The first announcement was a new OS called SteamOS. This Operating system is based off the Linux Operating System. While this version of Linux will let you play games and view videos, you are only limited to the games compatible with Linux
When it comes to gaming, SteamOS will work particularly well for audio performances and reducing input latency. Yet, only Linux games will work on SteamOS. While many games are now available on Linux, it still has a long way to go compared to Mac OS and especially Windows. That’s why you will be able to run Steam on your Windows or Mac computers in another room and then stream your games to your living room using SteamOS. Latency shouldn’t be an issue, as everything happens on your local network.
That's right. The ability to run your favorite games from your computer to the Steam OS. Similar to what Sony will be doing with an alternative version of its Playstation Vita system called Vita TV, in which you can stream PS4 titles from the system to the Vita TV. Complicated, isn't it? Sure you could hook your PC to the TV, but some people don't want to.
As a matter fact, on Wednesday, the second announcement was the SteamBox itself. But it wasn't just one console, it was many.
Entertainment is not a one-size-fits-all world. We want you to be able to choose the hardware that makes sense for you, so we are working with multiple partners to bring a variety of Steam gaming machines to market during 2014, all of them running SteamOS.
That's right. A variety of machines. Steam Consoles will be a variety for everyone to choose from. You can pick your favorite and lock it in. But that's not all, Valve is also doing a contest where 300 lucky Steam Customers will win a beta console(With some strings attached: They are property of them and you're not allowed to sell them). Here's what you need to do
1) Get at least 10 Steam friends
2) Join the Steam Universe community group
3) Accept the Beta Terms of Service
4) Make your Steam profile Public
5) Play one Steam game on the Big Picture Mode with a controller(The Logitech F310 is recommended)
If you complete these by late October, you will get a badge and will qualify for a chance to win one of 300 beta consoles.
And finally, to top things off, Valve decided to announce a Steam Controller. I bet it's gonna be like those 360/PS3 knock-offs
Oh my goodness. IT'S GOT NO THUMBSTICKS! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
Wait, wait. Calm down. I bet people aren't gonna buy this controller because it has no thumbsticks or d-pad
Dan Tabar is an indie game developer at Planetoid Pioneers studio Data Realms, and he was one of several indie developers who had hands-on demos with the controller at Valve's Bellevue, WA headquarters on Labor Day this year.
What he described was an extremely flexible, mappable controller -- perhaps the most flexible control option this side of a keyboard and mouse setup -- that offers generous tactile feedback.
"[Valve is] really trying to think things through," said Tabar. "They're asking, 'Do we really need thumbsticks? Why are the fingers on the back [of the traditional controller] not doing anything? Why not have paddles there?' The thing I find most exciting is that Valve is just rethinking it. We're totally going to be making Planetoid Pioneers with this controller in mind," he said.
Chris Remo, designer and writer at The Cave developer Double Fine had a hands-on of the Steam Controller at the San Francisco studio.
Remo played a couple different games: Double Fine's upcoming point-and-click adventure game Broken Age and the already-released platform-adventure game The Cave.
"We just plugged it in, and it worked," he said. "We didn't have special support for it or anything. It worked really, really well. I was really impressed with the mouse imitation. It doesn't feel like a trackpad."
Remo said the controller has a tiny speaker in it that offers audio feedback – a subtle "tick" sound that increases and decreases in speed (he compared it to the Wheel of Fortune wheel's sound), depending on how you use the track pad. If you "fling" your thumb across the trackpad – if it's mapped to the mouse – the ticking increases in speed, and slows down as the virtual momentum of your action slows.
"It sounds like there's actually a mechanical device in there, which really makes it feel mechanical, but not in a clunky way," Remo said. "It just feels really high-tech and precise. … I can't stand trackpads on laptops, and this felt really good to me. There was almost no learning curve as far as accuracy goes."
On Twitter, Ichiro Lambe with AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! developer Dejobaan Games also said the haptic feedback of Valve's new controller was a highlight of the device.
"It feels like you're moving your thumbs over a rough surface, though it's all virtual," Lambe said. "From a tech standpoint, think about something that can click whenever you tell it to... Simple example: you move your finger 1 inch up, and it ticks 10 times...You flick it up, and it starts ticking, like you've spun a wheel."
O.O
Excuse me, one moment. I'm gonna go yell out the window proclaiming the death of thumbsticks and damning Valve for this.
Works Cited:
TechCrunch
Steam(Valve)
Gamasutra
