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Steam Universe (beta) videos, impressions
- Thread starter ashecitism
- Start date
ashecitism
Member
yeah, I edited the post with that
so I guess I should make separate part in the OP for upcoming dev impressions?
so I guess I should make separate part in the OP for upcoming dev impressions?
MutonCommander
Banned
After watching Bastion and Street Fighter footage it seems to me that these types of games will be fine with the controller.
ashecitism
Member
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
The Steam Machine prototype is a $1,300 gaming PC. That Valve just sent people for free.
Daaammmmn.
I'd pay $1,300 for one at retail though. Sounds about right for a gaming PC I'd want. Looking forward to CES and all the options we get.
Daaammmmn.
I'd pay $1,300 for one at retail though. Sounds about right for a gaming PC I'd want. Looking forward to CES and all the options we get.
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
Yeah, they called after it was delivered and asked if I could ship it back (which of course I did). But I did test both systems, just for fun. They were identical.
The case is really slim and sturdy. It's almost the exact size of the Xbox One. I'll be taking comparison pictures against all the consoles soon, just to get an idea of its size. I also really hope they sell these cases. It's a really smart design, it's a very cool machine (as in temperature), and it's still pretty customizable.
Yeah, that's exactly what I priced out the parts to, too. We've got a GTX 780, i5 4570, 16gb RAM, 1tb hybrid drive. It barely outspecs my current PC, which is 2x GTX 660ti SLi, i7 3770k, 16gb RAM, 256gb SSD.
I let my friend borrow the Machine last night in order to download a ton of games (the Internet at the hotel I'm at blows), so I'll have a huge arsenal of stuff to try tonight. If anyone has any suggestions for me, you can check out my Steam library (Linux only, for now) and let me know what to try/record.
I didn't mention this before, but it's worth noting that there was no perceivable latency. I'll be doing a real latency test later on (where I'll be comparing it to a wired 360 controller).
ashecitism
Member
I"m not sure where iFixit counted 320 holes. I only see 300?
edit: ah I see they edited it to 300
edit: ah I see they edited it to 300
zephervack
Member
Dissapointed that he is using the center physical buttons to jump,
, can someone please play dark souls with it, Im really interested if the control can cope with that.ashecitism
Member
But isn't Dark Souls bad with mouse and keyboard to begin with?
Nabs
Member
Yep, but there's a mod that makes it playable.
MutonCommander
Banned
Now that the controller API has been released, I'm very curious to see how developers will use it. I expect to see mostly analog stick emulation but I'd love to see some innovative control schemes.
raugupatis
Neo Member
Finally got my box today, #226.
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0781jvex3.jpg
Specs are the same across the board so I'm guessing they decided to standardize them, probably to aid in testing. Fewer things to worry about when everyone has the same hardware.
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0781jvex3.jpg
Specs are the same across the board so I'm guessing they decided to standardize them, probably to aid in testing. Fewer things to worry about when everyone has the same hardware.
ashecitism
Member
Hmm, I recall someone posting about the Titan model and another about the 760. Not sure though...
Also, I read some PC YT channels received units too?
Also, I read some PC YT channels received units too?
zephervack
Member
Dark Souls supports xInput, my main concern is how the second haptic "screen" works when emulating the second stick as well as the X Y A B at the same time.
ashecitism
Member
I said that, because right now the controller runs in Legacy Mode, meaning it emulates kb&m. Games doesn't recognize it as a controller, but instead you have to select keyboard and mouse as input. With this game probably one trackpad would be AWSD, the other would be a mouse.
Valve recently made the controller API available for devs, so we might see specialized stuff for some games soon, but I wouldn't bet on From doing any.
Valve recently made the controller API available for devs, so we might see specialized stuff for some games soon, but I wouldn't bet on From doing any.
