If you’re looking to pick up McPixel 3, you might be wondering how it runs on the Steam Deck. Well, let me tell you: Not only does McPixel 3 run buttery smooth on Valve’s handheld, but considering its simple control inputs and addictive nature, it might also be the perfect game for the Steam Deck.
In McPixel 3, the control inputs are fairly simple. You can either use the D-pad or analog stick to move your character left or right, or slightly up and down on the parallax 2D side-scrolling plane. There is one button to interact with objects or prompts, one to highlight all objects that can be interacted with, and one to select between two objects within close proximity to each other. Oh, and a button to pause the game (which you can do, quite impressively, at literally any moment in the game).
So the Deck has buttons to spare. Since you can map them as you see fit, you could arguably map everything to the left side of the Deck so you can play McPixel 3 while, say, eating tuna sashimi, should you choose to do so.
McPixel 3 is not a graphics powerhouse, so the Deck runs it with no stutter or hiccups, and the framerate is mostly locked. I did notice one dip, funnily enough, during the benchmark video I happened upon while interacting with a seemingly random NPC sitting on a park bench. But that could’ve been baked in as a joke — it’s hard to say what is and isn’t a joke in McPixel 3.
You can also use the touchscreen feature in lieu of buttons. If you have a mouse and keyboard hooked up via docking mode, that is also an option.
And, like I said before, it was great being able to suspend the game at any point and pick it back up where I had previously left off. This worked wonders for my mental health while playing McPixel 3. Just when I was about to beat my head against the wall while struggling through an especially opaque puzzle, I could simply put it down, take a walk, or do a little Greco-Roman wrestling to let off some steam, only to return ready for action like a Phoenix rising from Arizona.
So, if you were to ask me if McPixel 3 is good on the Steam Deck, I would say “No,” possibly after insulting you. Because McPixel 3 is great on the Steam Deck (and, as for the insult, you know what you did to deserve it).
