Steam Community :: Nerdballer-Z

Nerdballer-Z

Huntsville, Alabama, United States

Level

Years of Service

350 XP

About Me

I'm a lifelong gamer who still finds the escape from reality that video games provide an absolute necessity to existence. I started on the NES when I was about 8. Since then I've owned Super Nintendo, Sega Saturn, Playstation 1, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5, Steam Deck, and several PCs. These days I spend most of my game-time in the PC world.

Rig Details

My PC is custom-built with a custom water-cooling loop. The hardware I'm rocking these days is as follows:

CPU : AMD Ryzen 5900x
GPU : NVIDIA RTX 3080 Founders Edition
MoBO : Asus Tuf x570 Plus (WiFi)
RAM : Corsair Dominator 3600 CL18 4 x 16GB
Monitor : LG Ultragear 27GP83B-B 27" 1440p 165hz
Mouse : Corsair Dark Core Pro SE
Keyboard : Corsair Strafe RGB (Cherry Red keys)

Below is the original PCPartPicker list for my build (does not reflect upgrades since initial build).
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/bmGcCJ

Other Gaming Accounts

Origin : iii-Raven-25 (Battlefield 1)
Battle.Net : iiiRaven#1332 (Destiny 2)
Epic Games : iii-Raven (Fortnite)
Uplay : iii-Raven (Splinter Cell Black Ops)
Discord : iii-Raven#0470

View more info

Currently Online

Badges 46

A Small Zionist-Lynching Tractor
Online

Pitanova
Offline

Alzir
Offline

MeatBag
Offline

Fojitsu
Offline

Shinypants
In-Game
Coral Island

Game Collector

Games Owned

DLC Owned

Reviews

Featured Games

Rarest Achievement Showcase

+1,430

1,450

Achievements

Perfect Games

32%

Avg. Game Completion Rate

Badge Collector

Total Badges Earned

120

Game Cards

About Me

Steam Deck Review

It's tough calling this a review, as it's honestly not a breakdown of features and capabilities with specific recommendations. It's really just my thoughts on the product and how it fits into my own lifestyle. A couple years ago I owned the Nintendo Switch. I honestly just didn't like it. The games were great, but they were expensive. The JoyCons are the most uncomfortable controllers I think I've ever used on a console. The technical performance was just pathetic, even at launch. I think part of this is just me though. Nintendo markets the Switch as a handheald that can also be used as a console. I saw it as a console that could also be used as a handheald. Between the expense of acquiring games and just the lack of general performance, I just couldn't get into the Switch.

But, as someone with a serious FOMO problem, I pre-ordered the Deck when it was announced. I think that, honestly, the most magical thing about it was that when it arrived, I found that out of my 100+ games on Steam, over half of them were ready-to-go on the Deck. It felt like the product came with a huge backlog of games that I could enjoy Day 1. However, I struggled for weeks on deciding what to play. I have a great PC, and I had a hard time compartmentalizing what to play on my PC and the Deck. Though the Deck is mobile, my PC offers graphic fidelity, speed, and the rich media experience you just can't get on a screen that small. With time, however, I was able to find games in my library that I don't want to commit desk time to but are just fantastic for couch time where I need to be accessible to the family.

For me, the Deck is the ultimate PC gaming dad's escape. I have dozens of games at my fingertips that I can play for 15-30 minutes at a time that are just fantastic! The customizability of the Deck is just a great added bonus for me. If I want to tinker I can, but I don't have to. And playing through those games while travelling for my job is just incredible. For me, the Deck has found a foothold in my gaming life, and the longer I have it, the more I love it.

It's not perfect. There are some software quirks that need to be worked out, but it's manageable. And I now have ways to play those games that are incredible, but that I would never touch if I could only play them from my desk.

Review Showcase

Crash Bandicoot™ N. Sane Trilogy

34 Hours played

Great re-work on a trilogy that basically defined my childhood gaming experience. The game can be as frustratingly difficult now as it was then. It’s strangely nostalgic to try soooo hard to get a gem or a gold-or-better relic, many of which require several minutes of play perfection, in a game that prides itself on being downright trollish at times. You really feel like you accomplished something when you finally get it.

Of the three games, Crash 2 is undoubtedly the best, and that’s the one that I’ve 102%’ed so far. Will continue to revisit this game until I catch ‘em all.

As a side note, I’ve been playing this predominantly on the Steam Deck and, with few exceptions, it runs very very well. Solid 60 fps 99% of the time. Crash just lends itself really well to those 15-20 minutes of free time where you want to attempt perfection once again. There have been some “about-to-throw-the-controller” moments, but so far I’ve maintained enough self-awareness to not launch my Deck at the wall.

If you played Crash Bandicoot in the early days, and if you crave the triumph of accomplishing something you once thought impossible over and over, this a great one for your library.