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Valve is about to win the console generation

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Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#511

Post by bzzzt »

array_key_first wrote: post #480
wmeredith wrote: post #366

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you for calling this out. As a long time console gamer, I hadn't noticed this creeping bloat until I started playing games with my young children. My son begged for a new Madden game after playing it at his friend's house. When we got the game, it probably took us an hour of fucking around with downloads and accounts. Off the top of my head, I had to set up a parents EA account and kids account, set permissions…

I had this experience playing couch co-op call of duty a few years ago. I had to make a fucking account . It's not even my console. Nintendo has wavered a tad, but they're the closet to the original experience. You pop in a thingy, hook up another controller, or two, or three, and you're off. It just works, maybe you can input a name for your guy, maybe not, maybe you just always play Waluigi so everyone knows who yo…

Nintendo is also becoming worse. Some Switch 2 games are so big you need to juggle with the internal storage and expansion SD express cards above 256Gb are simply unobtainable or priced outrageously. While you can obviously delete and redownload titles that takes a while and it's a shame the console storage can be completely filled with 4 AAA titles. That in combination with 'key carts' that are just a download key and still require internal storage has put a big brake on my game collection ambitions for the time being.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#512

Post by bzzzt »

moomin wrote: post #311
Normal_gaussian wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably not. Kernel level anti cheat is the problem. I know BF6 isn't proton safe. Fortnite is the same. GTA VI will probably run single player on proton fine, GTA V does. Multiplayer will probably not. The multiplayer with kernel level anti cheat will keep Sony safe through at least another generation; Microsoft is less safe as they're so vulnerable this generation anyway.

After the CrowdStrike debacle, it’s amazing Microsoft isn’t coming for kernel-level gaming patches.

I don't think kernel-level anti-cheat is a big problem on company managed PCs.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#514

Post by RobotShooter »

feffe wrote: post #123
Normal_gaussian wrote: post #46

Valve certainly won't win it, but they're bringing the heat where it wasn't before. SteamOS is the important part here - if it is proven to be a good console experience (which the deck has basically proven already) then licensing of the OS to other manufacturers will put a lot of pressure on integrated h/w s/w manufacturers. Unlike the handheld format, the tvbox console is fairly easy to manufacture and is tolerant o…

Steam on Linux works really well now. I sort of built my own steam machine a few months back with a framework desktop that now sits in my TV rack. Gaming on it is a really good experience. Had to buy a PS5 controller though because I could not get the XBOX controller to work over bluetooth which was a bit of a bummer. For me the new controller is most interesting as most games have XBOX controller support (with xbox…

I tried several solutions, including an old PS3, Xbox One controller (with the official dongle) and I ended up buying an 8bitDo xbox controller. They are well manufactured (better than the xbox controller), has a built in batter (unlike the xbox controller) and has a usb dock for charging.

Highly recommend them.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#515

Post by titusjohnson »

somenameforme wrote: post #122
Telaneo wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do those computers play games competently? I doubt they play them as well as the PS5 or Series X. We aren't in the days where integrated graphics instantly meant sub 20 FPS on any game no matter how simple, but I still wouldn't throw any recent triple A game at even new-ish computers with integrated graphics and expect them to perform all that well. They'll play Rocket League, Stardew Valley and Minecraft just fine,…

Yes. There's a peer thread below this one with more examples, but in general the biggest (and most relevant) cost you're looking at with a new computer is the video card. And a PS5 level video card is the RX 6700 XT which is like $200-$300. If you're willing to purchase second hand you can go substantially lower. I suspect most of us are of a vaguely similar age, and when "we" were growing up, PC gaming was ridiculou…

I used to budget the bulk of my yearly tax refund for a PC upgrade of some kind. A bit over $1k every year. Something was always due for a replacement in an endless treadmill of avoiding total system obsolescence.

Now, shit just lasts forever. I upgraded from a 1st gen i7 920 _this year_ into some mid-range Ryzen 5. I'm still using the 2070 RTX I bought over 5 years ago to power the HTC Vive and a 1440p monitor; with this new CPU the gfx card is finally getting a workout and has become the bottleneck while also giving me a massively better experience.

I'm tempted by the 9070 graphics cards but honestly, I just don't need it. I can tweak settings on any AAA game and get ~50fps of real frames and I'm just fine with that. I probably won't upgrade the graphics card until I pick up a dramatically better display device that requires it. Maybe the Frame will push the issue, maybe it won't.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#516

Post by ectospheno »

AceJohnny2 wrote: post #71

I don't really understand the early enthusiasm about the Steam Machine, and I happily own a Steam Deck. "It's on par with a PS5!" You mean the thing that was launched over 5 years ago (exactly!) ? We don't know its price yet, which is the most crucial detail.

In my younger years I built gaming pcs. Old me has no time for that. I console game because it respects my time and I can play any major release. I’m interested in the new offering from steam as a way to play indie games I miss on console with a machine that doesn’t look out of place next to my tv.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#517

Post by rikthevik »

pizlonator wrote: post #410
radlad wrote: post #400

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you quantify this? Which Beelink? Are you powering a 4K TV? When you talk about playing modern AAA games, which ones, and what settings do you run at?

Fortnite, Cyberpunk, Starfield, probably others I'm forgetting I believe the TV is 4K, yeah. It's the Beelink SER9 AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 12core/24thread AI PC Turbo Freq 5.1GHz

Very very cool! Every time I look at building a hot gaming PC I think to myself that I'm just going to play SNES games and Elden Ring, so what's the point? Something like this would be great.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#518

Post by rkomorn »

ectospheno wrote: post #516
AceJohnny2 wrote: post #71

I don't really understand the early enthusiasm about the Steam Machine, and I happily own a Steam Deck. "It's on par with a PS5!" You mean the thing that was launched over 5 years ago (exactly!) ? We don't know its price yet, which is the most crucial detail.

In my younger years I built gaming pcs. Old me has no time for that. I console game because it respects my time and I can play any major release. I’m interested in the new offering from steam as a way to play indie games I miss on console with a machine that doesn’t look out of place next to my tv.

This, plus I also find that the fact that I'm not going to spend random time thinking about upgrading my console, looking at components, etc, also respects my time (and money).

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#519

Post by tracker1 »

I think it will largely come down to price and DRM support from the AAA studios for multiplayer gaming and media apps. On the former, at $400 with one controller it will probably sell well, at over $600 I think more people might choose a PS5 instead.

With regards to DRM, it doesn't have to be as restrictive as Windows' versions, but there needs to be some cooperative effort with the game studios, and the media companies as more people expect to be able to stream Netflix/AppleTV/HBO etc. from these devices on top of gaming.

As gaming only, the most popular games tend to have a multiplayer aspect and thus far haven't been cooperative with functioning under Proton... there are solutions, but it's a matter of getting studio buyin and the effort to make it happen.

Without these, it will be a niche product and may still sell well, just not gain anything near what the consoles achieve in terms of sales.

Re: Valve is about to win the console generation

#520

Post by tracker1 »

pizlonator wrote: post #371
stavros wrote: post #236

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hm, does it work well for games? I have a NUC I could use...

I have one of the higher-end beelinks. Super small, quiet, doesn't get hot and I can play modern AAA titles on it, driving my huge screen TV in my living room.

Been pretty happy with my SER8 myself... though there are better models available now.
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