Forum - View topicNEWS: Steam Game Console Officially Announced
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Clyde_Cash
Posts: 376 |
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WHAT THE HELL, VALVE!
STEAM WAS MEANT FOR PCS, NOT CONSOLES! |
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Kougeru
 Posts: 5529 |
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If it's using Linux like the rumors suggest then it better be cheap. The specs on this are not too expensive but based on the Kickstarter page it seems the price point is gonna be around $499 US. Won't be worth that price to anyone who knows how to build a custom PC, or anyone who knows anyone that knows how to build a custom PC. Also if the rumors are true that it runs Linux, the game selection will be pretty lame for at least 3-5 years before devs decide whether or no to take it seriously and ditch DX.
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ximpalullaorg
Posts: 396 |
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...And people are going to be slaves of horrible Steam's policies, DRMs, and features (the offline mode requires the client to be launched, so it's a fake mode). I don't see how people could be happy about it. The fact that it's using Linux doesn't mean it's not a closed system.
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TitanXL
 Posts: 4036 |
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You should have seen this coming with their push of 'the big picture' and 'controller supported games'. Seems like a stupid idea... anyone into Steam is probably a PC Gamer, so why would they bother with a much inferior console for the same platform? And if they wanted to play games on consoles, why not just buy the PS3/360 version? |
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Tuor_of_Gondolin
 Posts: 3524 Location: Bellevue, WA |
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Because, I would guess that this "console" is intended to allow you to play *PC* games on your TV without having to worry about tweaking your computer as you normally would. Lots of people are afraid of PC games because, rightly or wrongly, they're intimidated by the technical side of PC ownership. As for why Linux: Microsoft has long been trying to crush PC gaming, and with Win 8 they're starting to close the OS, which is alarming a lot of PC game makers and other makers of PC software. This has led to a push to make Linux more friendly to those of limited technical knowledge, and and thus the creation of a box which allows you to play games on a Linux-based system without having to know a bunch of Linux yourself. There is a certain amount of "build it and they will come" in what Steam is doing, but I've heard various publishers show an interest in making more games for Linux. Just yesterday I heard something along those lines from Blizzard, for example. I'm sure Valve has been talking to a lot of people, and those people must've said things that made Valve believe that this could work. I guess time will tell. If Linux (some flavor of it) really can deliver what I want out of an OS, then there's a pretty good chance I'll ditch Microsoft. I've been pretty pissed with them ever since the original X-Box, but still felt their OS was the best for what I wanted it to do. But if I can get all my games to play on Linux, then a major stumbling block will have been removed; I'm already not getting Win 8, and if Microsoft doesn't change course, Win 7 might be the last OS from them that I own, and I doubt I'm alone in that. |
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Polycell
 Posts: 4623 |
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Given how Valve is beginning to invest in Linux(including pressuring other game makes to port), I'd be more surprised if this wasn't Tux-powered(or at least BSD-powered). As for selection, Valve's already porting over their library and anything with a Mac port's already had the worst of the problems solved(and I imagine Valve's efforts will solve a lot of the rest for a good number of games). Add in the Humble Bundle games and you've got a decently-sized launch library for Linux, even more so when the SteamBox comes along(which I imagine will be a selling point in the console market - after all, why pay for a PS4 or Xbox 720 with hardly any games available when you can buy a SteamBox with a much larger selection?).
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ikillchicken
 Posts: 7272 Location: Vancouver |
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So...how exactly does this work? The one factor that keeps me off PC games is the issue of upgrading. I like to be able to buy a device and then be able to count on it to effectively play whatever I want for at least a few years. Will this allow me to do that? If I buy it, can I count on it to play whatever comes out on PC for at least quite a few years? I don't really get how that is possible. But if so...I might look at it. I mean, I'll probably pass in the end. I don't really want to buy more than one console and that'll probably end up being a PS4. We'll see though.
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Megiddo
 Posts: 8360 Location: IL |
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You can do that with computers now. Hell, my PC is a good 4-5 years old if not older with an old Athlon dual core, 4 gigs of RAM, and a 9600 GSO card. And even with that I can still run a relatively new graphics-intensive game like TERA on mid-to-high settings.
