Okay, so like, remember when cloud gaming was the laughing stock of the entire gaming community? 😂 Yeah, well, NVIDIA’s GeForce NOW apparently didn’t get the memo. After only, like, a decade of “beta testing” (because who needs to release a finished product, amirite?), they’ve FINALLY figured out how to maybe, possibly, kinda sorta make it work. They’re letting you pretend your potato PC is actually a super-powered RTX GPU. It’s basically the equivalent of putting a spoiler on a Prius and calling it a race car. 🚗💨
So, NVIDIA, bless their hearts, thinks this is the future of mobile gaming with their new GeForce NOW Steam Deck app. 🙄 You just jump through a few hoops in desktop mode (because who doesn’t love a little extra hassle?), and BAM! GeForce NOW magically appears in your Steam Game Library. ✨ I got the “Ultimate” service tier, which is basically the “we’re gonna try to impress you” level. And guess what? It didn’t need an update for TWO WHOLE WEEKS. Groundbreaking! 🤯 Just remember, you still have to buy the games yourself. GeForce NOW just lets you rent their fancy computers to play them. Think of it as the Blockbuster Video of gaming, but instead of late fees, you get lag spikes. 📉
After linking a bunch of accounts (because more is always better, right?), I had access to a whopping 169 games from Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Out of 2200+ available. Quality over quantity, folks! 🤪 You can also connect your GOG.com, Steam, and Epic Games accounts. Basically, NVIDIA wants to be the middleman for all your gaming needs. It’s like they’re trying to become the gaming equivalent of Skynet, but with slightly less world domination and slightly more buffering. 🤖
But how does it run, you ask? Well, according to NVIDIA, it’s “modern-day sorcery.” ✨🔮 The Steam Deck apparently performs better than it normally does, which isn’t saying much. They’re using RTX 4080 SuperPODS (whatever those are) with 64 TFLOPS of performance (numbers!). Basically, they’re trying to convince you that your Steam Deck is now a high-end gaming PC. It’s like telling your grandma that her flip phone is the latest iPhone. 👵📱
I decided to dive into *The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered* (because who doesn’t love a game from 2006 with a fresh coat of paint?). NVIDIA lets you obsessively monitor your stream performance with a little statistics window. You can track your Stream FPS, Game FPS, PING, and bandwidth usage. It’s perfect for those who love to micromanage their gaming experience to the point of insanity. 🤪 You can also enable 4K and HDR10, which is totally useless on the Steam Deck’s screen, but hey, options! 🤷♀️
With GeForce NOW, you can magically pick up and play your save files. My Argonian character was ready to go as if I was on my Xbox Series X. No extra intervention needed! It’s like magic, except it’s just cloud saves. 🪄 *Oblivion Remastered* runs at a smooth 60 FPS, even during the goblin-infested quest that always chugs on even the original version. The Steam Deck powered through it without issue! Take that, 2006 technology! 💪
The pick-up-and-play feature also works on PC. I loaded up my *Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker* save and continued exactly where I left off. It’s like a better-performing Wii U gamepad! Except nobody wanted a Wii U gamepad. 🕹️ The main TVs and PCs can be occupied, but you can still game on the Steam Deck without causing family drama (and without a larger display). Win-win! 🏆
But if you have a dock and a 4K HDR TV, you can unlock the true potential of GeForce NOW! You can access HDR10, Ultrawide, and 4K graphics! 🤯 *DOOM: The Dark Ages* looks amazing on a ViewSonic XG275D-4K Monitor. It’s like finally seeing color after living in a black-and-white world. 🌈
For a real test, I compared *Lords of the Fallen* on the native Steam Deck hardware and GeForce NOW. The Steam Deck lasted about 2 hours on battery, while GeForce NOW lasted almost 3! Battery efficiency is better with cloud gaming! 🔋 NVIDIA has officially solved the energy crisis! 🌍
Performance-wise, GeForce NOW crushed two *Lords of the Fallen* bosses at a constant 60 FPS with low PING. It felt like playing on a console or high-end PC! On the Steam Deck hardware, I had to mess with resolution settings to get a sub-optimal 30 FPS. GeForce NOW lets you run games that the Steam Deck normally can’t, like *Clair Obscur: Expedition 33*, *Monster Hunter Wilds*, and *Path of Exile 2*. The cloud is the limit! ☁️
The best feature of GeForce NOW is the ability to play games without downloading them! I started multiple games without waiting for installation. *Cyberpunk 2077* (a massive 70GB) started within minutes! You don’t have to waste storage space! 💾 The only downside is the need for a strong and stable internet connection. This removes the Steam Deck’s portability. A Steam Deck, housebroken. 🐕
GeForce NOW for the Steam Deck is a force to be reckoned with. It unlocks the Steam Deck’s potential (with a stable internet connection). NVIDIA constantly updates the service, adding titles to the library. GeForce NOW adds another tool to the Steam Deck’s arsenal and brings utility to Xbox or PC gamers who want to use their Steam Deck more. GeForce NOW for Steam Deck rocks, if you can afford it. 💰
Pixel P. Snarkbyte, widely regarded as the “Shakespeare of Sh*tposts,” is a video game expert with a unique knack for turning pixels into punchlines.
Born in the small town of Respawn, Pennsylvania, Pixel grew up mashing buttons on an ancient NES controller, firmly believing that “blowing into the cartridge” was a sacred ritual passed down through generations.
Pixel P. Snarkbyte: proving that life, much like a buggy open-world game, is better with a little lag-induced chaos.
