The Steam Box: Valve's foray into the console market

[Tensei]

Codenamed Piston, though Steam Engine or Gabecube work too.

http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/7/3849284/piston-valve-steam-box-xi3

Xi3 chief marketing officer David Politis told Polygon that Piston will offer up to 1 TB of interal storage and offer modular component updates, including the option to upgrade the PC's CPU and RAM.

It basically looks like a portable mini PC optimized to hook up to large screen TVs, with a linux OS, and (obviously) Steam support.

It's supposed to be very modular as well, so adding RAM or a new video card should be quite easy. My only worry is the Linux OS, since the library of Linux-compatible video games is very small, but maybe Valve will use some black voodoo magic to somehow make Windows games run well on it too. That, or encourage developers into porting their games to Linux.

For reference, these are the specs of one of the companies other Mini PCs, which sells at $1100. I assume the Piston will be cheaper, but also more streamlined towards gaming.

A quad-core 64-bit, x86-based 32nm processor running at up to 3.2GHz (with 4MB of Level2 Cache)

An integrated graphics processor (GPU) containing up to 384 programmable graphics cores (or shaders)

4GB-8GB of DDR3 RAM

64GB-1TB of internal solid-state SSD storage (with up to 12Gbps throughput speeds)

Three display ports providing maximum resolution of 4096x2160 (including one DisplayPort v1.2 and * 2 Mini-DisplayPorts v1.2)

Four eSATAp 3.0 ports

Four USB 3.0 ports

Four USB 2.0 ports

1Gb Ethernet port

Three audio ports (1 input and 2 outputs: 1 copper and 1 optical)

[Modus]

That's cute, Gabe. Very cute.

Is this a niche of a niche sort of thing? How many niches deep can one travel before they find heaven or hell?

[Fishy]

This is uh... not what I was expecting. It's just a tiny linux computer, or am I missing something?

[Kenogu Labz]

There's a few benefits I can see coming from this:

• Easily transportable
  
• Fast set-up
  
• Should work with both TVs and monitors (making Big Picture even more attractive)
  
• Gives a static target for Linux developers to aim for (as opposed to the relatively mutable and nebulous foundation of general Linux development)
  

[ocre]

Apparently Valve are saying that this particular prototype box is just one of "several options" and more will be revealed 'in the coming months'. Guess they felt the wave of complete neutrality the Internet belched out at this announcement.

[EC2151]

Valve for a long time now has wanted a piece of the console pie, but I don't think this will make as big a splash as they'd like.

You have to wonder at the motivation for Valve to go this route. If every single console developer loses money on each console they sell, then what does this have? Steam sales? Those won't recoup the loss of actual manufacturing.

Because the funny thing about Steam's business model is that it more or less redirects any spending sprees during their sale period, because practically no one will want to buy a game full-price when they know a "steam sale" is around the corner.

So it really isn't about games (Valve is a game-developer in name-only), it's about taking market share away from Microsoft - Gabe Newell was pissed about Windows 8 and this is his answer to it: a box to play PC games, by-passing Windows framework. So a device meant solely to spite Microsoft might do well in stealing some capital, but don't expect long-term explosive success.

[Clefairy]

Valve for a long time now has wanted a piece of the console pie, but I don't think this will make as big a splash as they'd like.

I'll direct you to this article.

The relevant chunk:

Well, if we have to sell hardware we will. We have no reason to believe we’re any good at it, it’s more we think that we need to continue to have innovation and if the only way to get these kind of projects started is by us going and developing and selling the hardware directly then that’s what we’ll do. It’s definitely not the first thought that crosses our mind; we’d rather hardware people that are good at manufacturing and distributing hardware do that. We think it’s important enough that if that’s what we end up having to do then that’s what we end up having to do.

Valve loves test beds. Particularly going forward, their strategy is going to be "try things, see if they work. Be nimble." This is just the next phase of that idea.

Maybe it'll take off, maybe it won't. That's the point of an experiment.

