[Sean]

Megaton?

According to sources, the company has been working on a hardware spec and associated software which would make up the backbone of a "Steam Box." The actual devices may be made by a variety of partners, and the software would be readily available to any company that wants to get in the game.

Apparently meetings were held during CES to demo a hand-built version of the device to potential partners. We're told that the basic specs of the Steam Box include a Core i7 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA GPU. The devices will be able to run any standard PC titles, and will also allow for rival gaming services (like EA's Origin) to be loaded up.

Part of the goal of establishing a baseline for hardware, we're told, is that it will give developers a clear lifecycle for their products, with changes possibly coming every three to four years. Additionally, there won't be a required devkit, and there will be no licensing fees to create software for the platform. We're hearing that a wide variety of USB peripherals will be compatible with the boxes, though it will likely ship with a proprietary controller. It's possible that the controller will even allow for swappable components, meaning that it can be reconfigured depending on the type of game you're playing.

The Steam Box could be unveiled at GDC, though we're also hearing that the company may wait until E3 this year to show off what it's been working on.

http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/2/284...gaming-console

[fatigues_gasolini]

DAMN YOU!!!

[Thoraxes]

Oh shit.

This is huge.

[Alienups]

holy shit

[JustinBB7]

Say whaaaaaaaaaat!

[DanielJr82]

A 4th console? Eh...

[Firehead]

Woah... this is... wow. <3 Valve.

[Hex]

We call that a pc where I come from

[SpudBud]

Whoa big news if true.

[Skel1ingt0n]

If true, a megaton for sure.

[EatinOlives]

Not really a "console", it looks more like a Valve-branded PC.

Which, of course, I have no problem with.

[yoshizzle]

please let this be true

[Kareha]

So..... it's a pre-built PC with a Steam logo on it?

[TheBioLover]

Oh damn...................a new contender enters the ring.

[Foxtastical]

Allows rival services to be used on it? Smart.

[Emitan]

A 4th console? Eh...

Yes, it's called PC. It came out decades ago.

[Strike]

:o

[JustinBB7]

Sounds like a computer to me too.

[elsk]

How is this going to be different than any other PC?

[snoopeasystreet]

It'd still have to run windows but if there was steam certified computer that came out every year, I'd definitely buy it every second/third year.

[vazel]

I'd be real interested to see another popular standardized PC like we saw in the '80s.

[Derrick01]

This sounds too unbelievable to be true. Why would Valve take this risk?

[wwm0nkey]

YES! All of my money they can have it!

[Wallach]

Huh. I'd probably buy the shit out of that, and I already have a gaming PC. Do it, Gabe. I dare you.

[HylianTom]

Oh damn...................a new contender enters the ring.

Yep. Sounds very interesting.

If they don't partner with one (or more?) of the known three, whom would they hurt most by entering?

[5amshift]

Woah big news if true. This will get my money.

[darkside31337]

Clearly the PS4 and Steam Box are one and the same.

[Yamibito]

"The devices will be able to run any standard PC titles, and will also allow for rival gaming services (like EA's Origin) to be loaded up."

So, it's either a PC or a really restricted PC? Great, woo.

[Ollie Pooch]

Yes, it's called PC. It came out decades ago.

A pre-configured console-style box and controller that could be bought from a department store or whatever is hugely different to someone setting up their own PC, and could be huge, given the content and delivery system they have.

[teiresias]

Yeah, this almost sounds like a Valve branded PC. Wouldn't surprise me if it's co-branded with Alienware.

[BY2K]

[JaseC]

The Steam Box could be unveiled at GDC, though we're also hearing that the company may wait until E3 this year to show off what it's been working on.

That's one way to spice up a Half-Life 3 announcement.

[corn_fest]

How is this going to be different than any other PC?

Less of a mental barrier for most consumers to hook it up to their TV.

[Ignis Fatuus]

Speechless.

[Ozzykamikaze]

Serious Question: How is a PC with a Valve sticker and some special software a megaton? Unless it was sarcasm, then I retract my question.

[biosnake20]

Half-Life 3 as a launch title. This is why they waited.

[Grayman]

So it is kind of like the GFWL marketing label but this will be something you can prospectively buy from Dell, Bestbuy, etc?

[Eggman]

[Snaku]

It's fucking on.

[Teknopathetic]

This would be really awesome if Valve had performance ratings/configs for every game on Steam and they could guarantee a certain frame rate at a certain setting.

[Durante]

Nintendo, Sony and MS had a good run.

A pre-configured console-style box and controller that could be bought from a department store or whatever is hugely different to someone setting up their own PC, and could be huge, given the content and delivery system they have.

The content and delivery system they have is the one thing we do know.

[Flame Lord]

I was thinking about something like this the other day, except instead of playing the games its elf it just streamed them from your PC.

[Syril]

Well, I have a working computer already, but that's neat, I guess.

[Emitan]

Serious Question: How is a PC with a Valve sticker and some special software a megaton? Unless it was sarcasm, then I retract my question.

Because its the only way to hook up a PC to your TV.

THE ONLY WAY

[Gravijah]

please be cheap

[DiscoJer]

So basically a Valve branded and approved PC? Big, if they can get the price cheap enough.

There's a lot of mark up in pre-built PCs, not to mention $100 for Windows. And also, a lot of crap. You walk into Wal-mart or Best Buy and buy a $500 PC, it's likely not going to be good at gaming, even though you could build a good gaming PC for that price. This will make PC gaming more accessible...

[Kareha]

Less of a mental barrier for most consumers to hook it up to their TV.

Plugging in a HDMI cable is hard ¬_¬

[ezekial45]

Cool.

[EatChildren]

How is this going to be different than any other PC?

Though it sounds identical to a PC, and pretty much is a PC, this seems to me like the kind of thing Valve would market as something for your lounge/living room, not for a desktop. Hardware architecture fundamentally the same as a PC, but the established precedent of it being labelled a "desktop computer" removed.

Ship it with Steam Big Picture and you've got a PC targeted towards the comfy couch market.

[onlyindreams]

if I can just plug this into my HDMI port and start playing my steam library, then yea, valve just won gaming.