Why isn't a Steam Machine Console in the works?

[Coal Man]

This feels like such an easy win with MS exiting the console arena. Imagine if Valve, with all their goodwill and support made a console without Windows and just running Steam OS. No keyboard and mouse required, all your steam games, simple plug and play.

You get all the MS games and Sony games under one console.


I would buy that over a PS6, dedfknsrs

[freeburn]

This is why






Steam doesn't need to do chit. They don't need to advertise, they don't need more money, they aren't looking for more ways to trap you into their ecosystem


As long as gaben is alive, steam will continue to remain a beloved platform where people are happy to buy their video games. Valve has cemented their place as a great company for video gamers by simply not sucking, and not doing what these other companies have ALL done: gotten too Fkn greedy.

I would not expect anyone who buys into (and praises) the sony ecosystem to understand this concept.

[yabbayabba]

This is why






Steam doesn't need to do chit. They don't need to advertise, they don't need more money, they aren't looking for more ways to trap you into their ecosystem


As long as gaben is alive, steam will continue to remain a beloved platform where people are happy to buy their video games. Valve has cemented their place as a great company for video gamers by simply not sucking, and not doing what these other companies have ALL done: gotten too Fkn greedy.

I would not expect anyone who buys into (and praises) the sony ecosystem to understand this concept.

Add to this, the last thing Steam wants to do is add in some kind of artificial hardware limit to games. They do this a bit with the Steam Deck (but they also don't promise all games are compatible) but for the most part developers are free to choose what kind of hardware they want to target.

[OneLegSquats]

It is quite baffling that no one has made a modular console with upgrade-ability and a sleek no-nonsense OS that just works and updates itself. But its probably impossible. It would be playing PC games and hardware/software devs wont want to build firmware/updates to make all their chit work on a Steam console.It's also kinda pointless you may as well just build a small form factor gaming PC.

[Coal Man]

This is why

[img]https://i.ibb.co/c3wBCdM/RDT-20240505-0949583442163826520452448.jpg[/ig]




Steam doesn't need to do chit. They don't need to advertise, they don't need more money, they aren't looking for more ways to trap you into their ecosystem


As long as gaben is alive, steam will continue to remain a beloved platform where people are happy to buy their video games. Valve has cemented their place as a great company for video gamers by simply not sucking, and not doing what these other companies have ALL done: gotten too Fkn greedy.

I would not expect anyone who buys into (and praises) the sony ecosystem to understand this concept.

WTF is this dick sucking post my god. Your Sony derangement syndrome is draining.

"BECAUSE STEAM DOESNT NEED TO DO CHIT AND TRAP USERS LIKE YOU SONY PLEBS REEEEEEEE"


Bro they made a steam deck lmao.

A bigger steam deck with some more power that connects to your TV is all I mentioned in this thread.

[Lastro]

I would buy that over a PS6, dedfknsrs

i think thats why sony wouldnt allow it. too many hardware sales at stake

id by a steam console in a heartbeat as well

[Coal Man]

i think thats why sony wouldnt allow it. too many hardware sales at stake

id by a steam console in a heartbeat as well

How tf would Sony not allow Valve to enter the market? Valve already entered with a Steam Deck. Steam Machine would just be a more powerful, less mobile Steam Deck.

[Coal Man]

It is quite baffling that no one has made a modular console with upgrade-ability and a sleek no-nonsense OS that just works and updates itself. But its probably impossible. It would be playing PC games and hardware/software devs wont want to build firmware/updates to make all their chit work on a Steam console.It's also kinda pointless you may as well just build a small form factor gaming PC.

Well the thing is that PC games already are like this right. Devs already make their games with many different PC configs.

You just tweak the graphics settings to suit. Basically like how the Steam Deck already works.

[freeburn]

WTF is this dick sucking post my god. Your Sony derangement syndrome is draining.

"BECAUSE STEAM DOESNT NEED TO DO CHIT AND TRAP USERS LIKE YOU SONY PLEBS REEEEEEEE"

Bro they made a steam deck lmao.

