Ever since its release in February 2022, Steam Deck has piqued the interest of many gamers. Presented as not just another hand-held console, but a full-blown hand-held PC, it quickly conquered the market.
Steam Deck supports a wide variety of games, from the newest releases, such as Elden Ring and God of War to the fan-favorite classics such as RimWorld, Apex Legends, and Stardew Valley.
It is obvious that Steam Deck is a great addition to the gaming family, but the question we want to raise and answer today is what is the current state of streaming on Steam Deck and whether it is worth it to buy it just for Twitch or Youtube streaming purposes.
Steam Deck for Streaming – Yay or Nay?
To answer directly, if you are just interested in getting a Steam Deck for streaming, then don’t do it. It simply isn’t worth it at the moment.
Keep in mind that might change in the future, but for now, using Steam Deck as the main streaming tool just doesn’t cut it. Let me explain why.
Steam Deck Streaming Limitations
Most limitations have to do with the fact that Steam OS isn’t really supported by most, if not all streaming software out there. The main concerns are:
- Streaming software support
- Steam Deck dock not being released
- Games performance concern
And, even with a decent Steam Deck SD card, the device would still struggle with performance.
Streaming software support
Most streaming software is built and optimized for operating systems such as Windows, Linux, and similar. Steam Deck comes with its own operating system called SteamOS.
Now, that doesn’t mean it is not possible to use certain software, since the word “not supported” doesn’t explicitly mean “not working”. Depending on the OS and software, sometimes a bit of tweaking can make things work.
For the purpose of streaming, you might have to use Windows or Linux operating system on the Steam Deck, which is an obstacle in itself, since the device comes with an integrated OS.
There is a way to use streaming software such as OBS on Steam Deck, but it requires you to run Desktop Mode since the OBS software is still not compatible with SteamOS. More about this later.
Another way to use OBS on Steam Deck is by using third-party tools such as Flatpak, which allows you to install certain apps on your other devices.
Steam Deck dock absence
Another issue Steam Deck users have is the absence of the official dock for the console. It makes it more difficult to charge and connect Steam Deck to other devices, such as TVs, monitors, etc.
There are viable steam deck dock alternatives to use for now, but, it is still a bit of a chore to find the right alternative that could work with both Steam Deck and other devices you use.
Games performance concerns
There is also a question of whether Steam Deck would be able to handle both streaming software and some of the more demanding games.
So far, the list of the games supported by Steam Deck keeps growing, and there are a lot of very noticeable titles there, including some of the newer games released on Steam.
Most of these games are made for PC, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles, so they require a bit more powerful configurations to play.
Steam Deck has proven to be relatively good when it comes to game performance, but it is known that streaming makes some games, especially new ones, more heavy on the FPS and performance side. This is especially true for games that are more graphically and processor-demanding.
Could Steam Deck Become a Streaming Machine in the Future?
Never say never is what we always believe to be true. However, it is highly unlikely that we will ever see Steam Deck used as the main streaming machine.
However, we can definitely see Steam Deck as a tool used to improve the overall streaming experience. People already use it as a secondary or tertiary streaming tool. Here is an example.
Using Steam Deck as the “Bridge”
You can use Steam Deck to alleviate the pressure from your gaming PC or console. This can be done, for example, by using a Desktop Mode on Steam Deck to run OBS and stream the games from PC, Xbox, PlayStation, or Nintendo consoles.
For this to work though, you will need a capture card to be a pillar of the bridge, let’s say. You can connect all devices you want to the capture card and set up OBS settings in Steam Deck desktop mode to broadcast the game you play.
As an example, let’s say you want to stream a game from Nintendo Switch to your TV and Twitch. You can simply connect the devices to capture the card, and use Steam Deck to broadcast from OBS while playing the game on Switch. Check out the video below for a more in-depth guide.
The process would be similar if you don’t have a dual PC setup for streaming. You could simply set up the OBS on Steam Deck and stream or record the game you’re playing on your PC without additional pressure on your CPU. It is fairly cheaper to buy a Steam Deck than a 2nd PC, wouldn’t you agree?
This is really helpful to new and small streamers who don’t have a lot of money to spend on expensive rigs and additional streaming goodies.
Conclusion
All in all, there are many ideas, wishes, and potential uses that are coming from the community. Since the console is relatively new, we can only hope that developers will keep improving their device.
But for now, we stand by what we said before, which is that Steam Deck isn’t suited to be your main streaming device.
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