Gangxxter
Member
That's not necessary. The right pad will emulate the right stick while the face buttons will be mapped to A, B an the two paddles on the back.
ashecitism
Member
TBG is streaming again: http://www.twitch.tv/trialbygame
currently Painkiller, Civ5 is on the card it seems, and other stuff
currently Painkiller, Civ5 is on the card it seems, and other stuff
raugupatis
Neo Member
Stress test time!
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0782iijt7.jpg
Running Prime95 blended torture test for fun; the cpu fan at max speed is quieter than my gen1 PS3 at 1st stage cooling.
EDIT: After about 5 hours, the CPU is a little warm but nothing to be concerned about. I'm going to let it run all night, though I don't imagine anything will happen.
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0784c6fkk.jpg
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0782iijt7.jpg
Running Prime95 blended torture test for fun; the cpu fan at max speed is quieter than my gen1 PS3 at 1st stage cooling.
EDIT: After about 5 hours, the CPU is a little warm but nothing to be concerned about. I'm going to let it run all night, though I don't imagine anything will happen.
http://abload.de/img/dsc_0784c6fkk.jpg
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
I let mine idle all night (it was just downloading stuff) and it was still silent and cool when I woke up. I'm definitely impressed with how quiet it is. Maybe I'll make an audio recording of the SteamBox vs the PS4/Wii U/Xbone.
MutonCommander
Banned
Dacvak do you have a YouTube channel?
ashecitism
Member
It's in the OP. Interestingly enough the SMB video doesn't show up there though.
MutonCommander
Banned
Thanks!
ashecitism
Member
MutonCommander
Banned
Only a few people have shared their experiences so far. It's kind of disappointing.
ashecitism
Member
ashecitism
Member
sorry for dp, this has more to do with SteamOS, but the testers are doing it, so...
adding non-steam games
scripts for installing other software (has Dolphin running in the 2nd page)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKCWDtU9JUM
also
Trial by Game submitted an article to pcgamer: http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/12/20/hands-on-with-valves-steam-machine-and-the-steam-controller/
and doing a live stream again, currently Typing of the Dead lmao
adding non-steam games
scripts for installing other software (has Dolphin running in the 2nd page)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKCWDtU9JUM
also
Trial by Game submitted an article to pcgamer: http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/12/20/hands-on-with-valves-steam-machine-and-the-steam-controller/
and doing a live stream again, currently Typing of the Dead lmao
MutonCommander
Banned
Typing of the dead? Is this even playable with a controller?
ashecitism
Member
Yeah. It pauses when he types.
edit: not going to double post again, but added TBG's twitch channel to the OP too. Includes a coulpe of vids like Last Light eps, Sims, Spelunky and Starcraft 2.
edit: not going to double post again, but added TBG's twitch channel to the OP too. Includes a coulpe of vids like Last Light eps, Sims, Spelunky and Starcraft 2.
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
Yeah, it should just be named Dacvak. I think. Or GAFTunes.
Ah, I think I have that video unlisted. I'll change that.
Unfortunately, that's not possible with anything but a real deal keyboard, which the steam controller can't replicate any better than an xbox controller (for actual typing).
MutonCommander
Banned
Dacvak I envy your Meat Boy skills, I'm pretty terrible at that game
Time for me to contribute something to this thread, specifically a couple of videos that I think haven't been posted yet.
Minecraft with the Steam Controller: http://youtube.com/watch?v=38GP2fDxgFw
Civ V: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WZIACsZEHpk
Team Fortress 2, multiple classes: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ioAGIAeEbN0
Time for me to contribute something to this thread, specifically a couple of videos that I think haven't been posted yet.
Minecraft with the Steam Controller: http://youtube.com/watch?v=38GP2fDxgFw
Civ V: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WZIACsZEHpk
Team Fortress 2, multiple classes: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ioAGIAeEbN0
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
This is exactly what I was waiting for. I hope this prompts Mojang to put in an optional controller optimized version of the UI for people with Steam controllers and even other controllers (Not the console UI) to make it a bit easier to play with. But it looks pretty good so far.
