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Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

arstechnica.com

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Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#71

Post by bryanlarsen »

kogepathic wrote: post #31

Valve's track record with non-VR hardware is, to put it politely, not good. Seven years after launching the Steam machine (2014) initiative, there are no Steam machines available for sale. [1] Both the Steam Controller (2015-2019) and Steam Link (2015-2018) are discontinued and cannot be purchased, despite consistently positive reviews from users. [2] As other commenters have noted there are already numerous "Switch-…

All of those are still supported. Pulling a Google would require them to stop supporting them.

Everybody stops building things that don't sell well. Very few continue supporting them.

I would not hesitate to buy hardware from Valve.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#72

Post by tlhunter »

kogepathic wrote: post #31

Valve's track record with non-VR hardware is, to put it politely, not good. Seven years after launching the Steam machine (2014) initiative, there are no Steam machines available for sale. [1] Both the Steam Controller (2015-2019) and Steam Link (2015-2018) are discontinued and cannot be purchased, despite consistently positive reviews from users. [2] As other commenters have noted there are already numerous "Switch-…

Differentiation might include some sort of game+device compatability badge or certification, built in steam controller and all that customization, and game discounts/rental program when played on the device.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#73

Post by CivBase »

kogepathic wrote: post #31

Valve's track record with non-VR hardware is, to put it politely, not good. Seven years after launching the Steam machine (2014) initiative, there are no Steam machines available for sale. [1] Both the Steam Controller (2015-2019) and Steam Link (2015-2018) are discontinued and cannot be purchased, despite consistently positive reviews from users. [2] As other commenters have noted there are already numerous "Switch-…

I own a Steam Controller, Steam Link, and a Valve Index. They're all excellent devices and I really wish I had purchased a second Steam Controller and Steam Link when they were clearing their inventory. Even after discontinuing the hardware, the devices have continued to function as well as they ever have (actually even better thanks to continued updates).

I'm not surprised Valve has trouble continuing to produce hardware with low sales volumes. That said, they have certainly proven themselves to me with the quality of their devices so this one naturally has my attention. I don't buy products until reviews are out, but this one sounds pretty good on paper. The GPD Win 3, Aya Neo, and One Xplayer have all already proved the concept is viable and I'm excited to see Valve's take on it.

Also, to be fair the whole reason they stopped making Steam Links is because there are many other products out there now which can run the Steam Link software. Their hardware offering simply became redundant. There's no shame in discontinuing a product which no longer makes sense for the overwhelming majority of potential buyers.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#74

Post by jsnell »

maxsilver wrote: post #56
kogepathic wrote: post #31

Valve's track record with non-VR hardware is, to put it politely, not good. Seven years after launching the Steam machine (2014) initiative, there are no Steam machines available for sale. [1] Both the Steam Controller (2015-2019) and Steam Link (2015-2018) are discontinued and cannot be purchased, despite consistently positive reviews from users. [2] As other commenters have noted there are already numerous "Switch-…

I agree, Valve needs to better support hardware to build trust. But I think some perspective is worth mentioning. Every Valve hardware device has had a longer maintenance and support lifecycle than any Google Nexus/Pixel device ever sold. Valve has consistently been better than Google about their hardware + software lifecycles. It's totally fair to compare the two, but that doesn't necessarily make them equivalent. V…

Going by the dates on Wikipedia, the 2015 Chromebook Pixel had 6 years and 3 months of updates. The Pixelbook will have 6 years and 6 months, the Pixel Slate 7 years and 9 months, and the Pixelbook Go 6 years and 9 months.

1st gen Chromecast stopped getting feature updates after 6 years, but as far as I can tell is still in scope for security fixes. 2nd gen Chromecast seems to still be fully supported 5.5 years after release with no EOL announced yet.

These all seem like very reasonable amounts of time. How long do you think support should actually last?

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#75

Post by schmorptron »

bob1029 wrote: post #70

Why did Valve get out of the AAA game development business? It seems like hardware has largely been a mistake for them. Sure, I can have 20 different variants of an x86 computer and various HMD interfaces, but if all the games suck ass what's the point? Valve is still surfing on the inertia of their initial software-based innovations, and is only continuing to cruise along by siphoning off others in their (lightly) c…

Artifact was a good card game only killed by really dumb marketing and monetization decisions.

