of at present’s article. On the evaluation entrance, the highlights are the Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child, Tomba! Particular Version, and Flock overlaying the PC ports forward of Shaun’s full evaluations of the Swap variations of the primary two. Earlier than the information and new Verified video games, let’s get into the evaluations and Steam Deck impressions.
Steam Deck Recreation Evaluations & Impressions
Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child Steam Deck Evaluation
Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child is one among my favourite Spike Chunsoft releases in recent times. Given how a lot I reward the writer’s output, I wouldn’t say that frivolously. After a busy June, issues are a bit chilled out on the discharge schedule now, and Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child has arrived on the excellent time earlier than the busy season begins. I didn’t get entry to the PC model till final night time, however I’ve spent the previous couple of days with the Nintendo Swap port of Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child. I’ve loved the sport itself lots with its impeccable vibes and stress-free gameplay loop. Keep tuned for Shaun’s full evaluation as I give attention to the PC port for at present’s article. The 16:9 screenshots are from enjoying at 4K docked whereas the 800p screenshots are when performed on my Steam Deck OLED.
Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child is at the moment untested by Valve, nevertheless it principally must be Steam Deck Verified so far as I’m involved. It has Steam Cloud help, appropriately brings up the on-screen keyboard for textual content entry, and runs with out points outdoors a couple of efficiency ones I’ll get into. I’ve put in a couple of hours into it completely on my Steam Deck OLED at present, and every thing works effectively after one particular tweak.
Earlier than the tweak, Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child has two body charge choices proper now: 30fps and 60fps. It doesn’t help uncapped body charges as of this writing, and the 30fps mode feels fairly unhealthy proper now. In truth, I seen some points with the 60fps mode on my OLED Deck as effectively. Because of a tip by a good friend of mine who purchased the Japanese launch, setting the Steam Deck’s display screen (or your individual excessive refresh charge display screen on PC) to 60hz or a a number of of 60hz ends in smoother digicam motion. Enjoying at 60fps at 90hz ends in digicam motion that doesn’t really feel good in any respect with the microstuttering. For those who play on Home windows, think about setting the fps to 59.95 utilizing exterior instruments for correctly paced frames.
Exterior the body charge, there aren’t any actual points with Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child on Steam Deck or PC. The picture high quality setting’s most noticeable distinction is the draw distance for foliage and different objects. You possibly can modify decision from 1024×768 all the best way as much as 4K, modify brightness, toggle v-sync, and modify the show mode (fullscreen, windowed, borderless). On the excessive picture high quality preset and enjoying at 4K simply to check, the body charge was within the 20s. Even at 1080p, the excessive preset is an excessive amount of to hit a locked 60fps on Deck. Enjoying on the Deck’s personal display screen at 720p ends in the perfect expertise proper now.
On the management facet, it has keyboard and controller help with Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child even displaying PlayStation button prompts when utilizing a DualSense controller on PC. By default and when utilizing the Steam Deck itself, it exhibits Xbox button prompts. You possibly can rebind mouse, keyboard, and controller buttons in the important thing config possibility on the backside of the controls tab within the settings menu.
Yet one more factor I seen is how the load occasions in sure areas had been surprisingly lengthy on Steam Deck. I swapped to Proton Experimental (bleeding edge) and the load time vanished nearly utterly. With this and the 60fps at 60hz setting on Steam Deck OLED, I received the absolute best moveable expertise for Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child proper now.
I even have entry to the Broadcast Over Sundown DLC, however I might be overlaying that by itself in a separate article as soon as I get round to enjoying it. For now, I’m very proud of how Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child feels and performs on Steam Deck, and might be replaying all of it the best way over the approaching week.
In its present state, Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child’s PC port is ok, however a couple of tweaks will enhance it significantly. After spending nearly all of at present with it on Steam Deck, it’s positively a massively improved expertise over the Swap model in handheld mode. Natsu-Mon: twentieth Century Summer season Child itself is great, and one other excellent immersive and stress-free world to sink into this month forward of the busy season.
