Welcome to this weeks edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. If you missed yesterdays long interview with Dave Oshry of New Blood Interactive, read it here. Aside from that, there has been quite a bit of news since last Friday when it comes to new game announcements, trailers, release dates, and more Steam Deck Verified and Playable games from Valve. I havent had enough time to review anything for this week, but Ive been playing two notable games on Steam Deck. Before the news, lets get into the Steam Deck gameplay impressions first.
Missile Dancer 2 is a new sprite scaler shmup from the awesome Terarin Games. If youre not familiar with the indie developer, Shaun has reviewed loads of their games on Switch, and with many of them hitting Steam as well, Ive been buying every single release. Im a huge fan, but was curious to see how the developer would tackle this style of shmups. Very well it turns out. Missile Dancer 2 feels like a blend of Terarins signature charm with After Burner across its lock-on system, great music, and lovely visuals. Missile Dancer 2 runs flawlessly on Steam Deck (capped at 60fps though) in the time Ive put into it since yesterday. Stay tuned for Shauns full review of the game on Switch. I definitely recommend trying out the demo.
I was always going to play Pepper Grinder because Devolver Digital published it, but the soundtrack being composed by Xeecee ensured it would be special. I love Xeecees work and music recommendations. Before going off on a tangent about that, Pepper Grinder is a superb and slick pick up and play 2D action platformer about drilling and diving.
Shaun is doing a full review of this, and Ive been playing Pepper Grinder for a different feature, but it was so good that I just had to talk about it here. Barring some hit stop effect with the screen and the text effect that both give me a bit of motion sickness on both Switch and Steam Deck, Pepper Grinder feels perfect. It even runs at 90fps albeit at 16:9 and has Steam Cloud support. While I hope it comes to PS5 to see how the developers use the DualSense features, right now Pepper Grinder is basically perfect on Steam Deck. You definitely need to try the demo out.
Holo X Break from the developer of the awesome Holocure is a free Hololive fangame. This one is a beat-em-up with pixel art visuals featuring a few of my favorite Vtubers like Polka and Botan. It has local co-op support right now, but online is being added in a future update. It is worth noting that Holo X Break has Steam Remote Play Together support right now, and thats always a good option until official online play is added.
Holo X Break released a few hours ago (as of this writing), but Ive had no issues playing it on Steam Deck at 90fps on the Steam Deck OLED. Ive been focusing on playing with Polka for now, but I will likely be playing it more over the next few days while trying the other characters. I appreciate that the developer lets you choose your own button prompts while playing. Theres also an Entomophobia option. If you like Hololive, download this for free right now.
Some interesting fighting game reveals, FFXIV expansion stuff, and more this past week. We also had Square Enix announce and release a surprise update for the amazing Star Ocean 2 remake and some more DLC announced for other games. Arc System Works released A.B.A in Guilty Gear Strive this past week as the newest Season 3 character with the next DLC arriving in May. Season 4 is in development as well. Dizzy better be in. Watch the A.B.A trailer below:
Square Enix announced that FINAL FANTASY XIV: Dawntrail will launch on July 2nd worldwide for PC, PS5, PS4, and Xbox Series X. Pre-orders are now live with early access beginning from June 28th. Pre-order bonuses include a Wind-up Zidane minion and Azeymas Earrings (30% EXP boost until level 90). Pre-orders are live here for all platforms. Square Enix also confirmed that the FFXIV and FFXVI crossover begins next week. Watch the trailer for it below:
XSEED Games and MAGES. announced Corpse Party II: Darkness Distortion for a North American release on Steam, Switch, and PS4. This is a brand-new game in the series which has had a lot of games through spin-offs and more since the amazing original debuted. It feels like Ive been waiting 10 years for this. Watch the trailer for it below:
Free to play cozy simulation game Palia is now available on Steam following its Nintendo Switch and other PC storefronts launch before. I have this on Switch and will be checking it out on Steam Deck soon.
Square Enix announced and released a surprise update for Star Ocean The Second Story R bringing in a new difficulty mode, post-game Raid Enemies, new weapons, and a lot more. This remake is incredible as I said in my Switch review before, and Im going to try out the update this weekend on Switch and Steam Deck. Watch the trailer for all the changes and new content below:
Koei Tecmo announced that the 2nd Fate/Samurai Remnant DLC Records Fragment Sword Chronicles" will be released on April 18th. More information isnt available. I liked the first DLC, but I still need to finish it.
Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising will get its version 1.30 update alongside Vane who is the next DLC character on April 2nd. Balance adjustments and patch notes will be released a day prior. Watch the gameplay trailer for Vane in GBVS Rising below:
Capcom released the first update for Dragons Dogma 2 with a 30fps cap on PS5, motion blur options, the ability to start a new game on Steam and PS5, DLSS improvements, and more. Check out the patch notes here. Dont bother trying it on Steam Deck yet. It isnt close to being playable.