Half-Life Alyx is almost universally hailed as the best VR game and as good if not better than the previous Half-Life games.

That being said, you're right about them neglecting a lot of their IP. Specifically a TF3 might be really cool to see, along with more love for Counter-Strike.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#76

Post by CivBase »

est wrote: post #41

I am surprised nobody mentioned GPD yet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNfbfPhOiE0

There is also the Aya Neo[0], the One Xplayer[1], and even the (now quite old) Razer Edge[2].

[0] https://www.ayaneo.com/aya-neo

[1] https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/onexplayer-best-performin...

[2] https://www2.razer.com/gaming-systems/razer-edge

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#77

Post by schmorptron »

drzaiusapelord wrote: post #52
Eric_WVGG wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mine is probably a niche use case, but I will absolutely jump on one of these simply due to my lack of storage space. I live in a 450 square foot loft. I don’t have space for a tv here, so consoles were out of the question until the Switch came along. There is no room in my life — literally — for a gaming PC, but if they can cram that into another Switch? Sign me up. It’ll be a big draw for university students in dor…

Also, I don't feel people talk about this much but gaming desktops tend to be noisy, ugly, and/or gaudy on top of taking up lots room. I'd love to just get rid of this box but I don't care enough about games to buy a gaming laptop, which just only slightly solves the ugly/gaudy problem for me. I'd love to just stream going forward and never have to put together another PC or buy another expensive video card again and…

If you take some time to plan it out and pay attention to thermals, you can absolutely make a relatively unassuming Micro-ATX build nowadays, and just have a sleek small(er) black box sitting there.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#78

Post by tempoponet »

lights0123 wrote: post #47
majewsky wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A lot of consoles are sold at a loss I don't believe that's the case anymore. Newer console generations have moved on from exotic ISAs and the like towards using a lot of off-the-shelf parts for smartphones or PCs. The Switch, for instance, has been sold at a profit from day one [1]. [1] https://web.archive.org/web/20170131084504/https://www.bloom...

The Switch also has very little power compared to gaming consoles. It's the same price as an Xbox One S, but with far less processing power.

Not to split hairs but it's the same retail price as an Xbox _series_ S, which is a generation newer. Due to supply issues you are mostly correct, in practical terms.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#79

Post by andrewmcwatters »

schmorptron wrote: post #75
bob1029 wrote: post #70

Why did Valve get out of the AAA game development business? It seems like hardware has largely been a mistake for them. Sure, I can have 20 different variants of an x86 computer and various HMD interfaces, but if all the games suck ass what's the point? Valve is still surfing on the inertia of their initial software-based innovations, and is only continuing to cruise along by siphoning off others in their (lightly) c…

Artifact was a good card game only killed by really dumb marketing and monetization decisions. Half-Life Alyx is almost universally hailed as the best VR game and as good if not better than the previous Half-Life games. That being said, you're right about them neglecting a lot of their IP. Specifically a TF3 might be really cool to see, along with more love for Counter-Strike.

Half-Life: Alyx was definitely nowhere near as good as previous Half-Life games. Graphics and VR don’t determine a good game.

Half-Life 2 and associated technologies put Valve in the position they are today.

Re: Valve is making a Switch-like portable gaming PC

#80

Post by bitL »

schmorptron wrote: post #75
bob1029 wrote: post #70

Why did Valve get out of the AAA game development business? It seems like hardware has largely been a mistake for them. Sure, I can have 20 different variants of an x86 computer and various HMD interfaces, but if all the games suck ass what's the point? Valve is still surfing on the inertia of their initial software-based innovations, and is only continuing to cruise along by siphoning off others in their (lightly) c…

Artifact was a good card game only killed by really dumb marketing and monetization decisions. Half-Life Alyx is almost universally hailed as the best VR game and as good if not better than the previous Half-Life games. That being said, you're right about them neglecting a lot of their IP. Specifically a TF3 might be really cool to see, along with more love for Counter-Strike.

> Half-Life Alyx is almost universally hailed as the best VR game

MS Flight Simulator 2020 and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice might be other "best VR game" contenders.

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