00:00After more than a decade, Valve is launching a new Steam Machine, and while this little gaming PC is exciting on its own, it is the next step in Valve's play to become the face of PC gaming, at least more than it already is.
00:12Because alongside the Steam Machine, Valve is also launching a new controller, and the Steam Frame, a VR headset that itself runs on SteamOS.
00:20Combined with the Steam Deck, Valve now has the makings of its own tech ecosystem.
00:25So this didn't happen overnight. This idea of an ecosystem is something Valve has been quietly working on for more than a decade.
00:32And now that it seems like the next generation of consoles is going to look more like gaming PCs than ever, it's the perfect time for Valve to assert itself as the face of PC gaming.
00:44Now, this is an opinion piece written by my colleague Jackie Thomas, who also visited Valve with me to see their new hardware, and I do endorse her opinion.
00:55So when we talk about hardware ecosystems, the first thing that comes to mind is Apple.
01:01Good morning!
01:02Over the last couple of decades, the tech giant has created a range of devices that all work in concert, syncing together to your settings and preferences.
01:10It's why for the most part, when you get a new iPhone these days, setting up a new device is as simple as holding it up over your old iPhone, letting software move everything over.
01:19This works with pretty much all of Apple's devices too. Whether it's an Apple Watch, Apple TV, or even a MacBook, everything is just kind of easier if you have other devices from Apple.
01:29On the surface, these devices are all distinct from one another, but because Apple makes both the hardware and the software, the company can make it extremely tempting to only buy Apple products.
01:40It just makes certain things easier. Apple's definitely not alone in doing this. Even staying in the realm of phones, Samsung is very similar in its approach too.
01:49There is a problem with this though. Apple's ecosystem is often referred to as a walled garden in the way that it makes people feel trapped after they've already invested in a couple of Apple devices.
02:00But it's not the only way to do it. Microsoft has also tried to create a similar ecosystem several times, starting with the Windows Phone.
02:09Jackie says she was one of the 12 people who owned one of these things and says it was genuinely useful to be able to carry Windows settings over to a phone.
02:17But even after Microsoft's mobile operating system faded into obscurity, Windows started to become a lot better at being a multi-device ecosystem in and of itself, even if it was limited to PCs.
02:29When you have multiple PCs running off of Windows, it's remarkably easy to set up so everything is just shared between all of them.
02:36Game saves, documents, and even settings are easy to set up so they sync between your different devices.
02:41And more recently with gaming, the company has also tried to work Xbox into this ecosystem-centric approach.
02:47That's why Microsoft claims everything is an Xbox, because through programs like Play Anywhere and Game Pass, everything potentially is.
02:55There's just one problem though. It's the user experience.
02:58Because Windows has been designed around a keyboard and mouse for decades, retooling it to be cross-compatible with a UI that's primarily used with a controller is going to take a lot of work.
03:08Microsoft has made some decent first steps in making Windows usable with a controller.
03:12Just look at the Xbox Ally X, but Valve has a leg up with SteamOS.
03:17Between the Steam Machine, the Steam Frame, and the Steam Deck, Valve is clearly moving to make SteamOS more of a platform of its own.
03:27It blew up in popularity with the Steam Deck in 2022, but it's been around much longer than that.
03:32Valve's Linux-based SteamOS launched in 2013 followed by the original Steam Machines in 2015.
03:38But while the skeleton of the operating system was similar, it relied on games that already had built-in Linux support.
03:44There certainly were games that would run on SteamOS, but not enough to sell people on abandoning Windows altogether,
03:50especially when it was paired with expensive hardware.
03:53This led to third-party Steam Machines being rebranded as Windows 8-based mini PCs, and it seemed like Valve's PC-making days were in the past.
04:01But in 2018, Valve funded Proton, a compatibility layer that allowed SteamOS, along with other Linux distros, to run Windows games.
04:10While it was rough at first, only supporting a few games according to a post on Gaming on Linux,
04:14it's grown considerably in the seven years since its initial release.
04:18Proton is what ultimately led to the Steam Deck's success.
04:21Through this modified version of Wine, Valve's little handheld can run pretty much any game in our libraries,
04:27albeit excluding any games that rely on anti-cheat software.
