New Steam controller???!!!
- Thread starter b0rn2sk8
- Start date
Same. TBH it wasn't that well built anyway - I have a distinct recollection of having to go through packs of AA (or AAA) batteries to find ones which actually fitted (and could be removed later!). Trackpads & haptic feedback were bloody awful.Still got my original steam controller in the draw I never use
About the same time as the original steam controller was released we heard all this hype about steam machines - IIRC the idea back then was to get someone else to build and sell them.
Unsurprisingly that failed and all the steam h/w from then (controller, streamer etc) got quietly binned by Valve in their deepest darkest cellar
I have a distinct feeling of deja-vu regarding the recent announcement.
Steam deck was/is nice but its massively overpriced for what it is now. When I bought it 3 years ago, no problem with price/performance but now? Forget it at the prices Valve charge for what is a four year old design with a die shrink/OLED change.
Steam machine sounds woefully underpowered and has the basic problem that you could build something much better for an equivalent cost, put Bazzite or even Steam OS on it to get exactly the same "experience".
They're trying to sell a "console" nobody will develop for. The only reason PS/Xbox model "works" is because companies develop for that specific platform. Not going to happen for a "Steam Machine".
From experience of Valve hardware I'd wait for the real reviews (not the fanbois) to appear on Steam forums before you part with any cash.....
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I still use the original steam controllers but could do with a second thumb stick for top down shooters so the new ones should be a good upgrade.
Also been eyeing up VR for when I've upgraded the PC so this will likely be top of the list.
Also been eyeing up VR for when I've upgraded the PC so this will likely be top of the list.
They're not making a console, they're making a mini-pc that comes with SteamOS bundled instead of Windows. It'll run any game which supports their O/S on Steam, and is notably more powerful than the Deck which already has a lot of success doing that, albeit as a hand held device.
I don't even remember the last time either Sony or Microsoft had a notable and genuine exclusive, the vast majority of their games end up on the PC anyway.
Depending on the pricing, this could be a good avenue for people wanting to "PC" game without wanting the fuss of dealing with a traditional gaming PC, I suspect their biggest hurdle will be dealing with online games that use anti-cheat software that wont function outside of Windows.
Not aiming this as Vestas but I am seeing so much misinformation, it's like people think the Steam Machine is an entirely separate thing that needs developing for, outside of current consoles/PC, I'm not sure why it's not clear that it's just a PC in a smaller box.
You aren't going to see, "Coming soon to PS5, XBOX, PC, Switch2 and Steam Machine".
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It does actually need developing for.
Proton tweaks cover a lot on Steam Deck but they don't optimise every game & a lot (mainly indies/older stuff) simply don't work/are unplayable/crash (edit they work on SteamOS but not the deck).
I think I've returned about 8-10 games for refund as despite saying "Verified for Steam Deck" on the store page they simply didn't work in any sort of acceptable way. That's more games refunded in the last 3 years than in the previous 15 years.
Fortunately Steam are OK about this for most games.
The Steam Machine will (I expect) be the same as the Deck in that each game will have a slider to play at 30FPS/60FPS/unlimited FPS as people are going to use them on TVs. Again that requires developer input/design in order to work well.
Given the spec of the Steam Machine there's going to have to be a shedload of Proton optimisation going on to get things to play right - and there's limits to what they can do. For example it looks like Valve are going to try and get AMD to permit them to use "INT8" FSR4 on the RDNA3 graphics chipset - if anyone has actually seen this then you know some games look OK and some are totally screwed. INT8 FSR4 isn't anything any games developer is going to code for by default as its a bodge for an old/obsolete graphics chipset.
So yes in some respects its a PC - SteamOS/Arch Linux mean you can do all sorts from the desktop (like run old emulators), but in another respect its a console which requires games optimisation in order for games to run well on the hardware. People shouldn't necessarily conflate what SteamOS can do on decent hardware with what it can do on the Deck/Steam Machine.
In terms of pricing I said here (https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/threads/steam-machine.19008233/page-2#post-38091060) that it'd be £850 for the base spec, £1k for the 2TB. I don't see any reason to change that estimate as you get a controller bundled in and they're likely to be the best part of £100 when sold alone. Valve say they're not willing to take a loss on the hardware, which given they take 30% of every sale on Steam might be seen as shortsighted....
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To the mass market, yes. However it was never aimed at that market. Its aimed at the market of existing Steam users (50%) who are on 1080p, where a new "gaming box" that "just works" like the Steam Deck (ie no hassles with Windows/drivers/etc) would probably look quite attractive. It'll do OKish at 1440p and heavily optimised stuff will probably run acceptably (reduced textures etc) at 4k on a TV, where frame refresh is fairly low anyway.
They are royally screwed due to RAM pricing. Whatever price they planned to release at is about as relevant now as what I had for dinner last night. A 32GB (2x16) DDR4-3200 kit I bought 13 days ago is now 122% more expensive so while Valve won't be paying spot prices, they also won't be able to do enough of a production run to minimise costs. Thay aren't Sony/Nintendo/Asus/Lenovo etc....
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