Welcome to this week’s Steam Deck Weekly, the first issue of April 2024. I said I was looking forward to a few quiet weeks at the end of a busy season, but there are so many games coming out even now (and I’m loving every minute of it, Jerry). I’ve been playing a lot of great indie games, which I’ll start covering today, as well as some interesting ports of old Japanese games that have been released on Steam or will be released soon. I’ve also played a lot of Paradox Interactive games to see how they control on the Steam Deck and how the new DLC feels. Before we break out the news and new Steam Deck verified/playable games, let’s get into the reviews and impressions.
Steam Deck Game Reviews and Impressions
Buckshot Roulette Steam Deck Review
Buckshot Roulette is a game that I had no idea existed until I received a review code and tried it. The poster for the game made it look like something I wouldn’t like, but I decided to play around with the code and play the game to see how I felt when I had some free time. Fast forward to a few days later and I decided to give the Buckshot Roulette a try. I’m glad I did because it was an amazing and short experience that I highly recommend if you’re okay with aesthetics.
Buckshot Roulette is a fun version of Russian Roulette, a 20-minute game that comes complete with shotguns, items, adrenaline-pumping music, and more. Without knowing anything else, you enter a room with a dealer, a shotgun, a table, sign your name, and play Russian Roulette in Buckshot Roulette. As you progress through winning rounds, items are added to the mix, bullet counts increase, odds change, and more. I won’t reveal how it plays out, but I was so impressed that after spending half an hour playing the game, I gave it to a few friends. The lower asking price makes it easier to recommend. Visually, Buckshot Roulette does a lot with its limited color palette and I love the art as a whole. This is also complemented by great music.
While there are aspects of Buckshot Roulette that won’t suit some people (such as the art style), I enjoy the game, and my main complaint is the current lack of Steam cloud support. It plays and looks great on the Steam Deck from start to finish, and is easily recommended for the low asking price. I’m glad I didn’t study it carefully before playing it, because Buckshot Roulette is one of the best surprises to come to the Steam Deck in 2024 so far. I’m looking forward to checking out the multiplayer and console ports later this year.
Buckshot Roulette Steam Deck Review Rating: 4.5/5
Front Mission 2: Remastered Steam Deck Impressions
I was originally going to write an article about Front Mission 1 Remastered today since I finally got it on Steam to play on the Steam Deck, but Forever Entertainment went ahead and announced Front Mission 2: Remastered ’s PC port, and a free demo is now available. So I decided to report on the Front Mission 2: Remastered demo instead, and there was good news everywhere. Until then, you can read Sean’s full post-release review of Front Mission 2: Remastered on Switch here.
Front Mission 2: Remastered is a great experience on Steam Deck. It supports a 16:10 aspect ratio (but you may need to manually set it to 800p in the graphics options). When gaming handheld on the Steam Deck OLED, locking 90fps seemed very doable in the early parts I played. I Also tested it on my 1440p 144hz monitor. When playing in native 1440p, there is no way to lock 60fps. I recommend docking playback in 1080p so you can always stay above 60fps.
“Front Mission 2: Remastered” can also correctly call the Steam Deck’s on-screen keyboard for text input. It also features proper Steam Deck controls, including a Steam Deck mockup in the control options to show you what each button does. It also allows you to manually change button prompts for Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation. I have it set to PS5 for now.
While I’ll reserve all my thoughts until I receive the full game for review, it’s likely that Front Mission 2: Remastered will make it to Steam Deck sooner or later and feel much better than the Switch version on Steam Deck. I recommend trying the free demo now as saves carry over to the full game.
“Level of Heroes 1 and 2” full version Steam deck impressions
PQube will launch the full-length bundle of Heroes 1 and 2 on Steam and consoles in the West on April 26, as well as two individual versions. Shaun is doing a full review of both games on Switch, but I wanted to briefly touch on how they run out of the box on the Steam Deck. In fact, based on the time I put into it, both should be Steam Deck verified. I haven’t played the original yet, so the impressions below only cover what it’s like to play the game on the Steam Deck.
Hero Level: Anniversary Edition Steam Deck Impressions
Level of Heroes Anniversary Edition has no in-game settings, but when I force it to run at 1440p on the Steam Deck from the game properties, it looks fine on my docked monitor and runs in handheld mode on the Steam Deck No problem (LCD and OLED models). The game’s framerate appears to be capped at 60fps, and there were appropriate button prompts when I used the DualSense of the Deck itself to control it. For text input, Heroes: Anniversary Edition has its own in-game on-screen keyboard.
“Level of Heroes 2G”: Remastered Steam Deck Impressions
Hero Level 2G: Remastered has even more features in its PC port. On the Steam Deck, it runs without issue. It seems to run slightly above 60 fps, though, so I’d recommend limiting it to 60 since it never goes above 70 no matter what settings I use. It also correctly invokes the keyboard for text input. For its graphics options, you can adjust the resolution up to 1440p, screen mode (windowed or full screen), toggle vertical sync, anti-aliasing (up to MSAA 8X), and adjust volume levels. It also correctly displays button prompts for an Xbox or PS5 controller. From the time I’ve used it, everything has loaded and runs fine.
Stay tuned for Shaun’s full review of Hero Academia: Anniversary Edition and Hero Academia 2G: Remastered.
