When the Steam Deck was first announced all the way back in July last year, the inevitable comparisons to the Nintendo Switch were made. Perhaps to no surprise, the handheld console hybrid may have indeed been a strong source of inspiration for the mobile gaming PC. Some of its prototypes show just that, with some examples taking the idea further.
Valve has released images of the Steam Deck prototypes, from which we can see some of the wilder designs in the earlier stages. As well as inspiration from the Nintendo Switch, there is one particular model that looks quite distinctively like the PS Vita. Then there are others that have its controllers serve like clamps for a mobile phone.
The various prototypes also show that the Steam Deck could have either the analogue sticks or the trackpads, rather than both. Ultimately, Valve decided to not have detachable controllers, and not chose between trackpads and sticks.
While it’s natural for the earlier stages of the Steam Deck to look quite different from the final product, it’s interesting to see nevertheless. It looked like Valve was exploring multiple colour options as well, before settling with the standard black slate that it is now.
(Source: PC Gamer)
