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Over the last couple of years, there have been many new developments in the web and how information is delivered to the reader. Even just in the last year, we have seen new implementations of features and AI that will show information to the user easily. However, with the sweeping changes we have been seeing, independent sites like ours are being affected, and it's making existing much harder.

For some context, Google's algorithm has changed, and AI is making it harder for it to be an indie outlet now. These changes push down independent sites, which work hard to create amazing, in-depth content, and pull up more generic Twitter/X or Reddit links ahead of them (or sometimes completely unrelated articles). We also have to deal with AI coming on two fronts: An onslaught of AI articles that game the SEO system to shoot ahead of everyone else and AI Scraping for services like ChatGPT or Gemini that take the content from websites, reducing traffic to the websites that spend all the time compiling the information.

The Verge actually had an interview with Google's CEO, Sundar Pichai, about AI and brought up the worries that independent websites have with these developments. When asked, he defended the changes without really addressing the issues. He also mentions that AI Overviews result in more clicks to these independent websites, but no data has been released (or will never be released) to back up the claim.

On top of that, IGN recently bought different press outlets, including Eurogamer and VG247, which is worrying since they are now a major company that owns so many outlets in the same space. This also caused some "redundancies" and resulted in amazing journalists losing their jobs. This also worries us a bit about how it will affect the smaller sites if the big ones can all coordinate under one corporation, and it could result in a steeper hill for indie outlets to climb.

Yet, even against all of this, we are still alive and kicking, and it is all thanks to you guys.

Every recommendation, repost, and share helps us; it means so much to us here. If you want to support us, you can subscribe to our YouTube or Subreddit, watch our videos, read our articles, follow us on social media, share our articles, and just be around! We love to interact and talk to each of you, so commenting or just posting about us is a joy that puts a smile on our faces.

If you want to help financially support us, join our Patreon! We have multiple tiers, including one that gets rid of ads on the website completely, gets early access to UNCUT podcast episodes, behind-the-scenes logs, and more to come as we grow.

We love working on Steam Deck HQ, reporting on games to test and review them, and answering your questions about the latest releases without bias. We couldn't be more proud to represent the Steam Deck community, talk about it with other people in the industry on a daily basis, and attend huge events like GDC, PAX, Gamescom, and Summer Games Fest.

The trust you put in us means the world to the team here, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We will continue to do what we do best while working on expanding our content offerings with new Podcasts, videos, and live streams (which are coming soon). Let us know if there is anything else you would like to see that is missing in the space! We are slowly growing, getting new writers, and working on bringing in video editors, so expect a lot of new content revolving around games and the Steam Deck soon.

Honestly, a lot is working against indie sites. The Google algorithm change around September/October last year cut traffic to our site dramatically. While we still haven't fully recovered, we can survive thanks to all of you coming to our site for information and to check and see how the newest games are running. AI is something we are worried about in regards to taking traffic away entirely, but I am optimistic for the future of Steam Deck HQ with everything in the pipeline.

So, what is the point of this article? Well, it's an appreciation post! The first part was to explain why I am appreciative of all of you, while the second was to...well...show the appreciation! I always like to take time to make sure we express gratitude and remember that we are where we are because of YOU. I am able to live out my dream career because of all of you and work in the greatest industry with the most amazing people creating wonderful works of art.

Thank you all, and I look forward to showing off what we have in store in the coming days, weeks, and months!

If you enjoyed this article, check out the rest of the content on SteamDeckHQ! We have a wide variety of game reviews and news that will help your gaming experience. Whether you're looking for newstips and tutorialsgame settings and reviews, or just want to stay up-to-date on the latest trends, we've got you covered!

Noah Kupetsky
A lover of gaming since 4, Noah has grown up with a love and passion for the industry. From there, he started to travel a lot and develop a joy for handheld and PC gaming. When the Steam Deck released, it just all clicked.
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