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[ashecitism]

http://steamcommunity.com/app/221410/discussions/0/1696043806550421224/

SteamOS, Linux, and Steam Machines

We've noticed that what started out as a routine cleanup of the Steam Store navigation turned into a story about the delisting of Steam Machines. That section of the Steam Store is still available, but was removed from the main navigation bar based on user traffic. Given that this change has sparked a lot of interest, we thought it'd make sense to address some of the points we've seen people take away from it.

While it's true Steam Machines aren't exactly flying off the shelves, our reasons for striving towards a competitive and open gaming platform haven't significantly changed. We're still working hard on making Linux operating systems a great place for gaming and applications. We think it will ultimately result in a better experience for developers and customers alike, including those not on Steam.

Through the Steam Machine initiative, we've learned quite a bit about the state of the Linux ecosystem for real-world game developers out there. We've taken a lot of feedback and have been heads-down on addressing the shortcomings we observed. We think an important part of that effort is our ongoing investment in making Vulkan a competitive and well-supported graphics API, as well as making sure it has first-class support on Linux platforms.

Recently we announced Vulkan availability for macOS and iOS, adding to its existing availability for Windows and Linux. We also rolled out Steam Shader Pre-Caching, which will let users of Vulkan-based applications skip shader compilation on their local machine, significantly improving initial load times and reducing overall runtime stuttering in comparison with other APIs. We'll be talking more about Shader Pre-Caching in the coming months as the system matures.

At the same time, we're continuing to invest significant resources in supporting the Vulkan ecosystem, tooling and driver efforts. We also have other Linux initiatives in the pipe that we're not quite ready to talk about yet; SteamOS will continue to be our medium to deliver these improvements to our customers, and we think they will ultimately benefit the Linux ecosystem at large.

In general, and if you have any questions or feedback on the topics above, feel free to reach out to me at pgriffais@valvesoftware.com.

Thanks!
- Pierre-Loup

 

[iconmaster]

That's... a remarkably open and honest statement! Nicely done.

 

[WaterAstro]

Valve has developers?

 

[Chozo_Lord]

I wonder if they would've had success if they basically made a single "pc console". Imagine a pre-built pc but there is only one version. They pack the best components they can for a certain price point, but make it cheap and lucrative enough that it would be impossible to build a pc yourself cheaper with the same power. Basically unlike regular companies that sell pre-built pc's, they would almost break even with the price. The profit would be from increasing the number of people buying steam games. This single extreme value steam box would basically be the bridge to get console gamers to move over to pc.

 

[SvRomanov87]

I wonder if they would've had success if they basically made a single "pc console". Imagine a pre-built pc but there is only one version. They pack the best components they can for a certain price point, but make it cheap and lucrative enough that it would be impossible to build a pc yourself cheaper with the same power. Basically unlike regular companies that sell pre-built pc's, they would almost break even with the price. The profit would be from increasing the number of people buying steam games. This single extreme value steam box would basically be the bridge to get console gamers to move over to pc.

It's a great idea, but pc hardware manufacturers would never allow that to happen.

 

[Silent Viper]

I just hate the fact that Valve wasting time and resources on these useless stuff and not giving what we really want that is sequels to L4d, Portal and Half life.

 

[mckmas8808]

I wonder if they would've had success if they basically made a single "pc console". Imagine a pre-built pc but there is only one version. They pack the best components they can for a certain price point, but make it cheap and lucrative enough that it would be impossible to build a pc yourself cheaper with the same power. Basically unlike regular companies that sell pre-built pc's, they would almost break even with the price. The profit would be from increasing the number of people buying steam games. This single extreme value steam box would basically be the bridge to get console gamers to move over to pc.

That sounds like a console to me. Why try to compete against MS and Sony at this point with consoles? They wouldn't win.

 

[Spukc]

hopefully they will make new hats

 

[paolo11]

Steam Machine may look nice but it's not practical to be honest. They are pricey too.

 

[AquaticSquirrel]

I think it's great that Valve are seriously focused on improving the Linux gaming experience. It's also good that they haven't given up on SteamOS and Steam Machines in general.

If you look at the state of gaming on Linux prior to Valve's push and SteamOS you can the massive gains and improvements in such a short space of time. Also look at all of the games that now include Linux support. It was basically non-existent up until recently and now there are tons of indie and AA games supporting Linux.

It is true that large publishers/developers have been slow/hesitant to add support for Linux but as time goes on these moves by Valve will help improve gaming on Linux by a huge margin, this is very important given the direction Windows seems to be going and Microsoft's end game of having a closed system.

The additional support, developments and push for Vulcan is also a great news as the more games/companies that support open platforms the better.

 

[lukilladog]

Steam machines should have focused on budget mini-pc with a custom xbox-x level apu, except with a desktop processor.

 

[Bolivar687]

"We completely failed with our Steam Machines initiative but here's some vaporware teases on Vulkan/Linux to help deflect."