It's Been Three Years Since Valve Announced SteamOS, Steam Machines

[lunarcloud]

Console gamers never got a console reveal, single box to focus on or get excited about. The machines trickled out with no fanfare or with Windows...
That's the problem.
Nobody wants to choose between a dozen boxes of varying quality with SteamOS (over Ubuntu or Windows).
To make a console, you have to commit to making a console.
Sure, allow others to create knockoffs, but have a main box for us all to focus on and target, and let the clone creators worry about compatibility.
Valve just wanted to do the fun parts of making a console without committing to doing it all.

[Passso]

Console gamers never got a console reveal, single box to focus on or get excited about. The machines trickled out with no fanfare or with Windows...
That's the problem.
Nobody wants to choose between a dozen boxes of varying quality with SteamOS (over Ubuntu or Windows).
To make a console, you have to commit to making a console.
Sure, allow others to create knockoffs, but have a main box for us all to focus on and target, and let the clone creators worry about compatibility.
Valve just wanted to do the fun parts of making a console without committing to doing it all.

This 100%. Valve really needs to engage the battle now and create its own "reference" box.
Then other vendors could then make other "basic" or "power" systems compatible, but Valve must show the way.
This will even benefit studios who will adapt the settings by default for this reference hardware.

[eydee]

I wouldn't buy one, just as I wouldn't buy any other console. I like using the same machine for everything. But once the price is right and there are more than 10 real games, it should be just as attractive as other consoles, and sell well. Currently the lack of games is probably the worst part. There's 2000+ unknown indie game many just call shovelware, very few well-known and successful games, and Valve classics. Want to play Dark Souls, Bettlefield, or any other very popular game? Nope, you can't. That's why people don't buy these machines. They want to play, not excuses.

[FireBurn]

Steam Machines and SteamOS were created in response that was the threat of the Windows Store. The Store didn't dent their sales much so the push for an alternative for Windows gaming lessened too. I bet if Microsoft try and go the way of the Apple Store then we'll see Steam Machines being pushed again

[haagch]

Three years ago:

Newell has previously promised to unveil a Linux-based "Steam box" to compete against living room gaming consoles sometime this year

Now Playstation VR will come out soon and there is still no sign whatsoever that SteamVR will work on SteamOS any time soon.

They've not been trying to compete for quite some time now.

[Filiprino]

I thought they would contribute more to Linux, by adding workforce to corner projects: graphics drivers, near 0% overhead Windows virtualization with plug'n'play graphics card passthrough, Wine support, display managers/protocols/servers.

But still, if they continue releasing games to GNU Linux, it's all OK. They can experiment with SteamOS.

[schmidtbag]

Part of me wonders if maybe Valve is waiting for AMD to catch up. When you consider physical size and cost, APUs are really the only good option for Steam Machines but the drivers haven't caught up enough yet. As of right now, an Intel+Nvidia setup would offer the most performance and would likely be the most energy efficient, but would be physically too large and would be way too expensive. Right around the time Valve mentioned Steam Machines, the open source AMD drivers have dramatically improved. I wonder if we'll start seeing some Steam Machines once socket AM4 products are more readily available.

[Passso]

I thought they would contribute more to Linux, by adding workforce to corner projects: graphics drivers, near 0% overhead Windows virtualization with plug'n'play graphics card passthrough, Wine support, display managers/protocols/servers.

But still, if they continue releasing games to GNU Linux, it's all OK. They can experiment with SteamOS.

That is not very fair, Valve did help graphic drivers a lot (watch Phoronix posts at the beginning of Steam for Linux).

Anyway the main problem in what you propose is that Windows virtualization requires... a Windows licence!

So basically the 2 options are :

- use Wine for all and try to improve it (like PoL does very well)
- ask for native Linux versions (even with editors using a layer)

Thanks for us they choosed the 2d option so that Linux is not all alone like it was for decades.

[Filiprino]

That is not very fair, Valve did help graphic drivers a lot (watch Phoronix posts at the beginning of Steam for Linux).

Anyway the main problem in what you propose is that Windows virtualization requires... a Windows licence!

So basically the 2 options are :

- use Wine for all and try to improve it (like PoL does very well)
- ask for native Linux versions (even with editors using a layer)

Thanks for us they choosed the 2d option so that Linux is not all alone like it was for decades.

You can do more than 1 thing. Add virtualization support and native Linux versions. You don't have to do it at the same time.

[Passso]

You can do more than 1 thing. Add virtualization support and native Linux versions. You don't have to do it at the same time.

As I wrote: virtualization is not an option because it requires a Windows licence per machine