If you look at the 3 console manufacturers, you’ll notice a pattern. Switch OLED was announced 3 months before release. Ps4 pro was announced 2 months before its release. Xbox one x was announced 5 months before release.
The steam deck OLED? 7 days
The reason that manufacturers give consumers at least a couple months before a release of a new device is so they can feel they made an informed decision on their purchase, and not feel burned when the next iteration is released. No, the device they currently have doesn’t lose inherent value to them. However, knowing that the next thing is coming out in just a couple weeks could make informed consumers hold off for the sale of the now outdated model.
Also inb4 people say “but it’s not a console…”, PC manufacturers have pretty consistent hardware release schedules as well, so the comparison stands.
The fact is this is an established norm for other manufacturers and that valve went against just comes across as anti consumer. And I think that just surprised a lot of people since Gabe’s whole “piracy is almost always a service problem…” Take and the return policy on games make the company appear as super consumer centric, however this release feels out of character.
I think the backlash is a bit overblown but it is rooted in a real annoyance. When it was announced yesterday, I was at my brokest I’d been in years, by circumstance. I couldn’t afford it on launch if I tried, because there’s no time for me to put a plan in place. Not everyone can just lift £500 out of their month’s earnings on a week’s notice. So I’m just hoping that these orders are fulfilled and there are enough to spare that I can get one at my convenience. But interest seems HIGH so I’m not confident that I won’t be waiting around for a while.
That’s my frustration: that us povo losers weren’t really given enough of a heads up to stand a chance. When you announce and release within a week, you’re releasing exclusively for the people who just happen to have money to burn. It feels unfair in that little way that life often does when you’re getting by.