SaGa Emerald Beyond Steam Deck Impressions
If you missed my hands-on preview of SaGa Emerald Beyond earlier this week, read it here . This preview is based on my time playing SaGa Emerald Beyond on PS5. Ever since Square Enix released the demo on PS5, PS4, Switch, and Steam, I’ve been checking it out on the Steam Deck and Switch. The latter has some issues, but I can safely say that the demo of SaGa Emerald Beyond feels great on the Steam Deck. In fact, it also runs better than the PS5 version, as the Steam version supports up to 120 fps, and even Steam Deck can hit 90 fps on the handheld on Steam Deck OLED. It also supports 16:10 aspect ratio.
For SaGa Emerald Beyond’s graphics options, you can adjust shadow quality, texture detail, and anti-aliasing using the available presets. There is no option to change the button prompts, and even when I use the DualSense wirelessly, it displays the Xbox prompt. However, you can only adjust display settings, such as frame rate and resolution, before loading the save. Another thing I noticed is that the demo-based version of SaGa Emerald Beyond on Steam is currently the only version of the 3 platforms that offers a Japanese voice option. Hopefully the iOS version will have this feature as well, and will be available in the full game on consoles.
I’ll also be covering the full game of SaGa Emerald Beyond on Steam in the future, but based on the timing of the demo, it’s the winner on Steam Deck. I recommend you try the demo on your own Steam DEck and see how you feel. Keep in mind that demo roles vary by platform.
News and trailers
Some noteworthy game trailers, announcements, DLC, and more are making headlines this week. Let’s start with the incredible new trailer for Shin Megami Tensei V: Revengeance. This trailer feels like it has more noteworthy story moments than the entire original game. Jokes aside, it looks incredible and even the main character, Naho Bino, has a new form. Ahead of the game’s full launch on PC and consoles in June, watch below:
As you can see in my demo impressions above, Forever Entertainment is bringing Front Mission 2: Remastered to Steam and other consoles on April 30, following its debut on Switch last year. Like Front Mission 1 Remastered, the game feels better after a few updates, and those who wait get a better experience. It has a free demo on Steam, which you can also try here. Watch the new platform trailer below:
Speaking of demos, Draknek & Friends is releasing LOK Digital from Letibus Design and Icedrop Games. LOK Digital is a world-changing word puzzle game now available in demo on Steam. Watch the trailer below:
As revealed last week, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rise has received its latest DLC character, Vane, who is now available alongside the game’s major update. Vane is included if you have the Character Pass or Deluxe Pass. Watch the gameplay trailer below:
There have been a lot of game announcements recently through different showcases and live streams, but listed below are a few that caught my attention. The first is the Great God Grove at LimboLane. This puzzle adventure game looks weird, hilarious, and colorful at the same time. The game is coming to Steam this fall, and you can watch the trailer below:
Raw Fury and High North Studios’ SKALD: Against the Black Priory is the second installment. This RPG with a retro aesthetic will be available on Steam and GOG on May 30, and is now available for free trial on Steam. This one looks great, I’ve downloaded the demo and am ready to play it this weekend. Watch the trailer below:
The last news of note this week is the trailer for Capcom’s Exoprimal x Mega Man collaboration, which kicks off on April 17 with Title Update 4. The update will also introduce custom match modes, new beta exoskeleton suits, a time loop rebellion mode, and more. Fight the main boss and get rewards and more. In this collaboration, some cosmetics will be unlocked by performing specific tasks multiple times, while other cosmetics will be sold on the platform storefront. Watch a trailer for the collaboration below:
New games verified and playable on Steam Deck this week
- Brothers – A Tale of Two Sons (Original Game) – Playable
- Cricket 24 – Playable
- Exo One – Verified
- Horizon Forbidden West Full Version – Not Supported
- NeoSprint – Verified
- Open Road – Verified
- South Park: Snow Day! – Playable
- Soul Hunters: Marked for Death II – Playable
- Oriental curtain festoon ~ Dream barrage festival part 2 – playable
Steam Deck game sales and discounts
There are currently three famous Steam specials. The first is Lovecraftian Days 2024 from Fulqrum Publishing. As of April 8, games such as “Darkest Dungeon 2”, “Killing the Princess”, “Forgive My Father 2” and more are available Enjoy discounts. Check it out here.
The second is #TurnBasedThursdayFest, valid until April 8, with discounts on turn-based games like Chained Echoes, Inkulinati, and more. Check out the sale here.
The last notable sale of the week is the Talos Law franchise sale, which includes discounts on the game, DLC, and more. Check it out here. I recommend these two games if you like puzzle games and want to play two of the best games in years.
Next week’s trailer
I mentioned in the introduction how I’ve been playing some of the newer Paradox games as well as DLC for existing games. I want to give you a brief overview of what I’m going to do. I’ve written about games like Victoria 3 and how they get released on the Steam Deck, but what’s so impressive to me is how the community releases controller layouts to make these keyboard and mouse games that lack controller support (at least on PC) ) is more playable on Steam Deck. Stay tuned for Steam Deck Weekly’s upcoming dedicated section covering these games and DLC for impressions, reviews, and more.
That’s all for this week’s Steam Deck Weekly. As always, you can read all of our past and future Steam Deck coverage here. If you have any feedback on this feature or what you’d like us to do on the Steam Deck, please let us know in the comments below. I hope you all have a great day and thank you for reading.