It’s silly to compare Switch 2 sales to Steam Deck sales.

The Switch 2 is a locked-down, vertically integrated platform. There are no ROG Switch 2s. No Lenovo Switch 2s. No Switch laptops or tower PCs with discrete GPUs. If you want to play Mario Kart World, your only option is to buy a Switch 2. Period.

Steam Deck, by contrast, isn’t a platform. It’s just one hardware option—one entry point into the sprawling, open ecosystem known as PC gaming.

Every year, around 245 million PCs are shipped globally. If even 20–25% of those are gaming-focused, that’s 49–61 million gaming PCs annually. Steam Deck is a sliver of that. So of course it won’t outsell a console that’s the only gateway to a major IP.

But that’s exactly the point.

PC gaming is too decentralized for any single device to dominate. The last “PC” that did was the Commodore 64, which sold 12.5–17 million units over 12 years because it was a self-contained platform, unlike modern Windows, Mac, or Linux machines.

That the Steam Deck has sold 4 million units despite competing with every other gaming PC in existence is remarkable. It didn’t just sell—it legitimized a category. Handheld PC gaming is now a thing. That’s why Lenovo, ASUS, and MSI have followed. Even Microsoft is getting in, optimizing Windows for handhelds—something they would never have done if the Steam Deck didn't hold their feet to the fire.

So no, Steam Deck didn’t outsell the Switch 2. It didn’t need to.

It won by changing the landscape.

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[–] 134 points 1 year ago (13 children)

If you want to play Mario Kart World, your only option is to buy a Switch 2. Period.

For now.

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  • [–] 35 points 1 year ago (8 children)

    Yuup. Nintendo's biggest advantage has always been their intellectual property, and even that hasn't always saved them. glances at the Wii U

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    [–] 82 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    Has either company "lost" anything? They both seems to be raking in money quite healthily.

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    [–] 58 points 1 year ago (18 children)

    I'll emulate Nintendo games till the day I die because fuck Nintendo and their greed.

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    [–] 45 points 1 year ago* (2 children)

    What I like about the deck is I bought it and I instantly already owned >1000 games for it where a good majority of those are playable out of the box.

    So ya, I ain't paying $120 CAD per game. Fuck that.

    Also my controllers basically all work for it so I don't need to buy these overpriced joycons again for a new system.

    Already have webcams if I cared for a silly camera that streams at 2FPS.

    It's unfortunate that theres been a lot more attention for optimization from some developers for the switch 2 though, not much we can do about that. Some games I own the deck is screaming and barely handling it and apparently the switch 2 runs it no problem.

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  • [–] 9 points 1 year ago* (1 child)

    I ain’t paying $120 CAD per game.

    You are correct. If you want Tears of the Kingdom, it is $130 ($115 plus tax). I am stunned that this is the launch price of Switch 2 games. How high will they go in the future?

    The Switch 2 makes even the new ROG Ally X seem like a good deal (assuming it is around $1000 CAD), since you can just play any of your Xbox Play Anywhere games that you have acquired on sale, or have access to via Game Pass. You don't even need a subscription to access online play, and it has free cloud saves.

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  • [–] 35 points 1 year ago (9 children)

    What kind of idiots are comparing the two? They're different things with entirely different markets. There was never a battle to be had lol

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  • [–] 18 points 1 year ago (4 children)

    It’s funny you say this, because for 500 bucks I am actually debating between the two as my Christmas present to myself this year.

    I think I’d prefer a Steam Deck for no particular reason. 🏴‍☠️

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  • [–] 8 points 1 year ago*

    They are competitors on a personal level as many people only have the time or money to fit one of them into their lives. But by that definition cycling or golfing is also a competitor and nobody would write an article about how bikes outsold the Steam Deck.

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  • If you're comparing them, as in you don't have a strong preference for one vs the other, the Steam Deck wins hands down. You get access to a much larger library of games, repairability is awesome, and you can use it like a PC, because it is one.

    The only reasonable reasons to get a Switch 2 are:

    • play first party titles - even when emulators come out, the performance probably won't be there on the Steam Deck
    • it's for someone who wants a very simple experience, and they're willing to pay more
    • the Steam Deck is too big for you - if you have smaller hands, it could be uncomfortable

    But I don't think most people will really be deciding between the two, they target very different markets.

    I'll probably end up getting the Switch 2, and I have a n OG Switch and a Steam Deck.

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    [+] 34 points 1 year ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (18 children)
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    [–] 30 points 1 year ago

    Steam Deck is the winner, They don't even advertise.

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  • [–] 23 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    Actually you will be able to play switch two games on PC. It's only a matter of time so no your only option isn't just switch two. It's patience 😜

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    [–] 20 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    The funniest thing is that Nintendo buyers are not even part of this conversation LMAO 🤣

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    [–] 17 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (16 children)

    I've generally seen purchasing a Steam Deck as an informed decision. But most people are very nostalgic (can't blame them, SNES to Wii Zeldas and Metroids were amazing) and have uncontrollable FOMO, which Nintendo keeps on milking even when their software and hardware is noticeably much worse than it's competitors'. If anyone also wants to know how Nintendo currently uses the money they earn, here's a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n025Gxn5GEM No wonder they're less worried about wasting money on legal battles. No trace of the good old Nintendo.