[Calpis]

This sounds really cool, especially because I just got done with a project adding all my SNES and PSX emulator games to my Steam library, getting ready to do the same to a new HTPC for my TV. This would be a really awesome thing to do it with, however the only part I don't like is that it's Linux based and I'm totally not part of that world right now and don't want to learn it either. I'm keeping my eye on this though. Looks interesting either way.

[Dhsu]

This sounds really cool, especially because I just got done with a project adding all my SNES and PSX emulator games to my Steam library, getting ready to do the same to a new HTPC for my TV.

I am interested in finding out how you accomplished this.

[Calpis]

I am interested in finding out how you accomplished this.

.bat files with command line switches to direct-load the roms, convert to an exe with a free program, add that to Steam. For the PSX games, I used ePSXe with a frontloader program called epsxecutor to be able to customize the plugins used per-game. The hardest and most time consuming was making .ico and Steam custom .png files for each game. I've actually got it set up to load it all from a relative directory, so it's portable.

[EC2151]

Well, what's "going forward" in this scenario?

A consolized PC? Microsoft already did that, and has been doing that for a decade. It produces that PC at a loss, and only retains profitability by paying people to have that PC connect to the internet.

This is not some "innovative experiment" by the "wunderkids" at Valve. It's a calculated business move. The PS3 having cross-platform support was testing the waters, and this thing is Valve assuming that they have a shot at siphoning off a portion of Microsoft's users, who only really care about consolized PC shooters.

[Tensei]

I think the Linux-based OS will probably only be the back end, I can imagine that the dashboard will just look like a streamlined version of Steam.

By far the most interesting aspect to me is the supposed modular nature: is it really going to be as easy as plugging in a new video card/additional RAM? That could actually be huge.

Other than that, I'm curious about the specs vs. the price. On one hand it would probably have to fall somewhere close to the next gen consoles in terms of price (<$500?), but it would also have to run modern PC games at 1080p (that's basically what Big Picture is for).

Finally, if it actually gets marketed as a console, and Valve has actually figured out a way to port a substantial portion of its Steam library, that would mean that it has a launch lineup of hundreds if not thousands of games. That's a pretty significant plus too.

[EC2151]

Even with Steam's huge backlog though, it would be a tall order to market buying a $300 (and I think that would be "competitively" priced) box to play PC games on the TV... when the normal consumer can just buy a PC and have far more functionality.

Consumers will look at this and ask "Why not just buy a PC?"

Valve will then say "So you can buy Half-Life 3, L4D3, Portal 3, TF3!"

Which is more or less formalizing what Valve's games are at this point - generational benchmarks.

So valve either gives up the PC to put its eggs into this box, or else it just won't sell.

[Tensei]

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/8/3852144/gabe-newell-interview-steam-box-future-of-gaming

So are most of these going to be Linux-based Steam Boxes?

We’ll come out with our own and we’ll sell it to consumers by ourselves. That’ll be a Linux box, [and] if you want to install Windows you can. We’re not going to make it hard. This is not some locked box by any stretch of the imagination. We also think that a controller that has higher precision and lower latency is another interesting thing to have.

The plot thickens.

[Clefairy]

This is not some "innovative experiment" by the "wunderkids" at Valve. It's a calculated business move.

We'll have to agree to disagree on that. Valve is ridiculously, absurdly profitable. They make more money per employee than Google. And being privately owned, essentially all of it stays in the company. The notion that they would do something 'because it makes more money' is ludicrous. That's a great fringe benefit, sure. But it is not the primary motivator.

It produces that PC at a loss, and only retains profitability by paying people to have that PC connect to the internet.

Xbox Live both carries a subscription fee, and is glutted with ads. I assume you meant 'charging people'. /pedant

Valve assuming that they have a shot at siphoning off a portion of Microsoft's users

Yeah, because nobody owns multiple consoles, right? We're still picking our tribe and sticking with it, throwing rocks at the other guys wherever they might appear?

