Steambox Seen by Newell to Have Three Tiers of Pricing, Could Start at $99

Gameranx: "Gabe Newell speaks out on the possible pricing of Steambox. There might even be a $99 version!"

[DA_SHREDDER]

$99 bucks and can play any steam game? I'll take 3

[CyberCam]

Most likely those $99 units will streaming units kind of like the Nvidia Shield.

[Autodidactdystopia]

No it wont it will just be a lower specd box.

that is all.

streaming is a nogo for now and for me... I personally hope streaming stays with movies. im not paying for a game that isnt making my own hardware sing.

thats like buying a mustang skin for your fiat so you look cool but under the surface is just a "thin client"

[Korix]

@Autodidactdystopia

So what you are saying is you're not gonna pay for a game that didn't require you to pay a lot of money for an extreme PC?
That's exactly what you're saying - how is that a good thing?
Playing games isn't about looking like you spent a ton of money on that crazy "mustang" PC, it's about playing great games, as simple as it sounds.
How is streaming games comparable to cars when gaming isn't about looking cool? (which, many would argue, cars aren't either).
If anything, it's the other way around. It's not about buying a skin for your Fiat so it looks cool, but rather buying internal upgrades to make it go as fast as said Mustang - at a fraction of the price.
That's not considering all the flaws Onlive had, it's just the principle of streaming.

[Autodidactdystopia]

some people are fine with a prius some people have a passion for the performance I am one of the latter.

not to mention streaming and bitrates will not be capable of matching quality of a rendered image until we can pull a 200mb/s video stream offline, till then the image will have to be compressed.

I dont want that. :

[Mac is OK]

The $99 version will probably be running on linux, so it will not be able to play "any" steam game, only these ones:
https://support.steampowere...

[AKS]

I think it's likely that development of Linux games will increase substantially in the future considering what Valve is planning. Expect that list to grow considerably in the future. Win8 is a recent development that Valve considers to be a potential source for substantial problems for them. Expect to see changes in the future. Also, if there is a new Linux platform where money can be made, expect developers to try to use it.

[zeal0us]

According to the interview they did with Gabe

http://www.theverge.com/201...

That’ll be a Linux box, [and] if you want to install Windows you can. We’re not going to make it hard.

[hellvaguy]

Linux is such a total waste of time. Unless your into it as hobby for fun, its a complete joke that will never catch on mainstream.

[3-4-5]

Yea I'm def getting one of these.

I don't have the cash to build my own $800 PC, so spending $100-200 on a Steam only PC pretty much lets me play a ton of awesome games.

50% of the games I would have played on PC would be on Steam anyways.

Plus by the time this actually releases there should be more new games and more News of new games releasing as well.

[SilentNegotiator]

A $99 gaming PC worth anyone's time?

Also, the president is fake. He makes speeches....ON THE MOON!

[jivah]

But the president is fake.. a puppet front man for the rich and powerful elite... soooo $99 gaming pc worth peoples time? seems legit for people who want it

[DeadlyFire]

ANY is a strong word. Doubtful for $99 you get anything that plays anything unless its all streamed like NVIDIA GRID, OTOY, ONLIVE, Gaikai.

Its possible this new setup by Valve could be modular and upgradable.

Ram board, GPU board, CPU board for a little box. Similar to Xi3's designs itself.

I can't imagine its first gen tech to be super powerful for these price points. Likely AMD APUs will be a focus for hardware.

Nintendo might be worried as it cuts into their lowest price console window. I don't see Microsoft and Sony stopping. Their respective consoles might have a little more power to them than Valve's box. Aiming for $400-600 window.

[Wizziokid]

"Since Valve, along with collaborator Xi3, decided to show off a prototype Steambox at CES"

That wasn't the steambox.

[LackTrue4K]

Now I'm lost...I know the small box is called "Pistion"
And now Valve is saying they got something else?! (Interesting)

[Wizziokid]

yup, 'Piston' is not valves 'steambox' it's supported by them though

[Root]

Thats what I've been thinking

It's confusing though since so many sites and people around the internet say differnt things

People assume because it was shown off that it IS the Steambox but I'm not really convinced, it was supposed to be a console/PC hybrid but it just points to it being a PC.

I was expecting something which would be more like a console, with Valves own gamerpad and everything.

Why don't Valve just say "This wasn't the Steambox, the steambox hasnt been shown off yet"

[AKS]

It's confusing because there is so much misinformation out there right now. I guess writers were scrambling to get their stories out and were not cautious enough with their data. I hope this new info from Gabe at the very least puts a stop to the "But it's going to cost over $1000! Just build your own PC, brah!" argument I keep seeing parroted everywhere.

