If it was up to 99% of the Linux community, then yes. That's where Apple comes in.
SteamOS
- Thread starter a_skeleton_03
- Start date
Gaf (in general) has absolutely no clue how companies make money or even how basic business models work. I also think some people expected or wanted valve to compete directly against the console market. The hardware market is a loosing proposition. There is no money in it anymore, tech is too expensive and the margins are razor thin at best, and loss leading at worst.
Valve makes money from Steam, that is their business model. They are using steam and the software to try to sell hardware, they are using the hardware to try to sell steam. I don't think valve will even offer that many steam machines, if I remember right they are hoping to just license the name and the OS to OEMs and have them deal with the hardware. They aren't trying to compete with the console market, they are trying to make PC gaming easier for the masses. I imagine at some point you will be able to easily compare various steam certified hardware components via steam OS or the website. They just want to bring more ppl to steam by making the living room PC a viable option for everyone.
Definitely agreed that Gaf posters lack any business knowledge. There are some good posters, but they're unfortunately drowned out by the legions of clueless idiots that post retarded drivel. Was it always this bad? Or is this a more recent development? Anyway..
I also agree with the rest of your post. I think Valve is going to copy Google's Android strategy, as in, build the software and partner up with hardware manufacturers to deliver on the hardware front. Valve will, of course, have their own Steam Machines, but they'll be the equivalent to the Nexus line - great devices, but not the best selling in the marketplace.
From what I can tell, Valve's SteamOS/Steam Machine plan looks something like this.
- Get the product out there and get people using it.
- Collect feedback and use it to improve the product.
- Keep iterating and refining the product until it's a great product that people will want to use and buy.
- Rely on word of mouth from satisfied customers to drive adoption.
I can see it working really well as long as Valve can deliver with SteamOS, and I don't see any reason why they can't.
I also think Valve might pose a threat to the consoles in a few years time. From what I understand, 20nm GPUs should provide a huge leap in performance without an increase in price. As it is, a PC that can best the PS4/Xbox One only costs around $700-800-ish(?) for a full build including Windows. A PC of similar power will probably cost $400 (maybe even less) in 2015-2016. I can see Valve pushing into the mainstream market around that time. If Intel continues to improve their integrated GPUs (I believe the Haswell ones deliver better performance than the 360/PS3 already), the low end Steam Machines running an i3 (or maybe even an Atom) with an igpu might be pretty damn good, too. Well, good enough to satisfy the folks who'll want to upgrade so that they can keep playing latest COD/Titanfall/Destiny/Fifa/Madden/whatever.
There's a lot of potential with Steam Machines. I just hope Valve will capitalise on it.
There has been a noticeable decrease in post quality and users ever since they loosened their signup restrictions.
I don't remember it being this bad. I'm sure console wars have something to do with it. Or maybe I'm just getting old.
NVIDIA: for consoles to have better graphics than PC - NeoGAF
^ This thread was particularly bad. 90% of the posters should have been banned.
^ This thread was particularly bad. 90% of the posters should have been banned.
Mist
Eeyore Enthusiast
- 30,416
- 22,218
That was pretty impressive especially for the FPS and Papers Please. However just watching Civ I was getting annoyed by the imprecision of the trackpad.
Yeah, definitely. While I would consider using it in single player or co-op gamesifI played them on the PC, there is absolutely no way I would use it over a mouse/kb in something like a competitive multiplayer shooter. Playing Civ with it seems pretty novel, but Civ does not have an interface built for playing it on a big screen TV and if I was playing it at my PC monitor I'd just use a mouse/kb for it anyways.
They need to make a video with them playing games like DmC or Darksiders on it. The kind of games which heavily favor controllers. Or load up something like Skyrim and GTA4.
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
- 45,434
- 73,508
I agree, it needs to show that it can supplant both a mouse/kb and a gamepad. I think the skill of the gamer is important too. Overall though I'd say I'm impressed by the controller, obviously it's not mouse quality but I think the user could be much better too.
