Who is actually the target audience for the Steam Machine?

Who will buy it?

  • Console players who want something more PC-like

    Votes: 177 48.2%

  • PC players who want something more console-like

    Votes: 145 39.5%

  • Steam Deck players who want a living room box

    Votes: 184 50.1%

  • Gaben enjoyers who likes the idea of a Steam ecosystem

    Votes: 130 35.4%

  • People who want an(other) Xbox

    Votes: 27 7.4%

  • Gaming enthusiasts who can't wait for next-gen

    Votes: 26 7.1%
  • Total voters
    367
"Gaming enthusiasts who can't wait for next-gen"

This isn't the 90's or 2000's anymore. Next-gen doesn't happen in the way I believe it is in reference to here. Also, look at the technology on display - Steam Frame? That appears to be more than just a couple of steps forward for VR headsets given the engineering achievements on display there to make that real tangible thing. Valve is very much moving the needle forward.

What's important here is the innovative and risk embracive nature of Valve's culture - in that it will sink large amounts of its capital (albeit reasonably thanks to Steam) into technology ventures that don't need to "succeed" in order to impact the industry in objectively significant ways. I mean shit, Steam Machines weren't a hardware renaissance, but Proton? Game changer.


Also, game developers want to appeal to as much of the market as possible. What is the benefit of making a game that requires only the top % of hardware requirements if even selling extremely well will only saturate a small fraction of the market that has top of the line equipment? Next-gen to me would be more about making something that looks and runs great on a variety of hardware specifications through innovation in optimization pipelines and hardware/software interfacing. I mean in that sense, isn't Valve's contribution here truly "next-gen"? Linux has never been as popular as it is now and the fact that people are even considering ditching Windows to just run exclusively on Linux nowadays is fucking huge.

Valve did the little big horn play here - they didn't come at Microsoft head on. They started a Window's based storefront that sold games and gained popularity because it's launch coincided with the launch of a sequel to one of the most important FPSs of all time. It grew into the behemoth that it is now, literally synonymous with PC gaming. It always lived within its means too. It stayed relatively small organizationally given its capital gain. Now, it does what it wants to include supporting the Linux OS. It's like a brain trust or think tank.

Maybe Astray Astray was right all along. I'm just a small minded man that can't see the forest for the trees.
 
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seb85 said:
People who are happy with native resolution of 720p upscaled to 4k
Click to expand...

Being a bit factitious here, the Steam Deck runs at 800p and uses 20W. This thing will run at ~130W, it's not going to be doing the same performance as the Deck running at 20W.
 
Minsc said:
Being a bit factitious here, the Steam Deck runs at 800p and uses 20W. This thing will run at ~130W, it's not going to be doing the same performance as the Deck running at 20W.
Click to expand...
The problem isn't the power but the limitation of VRAM , since steam deck has unified memory it can allocate more memory to the gpu while steam machine can't
 
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seb85 said:
People who are happy with native resolution of 720p upscaled to 4k
Click to expand...
Yups, for comparision thats rx 7600, so desktop rdna3(same archi) with 165W tdp(gabecube is rdna 3 with only 115W tdp so visibly less performance, not 5-10% only, it will be likely around rtx 3060 or sometimes even below that)
www.techpowerup.com

AMD Radeon RX 7600 Specs

AMD Navi 33, 2655 MHz, 2048 Cores, 128 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 8192 MB GDDR6, 2250 MHz, 128 bit
www.techpowerup.com www.techpowerup.com

Look at wukong at medium settings 1080p(can see it in the vid)- cant hold stable 60, and thats a game that launched over year ago, august 2024.

Next demading game AC Shadows, launched this year march: combo of low and medium settings, once again cant hold stable 60 at native 1080p either.

Non demanding games will run fine, aka stable 1080p60 at high maybe even very high, but as soon as game is any type of demanding/looks proper current gen= performance gonna tank big time.

Gabecube isnt out yet, will likely launch in 2026, we are still at the end of 2025, now imagine that- we fastforward only measly 2 years to holidays 2027- ps6 and xbox pc already launched- u see how much nicer demanding games look and run on those and ur old trusty weaksauce gabecube sweating and struggling bigtime with those demanding games from mid/end of 2027(we just entered crossgen period).