A bigger steam deck with some more power that connects to your TV is all I mentioned in this thread.

Lmaooo it is bit of a dick ride post


But really, Bc it doesn't make a ton of sense

A Steamdeck is a tiny form factor pc.

It's around 600-700$?

So, you want a bigger one with some more power or upgradability, sure. What price point? 1000? 1500?

Once you reach a certain price point it makes almost zero sense for someone to buy this machine over a regular desktop pc, and valve likely realizes that.

PC users love the Steamdeck because it's portable and can function as a tiny, if slightly limited, PC also for the most part.

The small form factor console youre thinking of is just a small pc you set to boot into steam big picture. I don't think valve really thinks they can, or do they have any desire to try to convert console players into steam users, and those of us who are already pc gamers aren't gunna buy a more limited version of a PC.

[FallOutBrah]

they already make a dock to connect it to a tv like a switch, so it seems redundant.

[rocketfish]

well they did try it with the steam machines early on and they failed bad



steam deck isn't a end all be all replacement PC/console, its more of an accessory to your current gaming PC. this is a better middle ground for valve cause PC gaming just scales performance wise depending on how much the end user spends.

[Coal Man]

Lmaooo it is bit of a dick ride post


But really, Bc it doesn't make a ton of sense

A Steamdeck is a tiny form factor pc.

It's around 600-700$?

So, you want a bigger one with some more power or upgradability, sure. What price point? 1000? 1500?

Once you reach a certain price point it makes almost zero sense for someone to buy this machine over a regular desktop pc, and valve likely realizes that.

PC users love the Steamdeck because it's portable and can function as a tiny, if slightly limited, PC also for the most part.

The small form factor console youre thinking of is just a small pc you set to boot into steam big picture. I don't think valve really thinks they can, or do they have any desire to try to convert console players into steam users, and those of us who are already pc gamers aren't gunna buy a more limited version of a PC.

No no, just one for around PS5/PS5 pro price. I don't feel strongly towards upgrades/modular design.

Just as much as gamers want a deck for portability, there are also gamers who are put off by PC because it isn't the simplest setup for gaming on your couch, mostly due to windows, price and people not knowing how to build or troubleshoot.

A steam console will streamline things and give people access to steam. And I'd choose steam in a heartbeat if they keep getting Sony games.

[Coal Man]

they already make a dock to connect it to a tv like a switch, so it seems redundant.

Small form factor, can't play the latest games at PS5 quality and visuals. If it did I'd be there day 0.

well they did try it with the steam machines early on and they failed bad



steam deck isn't a end all be all replacement PC/console, its more of an accessory to your current gaming PC. this is a better middle ground for valve cause PC gaming just scales performance wise depending on how much the end user spends.

Idk man I feel a Steam Console would sell really well for a first edition launch. Get it to match console visuals with the versatility of Steam and people would be drawn to that. Maybe even make it dock with the Steam deck so you can take your console on the go.

Fuarkkkk

[JUSA]

This feels like such an easy win with MS exiting the console arena. Imagine if Valve, with all their goodwill and support made a console without Windows and just running Steam OS. No keyboard and mouse required, all your steam games, simple plug and play.

You get all the MS games and Sony games under one console.

I would buy that over a PS6, dedfknsrs

They lost money with each Steam Deck they sold, not sure how they could do this and make money. Unless by the thinking more people buying more steam games... which, you'd have to do some serious market research (which I'm sure they have) to justify that.

With the Deck -- they correctly identified a gap in the market (handheld gaming) or maybe saw the success of the Switch, either way, they knew handheld was an opening. Is a Steam Console also a good idea? Maybe? I don't know? That market might already be saturated with PS5s and such.

Whatever the market, it would need to justify a powerful console being sold at a loss (likely) and whether that generates enough in new sales from Steam games or not.

All that chit out of the way, I agree with the sentiment. Steam OS is great and a Steam Console would be great.

