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Steam Frame is great. Oh, damn. Firstly, it is light. Secondly, it doesn't have a strap across the entire head, so my hairstyle stays intact and looks cool. Third, it easily connects to your PC via a USB adapter. And you don't really need a PC for this. Because this handsome guy can run Half-Life Alyx right out of the box. Overall, this is the best VR headset I have ever used. why it pains me so much to say that I think it's time for me to give up VR. Having been using this cool device for a few weeks now, it's been great to replay games like Half-Life Alyx, or run Ghost Town,
or play Hot Dogs, Horse Shoes, and Hand Grenades. It was also a time to reflect on VR as a whole: where it started, where it was going, and where it is now. I've been a VR fan for a long time. I've made quite a few videos about VR. In fact, the first GameSpot video I appeared in was about Five Nights at Freddy's VR. Devil., I even did a VR game review for GameSpot. She was cool. And Half-Life Alyx became not only my personal game of the year in 2020, but also GameSpot's game of the year. But for all my love for VR, my complaints about it seem endless. I've been outspoken about how companies are holding back VR development by trying to stifle the market with their products. For example, Meta released the most affordable helmet, only to, for lack of a
better word, commit public suicide by putting everything into the metaverse, favoring a dystopian weird social life, and alienating people who just want to play games. Who needs this? Oh my God, you have freckles on your nose. Ultimately, looking back, I'm sure Zuckerberg was just counting on COVID never ending. So he could create his own weird little universe where people worked in helmets and probably also spent time together. In 5 years, people will be able to live where they want and work from wherever they want, but they will feel each other's presence, as if they are truly together.
Additionally, Meta has invested in studios to create Meta Quest exclusives, like the incredible Resident Evil 4 VR. Keep in mind that some of these studios have since closed, including Armature, the developers of the Resident Evil 4 VR remake. Leaving many of those games tied to Quest- an initiative that Meta seems to have abandoned. Now, of course, while I was writing and filming this video, Meta just announced its VR headset. But the thing is, they don't look designed for gaming at all. Instead, apps, watching movies, and here's a guy sitting in a movie theater wearing these glasses. Whether people will actually do it-I don't know.
Apparently, you can connect Quest controllers to them to play their library of games, but since the games were n't even shown in the commercial, it's clear that's not their priority. Plus, this thing will cost around $1,300. That is, more expensive than this guy-Steam Deck. But still, the last exclusive Meta game they released was Batman: Arkham Shadow, which came out two years ago, in 2024. On the other hand, there is the PlayStation PSVR 2, which Sony has also made a big investment in due to exclusivity. And of course, why wouldn't they do it? They need to sell this device. I can't blame them for that. But what really annoys me is the lack of backward compatibility with PSVR 1 games, as well as the tying of VR versions of games like
Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4 remake VR only to PSVR 2. Resident Evil is somehow always present in the entire VR context. Maybe it's because I'm paying attention to it because I'm a Resident Evil fan, but it's a fact. Ultimately, the only way to play Resident Evil Biohazard in VR is to have a PS4 and a PSVR 1, which isn't very convenient. So why am I digging up all these old VR bones for a video about Steam Frame? Well, because I've always believed that if any company could match Meta Quest, challenge their affordable, albeit weak, headsets, and open the door to more accessible VR with a larger library, it would be Valve. And finally, they did it. Uh, I'm just afraid they did it a little too late. I mean, imagine how you could bypass
the exclusivity of Meta Quest by giving access to the Steam library. The Steam Frame concept has the potential to become a gaming for many people. And I still think it's entirely possible. Just as Steam Deck became for many the first experience in PC gaming . and that, in turn, allowed many people to build their own PC, just like this guy did. The problem is that the Steam Frame occupies a strange niche: it's too expensive for beginners, and those who are already familiar with VR probably already have their solution. Like me, using the Meta Quest 2, connected to my PC to play a lot of VR games. Perhaps the most attractive feature of the Steam Frame is that it can be used as a standalone helmet if you don't already have a PC. But even this
standalone experience was n't as awesome as I expected. This is largely due to the fact that the number of games tested for Steam Frame is quite limited, at least judging by my library. Many VR games that I haven't played yet or that I like to play from time to time still don't run natively on the headset. For example, games like Hot Dogs, Horse Shoes, and Hand Grenades or Midnight Walk. And again, that doesn't mean they won't be checked later. It's just that now some of them don't even start or make me nauseous because of the braking, it can be difficult. It's obvious that Half-Life: Alyx is the trump card, but it's always been that way. Of course, there are a few games that I tested that ran natively on the headset.