Tomba! Particular Version Steam Deck Evaluation
Through the years Restricted Run Video games’ most essential contribution so far as I’m involved, is bringing The Home in Fata Morgana to consoles within the West, and as an entire version with content material not out there on PC even at present. Since then, my most-anticipated launch was Tomba! Particular Version which has lastly launched on PC, Swap, and PS5. I’ve been enjoying it on Steam Deck and Swap whereas Shaun works on his full evaluation of the Swap model. Since getting evaluation codes, Tomba! Particular Version has already been up to date a couple of occasions and is in a very good place proper now, however there are a couple of points holding it again.
Once you boot up the sport, you can begin a brand new recreation, view the museum (paintings, scans, gallery), watch interviews and the historical past of Tomba! by movies, try the music participant with the 2 soundtracks, and modify the sport choices. These choices embrace PC port options like decision, window mode, language, vibration, soundtrack possibility, background shade for the principle menu, and viewing the credit. Whereas in-game, you’ll be able to pause and use the emulation menu by hitting R2 or rewind utilizing L2. The emulation menu features a few display screen choices, a single filter possibility, 3 borders or the flexibility to show borders off, a reset button, save states, and the flexibility to give up the sport. I hope to see extra borders, extra save states, and sooner in-game emulation. Proper now, opening the in-game menu for utilizing objects or something is way too sluggish. I’d additionally wish to see extra filter choices.
Revisiting Tomba! by its Tomba! Particular Version launch and in addition enjoying the PS1 authentic on my PS Vita has been attention-grabbing. The load occasions for the menu are comparable, and I hoped we’d see higher emulation on that entrance on Swap and Steam Deck. Barring that, I didn’t discover main points. The museum is definitely the spotlight proper now as a fan of the unique. When it was initially introduced to solely embrace a brand new soundtrack, I used to be disenchanted, however I’m glad the group managed getting the unique soundtrack as an possibility right here.
Given the additional content material included, Tomba! Particular Version is excellent, and I’m glad to have an official launch of Tomba! on PC, however I hope Restricted Run Video games can handle the save system and among the emulation points. For those who favored Tomba! again within the day, that is nonetheless price getting.
Flock Steam Deck Evaluation
Flock from Hole Ponds, Richard Hogg, and Annapurna Interactive is a pleasant and colourful recreation that I’m disenchanted I didn’t play sooner. It was launched a couple of weeks in the past on Steam and consoles, and I’ve been enjoying it on Steam Deck and PS5 for this evaluation. I used to be curious to see how the beautiful aesthetic scaled throughout {hardware}, and whether or not it was a very good match for moveable play. As of this writing, Flock is marked as Steam Deck Playable and never Verified as a result of some textual content is perhaps tough to learn on the Deck’s display screen.
Flock is an journey exploration recreation about gathering totally different sorts of creatures. It’s playable on-line or offline, and has a give attention to flight as effectively. After a couple of minutes of enjoying it, I used to be offered. Working in direction of gathering all of the creatures took some time, however it’s best to anticipate to “end” Flock in a couple of hours. It initially begins out easy, however grows extra attention-grabbing with how you need to attraction creatures and even discover extra of the elusive ones because the story progresses.
On PC, Flock has fairly a couple of graphics choices. It runs at 800p on Steam Deck, however getting it to run at 60fps or increased, takes tweaking. For those who’re aiming for 90fps, it’s essential to begin on the lowest preset and switch a couple of settings up. I like to recommend enjoying with the decision scale at 100 as a result of Flock doesn’t look nice under that. Exterior that, the colourful aesthetic shines on the Steam Deck OLED, and I ended up enjoying Flock extra on Steam Deck than my PS5.
Talking of PS5, I like the DualSense haptics carried out in Flock. Since Flock is in Xbox Recreation Cross, I additionally performed it a bit there. It runs as anticipated, however there appears to be a bug with audio chopping out that wants fixing. Up to now, I’ve not been in a position to take a look at the multiplayer on Steam Deck but so I can not touch upon that facet of the sport.
Flock is a pleasant and lovely expertise that completely delivered what I needed in a brand new recreation from the Hohokum builders. It sounds superb and is a soothing expertise nearly all the best way. It won’t be for everybody, however Flock managed to hit each proper word and I’m now working my means by it once more on PS5 after enjoying it on Steam Deck.
