Valve will release PC/console next year

Valve boss Gabe Newell has announced this week that the company will be launching a console built for the living room next year.


 Newell says the company's main focus now is how to make PCs work better in the living room on the big screen. The first step was releasing their "Big Picture" UI earlier this year. 
http://www.afterdawn.com/...e_pc_console_next_year


I would buy one of these just based on the respect I have for Valve.

So... Basically a PC without the monitor and maybe a built-in wireless receiver for controllers?

Half Life 3 as a launch game?

Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

I think I'd rather just splash cash on an actual PC, but it's a nice alternative and will mean extra competition. If it looks good then it might keep me in the console market but I can't imagine it.

Half Life 3, Team Fortress 3, new Left4Dead all exclusive to Steambox console from Valve, with free online?

The Xbox 8, where XBOX is known to be the FPS consoles of choice, has a problem with this out. Halo 4 made by 343 seems to have the online community from Halo fans turned down. Bungie is making a multiplat new game, which will arrive on Steambox too probably.

Online is free, compared to 60 bucks XBL. COD will be on Steambox too. Steam has much better/cheaper deals than XBL/PSN.

PS3/PS Omni at least has a broader variety in genres and own exclusives, on 360/Xbox 8 that is more difficult. Heck, even new Gears sequels may be multiplat as MS only secured the first couple and doesn't own the IP, Epic does.

This could shake up the console industry a lot. Also interesting to see how often Valve (and a hardware partner/partners?) will update that Steambox in its hardware... Maybe they'll do it the PC way and update it every 2 to 3 years, where the newer models can play on high settings (like new PC gamerig) and the older models can play on medium, or lateron with a 3rd gen on low settings.

Very interesting to see Valves console

This is a strange move at a strange time, I think they are banking on PS4 and Xbox 720 games being easily ported to PC. Steambox will probably run Linux, so really it'll be a PC with very few games at launch. Moreover, how do you convince publishers to break their Windows model, surely EA and Blizzard are two publishers that won't jump on the Valve train. If they can lock it down(hey not a PC) and prevent piracy, then it could work, if not, don't see it being successful.

 

There sure is a lot of speculation in this thread...

Letros


This is a strange move at a strange time, I think they are banking on PS4 and Xbox 720 games being easily ported to PC. Steambox will probably run Linux, so really it'll be a PC with very few games at launch. Moreover, how do you convince publishers to break their Windows model, surely EA and Blizzard are two publishers that won't jump on the Valve train. If they can lock it down(hey not a PC) and prevent piracy, then it could work, if not, don't see it being successful.

I don't think it will be Linux-based; in fact, I'm willing to put money on it using Windows.


My prediction is that it will simply be a custom designed PC with a few additional features that make it living room ready (wifi, controller integration, etc).

Pandamobile

Letros


This is a strange move at a strange time, I think they are banking on PS4 and Xbox 720 games being easily ported to PC. Steambox will probably run Linux, so really it'll be a PC with very few games at launch. Moreover, how do you convince publishers to break their Windows model, surely EA and Blizzard are two publishers that won't jump on the Valve train. If they can lock it down(hey not a PC) and prevent piracy, then it could work, if not, don't see it being successful.

I don't think it will be Linux-based; in fact, I'm willing to put money on it using Windows.


My prediction is that it will simply be a custom designed PC with a few additional features that make it living room ready (wifi, controller integration, etc).

There was that article a while back were they stated to have their games running faster on Linux than Windows.

thebudgetgamer

There was that article a while back were they stated to have their games running faster on Linux than Windows.

So?

So is PC doomed or not?

I'm Trolling For 'Tears'

Pandamobile

thebudgetgamer

There was that article a while back were they stated to have their games running faster on Linux than Windows.

So?

They also stated that they want to bring as many Steam games as possible to Linux. That and the fact that they are not crazy about Windows 8 makes it at the very least plausible.
http://www.steamforlinux.com/?q=en/node/74

thebudgetgamer

They also stated that they want to bring as many Steam games as possible to Linux. That and the fact that they are not crazy about Windows 8 makes it at the very least plausible.
http://www.steamforlinux.com/?q=en/node/74

This is not reason to believe that the Steambox will run Linux. If they do that, they're limiting the appeal of their own product because it can only play 2-5% of the games on Steam (that's probably a really generous estimation, too).

-Mezzo-


So is PC doomed or not?

It's better than ever

One thing is for sure, it is cheaper to bring Steambox hardware with Linux than have to pay MS to be able to run Windows on it...

So from that viewpoint, besides Valve adding Linux support recently, it would make sense. Saving costs for Valve, being able to put out cheaper Steambox hardware for the customer.

Besides that, if they enter the console market, Valve is competing with Microsoft on both the console platform/XBOX as well the PC market/mainly Games for Windows with them. I can totally see them using Linux on Steambox, so they are able to bite more and more bits out of Microsofts business model earning in many ways.

I had an idea that this was going to happen already(I bet everybody who follows valve did). What I want from this is more support for controllers on pc. At the moment. Not every game supports controllers which annoys the heck out of me. Soon most will. Thanks to Valve.

Hypocrites.

N4G Adventure Part 1 - screw it

chasegarcia


I had an idea that this was going to happen already(I bet everybody who follows valve did). What I want from this is more support for controllers on pc. At the moment. Not every game supports controllers which annoys the heck out of me. Soon most will. Thanks to Valve.

A lot of games shouldn't support controllers...you wouldn't play an FPS with a wheel, why an RTS with a controller?

 

  I played Command & Conquer Red Alert with a controller and it was a great experience. It can be done.

chasegarcia


  I played Command & Conquer Red Alert with a controller and it was a great experience. It can be done.

Never said it couldn't be done...

 
 

 

Letros

chasegarcia


  I played Command & Conquer Red Alert with a controller and it was a great experience. It can be done.

Never said it couldn't be done...

 
 

LOL
That's a very mean way to prove a point.