News Valve's Gabe Newell confirms the Steam Box project

[Gareth Halfacree]

"We'll do it," Newell states.
http://www.bit-tech.net/news/gaming/...ox-confirmed/1

[damien c]

Could be very interesting, especially if they can get the pricing just right for the hardware.

Would be interesting to see what spec's they offer and if they will offer more than 1 version, and whether it will allow the use of a wireless or wired keyboard and mouse rather than just a controller.

This could be where we see Linux take off as a real opponent to Windows for gaming systems, rather than having to struggle to get games working on it using emulators etc.

[Gareth Halfacree]

Originally Posted by damien c

This could be where we see Linux take off as a real opponent to Windows for gaming systems, rather than having to struggle to get games working on it using emulators etc.

Funny you should say that: I've got a four-page feature in the next Linux User & Developer Magazine discussing gaming on Linux, based on interviews with numerous individuals and companies including Valve - and the upshot is that increasing numbers of developers are creating native Linux titles. A lot of it is down to how much money the Humble Bundle has made: every bundle, with the exception of the newest THQ Bundle, has been cross-platform on Windows, Mac and Linux - no Linux version, no entry in the Humble. With a quarter of purchases of each bundle coming from Linux users - roughly the same as the number of Mac customers - it's a market not worth ignoring any more.

Valve also told me that it will likely launch all first-party titles across all three platforms - Windows, Mac and Linux - simultaneously once the Steam for Linux client leaves beta.

As a Linux user and a gamer, I've never been happier.

[Parge]

Until almost every steam game is on Linux, this won't work.

PC Gamers will want a PC - it has windows on, thus every game works and you can do other things and custom build your own

Console gamers will want a next gen console, and all the console exclusives etc that come with it.

Who is their target market? Casual PC gamers who just happen to want to play a very limited selection of Steam games, in their living room? If that is the case, they will sell, erm, about 6.

[faugusztin]

Originally Posted by Parge

Who is their target market? Casual PC gamers who just happen to want to play a very limited selection of Steam games, in their living room? If that is the case, they will sell, erm, about 6.

Pretty much the same as the Mac target. And unlike Mac, Linux users can have a pretty good hardware. Mac is Intel HD4000 only right now (in 2012 generation). For example there is a Mac version of Borderlands 2. Do you really think they won't make a Linux version if Valve help them a bit ?

[ShinyAli]

Forget the unnecessary middleman garbage that is steam and just make games that easily play on stand alone Linux OS's

[Parge]

Originally Posted by faugusztin

Pretty much the same as the Mac target. And unlike Mac, Linux users can have a pretty good hardware. Mac is Intel HD4000 only right now (in 2012 generation). For example there is a Mac version of Borderlands 2. Do you really think they won't make a Linux version if Valve help them a bit ?

So its a case of 'if we build it, they will come'?

I just can't see who is going to buy one, outside of Linux lovers. People buy a platform because of the games on that platform. Publishers develop games on a platform because they can sell a lot of copies on that platform. A platform like this, with very few games, isn't going to be attractive to PC gamers, or console gamers, and thus isn't going to be attractive to developers.

One thing I would bet on though, is that the launch title for the Steambox will be Half Life 3.

[Yslen]

I don't see how this is going to work. The attraction of Steam is that it's a store and backup service for your PC games. If they create a Linux version that can run less than 5% of the catalogue because most games use DirectX, who the heck is going to buy that?

[lacuna]

How many games do consoles usually have on sale before they are released?

None, obviously.

The steambox has a running start over the new MS and Sony consoles as I see it. If it undercuts them on price then I think it stands a pretty good chance

[Guinevere]

Originally Posted by faugusztin

Mac is Intel HD4000 only right now (in 2012 generation).

Not true.

My MBP has HD4000 AND a 650m. The desktop Macs go up to a 2GB GTX 680MX.

Not as top of the line as you can get on a PC if money is no object but easily enough for most people to be happy with. The hardened gamers are always going to want to build and tweak a bespoke machine rather than buying an off-the-shelf all in one but that doesn't mean a Mac is totally useless for gaming... but you will want to bootcamp into windows though!

[damien c]

Originally Posted by Yslen

I don't see how this is going to work. The attraction of Steam is that it's a store and backup service for your PC games. If they create a Linux version that can run less than 5% of the catalogue because most games use DirectX, who the heck is going to buy that?

What you have to think about is, that Valve are I think converting all there games to work on Linux as well as Windows which means there will be quite a few games ready for when it releases.