Flock Steam Deck evaluation rating: 4.5/5
Information and Trailers
Destiny/Keep Night time Remastered is out this week on Steam and Swap worldwide for $29.99. What a shock this was. We knew it was within the works, however I anticipated it in 2025. Having it out this week and this low-cost is surprising. I bear in mind paying greater than double that for a PS Vita bodily from Japan years in the past. Watch the brand new trailer under:
There’s nonetheless extra Destiny information this previous week with Destiny/Additional File coming to Steam and consoles subsequent yr, as a remake of the PSP authentic. Watch the trailer for it under:
The ultimate little bit of Destiny information is Destiny/hole Ataraxia Remastered coming to Steam and Swap. It is a sequel to Destiny/Keep Night time, and hopefully it means we get a double pack bodily with Destiny/Keep Night time that additionally sees the bundle arrive on PS5 sooner or later:
Capcom has began releasing quick gameplay movies for mechanics and weapons in Monster Hunter Wilds, my most-anticipated recreation of 2025. Watch a very powerful weapon and two of the mechanics trailers under:
Deadly Fury: Metropolis of the Wolves’ latest trailer showcases Rock Howard. The sport continues to look unimaginable. Watch the trailer under:
Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP is launching about two weeks earlier within the West on Steam and consoles Dragami Video games has introduced. It releases on September twelfth within the West.
Bleach: Rebirth of Souls from Bandai Namco noticed yet one more trailer this week showcasing Byakuya Kuchiki forward of the sport’s launch on Steam and consoles.
No Extra Robots has revealed Descenders Subsequent, a brand new Desenders recreation with the goal of making the one excessive sports activities recreation anybody wants. It debuts subsequent yr on Steam and Recreation Cross. It is going to see extra sports activities added so long as gamers hold checking it out.
Kodansha revealed a couple of Fairy Tail indie video games within the type of Dungeons, Seashore Volleyball Havoc, and Start of Magic. These are all due on Steam with Fairy Tail Dungeons out on August twenty sixth and Fairy Tail Seashore Volleyball Havoc out September sixteenth.
Obsidian’s Avowed is now releasing on February 18th, 2025 out of its Fall 2024 window. That is doubtless to provide it extra respiration room with the opposite huge titles out this yr.
Inti Creates has launched a brand new trailer for deckbuilding RPG Card-en-Ciel forward of its launch on October twenty fourth for Steam and consoles. Watch the trailer under:
New Steam Deck Verified & Playable video games for the week
Panic’s upcoming Arco being Verified forward of launch is sweet to see. I’m engaged on a evaluation of it on Swap and Steam Deck. Past that, D3’s latest launch YEAH! YOU WANT “THOSE GAMES,” RIGHT? SO HERE YOU GO! NOW, LET’S SEE YOU CLEAR THEM! 2, Riven, and Minishoot’ Adventures getting Verified alongside Spike Chunsoft’s Quintessential Quintuplets getting a Playable ranking spherical up the highlights of this week from no matter Valve has examined.
- Arco – Verified
- Leisure Go well with Larry 1 – Within the Land of the Lounge Lizards – Playable
- Minishoot’ Adventures – Verified
- Riven – Verified
- The Quintessential Quintuplets – Recollections of a Quintessential Summer season – Playable
- YEAH! YOU WANT “THOSE GAMES,” RIGHT? SO HERE YOU GO! NOW, LET’S SEE YOU CLEAR THEM! 2 – Verified
Steam Deck Recreation Gross sales, Reductions, and Specials
There are two notable Humble Bundles on proper now. The primary is the board recreation night time one that includes Wingspan, Dune, and extra right here. The second is the LEGO one right here which is nice worth if you happen to don’t already personal most of those video games like I do.
That’s all for this version of the Steam Deck Weekly. As regular, you’ll be able to learn all our previous and future Steam Deck protection right here. When you’ve got any suggestions for this function or what else you’d wish to see us do across the Steam Deck, tell us within the feedback under. I hope you all have an amazing day, and thanks for studying.