04:30As an operating system, it's only getting better, too.
04:33With Valve's upcoming VR headset, the Steam Frame, it shows it's able to get Proton running on Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3,
04:40which not only allows Windows games to run on Linux, but also allows games built on traditional PC processors like the x86 architecture to run on ARM.
04:50That's something Apple has been struggling with.
04:52Just look at the limited amount of PC games that are running on Mac OS, even with the Rosetta translation layer.
04:58Thanks to Proton, Valve can now relaunch the Steam Machine while completely avoiding the compatibility issues that killed it in the past.
05:05It's also joining a growing crowd of devices that are running SteamOS.
05:08Since people are already familiar with the operating system, it'll be more natural for them to ease into Valve's nascent ecosystem.
05:15What's more, SteamOS and Proton are largely open source, so you don't even have to tie yourself down to Valve's hardware to get in on it.
05:23For the longest time, if you wanted to play PC games, you were almost forced into Windows, and it's not that hard to see why.
05:32Microsoft's operating system has always had good hardware compatibility, which meant a wide range of machines and a huge built-in install base.
05:40But as Windows 11 gets more bloated with features like Copilot, an alternative has been desperately needed.
05:47The Steam Deck showed that it was possible to play most games without Windows, and the Steam Machine is going to go even further with its more powerful hardware, but there's still room to grow.
05:56Thankfully, due to the open source nature of Linux, which SteamOS is built on, anyone can install it or modify it to their own needs.
06:03The actual launcher is proprietary, of course, but you can add and remove features to SteamOS if you have the technical know-how, or at least know how to follow instructions on a GitHub page.
06:14Right now, you can theoretically install SteamOS on any computer, even if it's not technically supported by Valve.
06:20You just have to go to the SteamOS recovery page, download the image to a flash drive, and follow the instructions to install it.
06:26As of this video, only the Steam Deck and the Legion Go S are guaranteed by Valve to work, but as long as you have AMD hardware, you should be good to go.
06:35And even if you can't, there's always Bazite, another gaming-centric Linux distro.
06:39So, Valve might be launching a bunch of official devices that are running SteamOS, but you don't really have to use any of them to get in on this platform.
06:47It'll be more user-friendly on devices that already have everything installed and configured, but Valve isn't going to do anything to stop you from using any other hardware.
06:55Similarly, the Steam Machine itself is compatible with any controller, so you don't have to use the new Steam Controller, and in turn, the Steam Controller will work with any PC, regardless of operating system.
07:06Valve is just putting the toys out there and letting people play with them however they want.
07:14Both Microsoft and Valve are selling a dream of sorts, one where you can play all your games on any device.
07:20And in some ways, PC gaming is already there.
07:23You can access any of your games across different launchers and operating systems, and they'll work.
07:27Plus, more games now than ever support cloud saves.
07:30The problem comes from trying to play those games on anything but a desktop.
07:34As we've seen with the plethora of Windows handhelds that have come out over the last couple of years,
07:38Windows doesn't play that well when you're trying to use a device with a controller.
07:42SteamOS runs most games and is very user-friendly whether you're using it with a keyboard and mouse or a controller.
07:48Add on the fact that the operating system is free to download on any device and isn't loaded with features that slow you down or spy on you,
07:55and it really does start to seem like SteamOS and other Linux gaming distros are going to be the future of gaming.
08:02There are definitely still kinks to the operating system.
08:04Linux can be complicated to install, and a lot of multiplayer games just don't run on it.
08:09But the more people install and run games on SteamOS, Bazite, or other Linux operating systems using Proton,
08:15the better the software is eventually going to be, and the more incentive that developers and publishers will have
08:20to make sure that their games will launch with native support for SteamOS.
08:25And we don't know about you, but we're ready for a major gaming platform that's open and free,
08:29and most importantly, that isn't loaded with subscription fees and AI services that you're never going to use.
08:38And there you have it. If you need the details on all of Valve's newly announced hardware,
08:42check out our hands-on previews of the Steam Machine, Steam Controller, and Steam Frame.
08:47And to keep up with everything in the world of games and tech, stick with IGN.
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