Steam Deck cloud update allows suspended games to be picked up on PC

Valve has announced that transferring cloud saves between the Steam Deck and PC will become easier with a new feature.

Called Dynamic Cloud Sync, the technology means that players can suspend a game on the Steam Deck, then boot up Steam on their PC and pick up where they left off.

“We anticipate that users will frequently suspend their Steam Deck without exiting the game, as is common with other hand-held gaming devices,” says Valve in the post. “With Dynamic Cloud Sync, if they then choose to play on another device (whether a PC or another Steam Deck), their progress will be there waiting for them.”

Modified save data will be transferred to the cloud as users put the Steam Deck to sleep, and fresh save data will be downloaded as players wake up the Steam Deck from sleep mode.

Players will be prompted to return to the Steam Deck if starting the same game on PC without Dynamic Cloud Sync; otherwise, they will be forced to play without the handheld's most recent save data.

To set it up, go to the relevant game's Steamworks website and pick "Steam Cloud" from the applications drop menu, according to the Steamworks post. The cloud sync is then enabled on suspend and resume. Valve recommends that you go here and integrate the dynamic cloud save APIs first.

After being postponed until late 2021, Valve has announced that the Steam Deck is still "on schedule" to ship next month. "Global pandemic, supply issues, and shipping issues notwithstanding," the developer said, "it appears that we'll be able to start getting these out the door by the end of February."

In other news, an Unpacking clone has been removed from iOS stores following a public message from the developers, though the game is still up elsewhere.

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