While consoles have been lording it over PCs when it comes to who gets to control your living room gaming device, things might be set to change soon according to Valve boss Gabe Newell.
In an interview with Kotaku at the VGAs red carpet, Newell states that people will be able to buy a living-room-friendly PC set-up starting next year.
Valve, of course, has been dabbling in that field with their Steam "Big Picture" mode, a feature that lets players use Steam on their living room HDTVs and even hook up a controller for a more convenient gaming session.
At the VGAs red carpet, Newell mentions that Valve's current goal is to figure out how to make PCs work better in the living room. He also expects companies to start selling PC packages aimed at living rooms next year; and this set-up PC boxes will be designed to hook up to your TV and run Steam straight away. Now, before you jump the gun, Valve hasn't announced that they're releasing a new PC/console hybrid specifically next year, but Newell says that these "living room PCs" will compete with whatever Sony and Microsoft has cooking up.
Newell also mentions how they're going to "unify" the divide between the traditional way of having your consoles in the living room, while your PC is in another room.
I think in general that most customers and most developers are gonna find that [the PC is] a better environment for them…Cause they won't have to split the world into thinking about 'why are my friends in the living room, why are my video sources in the living room different from everyone else?' So in a sense we hopefully are gonna unify those environments.
So could a "Steam Box" be incoming? While no official announcement was made, Newell expects a lot of different companies will release these types of packages and adds, "We'll do it but we also think other people will as well." Now, I'm not one to jump on conclusions, but it does seem Valve will be ready to face-off against Sony and Microsoft soon, no?
However, Gabe adds that Valve's "hardware" might not be as open-source or as malleable as your average PC. So, this implies that whatever the company's working on, it will offer more restriction than your standard PC and might even be a closed platform — which is the same as consoles are today.
Based from Newell's statements, will you jump ship when this "living room PC" is released? I think for a lot of people, they play on consoles more than PCs since they don't want to be hassled by graphics card updates, driver updates, wires, and all that. But if Valve can release a Steam Box that will alleviate that issue and still be a viable gaming platform, well, Sony and Microsoft might just have a new challenger they need to contend with.
Do you think Valve will release a Steam Box next year? If so, do you see it outpacing the Xbox 720 or PS4 or will their always be space for consoles in your living rooms?