Big Picture mode is the current full-speed-ahead project at Valve right now. They haven't released stats from what I can tell, but they're cranking out updates and adding features week over week. People are obviously using this thing, and it has value for them. If Valve can take that tech and expertise, and put out something that shakes up the deeply entrenched and dysfunctional console market, more power to them. If it flops, well, you gave it the old college try. No real harm done.

Consumers will look at this and ask "Why not just buy a PC?"

And Valve will actually say "A PC is big, clunky, and not really portable. Plus you have to finangle drivers and antivirus and so on and so forth. This is just Steam on a console, optimized for controllers, and small enough to take to your friend's house."

[Crowbar Man]

I could be very wrong, but I think a goal here is to have a "hardware specification" that developers can expect to develop on and optimize for, much like a console. With "PC" (Windows/Mac/Linux) you have a wide variety of variables when it comes to hardware configurations and an OS (which can range in size/power) to get in the way, along with other programs (or worse, malware) in user space competing for shared power. This is just a box / OS that plays games (like a console!). Unfortunately, using PC components is still going to create a bottleneck compared to dedicated hardware that can be put in a console. But given the power of even your lowest end PC hardware has these days that bottleneck isn't as large as it used to be once upon a time, and console manufacturers are starting to use more "PC-like" components anyways

[KyleJCrb]

Consumers will look at this and ask "Why not just buy a PC?"

Obviously the console market is still quite popular among consumers despite consoles being dumbed-down home theater computers at this point, and the fact that most console games out there have been getting PC ports. I don't expect anyone except the hardcore PC gamer to even know there isn't really a difference between a PC and the "Steam Box", and even if they did, many consumers don't even own gaming PCs, prefer to play games on their TVs rather than their PCs, or don't have their PC and their TV close enough to each other physically to feasibly connect them. Not everyone is rockin' triple-screen 6-core 4-GPU 32GB-RAM 5-terabyte gaming rigs right next to their big screen TVs.

[EC2151]

@Clefairy:

We'll have to agree to disagree on that. Valve is ridiculously, absurdly profitable. They make more money per employee than Google. And being privately owned, essentially all of it stays in the company. The notion that they would do something 'because it makes more money' is ludicrous. That's a great fringe benefit, sure. But it is not the primary motivator.

If money is not the primary motivator for business then you and I have to 'agree to disagree' on why corporations are formed in the first place.

Yeah, because nobody owns multiple consoles, right? We're still picking our tribe and sticking with it, throwing rocks at the other guys wherever they might appear?

While I don't recall saying "people don't own multiple consoles," don't you think if there is something like a "Steam box" then the "Xbox" becomes completely redundant? Or the other way around?

And Valve will actually say "A PC is big, clunky, and not really portable. Plus you have to finangle drivers and antivirus and so on and so forth. This is just Steam on a console, optimized for controllers, and small enough to take to your friend's house."

Again, who does that appeal to? I mean, really appeal to? Not the majority of people. A very specific niche of people. Most people don't care about playing PC on the TV. But some people buy an Xbox to play PC games, like shooters, on the TV.

I see this box, again, as both a response to Windows 8 (which Newell was unhappy with - why then go to Linux?), and as Valve seeing the opportunity to divide and fracture Microsoft's userbase (the crowd that cares about PC games on a console, which is smaller than you'd think but still significant enough to hurt the potential future xbox userbase).

Why does any of this matter? It's because since the device (as I see it) is designed primarily to eat away at another product's success, in order for it to have any lasting success it needs to both: A) be significantly cheaper than the alternative, and outperform the alternative in every way when it comes to value. Since it's a product made to directly compete, it has this uphill battle, and it doesn't matter how rich Valve is - that's a very costly uphill battle.

@Kyle:

Obviously the console market is still quite popular among consumers despite consoles being dumbed-down home theater computers at this point, and the fact that most console games out there have been getting PC ports. I don't expect anyone except the hardcore PC gamer to even know there isn't really a difference between a PC and the "Steam Box", and even if they did, many consumers don't even own gaming PCs, prefer to play games on their TVs rather than their PCs, or don't have their PC and their TV close enough to each other physically to feasibly connect them. Not everyone is rockin' triple-screen 6-core 4-GPU 32GB-RAM 5-terabyte gaming rigs right next to their big screen TVs.