Then all the games that currently in development phase, that are due for release towards the end of next year and the year after could be developed for use on a Linux based gaming system rather than just for Windows, considering they are all mainly ported from a console anyway it would just mean a new utillity being developed that would port them from the console to Linux.

If they could say get the Call Of Duty, Battlefield, Crysis, Need For Speed and a few other games working on this and allowing you to game using a keyboard and mouse as well as gaming, against people on Windows or Mac versions of the games then I would buy one, simply for use as a media pc but then for gaming when I go to lans, as it would save me from dragging my main rig around and risk damaging it in transport, and also because of that I could build the stupidly sized rig I have wanted to for along time now.

What they would have to do though is fill it with a decent spec something like:

Intel 3570/3770 non K version
8Gb DDR3 1600mhz ram
AMD 7870/7950 or Nvidia GTX 660ti/670
2Tb 7200rpm hdd

[impar]

Greetings!

Originally Posted by Parge

One thing I would bet on though, is that the launch title for the Steambox will be Half Life 3.

In 2033?

[johnnyboy700]

My question is will it be keyboard and mouse or game pad?

[faugusztin]

Originally Posted by Guinevere

My MBP has HD4000 AND a 650m. The desktop Macs go up to a 2GB GTX 680MX.

Please accept my appologies, i forgot the 15" non-retina mid-2012 Macbook Pro and the iMacs. Still, most of the user base have HD4000 or worse.

[BLC]

Originally Posted by johnnyboy700

My question is will it be keyboard and mouse or game pad?

I'd imagine the primary interface will be a game controller of some sort. They are bound to support keyboard and mouse; it'd be pretty hard not to with Ubuntu under the bonnet.

As for the naysayers, I'll address that when I've got a bit more time than a quick lunch-hour catch up on tech news.

[bowman]

I really doubt this box will be running Linux. It's way too soon, way too few games are available.

Originally Posted by lacuna

How many games do consoles usually have on sale before they are released?

None, obviously.

The steambox has a running start over the new MS and Sony consoles as I see it. If it undercuts them on price then I think it stands a pretty good chance

Nonsense, all consoles have launch titles. Who would buy one without launch titles?

Right now the only games for Linux on Steam are Valve's source games, and those are all old. You can't launch a new box with games that are half a decade old.

[theshadow2001]

Originally Posted by damien c

What you have to think about is, that Valve are I think converting all there games to work on Linux as well as Windows which means there will be quite a few games ready for when it releases.

Then all the games that currently in development phase, that are due for release towards the end of next year and the year after could be developed for use on a Linux based gaming system rather than just for Windows, considering they are all mainly ported from a console anyway it would just mean a new utillity being developed that would port them from the console to Linux.

If they could say get the Call Of Duty, Battlefield, Crysis, Need For Speed and a few other games working on this and allowing you to game using a keyboard and mouse as well as gaming, against people on Windows or Mac versions of the games then I would buy one, simply for use as a media pc but then for gaming when I go to lans, as it would save me from dragging my main rig around and risk damaging it in transport, and also because of that I could build the stupidly sized rig I have wanted to for along time now.

What they would have to do though is fill it with a decent spec something like:

Intel 3570/3770 non K version
8Gb DDR3 1600mhz ram
AMD 7870/7950 or Nvidia GTX 660ti/670
2Tb 7200rpm hdd

Valve can't convert any of those without the source code, which they won't be given. Anything that doesn't use opengl will have to undergo a significant rewrite in order to work with non microsoft O/S. I dont see many developers doing this with existing games. I reckon initially this will be a mostly indie developer platform. If the popularity grows enough it may eventually garner the attention of some publishers of some triple A titles.

As for the spec, I hope I'm wrong but I doubt you would get much more than an AMD apu in order to keep the costs competitive with consoles.

[Snips]

Anyone else know why Steam on Windows 8 is 'a catastrophe.' ?

It works fine to me and the new Steam Launcher app is ok as well.

[tonyd223]

Steambox - nice idea - I want to contrast to the Raspberry Pi - an open platform that people can write software for, a delivery mechanism in Steam to promote what you wrote, and needs to be around £150?

I say good luck to them, and the Ubuntu people (Canonical?) must be very happy...

[faugusztin]

Originally Posted by Snips

Anyone else know why Steam on Windows 8 is 'a catastrophe.' ?

It works fine to me and the new Steam Launcher app is ok as well.

Steam on Windows 8 is not a 'catastrophe'. Windows 8 is a 'catastrophe' to Valve, because MS pushes sales through their own store, and that means less sales for Valve.