'Steam Box' gaming console

[Thrik]

People can't be serious about playing any rts with this thing can they

 

Why not? Haven't you ever used a trackpad on a laptop to play one? That's effectively what those circular things are, except better. It might not be a mouse, but it's still very accurate — infinitely more so than a thumb stick. You could very conceivably use the two trackpads on it to handle moving the screen and a cursor, and the extra buttons on it would be more than sufficient for all but the biggest keyboard shortcut nerds.

 

Then of course there's the touch screen which is a whole different thing altogether, but I think that'll be more used for buttons and maps and such rather than primary interaction.

[Erratic]

Playing a competitive RTS at even the lowest skill level would be a nightmare. Control groups and any kind of real micro would be basically impossible, hot keying, minimap movement, etc. All of this would be undoable. You wouldn't be able to play something like Dota or Starcraft in the way they were designed to be.

 

It would be like playing a fighting game with a keyboard. You can do it but it's borderline non functional for that kind of game.

[Thrik]

I don't think competitive people are the primary target here. For someone like me who enjoys a bit of C&C and simulation games but would prefer to play them on my sofa, this is a godsend. Nobody's taking hardcore gaming rigs and peripherals away from those who are totally focused on being the best, right?

 

IMO Valve are going to be hitting a great middle ground. Many people (including myself) just don't enjoy shooters so much with a pad not because I'm fundamentally against pads, but they're just not accurate enough. I've often made do with them anyway just because I don't want to be sat at my desk playing games — but having something that better captures that mouse experience will be a huge thing for me.

 

You're being a bit OTT though. While hardcore RTS gamers will struggle, you can still do a lot of what you mention with the Steam Controller. It has many buttons that can be bound, including potentially 4–8 on the touch screen plus gestures. The second trackpad can be used for the map, and the main trackpad can be just as effective as a mouse with practice (I know because I've forced myself on a laptop, lol).

[Erratic]

Maybe I'm just highly skeptical of a device that's being continually compared to a track pad as if that's some kind of a positive lol

[Skjalg]

I dont think anything can compare to a mouse and keyboard when it comes to reaction time and being precise.

 

But I think a controller is more comfortable for couch gaming, so its nice to have someone innovate around the fact that using a controller on any god/rts games is just clunky. Them using civ5 as an example in their screenshot makes me hopeful

[Sprony]

[blackdog]

It's clearly aiming to a middle-ground.

Keep in mind they make DOTA now, so i'm sure they keep in mind that... not that it'll be a device to use in tournaments, but better than any other competitor.

[dux]

That's the first time Ctrl alt del has made me laugh in years.

[Grinwhrl]

I knew it!

[Thrik]

Specs of the beta units unveiled:

 

GPU: some units with NVidia Titan, some GTX780, some GTX760, and some GTX660

CPU: some boxes with Intel : i7-4770, some i5-4570, and some i3

RAM: 16GB DDR3-1600 (CPU), 3GB DDR5 (GPU)

Storage: 1TB/8GB Hybrid SSHD

Power Supply: Internal 450w 80Plus Gold

Dimensions: approx. 12 x 12.4 x 2.9 in high

 

Holy shit!

[dux]

For reals? Sweet jesus

 

[-HP-]

That's a REALLY good machine, I wish my home pc was that good.

[Beck]

I'd imagine that version of the steam box to have a very hefty price tag though! But still, it's very nice and shows they're committed to catering to hard-core players as well as the mid-range and mid-low ranges with the "lesser" graphics cards etc. 

 

This is going to be very interesting when they officially launch these things. There will be thousands of launch titles with PC-only titles (Planetside, Civilization, ARMA etc...) which some console owners may never have played. Games will be cheaper than the next-gen console games especially when it comes to multi-platform games. Steam has daily games on offer along with mid-week and weekend offers which will feature heavily discounted games. Potentially, with the right Steam Box, they could have better graphics than the next generation consoles too.

 

All it comes down to is the price. If priced well AND it is easy to identify what Steam Boxes support which games (Which I'm sure Valve will add to every game listing) then that is a lot of positives to owning a Steam Box instead of a next-gen console to the casual consumer.

 

I wonder how Microsoft and Sony will react to it when it releases.

[twiz]

Very impressive that they could fit that kind of hardware in a package that small.  Its not tiny, but it is a helluva lot smaller than my HTPC.

Hope they can keep that stuff cool and quiet!

[Beck]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeAjkbNq4xI

 

Doesn't look bad at all. Obviously it won't beat a mouse and keyboard but it looks pretty good.