Valve enters the console wars [The Verge]

I think what this conversation shows us is the human need to fit everything into a categorical box can lead to issues (and it's often pointless). Not to get too philosophical, but some of our larger and broader issues in society can be boiled down to a similar issue; such as asserting someone is either left or right. Us being so quick to slap on a label often makes us blind to nuance.

Edit: I'm not referring to the OP, but the debate around whether the GabeCube is a console or not.
 
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Im hyped. hope this is the box that make us less focused on pixel and go back to the fun.
I have a huge backlog too. It would be nice to have a lil power box to play PC games. Some coop Path of Exile 2, would be real fun with my son.
This could also create a base line for companies when they release their PC games. MH wilds is a disaster on PC, it plays great on the regular PS5.
 
Let me know whenever we've settled the war on whether it's a PC or a console.

Whatever it is, it looks like the perfect machine to finally be able to emulate everything up until the X360 generation. That thing could be the single most efficient box to finally store all retro games ever released on a single hardware. That's probably the most exciting aspect of it for me.
 
Everyone's quotes got destroyed by the multiquote but here we go.

're playing on a Steam Machine and a friend asks what i

Personally, I tell them it's a cute little pc. I would not be shocked if that person said "I know, *but*..."

al computing, yes. It is about as generic a term possible because a PC literally can be used for whatever you want. It doesn't have a primary use like a console or a phone. It is a crucial difference when I can choose whatever operating system I want on a computer versus a console where there is no

Right, it's easier to differentiate a pc from a console. But a phone, not as easy. I'm not even sure a phone truly has a primary purpose. It's got a phone app that could also be used on a tablet or whatever, sure. I could say it's a personal computing device and you can do just about anything with it. Including loading kali or some other distro on it.

I understand we intuitively know the difference between a phone and a pc. I'm saying that it's not that simple to formally define it.

is just recently people have started trying to over complicate where they fit. People can categorize Steam devices differently than what the people that created them categorize them as, but that seems silly to me. Personally, I play on all of these devices (including phones) so I guess this really isn't my ba

I think you are basically asking the right question: why isn't everyone accepting that this is a pc when it seems clear as day? It's a pretty interesting question, because it is kinda happening. What is skewing the perception? I'm interested in talking about that but if you frame the whole thing as "what's wrong with these people", then there's nowhere to go with it and the question isn't interesting anymore.
 
Console wars? What were they smoking? This is clickbait of clickbaits. This will be a niche enthusiast device like the Steam Deck or even Valve Index. And you could only order it directly from the Steam store. Everyone should know it is not in the same league as consoles and I'm actually excited for it. Console warring seems ridiculous in this case. I understand Steam Deck vs Playstation Portal war, but this shit is beyond ridiculous. It's a fucking PC.
 
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No but it makes the hardware you're using very much like a console.
Which console?? A SNES?? Steam Big Picture doesn't make SteamOS or Bazzite or Windows more like a console. A console having a OS and UI is that is made more like PC. PC can have any UI you want since pre SNES era.
 
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Which console?? A SNES?? Steam Big Picture doesn't make SteamOS or Bazzite or Windows more like a console. A console having a OS and UI is that is made more like PC. PC can have any UI you want since pre SNES era.
A modern console.

The Steam Box works out of the box with a controller. No neckbeard configuration required.
 
I'm sure it's simple enough after you configure everything to your liking. The Steam Machine is even easier, like a console. That's the appeal.
If I buy a pre build PC and ask the seller to configure it for me I don't have to do anything. The Steam machine will not be ease like a console just like SteamOS on Deck or any other Arch distro is not too.
 
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What is a console-like experience?? And which console??

I don't see much difference between playing Fallout New Vegas on the Steam Deck (a PC/handheld console hybrid) and playing it on a Nintendo Switch (a dedicated console). Oh, actually, I do see a difference, it's not available on a fucking Nintendo.

The experience was simple. I purchased the Steam Deck. It arrived in the post. I opened the box. Powered it on. Logged into my Steam account. Downloaded a game. Started playing. Very console like.

Seriously, no one cares what you call it. I'm fucking with you because it's hilarious how personal this gets for you. PC! Console! PC-console hybrid! Who cares? It's a device designed to play games, and it's very good at what it's designed for. Daddy, chill.

This is kinda like saying Windows 8 Laptops were a hybrid, because they offered a tablet like experience out of the box.

Only thing that was missing was a video game controller!
 
The experience was simple. I purchased the Steam Deck. It arrived in the post. I opened the box. Powered it on. Logged into my Steam account. Downloaded a game. Started playing. Very console like.
It is like that in every other PC too. wtf. What is so special in your SteamOS?? Because mine has nothing special than Nobara or Bazzite can't do.

Only thing that was missing was a video game controller!
Was it?? What if the person bought the laptop and a controller??
 
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It is like that in every other PC too. wtf. What is so special in your SteamOS?? Because mine has nothing special than Nobara can't do.