I don't like the outer ring being crouch because that's just going to be a problem when trying to escape in a heated battle. I'd rather we somehow set it up so the outer ring activates run (I hate that run is a toggle and can only be done in forward mode.) and have one of the back buttons or the triggers be Shift for crouching.
2014 is gonna be awesome.
MutonCommander
Banned
Yeah, so far the controller seems to be working quite well with games designed for mouse and keyboard.
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
This is what I'm looking forward to the most. From what I can tell, the two touch pads act like two trackpads, and as long as they're not terrible at sensitivity and don't miss a lot of swipes, it might be like having two Magic Trackpads in my hands.
If only I could play with one right now. When I first saw it before anyone ever showed off how it worked, I was skeptical. But now I might just be a believer. Time will tell.
MutonCommander
Banned
I still want to see a game that combines dual analog and face buttons. It could prove to be a challenge as you'd have to use the right trackpad as both a stick and four buttons, unless you assign the face buttons to the triggers and paddles.
I'm genuinely amazed at how compact and beautiful this prototype is with the specs and apparent customisability (Ifixit teardown). With this form factor at around the £1000 mark there will be many people reconsidering their next gen options. I know I'm one of them.
ashecitism
Member
^^ Batman could be good experiment for that I think? Though I only played it with an X360 cont, not sure what the kb&m bindings are. On a phone atm, cba to look it up.
With Spelunky, on default the right pad acted as ABXY, and with the left back button pressed down it was a mouse.
With Spelunky, on default the right pad acted as ABXY, and with the left back button pressed down it was a mouse.
The really amazing part is that the only components which aren't off-the-shelf are the power button and the case. Any company could have built something like this at any point using standard PC components, but no one bothered to.
MutonCommander
Banned
As good as Valve's Steam Machine is, I believe the company made the right call by not releasing an official one to market. Valve needs allies and the OEMs would not appreciate having to compete with Valve as well as with each other.
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
More impressions!
I just played about 2 hours of The Stanley Parable with the Steam controller. I played it on Mac, too. The controller was fine - just plug and play.
It was also the first time I used the controller with something other than Meat Boy. It took maybe.... 5 minutes to get used to it. Stanley Parable isn't an FPS or anything, but I found that I was controlling it just fine. It didn't seem worth recording, though.
I'll be trying out some actual first person shooters very soon, though. I can tell you this, the controller is absolutely capable of playing first person games very comfortably. Who knows how it'll affect my skill level in a twitch shooter, but I would imagine a lot of first-person games that don't necessarily rely on super fast shooting will work perfectly with the controller. Games like Mirror's Edge and Portal.
More impressions later. But I gotta say, I'm starting to fall in love with this controller. For real.
Edit: Also, I love casually browsing the internet with this controller. LOVE it.
I just played about 2 hours of The Stanley Parable with the Steam controller. I played it on Mac, too. The controller was fine - just plug and play.
It was also the first time I used the controller with something other than Meat Boy. It took maybe.... 5 minutes to get used to it. Stanley Parable isn't an FPS or anything, but I found that I was controlling it just fine. It didn't seem worth recording, though.
I'll be trying out some actual first person shooters very soon, though. I can tell you this, the controller is absolutely capable of playing first person games very comfortably. Who knows how it'll affect my skill level in a twitch shooter, but I would imagine a lot of first-person games that don't necessarily rely on super fast shooting will work perfectly with the controller. Games like Mirror's Edge and Portal.
More impressions later. But I gotta say, I'm starting to fall in love with this controller. For real.
Edit: Also, I love casually browsing the internet with this controller. LOVE it.
MutonCommander
Banned
Thanks Dacvak! I will be eagerly waiting your FPS footage.
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
Image updates:
Here are some quick pictures I took of the Steam Machine and controller compared to the new consoles and controllers.