To be sure - the console market will never really go away, despite what moron speculators might have you believe. Because it turns out playing games in a living room is an enjoyable experience.

But PC games/ports only attract a limited audience, and the diminishing returns ultimately lead to stagnation (as we've seen with all the closings and restructurings of major game companies). Most consumers don't care about PC ports - so the huge budgets used on some of these games (which lead to higher prices, DLC, etc.) is wasted in many regards. Steam factors hugely into this climate as well - most consumers of PC games refuse to buy until there's a "Steam sale," meaning less money back per investment. How can you expect to turn a profit in such an environment? In the current industry models, you can't, and that's why huge companies like THQ are starting to push up daisies - perhaps deservedly!

That's why while I feel this device is worth discussing as far as possible future developments in the game industry (and perhaps a hopeful weakening of Microsoft's presence in the console market!), it's not really interesting in and of itself - it's just like the xbox: boring!

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

Why do companies keep announcing these consoles!? As if the market wasn't already annoyed/confused enough by the current hardware offerings!

Very impressive tech and I'm sure that more than one or two techies in this forum are going to say they're going to buy it, but really? Our answer to the problem with developing for multiple hardware standards and platform exclusives is to create MORE hardware?

[Tensei]

It's important to keep in mind that Valve is a privately owned company. While they still might be in it for the money, this also means that they can afford to do things that don't seem to be directly profitable in the short run, because they have no shareholders looking over their shoulders. A lot of their actions actually mostly go to creating customer goodwill, which is a stark contrast to some of the cutthroat business tactics from other developers.

Read the interview with Gabe I linked a few posts back, it actually has a lot of new information. I'm actually really interested in the streaming-based box versions now, if it means being able to stream videogames from my PC to my living room, and playing them there.

[lazygecko]

A consolized PC? Microsoft already did that, and has been doing that for a decade. It produces that PC at a loss, and only retains profitability by paying people to have that PC connect to the internet.

The Xbox cannot really be worthy of being called a PC when it barely has any of the platform's defining traits. The most important thing about PC is that anyone who has one can create their own software and sell/distribute it in any way they like. The Xbox is subject to the same licensing fees, certification processes, etc as the other consoles and they control content that goes through Xbox Live with an iron fist. You won't see stuff like Doom, Steam, Minecraft etc happening through an environment like that.

[ocre]

Valve seems to be losing a handful of staff, including the TF2 art lead & Director of Business with a rumored 25 employees walking out.

Moby Francke, Half-Life 2 character designer and Team Fortress 2 art lead

Jason Holtman, director of business development for Steam and Steamworks

Keith Huggins, character animator and animator for Team Fortress 2 “Meet the” video series

Tom Leonard, software engineer for Half-Life 2 and Left 4 Dead

Realm Lovejoy, artist for Half-Life 2, Portal, and Left 4 Dead. She was also part of the original DigiPen-turned-Valve team that created Narbacular Drop, the inspiration for Portal

Marc Nagel, test lead for Half-Life, Counter-Strike, and patch updates

Bay Raitt, animator for Half-Life 2, Team Fortress 2, and Portal

Elan Ruskin, engine programmer for Left 4 Dead, Portal 2, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Matthew Russell, animator for Team Fortress 2 “Meet the” video series

Wonder what this could mean for their Steam Box, Steam and Valve itself.

[sphexic]

Gamasutra has some more details about the people in question. That's some really disheartening news. They sound like they were big players in the company. After reading their quirky employee manual, it's disconcerting to see so many talented people laid off all at once. Here's hoping they had decent severance packages.

[EC2151]

They probably actually wanted to make games again, instead of living in the virtual hat factory.

[Tensei]

Most hats are player-made though?