Steam console: Job posting points to next gen Xbox rival
We heard rumours about a Steam console from Valve, the maker of Half-Life and Portal games, earlier this year, and now they’re back with a bang. The US game developer has posted a new job listing that clearly indicates it wants to create a whole new type of gaming PC.
In a job posting for an industrial designer posted this week, Valve drops a bombshell. “Open platforms like the PC and Mac are important to us, as they enable us and our partners to have a robust and direct relationship with customers. We’re frustrated by the lack of innovation in the computer hardware space though, so we’re jumping in.”
That meshes nicely with previous reports of a Steam console, as well as the revelation that Valve is working on a wearable computer. Last month, Valve showed off how fast it could run new games on the open source Linux operating system, perhaps indicating it wants to cut MIcrosoft’s expensive Windows out of the equation.
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It’s hard to make money off hardware, so why would Valve want to make a console? Valve also runs Steam, one of the most popular PC game download services on the planet: a Steam console that can only download games from there could make a lot of cash for the company if it took off.
There’s plenty it could do, too. Today’s PCs are vastly more powerful than the Xbox 360 and PS3, but as the posting states, “even basic input, the keyboard and mouse, haven’t really changed in any meaningful way over the years. There’s a real void in the marketplace.” If anyone can exploit that, it’s the clever cats at Valve.
What do you reckon? Is Valve aiming too high? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
User comments (7)
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Morgan Smith04 September 2012
The fact that Valve are even considering going to Linux haunts me. Linux is simply not there + It would be pointless to suddenly switch from a 25,000 game library to one with very few, Making companies having to re-release and go through more hassle. Simply because something of much better quality is a slight bit more money.
Report as inappropriateGraeme04 September 2012
Better quality? From what I've heard the benchmark tests are more successful on Linux than on Windows. Gaming requires as much system resources as possible so a non bloated OS would prove useful.
Report as inappropriateRobin04 September 2012
I don't think VALVe are aiming to high. They have been the rock in PC gaming for almost 10 years now (although that might not sound that long, gaming has really made a boom in the last 5-6 years.), first they created a multi award winning game "Half-Life", then they made the "Source Engine" and "Half-Life 2" and with it came "Steam". Source was quite an innovation when it was first released, a modular gaming engine that could have its parts updated without overly messing with the whole of it. Half-Life 2 was even more a success than Half-Life and with each Episode released and the introduction of Portal into its Universe, the series/story grows increasing more complex and interesting. Steam is the number one in PC Digital Download Distribution, and in the last 6 years has been improved exponentially and given gamers more than they could have expected in a Free service, with such things like cloud support for game saves, profile setting and screenshots, cross-platform play (dependant on the game and Developers) between Windows, Mac and even PS3 (with Portal 2). They more recently have given game modders and gamers the ability to create content for participating games through there "Steam Workshop" and in the last few week have opened the "Steam Green Light" which much like the Workshop enables Steam users to select Indi games to be accepted on Steam, via a voting and rating system. The list could go on. Basically, I'm not trying to plug Steam, or trying to sell it. I just don't think them making a Steam Console, is that outlandish. They are innovates standing tall enough to see there horizons, and are on the verge of exploring those horizons and that's what the Steam Box or Steam Console would be. Its only flaw could be, its moving away from the roots where VALVe and Steam started, which is PC and would seam a little controversial to its user-base. I'm all for it though, in-fact if they had bought out OnLive a few weeks ago when they were in trouble, it would have made my day, for Steam to be a Digital Download Distribution platform and a On Demand Streaming Platform (presuming integration of the two services could have been done) would have for me as a Gamer, a self proclaimed Nerd and User of both platforms. It would have been Epic.
Report as inappropriatePrirtyrap07 September 2012
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