Games like Boneworks and Dungeons of Eternity. But I have to admit that these games didn't grab me because they relied more on VR gimmicks than on thoughtful game design and plot. These are games I would like people to play to be amazed by the possibilities of VR, but I would n't insist that they are a must-have gaming experience. So, my dilemma: aside from Half-Life: Alyx, there aren't many games that run natively on this thing that I'd say to someone who doesn't have a PC or a VR headset, "You should buy this," because otherwise it's just a thousand-dollar machine for Half-Life: Alyx. Fortunately, games like Ghost Walk run natively on this device.
You just need to adjust the settings, as the game is not yet tested. All you have to do is turn the settings down to low, but even there the game looked great, and it's incredible in its own right. Another thing the Steam Frame boasts about is the ability to play regular games in theater mode. And frankly, having tried it, I can say that for me personally, it's not a very attractive prospect. Maybe this is just my subjective opinion. I naturally gravitate towards handheld gaming, so I have no problem with immersion due to the screen size. And also, I want to be able to calmly grab a glass of water and drink it while playing, instead of, you know, almost dropping it off the table.
Also, if you're not a tech enthusiast, I'd advise you to get a Steam Machine, buy Meta Quest 2 for a couple hundred dollars, and play Half-Life: Alyx that way, rather than investing a thousand or so dollars in one piece of hardware, then another thousand in another, and then buy the game. Yes, and that's exactly what's going through my mind, because as someone who's been playing VR games for years and using my Meta Quest 2 connected to a PC, it was great. I like it. And don't get me wrong, if there's one thing this made me pay attention to, it's how far After all, back then, to play Half-Life: Alyx, I had to take the HTC Vive Pro from work-the helmet, controllers, and sensors, which I had to place all over
the apartment, and then connect to the PC with wires to run the game. And now, after so many years, I can play the same 2020 game only on this device, and it's just awesome. The real evolution is in comfort and accessibility. But if you remove these things, there are still obvious VR problems that the Steam Deck doesn't solve. Perhaps the biggest of these, as old as the world of video games, is exclusivity. It really upsets me that while playing the best VR games I've ever played on Meta Quest 2, I know I can only play them on Meta Quest products. The same with PlayStation VR2: I didn't even play many VR games because I didn't buy the PSVR2 headset. I got one at work. I used it for a couple of weeks to
make a video, and that's it. So some of those games I do n't even know if they're good. And I probably won't know if they're any good until they come out on PC. And believe me, Valve won't be able to avoid this conversation either, because somewhere there is a multiverse where Half-Life Alyx also came out on PSVR2, and everyone was happy and saw the light of day. Another obvious problem that I think persists in VR is the preference for game gimmicks over truly good game design. VR games, even good ones, often try to showcase the possibilities of VR gameplay, instead of simply making a good VR game. Often, when playing VR games, you feel like each one behaves as if you're playing VR for the first time, which I think is entirely
fair. But they rely more on physical actions in VR, such as climbing, squatting, jumping, and other overly strenuous physical manipulations. Oh, and a quick side note: I hate it when they try to simulate the weight of an object. So if I lift something in the game, let's say a sledgehammer, and the character's hand in the game can't lift it, and I down in real life-my brain doesn't perceive that. Now it would be remiss not to mention the " rampocalypse" that occurred and significantly increased the cost of everything. Because in many ways, if this device had come out at a different, lower price and much earlier, I don't think I would have the
feelings I have now. Also, just opening the Steam library, with the exception of Ghost Sandwich, which I've mentioned a million times and which came out last year, I don't see the library evolving in a way that excites me. It just makes me realize: yes, smaller size, lighter weight, convenience, but the library is still in decline. And with PlayStation effectively abandoning VR and Meta Quest also moving away from gaming, I just don't know what the future holds for this media space. Perhaps the best way to describe my feelings about this incredibly good headset is that it feels like a " swan song" for VR gaming. This seems to be the best headset you can buy. It looks like this is likely the last headset Valve will make.
Maybe even the last VR gaming headset for a long time, if not forever, until they move directly to augmented reality gaming. But I could be completely wrong, and I hope I am. In fact, it looks like an ideal option for enthusiasts who like to tinker, modify, and do similar things. There's just no point in me commenting on this because I'm not a jack of all trades. I am a person who simply wants to receive conscious artistic impressions. That's the thing. By itself, it's cool. Throw away all context and just look at it as a gaming device that can be connected to a PC for VR games, and it will be able to run them in the future. And I'm sure it will get support for many other cool games that will be tested on it. This is great
. I like him very much. Ultimately, I didn't plan on making this video review, I just wanted to remember the history of VR and how we got there. So, having said that, I have a date with a Thompson submachine gun.
