Origin PC Is No Longer Doing A SteamOS Steam Machine

But what if it runs on steam, like a steam engine?

Good, I think the fact there are multiple vendors selling "Steam Machines" isn't a good thing because it makes the focus of what Valve is trying to do a bit more fragmented. If they are just 2 or 3 vendors churning out boxes with custom GPUs, this gambit may have a bit more of a focus.

With that said, I have no idea what Valve is trying to do any more. Build it and they will come? I don't know. I'm just glad I can play games on Linux I wouldn't have been able to 4 years ago.


Last edited by Storminator16 on 13 November 2015 at 6:13 pm UTC

That is frankly the Achilles' heel of the Steam machine, much as I hate to say it: There's no compelling reason from the consumer perspective why the thing should be running SteamOS rather than Windows, and significant reasons in the other direction. That could change, I hope it will change, but it remains something of a chicken-egg problem so far, although already not nearly as bad as it was just a year or two ago.

On the other hand, assuming they do get pulled from the Steam Machine page on Steam, good luck making up for that with whatever other sales channels you got, Origin guys.

I foresee this happening to just about all the manufacturers unless steam machine sales warrant a continuation of the production.
This will be the time when Valve will have to weigh in on the aspect of having their own paid for branded hardware they produce or have produced. unless this is the case with one brand already that I'm not aware of?

but for now I think Valve is more or less trying to push the Steam Links which are their own branded hardware they produce at the moment.

Once more companies come on board with Vulkan and produce more AAA titles cross platform to Linux then I think Valve will have more fuel to push the market.

Playing it safe and sticking to Windows or taking a chance on a new OS for a chance to be a big player in a new market? Origin PC is playing it safe.

My guess is that Alienware looks at the market and sees a opportunity. People that want a gaming PC but do not want to admin and update a Windows PC. That is potentially a new market with completely new customers who would otherwise not have bought a gaming PC. I think that is where the market is for SteamOS, not trying to convince "PC Gamers" to ditch their beloved Windows but instead bringing new people into PC Gaming with a simple console-like experience where you can play quite a few games that are not available on traditional consoles.

I really hope it pays of for Alienware.


Last edited by Johan Lejonborn on 13 November 2015 at 8:12 pm UTC

I am not sure why would they do it. If they won't sell it with SteamOS they can't package steam controller and will not get any advertising on steam hardware. Not sure about advertisement, but in my opinion steam controller is quite important for pc gaming on the couch!

Like it or not, we need some good Linux exclusive games.. (exclusives for a while.. I don't know.. six months, maybe)

From a business point of view they're right, at that price why offer a system locked to Steam when they can offer one that also serves as a normal desktop PC. Also considering a PS4/XB1 cost half of the price, it would be hard to turn a profit.

So far the only Steam Box I've seen that's worth the money is the Alienware one, the price/performance are comparable to a normal console or build-it-yourself system.

In my opinion Steam Boxes shouldn't cost a lot and should serve as an equivalent alternative to a PS4/XB1. At the end of the day I doubt many people are willing to shell 700e+ for a system focused just on Steam.

Quoting: Purple Library GuyThere's no compelling reason from the consumer perspective why the thing should be running SteamOS rather than Windows, and significant reasons in the other direction.

I'd say consumers have plenty of reasons to ditch Windows, but I'm sure most consumers agree with the above sentiment. (even though you personally mightn't)

Quoting: Purple Library GuyThat is frankly the Achilles' heel of the Steam machine, much as I hate to say it: There's no compelling reason from the consumer perspective why the thing should be running SteamOS rather than Windows, and significant reasons in the other direction. That could change, I hope it will change, but it remains something of a chicken-egg problem so far, although already not nearly as bad as it was just a year or two ago.

On the other hand, assuming they do get pulled from the Steam Machine page on Steam, good luck making up for that with whatever other sales channels you got, Origin guys.

Actually, using SteamOS, you won't be annoyed with any of windows' aspects. No updates that automatically restart your computer, no bloatware, no viruses, etc. I can totally see how it would be appealing to a windows consumer. But it's true that these points are easily forgotten.

so thats not a console anymore, the point of the steam machines is than it allow the user to enjoy the benefits of a pc on the couch. Still, afaik there is the option to start steam in big picture mode once windows is turned on, but on windows you will need to use a mouse and keyboard more than once for driver installation and other things than SteamOS is able to do by itself.

Quoting: SoltrummanMy guess is that Alienware looks at the market and sees a opportunity. People that want a gaming PC but do not want to admin and update a Windows PC.

I had not thought about the relatively hassle-free maintenance of Linux. That is indeed an advantage over Windows on a console-like machine.

Quoting: Purple Library Guy

Quoting: SoltrummanMy guess is that Alienware looks at the market and sees a opportunity. People that want a gaming PC but do not want to admin and update a Windows PC.

I had not thought about the relatively hassle-free maintenance of Linux. That is indeed an advantage over Windows on a console-like machine.

Normally if you have a PC dedicated to the TV/couch, you should be able to turn on automatic updates and not worry about maintenance. Tbh I think the maintenance should be about the same - Linux users also need to turn on automatic updates, and if you aren't on a rolling release, nvidia drivers might not get updated to latest major versions (e.g. Ubuntu distro PPAs).

