Some good news about the whole Steam Machine parade, OC3D did a pretty long review of the ZBOX NEN SN970 and they liked it so much they gave it an award.
They seem like they are one of the few major websites to actually talk about it all properly, and actually put some thought into what they are writing:
QuoteLike most things that are new SteamOS and Valve's Steam Machines suffer from a few problems, most of which are simply due to the fact that SteamOS is new, different and not like PC gaming as we know it.
This is very similar to a new games console, and a lot of the issues with Linux/SteamOS gaming can be easily described as the plagues of being an Early adopter. Right now many people will argue that SteamOS does not have many games, to which I will say that neither did the Wii U, PS4 and Xbox One when it was initially launched.
Right now SteamOS has over 1000 compatible games on the Steam Service, which is a lot of games to say the least. While plenty of new games are not released on Linux right not, more are certainly coming, and more and more developers are becoming increasingly interested in PC gaming outside of Windows.
Stuff like this really gives me hope about our future, if only other sites were more positive on the experience. Hopefully in a year or so people will re-review it to see if it's any better.
What do you guys think? Would love one myself, but at £800 I can't afford it. Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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well, most other consoles all had one `advantage`, if you will, which was that they had exclusive titles or at least top-titles on launch. honestly, I thought that could be HL3 here, I bet that this title would have kicked the steambox to a best seller.
Nevertheless, things are way better than they used to be, say 2 years ago. When the only linux titles were sim city 3000 and a handful others. no matter what happens next: I am very satisfied by now and how things turned to the good. not perfect, but clearly waaay better than these times when there was no steam for linux.
Nevertheless, things are way better than they used to be, say 2 years ago. When the only linux titles were sim city 3000 and a handful others. no matter what happens next: I am very satisfied by now and how things turned to the good. not perfect, but clearly waaay better than these times when there was no steam for linux.
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Quoting: miroNevertheless, things are way better than they used to be, say 2 years ago. When the only linux titles were sim city 3000 and a handful others.
3 years ago, even SimCity 3000 was not available anymore to Linux gamers! Back then, when I heard Valve was willing to push Linux forward, I decided to get a fuel-loaded Core i7 instead of my usual low-end PC + console combo. Never did I regret this decision, ever.
As to console exclusives, it is not that true anymore. Apart from HD remakes of Uncharted and The Last of Us on the Sony side of things, 1 or 2 Nintendo licences a year (true story) -- and almost nothing on Microsoft's part (Forza), people get mostly multi-platform titles to fulfil their gaming lust.
Look at this week's top sellers : Fallout 4, Call of Shitty, Tomb Raider, Need for Speed and FIFA. There's only Starcraft 2's latest full-priced extension which is a Windows exclusive.
Last edited by omer666 on 28 November 2015 at 3:35 pm UTC
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That's good news because OC3D is one of the best hardware reviewers out there.
I'm sure not only to me their advice has more weight than that of a dozen of those glorified unboxing channels that are so common nowadays.
Last edited by Caldazar on 28 November 2015 at 3:38 pm UTC
I'm sure not only to me their advice has more weight than that of a dozen of those glorified unboxing channels that are so common nowadays.
Last edited by Caldazar on 28 November 2015 at 3:38 pm UTC
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Mohandevir Nov 28, 2015
Because they did the review with console in mind and that's exactly Valve's target.
Valve couldn't have built a console with Windows if the goal is to attract console gamers. This kind of gamer doesn't want to administer a console. He wants to push the power button and play. This is what SteamOS does and does it well.
The missing part is Vulkan and with the list of Vulkan's contributers, I can't imagine how it could fail: Valve, Epic games, Blizzard, EA, AMD, Nvidia, Intel and even Dassault.
For those unfamilliar with Dassault, this is the company behind SolidWorks and Catia, leading CAD softwares.
Valve couldn't have built a console with Windows if the goal is to attract console gamers. This kind of gamer doesn't want to administer a console. He wants to push the power button and play. This is what SteamOS does and does it well.
The missing part is Vulkan and with the list of Vulkan's contributers, I can't imagine how it could fail: Valve, Epic games, Blizzard, EA, AMD, Nvidia, Intel and even Dassault.
For those unfamilliar with Dassault, this is the company behind SolidWorks and Catia, leading CAD softwares.
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Segata Sanshiro Nov 28, 2015
This was the one I thought had the most sensible hardware... But yeah, at £800 its's not going to get people off their xbones.
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Steam Machine on launch had more games to play than XBO and PS4. SteamOS is solid platform, works well, and for first iteration is clearly good quality product. I really fail to see why anyone should shun it - except you know, Windows vs. Linux tribalism.
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Quoting: PeciskSteam Machine on launch had more games to play than XBO and PS4.
While I still find it hard to believe, Steam Machines had more titles on launch day than Xbox 360 or PS3 have today (according to Wikipedia's numbers)...
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It's always good to read good reviews on Steam Machines, but I think quality trumps quantity as gaming goes. It doesn't matter how many games a system has at its disposal, we're not getting many people's attention until we get franchises even non-gamers recognise as big deals, like GTA and Fallout. Let's keep pushing forward, though!
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I notice there's one criticism that keeps on cropping up, even in positive reviews by people looking at it from a console perspective:
No apps for Netflix and similar webby multimedia stuff. That's something well within Valve's power to fix, they should get on it.
No apps for Netflix and similar webby multimedia stuff. That's something well within Valve's power to fix, they should get on it.
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Quoting: Purple Library GuyNo apps for Netflix and similar webby multimedia stuff. That's something well within Valve's power to fix, they should get on it.
Indeed they should. That'd make me get a Steam machine instead of a Chromecast this xmas.
Quoting: EikeWhile I still find it hard to believe, Steam Machines had more titles on launch day than Xbox 360 or PS3 have today (according to Wikipedia's numbers)...
I'm sorry, but those numbers means zero - nill - nothing for the console customers.
Franchises like Fallout, GTA, Assassins Creed, Call Of Duty, Battlefront, Mass Effect: That's what matters. And not one hundred thousand indie games can make up for that: They don't mean squat.
Last edited by Beamboom on 28 November 2015 at 7:07 pm UTC
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