That scene ps6 vs gabecube gonna play exactly like this:
 
Ishma3L said:
Valve did the little big horn play here - they didn't come at Microsoft head on. They started a Window's based storefront that sold games and gained popularity because it's launch coincided with the launch of a sequel to one of the most important FPSs of all time. It grew into the behemoth that it is now, literally synonymous with PC gaming. It always lived within its means too. It stayed relatively small organizationally given its capital gain. Now, it does what it wants to include supporting the Linux OS. It's like a brain trust or think tank.

Maybe Astray Astray was right all along. I'm just a small minded man that can't see the forest for the trees.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't call you small-minded, it was just a spirited discussion is all.

I think Valve is %100 coming for Windows, or at the very least, they want to carve out their own sizable slice of the OS market, so that if/when Microsoft decide to mess them up in some way through the OS, they have a safety boat at the very least.
 
Someone like me is most likely the target audience. Console gamer for decades. Dabbled in pc gaming here or there over the years. Mostly nothing in comparison.

I really want to play half life alyx for example, but not really interested in buying an expensive pc just for gaming. Rather play on the sofa through a tv.

Thing is tho it is all about price. If the price is basically near a new pc rig then whats the point?

If i could get pc type gaming, especially vr gaming at a better price tag? I am in.
 
SnapShot said:
Are they just quietly trying to make consoles for PC gamers

584165142-1396702601816607-7172231707237577337-n.jpg
Click to expand...

They are openly trying to make PC games more accessible to all gamers.
 
CentralScrutinizer said:
I like to play a lot of old games on PC, especially older JRPGs. This is perfect for me for my game room for that; however, if I can just build something on my own and have it run the same steam OS but for cheaper, I will do just that.

Speaking of that, is it easy to build a gaming pc and put Steam OS directly on it?
Click to expand...

Fairly easy. If you are interested, browse the youtube channel etaprime. Seems like he makes a budget steam machine every other week since the moment someone figured out how to roll the deck recovery image into a linux distro.

This is just the latest one. Look for more because he's done a lot of super cheap ones. Haven't watched this so I don't know how much he spent.

 
Honestly have no idea who exactly this is for, however as a steam deck owner day 1 that machine is a very powerful emulation machine, got most systems up to ps3 / x360 working fairly ok (game defendant)
This new box is supposed to be 6xpowerful than the deck?
I can see that bridging the gap needed for decent ps3/360 and possibly ps4 emulation, which is appealing if the price is right
 
I have a Series X and a PS5 pro, and I want a Steamcube for all of the things I can't play on those 2. It is a complete box I can plug in to the same TV on the same stand as the other 2.
 
Kadve said:
In other words. Why even buy this thing?
Click to expand...
Supplemental device like the Steam Deck. Bring your Steam library to the couch. There are loads of indies on PC long before they hit consoles. Plus random niche Japanese games like EDF. If you don't have a PlayStation that's the alternative.
 
Kacho said:
Supplemental device like the Steam Deck. Bring your Steam library to the couch. There are loads of indies on PC long before they hit consoles. Plus random niche Japanese games like EDF. If you don't have a PlayStation that's the alternative.
Click to expand...
Steam Link? Way cheaper in that case.

Oh, right. Valve stopped making them because they were way too good of a deal i guess.
 
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I really think Valve should sell this at a big loss and then sell a pro version for more and make it all back on Steam. This could put an end to Windows gaming in a few years and steal away MS and even Sony's market share. I'd like it as i love steam. Nintendo will Nintendo.
 
Console gamers (and PC gamers who want a console experience).

I'm paying $80 a year on PS5 just for the ability to play a game online and it's ridiculous. Then factor in the fact that there are more games and better deals on Steam and that really adds up over time.

Right now on PS5 I can't play Hades II, Project Zomboid, RV There Yet, Megabonk, Escape From Tarkov...and I could go on and on with a huge list of big games/early access/niche/VR games...that are either completely unavailable on consoles, or will take forever to get there.

So the answer is console gamers who are tired of the bullshit like me. I think this thing might sell 5 million, or it could sell 50 million+ depending on price and marketing/support etc...It's really up to Valve. It's absolutely a thing that the market needs though imo.
 
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Whoever the target audience is, it's kinda crazy how Valve is quietly delivering a better "Play Anywhere" ecosystem than Xbox.

PC app, mobile app, handheld,living room box. Everyone is covered and you don't need to hope a game is play anywhere, it just is.
 