[Coal Man]

They lost money with each Steam Deck they sold, not sure how they could do this and make money. Unless by the thinking more people buying more steam games... which, you'd have to do some serious market research (which I'm sure they have) to justify that.

With the Deck -- they correctly identified a gap in the market (handheld gaming) or maybe saw the success of the Switch, either way, they knew handheld was an opening. Is a Steam Console also a good idea? Maybe? I don't know? That market might already be saturated with PS5s and such.

Whatever the market, it would need to justify a powerful console being sold at a loss (likely) and whether that generates enough in new sales from Steam games or not.

All that chit out of the way, I agree with the sentiment. Steam OS is great and a Steam Console would be great.

Maybe the Deck is so expensive because they tried to fit those specs in a small form factor.

If they're buying the same parts en masse from AMD like Sony does and don't require specialized small form factor hardware then maybe they can keep the price around 6-700? I don't see why Sony can do it but Valve can't...

I'm sure tons of people like myself would have a preference to steam, esp now that they're getting all the games from both Sony and MS. Lots of people with 2 consoles might just opt to buy one instead.


Pair that with the Steam Deck when they have to go out or not home, they can carry their libraries on the go. That sounds sick.

[JayJ350]

Well A Microsoft isn't exiting consoles and B the Steam Deck has become Steam's hardware platform of choice.

[JustiNtense]

That's a great idea. Steam is the GOAT and they have the Steam Deck for handheld and it does well. A console system would be a great idea if they market it right. So much value with their crazy deals and a good UI. Nobody wants to spend $60+ on games anymore especially when there is so much content out there.

[Coal Man]

Well A Microsoft isn't exiting consoles and B the Steam Deck has become Steam's hardware platform of choice.

Oh well, if they don't do a console I'm still def picking up a Steam Deck 2. Heard it may release in 2026

That's a great idea. Steam is the GOAT and they have the Steam Deck for handheld and it does well. A console system would be a great idea if they market it right. So much value with their crazy deals and a good UI. Nobody wants to spend $60+ on games anymore especially when there is so much content out there.

Man I didn't even consider that yet. Massive backlog of older games we could get for crazy low prices.

[JayJ350]

Honestly if you want a Steam console it probably wouldn't be that hard to make one. Just get a decent small PC setup for gaming, put Linux on it, then install all the Steam software for Proton so it runs like a Steam Deck. Since Steam Deck is set to run games like any PC, whatever hardware you have will just run as well as it can with free options for optimization.

They actually had some Steam console concept in the past, but it didn't sell that well, and a number of PC manufacturers were a part of it. I could just see there being a real market for a decent small gaming PC to run like a Steam Deck. Surprised PC manufacturers haven't really jumped on that. I think they were simply lacking the software and support to make it run well the last time they tried the idea. That and there wasn't a good selection of good performing low cost hardware like there is now.

[freeburn]

Honestly if you want a Steam console it probably wouldn't be that hard to make one. Just get a decent small PC setup for gaming, put Linux on it, then install all the Steam software for Proton so it runs like a Steam Deck. Since Steam Deck is set to run games like any PC, whatever hardware you have will just run as well as it can with free options for optimization.

They actually had some Steam console concept in the past, but it didn't sell that well, and a number of PC manufacturers were a part of it. I could just see there being a real market for a decent small gaming PC to run like a Steam Deck. Surprised PC manufacturers haven't really jumped on that. I think they were simply lacking the software and support to make it run well the last time they tried the idea. That and there wasn't a good selection of good performing low cost hardware like there is now.

Idk you're telling people who don't even wanna hassle with pc stuff to use Linux.... That ain't it

Just get a small pc and have it boot with steam opening into big picture, no need to make it any more difficult

[JayJ350]

Idk you're telling people who don't even wanna hassle with pc stuff to use Linux.... That ain't it

Just get a small pc and have it boot with steam opening into big picture, no need to make it any more difficult

I was thinking more along what a PC manufacturer could do, to bypass needing Windows and making games run better with low spec hardware and feel more like a console. Just going with Windows is always the easy and standard approach though for sure.