This week we explore the viability of Valve’s take on couch PC gaming, and play a quick, pre-mutator, co-op game of Starcraft 2, tower defense style.
Legacy of Tower Defense
Eagerly awaiting Blizzard’s injection of further primo into already-primo Starcraft’s co-op, we set off once more to form a marriage bit-less-likely than our actual one, of Kerrigan and Karax.
RNG gods throw us into defensive positions around the Xel’Naga temple – an appropriate scenario to try a freshly-acquired Karax’s level 11 ability: warp Pylons, Shield Batteries, Photon Cannons, and the super-duper Khaydarin Monoliths in, instantly. In a manner of overly proud Captain Obvious, I announce my intention to not build any units, none. Zergs do move quickly, but will my still-novice partner in war (and everything else) be up to snuff?
We open at the south gate. I can't help feeling totally awkward without mobile units. Not that I've never pissed off anyone with a cannon cheese.
South Void Thrasher returns wherever the hell it came from. Well played, my... umm... wife... umm... Kerrigan.
Defense of the eastern gate takes shape. The Zerg must be defended if we hope to check all the objectives.
The bastards have back-doored us from the north with a bunch of drop pods. Must. Build. Quickly.
Western Thrasher is dealt with by Sarah herself and a bunch of Hydras. But...
... here come the drop pods! Welcome, slimey vermin.
A wave of hybrids is covered by my Monoliths while our Zerg squads pick off the bonus Zenith Stones when...
... all hell breaks lose at the western entrance to the temple square. With the Zergy boys still chiseling the Zenith Stone, this doesn't look good.
Except for when it doesn't look not good. As the Nonsense(TM) bounces off my turret defense, Kerrigan finishes off the final Thrasher. It's a gg, mission accomplished. Phew.
A Couch-Bound Steam Bath
As Elite: Dangerous picks up revs in doing an exemplary hamster-in-a-wheel, and so much as a thought of reinstalling FSX with all its gigantic add-ons – just short of 100 gigs spread over some 10 download and install programs – gives me agonising, splitting headache, I’ve found myself in need of a quick fix. Something different, something fresh. Something that’s neither a keyboard nor a mouse. No, not that thing, thanks.
My Steam Controller arrived shortly after WeekEndGame’s premiere two weeks ago and I’ve been busy throwing a bunch of games at it. For those who can’t be bothered with the gallery, yeah, in good majority of cases, it’s a blast. Totally worth the buck Valve’s asking.
The Steam Controller head-to-head with my beloved, and worn to a great extent, Razer Sabertooth. Valve's guy is chunkier but feels a lot cheaper. It's not like it's going to fall to pieces any time soon, but I'd be reluctant to use it in hand-to-hand combat, unlike the Razer.
Yeah, the Sabertooth's seen things, sorry about that. Will the Steam Controller withstand similar punishment? Only time will tell.
The bumper / trigger layout on the Steam Controller is weird at first sight but getting used to index / middle finger gymnastics turned out to be unnecessary. While the triggers don't have as much 'travel' as Sabertooth's, I like how they click when depressed all the way. Not bad.
This is the first Steam Controller's party piece. You can control the desktop with it, and it's bloody awesome. Come on then, let's play some games!
Not this one. It's a joke. Get it? A joke. Don't even try.
Welcome then to your new home, Steam's Big Picture. Apart from the fact it crashed on me, twice in a couple of days, it's not as terrible as I expected it to be. It would be nice if the Controller options weren't exclusive to it though. The screenshot shortcut on the other hand? I love you, Gabe!
First, let's get used to them, reportedly too small, XYAB buttons in, what else, Ori and the Blind Forest. I've finished the game with this thing and the number of my complaints is exactly zero.
Controller Configuration screen. You can configure, well, everything and spend days just faffin around with it. Which is what I have been doing a lot of, because...
... as the only game of all I've taken for a spin so far, Warhammer 40K Space Marine just didn't want to budge. It didn't feel right whatever I did.
My Speace Marine-o-vision when playing with the Steam Controller. Yes, this happens just before your ass is handed over to you on a silver plate. I was not impressed using the touchpad for the first time, no Siree.
When even community-created and rated mappings (which is, by the way, an absolutely killer function) didn't help I gave up to change the point of view. And the universe. But that only slightly.
For the make-it-or-break-it test of the Steam Controller, I've simply chosen the highest-rated config on offer and following a quick glance at it (hm, gyro?), I fired up Warhammer End Times: Vermintide.
I'll yell this one at you in caps. It bloody ROCKS. The touchpad standing-in for a mouse is crazy smooth and responsive, the analog stick-walking feels natural, the whole thing is so snappy it caught me totally off guard!
I'm actually kind of proud of this snap. It's the party piece numero deux, the gyro, in action. The 'chopped' (not blurred) frames on screen are a result of longer shutter and the camera's vibration reduction system. And then there's of course how the Controller feels in an FPS with gyro enabled, which is sadly what no online media can accurately describe. It's, caps again, EPIC.
Yeah, I ended up making myself slightly more comfy and playing through a few maps with bots. For this experience alone, the Controller's worth every penny!
A dash of Darksiders 2 pretty much confirmed my finding in the tests so far: the Steam Controller will probably see my Sabertooth retire. As for keyboard and mouse, yeah, it can be spectacular. But it will never replace it.
One last word before I introduce the new kid to my ever-expanding bunch of game controller... things that I regularly use (which means I like it!). That analog stick is the best my thumb touched, ever. Honest.
Next time we stop fooling about and cover the second half of the uncannily good Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition in an eye-pleasing 4K showcase, and quite possibly (well, if Blizzard manages to squeeze it out ’til then) have a look at Patch 3.3. Because there’s never enough Starcraft!