Imgur Album
Here are some quick pictures I took of the Steam Machine and controller compared to the new consoles and controllers.
Imgur Album
I still wouldn't trust an Nvidia GPU with a stock cooler in such a small case. Stock fan profile is usually never good enough to keep it at acceptable temperatures. If anything comes out of this Steam machine experiment it will be a bunch of great small form factor cases and perhaps more efficient cooling solutions. There are some great ones out there from 3rd party vendors. It will be interesting to see if either AMD or Nvidia makes a model specifically meant for these cases (rear exhaust especially).
Actually, at this performance level, a 780/Titan level Geforce with a stock cooler is what I'd trust most. The Titan stock cooler is probably the best external exhaust cooler available, and that (external exhaust) seems crucial in this kind of case. I don't think anyone reported any difficulties with it, temperature-wise.
In a normal well-ventilated large PC case multiple axial fans are always superior, but for this use case the blower design seems better suited. And the Titan HSF is the best blower design I know of.
MutonCommander
Banned
Nice pics!
jediyoshi
Member
Great pics. Man I'd love me a consumer version of that case
Dacvak
No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
It's also worth noting that the SteamBox is significantly heavier than all of the consoles, mainly due to the thick steel case. That being said, it also seems to stay very cool, and it is extremely quiet.
As you can see, the form of the controller is pretty different than what we're used to. Let it be noted that it's comfortable as fuck, though. Feels great in my hands, but it's definitely a little too light at the moment. I'd imagine a wireless version with a battery would be much nicer. I love the haptic feedback, but I do with there were also a traditional rumble in the controller. (I'm pretty sure there's not, but I might be wrong?)
Impressions with Portal
Anyway, I played some Portal now. I found my biggest issue wasn't aiming, but was actually walking. You see, WASD is mapped to the left pad, and it presses a key when your thumb simply touches any direction; you don't need to press the pad down and make it click (that actually acts as a jump, which was pretty nice). However, I found that the slightest touch on the pad would end up moving me in whatever direction. I'm used to keeping my thumb resting on a stick, and while you can keep your thumb resting in the middle of the pad (there's a raised circle so you can feel exactly where to rest), my thumb kept accidentally touching a direction every so often.
I'd say after about 30 minutes, I found my thumb hovering over the pad when I wasn't walking, so the problem worked itself out. And thanks to the ridges on the pad and the haptic feel, it's pretty easy to tell when you're pressing it and what direction you're going. Still, I would much prefer if it registered as an analog stick. I'm not sure if there are any games that will do that with the controller, but I'm really hoping there are because I'd love to try analog with this.
As you can see, the form of the controller is pretty different than what we're used to. Let it be noted that it's comfortable as fuck, though. Feels great in my hands, but it's definitely a little too light at the moment. I'd imagine a wireless version with a battery would be much nicer. I love the haptic feedback, but I do with there were also a traditional rumble in the controller. (I'm pretty sure there's not, but I might be wrong?)
Impressions with Portal
Anyway, I played some Portal now. I found my biggest issue wasn't aiming, but was actually walking. You see, WASD is mapped to the left pad, and it presses a key when your thumb simply touches any direction; you don't need to press the pad down and make it click (that actually acts as a jump, which was pretty nice). However, I found that the slightest touch on the pad would end up moving me in whatever direction. I'm used to keeping my thumb resting on a stick, and while you can keep your thumb resting in the middle of the pad (there's a raised circle so you can feel exactly where to rest), my thumb kept accidentally touching a direction every so often.
I'd say after about 30 minutes, I found my thumb hovering over the pad when I wasn't walking, so the problem worked itself out. And thanks to the ridges on the pad and the haptic feel, it's pretty easy to tell when you're pressing it and what direction you're going. Still, I would much prefer if it registered as an analog stick. I'm not sure if there are any games that will do that with the controller, but I'm really hoping there are because I'd love to try analog with this.
Is it really steel? I thought it was aluminum.