    • For Nintendo fans that may get triggered by this, don't. Just own it. Spending more on something worse doesn't mean you can't enjoy it.
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  • [–] 10 points 1 year ago (7 children)

    But most people are very nostalgic (can’t blame them, SNES to Wii Zeldas and Metroids were amazing) and have uncontrollable FOMO, which Nintendo keeps on milking even when their software and hardware is noticeably much worse than it’s competitors’.

    This reads like someone who never played any of the switch titles. It's not simply nostalgia. The switch titles were objectively good despite lackluster hardware. The switch lasted for almost a decade and is still playable today. People are buying switch 2 to be able to play the Nintendo exclusives.

    It's true that the hardware is largely lackluster, but especially in the case of the first party titles, and in general overall, the lackluster hardware just doesn't prevent the games from looking and running great. Nintendo invests in developers capable of running large, complex games on somewhat modest hardware.

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  • [–] 8 points 1 year ago* (4 children)

    This is such a wild take. « I buy the steam deck because I am informed and smart, they buy the switch 2 because they’re nostalgic impulsive morons ».

    Has it ever occurred to you that not everybody is you, and people have different tastes ? Some gamers want to play the latest COD, others are Final Fantasy super fan, and others want to play Zelda and Mario. Most people even just play on a smartphone! (Disgusting, I know).

    Your lack of basic awareness of what an individual is is astonishing. May I never meet and have to talk to someone like you again.

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  • [–] 9 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    I think you're missing the point.

    The steam deck is still relatively niche and unknown compared to a switch.

    The namesake and brand recognition for nintendo completely dwarfs that of the steam deck.

    More people are going to buy a switch on impulse and brandname alone so buying a steam deck is almost always going to be an informed decision as in it won't be much of an impulse purchase.

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    [–] 15 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    No shame to anyone who bought a switch 2. My partner got one during pre-sales and is incredibly happy to have gotten one, and I feel so happy for him that he gets to have some joy in his life with it. I wish you the same joy.

    But I just can't get into it. I didn't grow up with nintendo so the properties really don't mean much to me. And now, I just don't think I can swallow paying hundreds of dollars to start, then another hundred dollars to get games that seemingly play the same way as they did in the last release, plus a yearly subscription for online play. You may not see what you purchased the same way, and I'm glad that it's meaningful to you even if I can't find the same meaning in it -- it's good that there exists something for everyone's niche.

    I don't see why this needs to be a competition. Are there really people out there who were about to get a steam deck but decided not to in favour of a switch 2? I feel like switch owners are well aware that it's a Nintendo machine and theyre not gonna be playing a lot of their favourite out-of-franchise games on it. That's what they expect and thats what they'll likely get.

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    [–] 15 points 1 year ago (6 children)

    The fact that the Nintendos are locked down, family friendly and with a reputation of good production quality (similar to Disney), are also important points for non-nerdy parents and casual gamers who don't want to navigate the ocean of PC gaming and its risks.

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  • [–] 19 points 1 year ago* (2 children)

    good production quality... *looks at workbench with 12 cubbies of drifting joycons queued for unofficial repair

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    [–] 9 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    I stopped buying consoles and moved pretty much exclusively to Steam because it gives me many more options. Thankfully, I don't think that's changing anytime soon. Consoles are great for some people, but I need more flexibility. I sometimes wish I could (legally) play Nintendo first party games, but it's really not that big of a deal.

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    [–] 7 points 1 year ago

    I loved my steam deck, but it was too chunky for me and certainly for my kid.

    My compromise is Anbernic type devices. Long battery life, better form factor, lots of ported games too.

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  • [–] 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

    In 1999, the SEGA Dreamcast was the fastest selling video game console when it launched. In 24 hours, it sold a little over 225k units (which was massive for the tiny gamer population of 1999). This earned it the Guinness World Record for Most Revenue Generated in the Entertainment Industry in 24 Hours.

    Console sales at launch literally don't matter.

    Also, I wonder how many of those were sold to scalpers that plan on returning them if they cannot sell them?

    EDIT: For reference, the PlayStation 1 sold 300k consoles in Japan only when it launched, but not in 24 hours, that 300k is for the entire launch month of December 1994, per Sony's own official business data.

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  • [–] 7 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    Playing with a amiga as a kid when I was at friends and got to play Nintendo I always felt like an outsider.. But I didn't realise how lucky I am that it was like that. I was exposed to so many more games, and got to tinker. Got to see many crack intros that was mesmerising to me as a kid. Soon enough I got into coding because of it.. And guess if that was useful later. I'm never going to think buying a walled garden device is ok, sends the wrong message to your kids and hampers their development. Don't take the easy way out.

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    [–] 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

    There is no value in defending a billion dollar company from another billion dollar company. Just accept Nintendo is more popular and live your life ❤️

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