The final notable bit of news this week is Bandai Namco Entertainment revealing that Eddy Gordo joins Tekken 8 on April 5th alongside a new update. Early access begins on April 1st for Year 1 Pass holders. The downside to this announcement is a battle pass system being added into the game with a premium option. Check out the full patch notes here.
The Steam Deck Builders Fest is live until April 1st. Use this to not save 10% off on Balatro because you should buy it at full price, but you can grab that or many of the other games on sale like Gloomhaven or Peglin.
Thats all for this weeks edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. Im hoping to have some reviews for iOS, Switch, and Steam Deck next week alongside features. As usual, you can read all our past and future Steam Deck coverage here. If you have any feedback for this feature or what else youd like to see us do around the Steam Deck, let us know in the comments below. I hope you all have a great day, and thanks for reading.
See the article here:
Steam Deck Weekly: Pepper Grinder and Missile Dancer 2 Impressions, FFXIV Dawntrail Release Date, New Strive ... - Touch Arcade
- Marvel Snap: War Machine Best Decks and Synergies - Mobalytics - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- The 30 best Steam Deck games - Rock Paper Shotgun - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- View from the Hill: Albanese hit by unexpected wave as he tries to clear the decks - The Conversation - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Fanatical's New Steam Deck Bundle Is Full Of Cyberpunk Therapy And Kingdom Management Games - GameSpot - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- New Business: Martingale Wharf Restaurant to expand waterfront deck; T-BONES in Derry to get facelift - The Union Leader - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- 'Below Deck' star Captain Kerry admits Ben Willoughby wasn't his first pick for bosun - Entertainment Weekly News - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering reveals deck archetypes for Outlaws of Thunder Junction Commander decks - Sportskeeda - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Banged-up Heat have 'all hands on deck' - South Florida Sun Sentinel - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- 'Below Deck': 'Real Housewives of New York City' Star Jill Zarin Shakes Things Up on the Boat - Entertainment Tonight - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Fraser Olender Reacts to Cat Baugh Leaving Below Deck: "I Can't Take on Another Job" - Bravo - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Becky Lynch Brawls With Rhea Ripley On WWE Raw, Decks Dominik Mysterio - 411mania.com - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Ben Willoughby Might Be Fired In Below Deck Season 11, According To Captain Kerry - Screen Rant - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- RHONY's Jill Zarin Is One Demanding Charter Guest in Below Deck Midseason Trailer: 'Make It Better' - PEOPLE - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Outlaws Of Thunder Junction Debut Story, Mechanics, Commander Decks Revealed - TheGamer - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Get a Glimpse at the Stew Replacing Cat Baugh in the Below Deck Midseason Trailer: "I'm in Trouble" - Bravo - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Below Deck Season 12: Latest News & Everything We Know - Screen Rant - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Posh and decks! David Beckham upgrades 5million yacht for a 16MILLION version as former England ace sets sail ... - Daily Mail - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Student start-up decks up colleague's wedding venue with water-hyacinth-based creations | Onmanorama - Onmanorama - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- Xandi Oliver Is a Star on Below Deck Season 11- Here's Why - Yahoo Entertainment - March 31st, 2024 [March 31st, 2024]
- The Best Singles In The MTG Fallout Science! Commander Deck - TheGamer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- The Best Queen's Blood Deck In Final Fantasy VII Rebirth - Game Informer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering The 10 Best Cards In Fallout's Mutant Menace Commander Deck - TheGamer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Fallout Visual Spoiler: Every Card Revealed MTG - TheGamer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Game over for Roblox on Linux / Steam Deck as it's now blocked - GamingOnLinux - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering Unveils Assassin's Creed Collaboration: New Cards, Decks Revealed - BNN Breaking - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Remote Play broken on Steam Deck with the February stable update - GamingOnLinux - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Below Deck's Barbie Thinks Cat Shouldn't Have Signed Up for the Show - Us Weekly - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering The 10 Best Cards In Fallout's Hail, Caesar Commander Deck - TheGamer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Below Deck: 8 Chief Stews Who Will Never Return To The Franchise - Screen Rant - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- The MAGIC: THE GATHERING Oracle Deck Will Help Shape Your Path - Nerdist - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Valve fixes Remote Play on Steam Deck - GamingOnLinux - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Here's the most played Steam Deck games for February 2024 - GamingOnLinux - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Best Steam Deck alternatives in 2024: Ayaneo, GPD Win & more - Dexerto - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Outlaws of Thunder Junction: Release Date, Spoilers, Commander Decks - MTG Rocks - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Helldivers 2 Player Shares Their Incredible Solution for Calling in Complicated Stratagems - Screen Rant - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Below Deck fans convinced Cat Baugh is not cut out for reality TV - Dexerto - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering The 10 Best Cards In Fallout's Scrappy Survivors Commander Deck - TheGamer - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- February 27th, 2024 [Deck Recipes] - YGOrganization - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Everything Jack Stirrup Has Done Since Below Deck Mediterranean - Bravo - March 5th, 2024 [March 5th, 2024]
