With the Steam Deck, Valve attacks game consoles on their home turf

After becoming the leader in the distribution of dematerialized video games on the PC more than ten years ago with its Steam platform, the publisher and developer Valve is now a builder: the American company has just launched the Steam Deck, a hybrid machine between personal computer and portable console. At first glance, the device looks like a big Nintendo Switch, minus the detachable controllers. Moreover, it can also be connected to an external screen via a USB-C port – in order to be used as a living room console or desktop computer. Even the price isn’t all that different: at $399 excluding tax (around 365 francs) for its most affordable model, Valve’s machine is only slightly more expensive than the Switch’s recent OLED model.