One significant advantage I can think of is the ~$120 or so OEM Windows licence price being knocked off the RRP (or added to the manufacturer's margin).

Of course if you're like me and install other stuff and dual boot into Linux, sometimes your Windows clugs up (BSOD), or fails to boot and you have "reformat Windows partition" on your todo list for a year (haven't had to use it on my laptop yet).

Quoting: pd12Tbh I think the maintenance should be about the same - Linux users also need to turn on automatic updates, and if you aren't on a rolling release, nvidia drivers might not get updated to latest major versions (e.g. Ubuntu distro PPAs).

Doesn't apply to SteamOS. It auto-updates the system and the graphics drivers by default from Valve's repositories according to documentation. Haven't actually tried it so can't say how recent the drivers are though.

Quoting: MayeulC

Quoting: Purple Library GuyThat is frankly the Achilles' heel of the Steam machine, much as I hate to say it: There's no compelling reason from the consumer perspective why the thing should be running SteamOS rather than Windows, and significant reasons in the other direction. That could change, I hope it will change, but it remains something of a chicken-egg problem so far, although already not nearly as bad as it was just a year or two ago.

On the other hand, assuming they do get pulled from the Steam Machine page on Steam, good luck making up for that with whatever other sales channels you got, Origin guys.

Actually, using SteamOS, you won't be annoyed with any of windows' aspects. No updates that automatically restart your computer, no bloatware, no viruses, etc. I can totally see how it would be appealing to a windows consumer. But it's true that these points are easily forgotten.

1 ) SteamOS gives Valve "Total Control" over their system so no 3rd party can wreck their cake.

2 ) $60-120 can be deducted from the Machine's MSRP as purchasing a license is no longer required.

3 ) Windows can't purposly identify which systems are Steam Machines and purposly send bad updates to "Fix" SteamOS. Say what you will - but it is my moral duty to reffer to iTunes as a virus on Windows Operating Systems. Windows Installs work fine and then as soon as iTunes is installed the system locks up frequently, lags, etc...

I mean Microsoft's prized child is the Xbox One, they have every reason to sabatoge covertly Steam Machines as it effects their bottom line.

4 ) Viruses, Bloatware as OP2 pointed out are not present in SteamOS.

5 ) No NTFS - Remember NTFS was supposed to be obsoleted for WinFS at least 6 years ago? Well to maintain backwards compatability Microsoft has the greatest compatability and the greatest baggage all the way back to Windows 95. Quirks built upon more Quirks. I really don't expect EXT4 to BSOD unless your quickly strobing the circuitbreaker for a Steam Machine.

My final point about this Origin getting all pu55y foot about SteamOS - who the hell cares? Judging by their Steam Store page their device looked really terrible and as large as a picnic basket. I think less diversity is better as the devices have clear winners. Also, I didn't know or care who Origin was, then I cared sortof when I heard they were going to do a Steam Machine. Now I'm back to not caring about who they are and what they do. As far as I'm concerned they can go back to being un-noticed and un-important.

Alienware taking a calculated risk? I think It'll pay off - I have friends from highshool who dropped 4,000 on Alienwares, putting the Alienware name together with SteamOS makes a package of cool - XBONE and PS4 aren't cool, Alienware is Cool. Valve is Cool.

6 - 10 months investment to become a new gaming force to be reckoned with? Totally worth it.


Last edited by ElectricPrism on 14 November 2015 at 2:03 am UTC

No one's really forced to roll out their Steam Machine. As long as we have good selection of few of them for reasonable price point and performance, no one will complain.

As for Allienware, Dell knows their shit when it comes to Linux desktop - after all, they keep rolling out very solid Ubuntu Linux OEM desktops. They are not available everywhere, but they are very consistent in support and offerings. So I think Dell will do quite well in that regard.

Don't they need a license to redistribute it with bigpicture even with windows on it ?

http://store.steampowered.com/steamos/oem

According to Venturebeat, Falcon Northwest has also decided not to ship Steam Machines

Quoting: VenturebeatThe computer maker had originally planned on shipping a version of its high-end Tiki game computer with the SteamOS this year. But because of some limitations of the SteamOS, it has decided not to ship this year.
[...]
“We met with Valve about our reservations concerning the limitations of SteamOS with high-end PC builds, and they agreed they were not issues that could be overcome in time for us to launch a Steam Machine this year,” said Kelt Reeves, president of Falcon Northwest in Medford, Oregon. “But they were genuinely interested in working to address them in future SteamOS builds. So the option for us to produce a Steam Machine is still open, and our Tiki PCs have been in production for years as Windows systems and are always ready. But for now, we’ve put our plans to offer a Steam Machine on hold.”

Looking at their Steam page prices were $2000-$5000. Somehow, I don't think they would've sold much anyway. Still, always a bit sad to see companies jump ship. I understand their concerns, but on the other hand, the more companies are on board, the faster those concerns are likely to get addressed.

I think it is imperative that Valve pushes Linux as a gaming platform... No more Windows rubbish!