Exciting Possibilities: Starfield May Soon Hit the Steam Deck for an Unforgettable Gaming Experience!

The capability of Valve's handheld gaming PC, the Steam Deck, to run Bethesda's highly anticipated RPG, Starfield, on its release day remains uncertain. During an interview with Todd Howard, the director and executive producer of Bethesda Game Studios, the question of the game's performance on the Deck was raised. Howard mentioned that a discussion regarding the Deck's performance would take place at a later time.

While this initial discussion about Starfield on the Deck may not have been overly positive, there is still hope for those looking to embark on galactic adventures while on the move. Although the Steam Deck is no longer the most powerful gaming handheld available, with that title now belonging to the Asus ROG Ally, Valve's efforts thus far have yielded positive results. This suggests that overcoming the challenge of running Starfield on the Steam Deck is certainly possible.

The revelation that Starfield operates at 30 frames per second (FPS) on Xbox Series consoles portrays a striking, yet somewhat expected, scenario. With its expansive open world and significant Bethesda features like object permanence, Starfield heavily relies on CPU performance. This poses a potential challenge for the Steam Deck, considering the Deck's CPU is arguably its weakest aspect, with Valve placing greater emphasis on its GPU. Although this configuration has proven successful for most games thus far, Howard's comment suggests that Starfield may not fare as well. However, his lack of immediate dismissal towards the Deck could also hold significant weight.

Considering that Starfield is a multifaceted game, it is conceivable that running it at playable frame rates on the Deck may become challenging. Todd Howard's remarks can be interpreted in different ways, but it is plausible that Bethesda may prioritize allocating more time for Deck compatibility, potentially after the game's release on other platforms.

It is worth mentioning that Todd Howard personally plays Starfield on the Xbox Series S, which is considered the least powerful gaming device of its generation. While comparing the Series S to the Deck may not be a direct comparison, it does suggest that the game is relatively scalable in most aspects. Ultimately, the Deck's CPU performance will determine its capability, but there is a definite possibility that it can handle the game effectively.

Starfield holds immense significance for Xbox, indicating a strong likelihood of substantial investment by the company to optimize the game for various modern gaming platforms, similar to what was done with Skyrim. This could potentially extend to the inclusion of the Steam Deck as well, and even if there isn't official support initially, the game's modding community is expected to find a solution in due course.

On September 6, Starfield will be released for PC and Xbox Series X/S.

Source: PC Gamer