In a recent survey of online search trends, it was surprisingly revealed that Asians are way more hyped about Valve's first handheld console compared to the upcoming refresh of the Nintendo Switch.
The survey conducted by e-commerce aggregator iPrice Group showed that across Asian countries, people have been registering much more interest in Valve's Steam Deck compared to the new Nintendo Switch OLED.
For comparison, both consoles are designated to launch towards the end of 2021, but it seems that Asian interest in the Steam Deck has already outdone that of the new Switch OLED. Within the month of July 2021, Asians Google searched the Steam Deck around three times more than the Nintendo Switch OLED.
In Southeast Asia, the number of search results showed that people clearly cared way more about the Steam Deck, while countries such as Hong Kong and Taiwan were more neutral in terms of search results.
IMAGE: iPrice Group
Curiously, Japan showed over eight times more interest in Valve's new console compared to the Switch OLED, which is surprising considering Japan's well-documented love for the platform and most of its titles.
Why so much love for the Steam Deck?
The first factor is obvious – Nintendo's Switch platform has been around for a good number of years now, and the new Switch OLED only offers marginal upgrades over its predecessor – most notably the inclusion of a larger OLED panel.
Understandably, the market for such devices has already worn out its excitement for the Switch platform and its games, while Valve's Steam Deck presents more of an unknown quantity with regards to handheld gaming.
One huge attraction factor the Steam Deck has is its ability to play games cross-platform, which simply means that users can game alongside those playing on PC instead of being forced into just playing within a handheld-only community.
This factor proves even more crucial when you take into account the current pandemic and the demand for more gaming options among those stuck at home.
According to iPrice, the Steam Deck is set to have up to 111 more cross-play titles compared to the Switch platform, which gives it a heavy advantage in terms of multiplayer flexibility. From day one, the Steam Deck will reportedly be able to run games such as Valheim, Overcooked! 2, Terraria, and Sid Meier's Civilization VI.
IMAGE: iPrice Group
Coincidentally, iPrice says that the Steam Deck is also set to become the gaming console with the most cross-play titles upon launch (172 titles), beating out the Playstation 4 (147 titles), and Xbox One (109 titles).
However, this doesn't mean that prospective buyers should ignore the Nintendo Switch platform completely. Alongside the announcement of the new OLED version, Nintendo also announced the extremely-hyped The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild 2, which looks to become yet another modern classic in the Switch's line-up of unique exclusives (Animal Crossing: New Horizons, 笔辞办é尘辞苍 series, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, etc).
Ultimately, the decision for which of these two handheld dominators to pick comes down to the type of gamer you are, and what titles you hope to play alongside your buddies.
The Steam Deck is set to launch in December 2021 with a touted price of US$399 for the base model, while the Nintendo Switch OLED looks ready for an October 2021 launch with a starting price of US$349.99.
Read more tech stories:
Apple could release new, redesigned Mac mini this fall
7 factors that led to Carsome's success as Malaysia's first tech unicorn
Here's how to disable that creepy 'Active Now' green dot on Facebook
Follow Mashable SEA on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Telegram.