The question should be what's special about the Steam Deck and soon, the Machine. Well, it comes with software preinstalled and is ready to go out of the box. It obviously comes with a state-of-the-art modern video game controller that allows you to play almost any game ever made (I'm even playing Fallout 1 on it, trackpads are awesome). Games are verified for it, and many offer graphical presets adjusted for the best experience.

Yes, you could buy every individual component of a PC, build it yourself, install software, and make it almost 1:1 with what Valve offers. That's not the point.

It's like looking for a PC to run spreadsheets and deciding to go with a PS4, jailbreaking it, and installing Linux for that purpose. Yes, you can do it.

What matters is the product as it comes when you buy it. At least for normal people who don't want to spend hours messing with things just to get them working. And the product Valve is selling is amazing at playing video games. Period.
 
The question should be what's special about the Steam Deck and soon, the Machine. Well, it comes with software preinstalled and is ready to go out of the box. It obviously comes with a state-of-the-art modern video game controller that allows you to play almost any game ever made (I'm even playing Fallout 1 on it, trackpads are awesome). Games are verified for it, and many offer graphical presets adjusted for the best experience.

Yes, you could buy every individual component of a PC, build it yourself, install software, and make it almost 1:1 with what Valve offers. That's not the point.

It's like looking for a PC to run spreadsheets and deciding to go with a PS4, jailbreaking it, and installing Linux for that purpose. Yes, you can do it.

What matters is the product as it comes when you buy it. At least for normal people who don't want to spend hours messing with things just to get them working. And the product Valve is selling is amazing at playing video games. Period.
So I can play WoW, Genshin Impact, Battle For Middle Earth 2 and emulated console games outside the box on those machines??? 🤔

For you it is. The average person knows nothing about this, nor do they want to deal with it.
The average person don't know this thing exists and that it is a PC with all the "tinkering" that all other PCs have.
 
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So I can play WoW, Genshin Impact, Battle For Middle Earth 2 and emulated console games outside the box on those machines??? 🤔

I don't know, I don't play any of these games. But if you expect a single device to play every game ever released right out of the box, I'm sorry to say it, but you're retarded.
 
The average person don't know this thing exists and that it is a PC with all the "tinkering" that all other PCs have.
Every major gamer YouTuber and video game site is covering the Steam Machine and referring to it as a console-like experience. There will be orders of magnitude more people that know what a Steam Machine is vs Nobara.
 
Only thing that was missing was a video game controller!
No, because with Windows 8, touchscreens became much more common. So you had a Windows 8 Laptop with a Touchscreen and Win8 had the infamous touchscreen UI that everyone hated.

Is that a tablet/laptop hybrid in your eyes because it has the hallmark features of a tablet out of the box, or just a laptop?
Every major gamer YouTuber and video game site is covering the Steam Machine and referring to it as a console-like experience. There will be orders of magnitude more people that know what a Steam Machine is vs Nobara.
And I can already see everyone buying this, thinking it's a console, visiting Valve's Github page to look for solutions to their problems. lmao
 
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Buy a dicitionary for Christmas, fam.

How will you play almost all games out of the box??? Linux can't play almost all games, even less out of the box. 🤦‍♂️

Every major gamer YouTuber and video game site is covering the Steam Machine and referring to it as a console-like experience. There will be orders of magnitude more people that know what a Steam Machine is vs Nobara.
Youtubers and sites covered the WiiU and the average people still thinks it is a Wii accessory. 🤦‍♂️
 
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No, because with Windows 8, touchscreens became much more common. So you had a Windows 8 Laptop with a Touchscreen and Win8 had the infamous touchscreen UI that everyone hated.

Is that a tablet/laptop hybrid in your eyes because it has the hallmark features of a tablet out of the box, or just a laptop?

I don't even know which device you're talking about specifically, but it sounds like a hybrid between a laptop with traditional keyboard and trackpad controls and a tablet with touchscreen controls. And it sounds like it was awful at both, lol.

How will you play almost all games out of the box??? Linux can't play almost all games, even less out of the box. 🤦‍♂️

You can play more games on stock Steam Deck than on any other console on the market. There are more than 19 000 Steam Deck verified games. Out of the box. No tinkering. If you into tinkering and emulation, literally hundreds of thousands of games are playable on that thing.
 
And I can already see everyone buying this, thinking it's a console, visiting Valve's Github page to look for solutions to their problems. lmao
Can happen...

The Nanny 90S GIF
 
No. Do you have any idea how many games are in the PC library outside Steam plus all emulated games???

Are you feeling well, mate? Read my comment about "almost every game ever" again. I said that using the Steam Controller you can play almost every game ever released (because it has trackpads, gyro, 4 back buttons, great mapping software, etc.). I never said that you can play almost every game ever released on every platform on the Steam Deck. :messenger_grinning_sweat:

Read to learn. Read to learn with comprehension. Buy a dictionary. Fucking hell, so tiring.
 
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