- Star Trek: Lower Decks S4, Scream sets The Faculty for 4K, plus Origin, Dreamers, potential Warner Ultra HD catalog ... - The Digital Bits - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- How To Watch Below Deck Season 11 & When It Premieres - Screen Rant - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Paramount Bowing Animated 'Star Trek: Lower Decks' Season 4 on Digital Feb. 5, Blu-ray and DVD April 16 - Media Play News - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- What Has Happened to Connie Arias Since Below Deck Season 3? - Bravo - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- How to Run 'Enshrouded' on Steam Deck - Lifehacker - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Below Deck is Bravo's most subversive show - reality blurred - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Below Deck Season 9 Cast: Where Are They Now? - Screen Rant - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- A Look At The Intrinsic Value Of Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NYSE:DECK) - Yahoo Finance - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- How to watch 'Below Deck' Season 11: Premiere time, new cast info, where to stream and more - Yahoo Entertainment - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Steam Deck open source Playstation Remote Play app 'chiaki4deck' gets smoother - GamingOnLinux - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Steam Deck Most Played: Even Palworld Cant Knock Baldurs Gate 3 Off The Top Spot - Forbes - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- 11 Things You Didnt Know About Below Deck's Captain Kerry Titheradge - Bravo - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- San Diego Mom Creates 'Go Deck' -- 52 Cards with Outdoor Activities for Every Week of the Year - Times of San Diego - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- How To Build A Fire Kings Structure Deck In Yu-Gi-Oh! - TheGamer - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- 'Below Deck' Season 11 Release Date, Trailer, Cast, and Everything We Know So Far - Collider - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Magic: The Gathering The 10 Best Cards In Murders At Karlov Manor's Revenant Recon Commander Deck - TheGamer - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Improve Performance on Your Steam Deck With CryoUtilities - Lifehacker - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- 'Below Deck' Season 11 Cast Guide: Who Is Back on Board? - Collider - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Airliner Number 4: The 9 Deck Plane Concept From The 1920s - Simple Flying - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Where was Below Deck Season 11 filmed? - Dexerto - February 7th, 2024 [February 7th, 2024]
- Cape Hatteras Secondary School decks the halls with Christmas tree project - Island Free Press - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- 'Star Trek: Picard,' 'Strange New Worlds' And 'Lower Decks' Pick Up 15 Saturn Awards Nominations - TrekMovie - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Win a Steam Deck OLED by watching The Game Awards - Polygon - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- McKinney moves forward with deck park plans - The Dallas Morning News - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- 9 Best Tarot Card Decks For Beginners, According to Expert Readers - GLAMOUR UK - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Valve will give away 100 Steam Deck OLEDs during The Game Awards. - The Verge - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Steam Deck OLED hits retail stores on December 12th in Asia - GamingOnLinux - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Below Deck Mediterranean: Luka Brunton Wasn't Ready For The Bosun Role (Is Captain Sandy Regretting Her ... - Screen Rant - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Devin Haney vs Regis Prograis live results: Haney decks and dominates Prograis to shutout decision in boxing ... - Sporting News - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- 100 Steam Deck OLEDs will be given away during The Game Awards 2023 - GamingOnLinux - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- You can win a free Steam Deck OLED just by watching The Game Awards - PCGamesN - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- The Best Cards In The Three Captains Ultra Deck - One Piece Card Game - TheGamer - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Solar Spotlight: Solar mounting hits the deck - Solar Power World - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- 'Deck the Halls' Meets Black Sabbath's 'War Pigs' - Laughing Squid - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Minden farmer decks out five acres for Christmas in the Country - KOLN - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- December 8th, 2023 [Deck Recipes] - YGOrganization - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Can you play The Finals on Steam Deck? - Dexerto - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- The Performance & Power Improvement Of Steam Deck OLED's 6nm APU Review - Phoronix - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Paige Spiranac Decks The Halls As The World's Sexiest Mrs. Claus - Outkick - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Skyrim Special Edition updated with Steam Deck support, ultrawide res, bug fixes - GamingOnLinux - December 11th, 2023 [December 11th, 2023]
- Griffiths completes steelwork and deck construction on 46M Welsh ... - New Civil Engineer - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]