The coverage on Valve’s new Steam Hardware lineup is absolutely wild!
PC Gamer is ecstatic—calling it a huge leap forward for VR. And honestly, I believe it. I own an Oculus, and something desperately needed to push VR ahead—and it sure wasn’t going to be the Apple Vision Pro.
https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/vr-hardware/hands-on-steam-frame-impressions/
Kotaku, meanwhile, is hand-wringing over the possibility that the new Steam Machine could cost more than a PS5. But let’s be real—the PS5 is just a console, not a PC, and it’s already five years old. Valve says it’ll be priced closer to an entry-level desktop. Think Mac Mini, not PS5.
https://kotaku.com/steam-machine-valve-console-price-ps5-pro-2000643554
Rock Paper Shotgun got hands-on time and confirmed it’s easily upgradable. Even more than the Steam Deck, which which is damn upgradable. That alone makes it a stronger buy than a PS5—you can’t upgrade a PS5. They even ran Black Myth: Wukong at 60 FPS.
Absolutely riveting coverage all around.
RE: https://atomicpoet.org/objects/92320527-b833-4c61-a247-f98c2332f12c
You know Valve has hit a nerve when Microsoft feels the need to chime in on the Steam Hardware Announcement.
Xbox chief Phil Spencer just said:
Gaming moves forward when players and developers have more ways to play and create, especially across open platforms. Expanding access across PC, console, and handheld devices reflects a future built on choice, core values that have guided Xbox’s vision from the start. As one of the largest publishers on Steam, we welcome new options for players to access games everywhere. Congrats on today’s announce.
Let’s translate the corporate-speak: “This is a big deal, we can’t ignore it, and we can’t look like we’re on the back foot—so we’re going to spin this as somehow a win for Xbox.”
But if this were truly a win, why does Microsoft feel compelled to release the Xbox ROG Ally—a direct competitor to the Steam Deck? And why have they been scrambling to make Windows gaming even slightly competitive with SteamOS?
Read between the lines a bit more: “We’re one of the biggest publishers on Steam, but if Xbox PC Game Pass ever threatens Steam, we could use that as leverage and threaten to pull our titles.”
That would raise eyebrows with regulators, sure—but this is about survival. And let’s be clear: right now, in PC gaming, Valve looks more like the monopoly than Microsoft does.
RE: https://atomicpoet.org/objects/e8273195-36f1-47f5-8b21-b55f42c8d19a
