Steam Deck code is bleeding into Steam Machine game functionality

Valve has released the Steam Machine, but now that the device has made its way into the hands of reviewers, we are beginning to learn that Valve may have fallen short in many areas other than price (and the inclusion of a controller).

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In their recent review of the Steam Machine, Gamers Nexus discovered several Steam Deck-specific remnants while examining SteamOS within the new device. There are numerous directories and usernames that feature the word "deck". While these may appear as completely cosmetic mistakes leftover by Valve developers, they actually have real-world impact in games.

For example, when a game is first booted, it may believe the device it's being played on is a Steam Deck, which means specific inputs such as mouse and keyboard are automatically disabled at launch. Gamers Nexus discovered this was the case with Kingdom Come Deliverance 2. To remedy this, Valve has rolled out a per-game option that disables automatic Steam Deck detection, which will prevent the title from thinking a Steam Deck is being used to play it.

Why is this a problem? Valve originally built SteamOS for the Steam Deck, but according to the company, it always intended to expand the compatibility of the new operating system beyond the Deck. So, seeing dependencies and design assumptions within the files of the Steam Machine highlights Valve's perhaps lack of forward thinking, or readiness to debut SteamOS on a new hardware configuration.

Ultimately, SteamOS and the Proton layer have made Linux gaming far more accessible, and now that the Steam Machine has been released, Valve has the long, grueling haul of optimization.