You'd think the number one buyer would be someone who has seen how the Steam Deck works and wished they could have a more powerful version hooked up to the TV. Depending on the pricing, the unit might act as a safeguard for Valve against high-priced PC components.
 
I think all of the first four reasons apply. I would throw in a 5th, which is that some people would rather support Valve as a company than Sony or Microsoft. I'm in that camp myself.
 
Easy. I just want the option to play

PlayStation exclusives
Nintendo exclusives
Xbox exclusives
Valve exclusives
Indie exclusives on Steam

Having a PS5, Switch 2 and Steam Machine is all you need for the foreseeable future
 
Steam Deck doesn't appeal to me at all but the Steam Machine does. I'm just not a mobile gamer. I want to play in front of a monitor or a TV. The Steam Deck appealed to people who want access to their Steam games portably. The Steam Machine is going to appeal to people that want their Steam library in their living room or, want to dip their toes into PC gaming. I like sitting at my PC to play most games but there are some games that I feel work better on a big TV and that let's me do it. I like knowing I can buy say the Resident Evil 4 Remake once and play it on either my PC or my Steam Machine on a TV. They are different experiences to me and both have their own merits.
 
dcx4610 said:
Steam Deck doesn't appeal to me at all but the Steam Machine does. I'm just not a mobile gamer. I want to play in front of a monitor or a TV. The Steam Deck appealed to people who want access to their Steam games portably. The Steam Machine is going to appeal to people that want their Steam library in their living room or, want to dip their toes into PC gaming. I like sitting at my PC to play most games but there are some games that I feel work better on a big TV and that let's me do it. I like knowing I can buy say the Resident Evil 4 Remake once and play it on either my PC or my Steam Machine on a TV. They are different experiences to me and both have their own merits.
Click to expand...

99 percent of my time on the Steam Deck is at home. Many games feel better on a handheld, but I only took it outside about three times, on trips back home for the holidays. Plus, I have a dock, so I can plug it in and play on a big screen with a controller in hand in seconds.
 
First 2 are spot on:

Console gamers who want something PC-like.
PC gamers who want something console-like.

And it could get the PC gaming snowball to roll faster. At minimum it should do to living room PC gaming what Steam Deck has done for handheld PC gaming. An awakening moment. And it should also get Microsoft to try harder on their full screen mode and remove some Windows bloat and background tasks not really needed.
 
Me. I am the audience. A life long Nintendo player who barely touched PC gaming because I always viewed a computer as a working tool. I play my switch 2 on a 40 inches 1080p monitor hidden in a corner of my house, and I think that this steambox will allow me to play everything that's missing on switch.

Given the choice, I'll always go for switch 2 versions as portability is a big deal for me, but no matter how good Nintendo's console is, there's still a lot of excellent games that aren't coming. With that combo, I'm sure to have 99.9% of my gaming needs covered.
 
Has 0 appeal to me as a PS5 Pro owner. I'd consider going PC next gen but I'd need hardware on par with current gen consoles as a bare minimum.
 
Kacho said:
Whoever the target audience is, it's kinda crazy how Valve is quietly delivering a better "Play Anywhere" ecosystem than Xbox.

PC app, mobile app, handheld,living room box. Everyone is covered and you don't need to hope a game is play anywhere, it just is.
Click to expand...
They are absolutely beating their asses both in terms of timing and in terms of market execution.
 
depends entirely on the price.

at $400 or less, PC enthusiasts and Deck owners.
at $500 or more... noone...

between $400 and $500 a tiny group of people from column 1
 
After owning the steam deck since launch and still fully enjoy it. I'd buy the steam machine before I buy the ps6 or next x box. The SteamOS is amazing.
 
The longer I think about it, it could be really nice option to play all my old games on tv at high res and fps with quick access. for right price of course.
 
Being honest, I'm not sure there is much of market for this sort of device unless the price-point is really low.

The problem for me is that unless you are already in the PC space its unique advantages (instant resume, CEC etc.) won't seem like anything different, and if you're on the console side looking-in, based on the specs/performance aspects its not really any better than what you have currently and not the big jump in capability that PC at the high-end offers.

Why would this sell better than the Steam Deck has done ?
 
The actual answer is that it's for Valve fanboys and Steam-o-philes buying it as a likely overpriced HTPC for their dens and living rooms. At the hints of $600 and $700, It's not going to sell to low end Steam users with 3060's or iGPUs.
 
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