I personally never understood the point of consoles once they evolved beyond the ease of having multiple people playing in the same room. They just seem so redundant now that they have basically become PC clones. I know that I'm going to need a computer. And I know that I'm going to be gaming. So I don't see why it's so hard to plop down a bit more money on RAM and graphics card instead of having to buy an entirely separate system just for gaming. And to that effect, I don't get the purpose of this SteamBox at all. |
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potatochobit
 Posts: 1373 Location: TEXAS |
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you miss the point about consoles
video games do not need a console to run there is no game that requires some 'advanced' form of hardware requirements to run it's about who gets the money and who gets the control and about selling the product in a uniform, efficient manner to the consumer that's not a bad thing, however, it is frequently abused however, people who complain about STEAM are jokers most of them are just software pirates I do not know what valve has planned with this gamble but it is risky personally, they need to get a large number of 3rd party publishers onboard, first. steambox or whatever on your TV is fine, but people are going to want to play games with a controller and games like torchlight II are not going to cut it in other news, I found out I cannot play persona 4 golden without a PSvita and I also cannot play Arena without a PS3 I am not buying 2 separate consoles this annoys me |
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vulcanraven01
Posts: 677 |
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$500 for what is effectively a 'niche' console running Steam?
If I wanted to play PC games on my TV, then I'd hook my computer up to it. Simples. This is only destined to fail. The beauty about PC games is that most of them can't run on consoles effectively without the mouse and keyboard. That's why consoles are missing MMO and RTS games, and that's why a lot of big gamers have both a console and a PC rig capable of playing these games. Take away those facts and stick a controller in your hand, and you may as well just buy a 360/PS3, and for a lot cheaper as well I may add. I think the only way this console will work is if the prices comes down, and if it's actually upgradable in the future with common components. |
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Keonyn
 Subscriber Posts: 5567 Location: Coon Rapids, MN |
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Steam's horrible policies? Sorry, I've been on Steam for nearly 7 years at this point and compared to what's out there I'd say Steam has better policies than most. Their "DRM" is also just Steam itself, as in you have to log in to get your content. Don't like digital distribution then go buy the box then. People can be happy about it because not everyone has an irrational hatred of Steam. There's this neat thing in reality called freedom of thought, which means your opinion is just your opinion and everyone elses is theirs. They can be happy about it because they don't share yours. See?
Maybe, but I wouldn't be so sure. There has actually long been demand for something like this, and it will make PC gaming more approachable to a lot of people that are otherwise intimidated by the concept. While it likely won't matter much to those of us competent enough to build our own rigs, there is still definitely a market for it. The rumored cost will likely be the largest hurdle however. If it fails it fails, but I wouldn't be so certain of that outcome just yet. |
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Reibooi
 Posts: 394 |
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I love the idea of Steam getting a box. Will I personally use one? Probably not but then again I'm not the target market. I see the Steam Box as a stepping stone of sorts. It's not entirely a console yet it's not a PC either. I can see someone picking it up and then eventually making the jump to full blown PC gaming.
Either way I love steam. I've only really gotten hardcore into PC gaming the past year and a half and thanks to Steam I have about a 100 games and spent only about 300 for them(thanks to the awesome sales). If people don't like the idea of a Steam Box or they don't like Steam in general great more power to ya. But please stay out of the thread.(unless of course you can debate about the subject like a civilized person) |
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jsieczkar
Posts: 139 |
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This is a really good idea by Valve to offer a plug and play solution for PC gaming, which the "complexity" of PC gaming does scare people off. If i didn't have a ASUS notebox attached to my large TV I would probably buy one, and for those saying just attach your PC. My PC is upstairs and my big TV is downstairs and the rig weighs way too much to hull up and down stairs when I want to play a game.
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ximpalullaorg
Posts: 396 |
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That's the problem. I want to run a game without any client telling me what I can and can't do. It's a closed system, the same they "hate" in Microsoft. GoG.com is the only way for DRM and DD for my tastes. And Steamworks as DRM requires online activation, and several games have it already (to quote famous example, Skyrim). Also, I consider a security risk the so-called "Cloud". Offline mode is bogus, as I said, it requires the client on. You cannot do a thing if the omnipresent client isn't available. Other limitations by Steam include the ability for publishers to get price fixing based on countries, and the absolutely horrible Greenlight, among other things.
There's no irrationality. Steam is a de facto monopoly. They attack other publishers for being closed but they're closed themselves. The idea of Steam is something in which you don't own games, but just licenses for them. Sure you can gift/etc, but you lose the ownership nevertheless, because the content on your disk is locked away. |
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Ambimunch
 Posts: 2012 |
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nty
ps4 for me |
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