Steam OS announced

If it's available for PC and optimized for gaming, there's a serious chance I may forever abandon Windows for it on my gaming PC. We'll see when more info is released.
 
It's an OS anyone can download and install on any PC that can run it. It's basically just a linux distro like Ubuntu, but it's optimized for a tv use and gaming.
Since they don't have many games that run on Linux right now, you won't have many native games right away. It sounds like you'll be able to play them streaming from a windows PC over your network though, which sounds really interesting. So you'll want to keep your windows PC for a while.

It's also going to be free to hardware makers, so we should see a good selection of boxes built for it. Which should hopefully keep the prices down on them.
 
It's an OS anyone can download and install on any PC that can run it. It's basically just a linux distro like Ubuntu, but it's optimized for a tv use and gaming.
Since they don't have many games that run on Linux right now, you won't have many native games right away. It sounds like you'll be able to play them streaming from a windows PC over your network though, which sounds really interesting. So you'll want to keep your windows PC for a while.

It's also going to be free to hardware makers, so we should see a good selection of boxes built for it. Which should hopefully keep the prices down on them.
So, it's basically a backdoor console that you build yourself :p
 
This is apparently the first of three announcements from Valve this week. Some theorize the next is the SteamBox (or whatever they'll call it). And the third...Half-Life 3.

Personally, I highly doubt it, but if it's true? Oh fuck, I'm excited.
 
This is apparently the first of three announcements from Valve this week. Some theorize the next is the SteamBox (or whatever they'll call it). And the third...Half-Life 3.

Personally, I highly doubt it, but if it's true? Oh fuck, I'm excited.
People have been predicting HL3 announcements for literally years though. I'm numb to it now.

... please be HL3.
 
I still haven't finished HL2. Don't think I ever finished one either, for that matter.[DOUBLEPOST=1379987952,1379987884][/DOUBLEPOST]Ooh, what they should do is release HL3 just on their Steam OS as a pre-release for 1 week prior to the PC and OSX releases.

I can taste the HL fan tears and hear the whining now...
 
I still haven't finished HL2. Don't think I ever finished one either, for that matter.[DOUBLEPOST=1379987952,1379987884][/DOUBLEPOST]Ooh, what they should do is release HL3 just on their Steam OS as a pre-release for 1 week prior to the PC and OSX releases.

I can taste the HL fan tears and hear the whining now...

:minionhappy:
 
This is apparently the first of three announcements from Valve this week. Some theorize the next is the SteamBox (or whatever they'll call it). And the third...Half-Life 3.
Valve, making 3 annoucnements?! :rofl:

If nothing else at the end of this week we'll have discovered that they learned how to count past 2.
 

figmentPez

Staff member
I have so many questions:
- Will a box running SteamOS be capable of running anything besides games and special made SteamOS programs? (i.e. will I need a dedicated PC or a dual-boot situation to take advantage of it? Or could I potentially run LibreOffice and other programs on it and not need a Windows box?)

- Can I watch Hulu on it, and will Hulu treat it like a PC or charge for it like a console/mobile device?

- What are the system requirements for streaming non-native games from a PC running Windows to a box running SteamOS?

- How is the controller support, does it include the Xbox wireless controller & PC dongle?
 
At this point, without more info, I would assume it's just Linux with some extra Steam-associated goodies. So most likely, if it runs on Linux, you'll be able to run it on SteamOS (doing otherwise seems like a giant missed opportunity).
 
Ooh, what they should do is release HL3 just on their Steam OS as a pre-release for 1 week prior to the PC and OSX releases.

I can taste the HL fan tears and hear the whining now...
Man...if Valve did with HL3 with SteamOS like they did with Steam and HL2 then HL3 would be exclusive to SteamOS.

The shitstorm that would create would be glorious.
 
Man...if Valve did with HL3 with SteamOS like they did with Steam and HL2 then HL3 would be exclusive to SteamOS.

The shitstorm that would create would be glorious.
As a early release, sure. As an exclusive, that would be a really silly idea.


The only reason they would want to do that is if they did not remotely care how HL3 actually did, they just want to see Windows users cry. In which case...carry on.
 
I'm not gonna lie. I would be one of those pissed off fans if they did that. I highly doubt they'd be that stupid, though. I HOPE they're not that stupid.

Then again, I highly doubt HL3 is even the third announcement they're making. It'd be amazing if it happened, but I'm not getting my hopes up.
 
I think the big selling point would be native to steam OS, but still being available on regular steam. They wouldn't make it Steam OS only.
 
People were pissed off when Half-Life 2 required the then terrible Steam program too.
I was literally one of the first people to have steam. I got it because I bought a graphics card that came with a redemption code for the as of then unreleased HL2. As compensation for the shitstorm that followed, they basically gave you all valve titles for free.
 
I remember being so upset that I couldn't play HL2 without having this obtrusive program installed and alway running first. I played it through, then never looked back.

Came back to Steam some 5 years later, and remember being mightily impressed at what it had become.
 

GasBandit

Staff member
Steam has come so far since then. SO FAR.
And yet it's still a clunky, bloated, juddering example of bad customer interaction with somewhat unsettling implications about software ownership that really, we only put up with because of the two yearly sales.
 
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