Valve's top concern is just finding ways to get more people on board with Steam by giving them more ways to do it, which includes cheaper and simpler options. They are obviously not targeting hardcore PC gamers with the "SteamBox," and they're not going to care nearly as much as their competitors about selling a specific game box.

[NicSage]

I hope this thing turns out, i've got several games on steam I never got around to.

[shutUpAndTakeMyMoney]

Did Valve find a way to sell hardware for good prices like they do software? A steam box for $99 that plays steam games? O_o..

If this is true somehow they win next gen..

[kevnb]

pc always wins if you really think about it, not that consoles arent worthwhile. This gen it won with games most of n4g users don't care about. Wii came in second, with games most n4g don't care about either.

[nirwanda]

It depends what you mean by winning, steam won big time as a publisher, but pc gaming as a whole makes less than the same game on console, winning in business is the companys that make a large profit, Apple are currently the biggest winners at the mo.

[kevnb]

im talking overall, and even on multiplats thats not always the case (depends on the game, and not to mention pc versions have higher profits per copy sold). Games like maplestory, farmville, cityville, wow, and the other 100s of casual and free to play games are making a killing.
But none of this matters if you mostly like to play console based games.

[grailly]

for 99$ people would just get a console and a steam box, I think...

I'll buy the cheapest model that can play any steam game at 30fps regardless of the visual fidelity. it'll be fun to have a new platform with already hundreds of games including 20 or so I haven't played yet.

[PurpHerbison]

I understand the budget, but aim a little higher bro. 30FPS is THIS current whack gen. Sales on steam are already going to save you hundreds.

[Gamer1982]

Aim a little higher? 30FPS is easily fine as long as it doesn't drop below and there is no tearing. A $99 box would get you low specs though meaning low settings on latest games and the box only comes with linux so it doesnt run every steam game.
http://store.steampowered.c...
theres all the games steambox will run 41 games so far..

[Blank]

Man I wouldnt doubt valve would price it at that considering the 3 tiers im lovin it and normally I dont get excited hearing it from some sites no matter how credible I like to hear it from the horses mouth but like I said I wouldnt doubt valve would price it at that

[nirwanda]

Wow its good to here that valve will subsidize to cost of the machine, hope its not bombarded with to many ads.

[Enemy]

Well hell, if the best Steambox is only $300, I'll buy that one.

[Godmars290]

I know the PC Master Race is only going to rage, but how is this going to be any different than the other boxes and services like Onlive and Ouya?

[OC_MurphysLaw]

totally agree not seeing how this is gonna be all that different based off this newest $99 comment.

Also is it me or does Valve seem like they are kinda "half assing" their announcement of this? Its all coming out very peicemeal...it could be this..it could be that...Just f*cking tell us what "it" is actually gonna be. It's almost as if Valve has no clue what they are planning to do and are just throwing out ideas still.

EDIT: I also find this kind hilarious:

Valve's goal for the "Good" platform tier is "free" device, but realistically would likely start at $99 and eventually go down. The "Better" is a mid-range unit that should be around $300, and the "Best" is the top-tier device that will only be limited by how much someone is willing to spend on it.

So basically off that tidbit....steambox is a valve branded PC that you can buy in different configurations...kinda like I don't know...PC's!

[Godmars290]

More like a streaming cloud module to a modular game console.

That's the part that really gets me: they're not talking about a "PC" but a game system. A console. But since Valve knows how much the PC gaming community has come to hate game systems, purposed PCs for gaming, they're not calling their purposed PC a gaming console.

[AKS]

"Also is it me or does Valve seem like they are kinda "half assing" their announcement of this? Its all coming out very peicemeal..."

I've seen a story about Valve or the SteamBox at the top of N4G ever since they started talking about releasing one in 2013. In terms of getting people interested in learning about their upcoming product(s), it doesn't seem like a bad strategy.

[Blacklash93]

I know the Piston and SteamBox aren't the same, but are they related tech-wise or concept-wise?

I guess what I really want to know is if the SteamBox will be upgrade-able like a PC, as Piston demostrated it.

[Roccetarius]

This is just going to be another failed piece of hardware. They're pretty much trying to do what MS did with the Xbox. The thing is with Linux, that only a handful of games will be available for it.

[Saryk]

MS done the Games for Windows and Valve done Steam, so your point is mute!

[tommygunzII]

I am most interested. Need to upgrade my PC soon as games are only getting more demanding. I may just hold out and get one of these puppies.
With smart phones and tablets the only thing I need my PC for is gaming it seems anymore. This could be the last PC I own, as weird as it sounds.

[ginsunuva]

Santa?