Support NeoGAF

[ChoosableOne]

Half-Life 3 rumors are spreading, and we know that these guys love to use Half-Life to sell their products. At a time when Xbox is starting to fade from the market, Valve, which has gotten a taste of the console world with the Steam Deck, could enter the Steam Box business, either with their own product or by partnering with other companies as they did in the past, and they might use Half-Life 3 for this. In such a case, would you consider buying one?

 

[Comandr]

What? Do regular PCs not exist in this theoretical world of yours?

 

[Punished Miku]

I like FPS games now for the first time really, but they're not system sellers for me. I never played HL1 or 2, so no.

 

[Robb]

No, I’d rather pick up a SteamDeck/SteanDeck 2 I think.

 

[dreamstation]

Nah I'll play it on PC thanks

 

[ChoosableOne]

What? Do regular PCs not exist in this theoretical world of yours?

I have a PC in my own room, but if they release a SteamBox using Half-Life 3 as a promotion, I might get one for the living room. I could also take my own PC to the living room, or build another mini PC and put it there, but I would prefer to buy a console supported by Valve that can play my entire Steam library and offers free online multiplayer.

 

[Fahdis]

What the hell are you talking about? A steambox would just be a downgraded PC. They tried Steam Machines already. I would suggest you get a Steamdeck and just play with that. Also, you can have MiniPC's these days as well. Literally well worth the investment. I have one.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

No, I’d rather pick up a SteamDeck/SteanDeck 2 I think.

As much as I want Half-Life 2 + non-VR Alyx as a SD2 showcase I’m not sure if anyone at this point knows how valuable the IP is. HL2 had a peak of 16k players, even Black Mesa had 7k only.

 

[Paasei]

I have a PC in my own room, but if they release a SteamBox using Half-Life 3 as a promotion, I might get one for the living room. I could also take my own PC to the living room, or build another mini PC and put it there, but I would prefer to buy a console supported by Valve that can play my entire Steam library and offers free online multiplayer.

So just a regular PC but smaller? Like you already said yourself.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

No, couldn't care less about Half-Life.

 

[Sleepwalker]

No, why would I?

 

[bender]

Only if it were Steambox exclusive and required a 3D Television and IR controls.

 

[Hero_Select]

no.. if i wanted to play it on my tv i would just connect to it with an hdmi lol.

But also i don't really care for half-life either

 

[Senua]

Nah I'll stick to PC

No, couldn't care less about Half-Life.

It does some things even better than Concord mate, I'd give it a shot if you get the chance.

 

[RCX]

My PC is already hooked up to my TV using the ungodly power of an HDMI cable.

 

[Denton]

My PC is already connected to my living room PC. I am typing this from a couch on that TV. So no.

But that does not mean Steambox is a bad idea, necessarily.

 

[DragonNCM]

Yes...all we need is SteamBox....
It will solve averything & cure cancer !!!

 

[ChoosableOne]

So just a regular PC but smaller? Like you already said yourself.

The difference with these mini PCs is that all Steamboxes will have similar specs and provide a standardized experience to all users. By not using Windows, they'll minimize compatibility issues and focus solely on gaming. They will be supported by Valve and may even come with a few unique features.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

It does some things even better than Concord mate, I'd give it a shot if you get the chance.

Tried it way back when HL1 released. Didn't care about it then, still don't today.

 

[azertydu91]

My PC is already connected to my living room PC. I am typing this from a couch on that TV. So no.

But that does not mean Steambox is a bad idea, necessarily.

Same but I gotta admit, since I had the steam deck I am convinced that steam can release a "pc" or steambox that offers console like experience.And it makes me understand more the design of their steam controller.
So maybe a steambox would work now but at what price and most of all if they advertize the hell out of the simplicity and console like experience.
It might be a good bridge for console users that are afraid of pc's "complexity".

 

[Hrk69]

 

[Paasei]

The difference with these mini PCs is that all Steamboxes will have similar specs and provide a standardized experience to all users. By not using Windows, they'll minimize compatibility issues and focus solely on gaming. They will be supported by Valve and may even come with a few unique features.

You have that with the Steam Deck right, which you can also hook to your TV. Albeit not exactly as powerful as a regular gaming rig, it’s managing some demanding games quite well to really good.

If you want such an out-of-the-box experience, they would have to make you launch the games in the best settings to run stable without going into the settings of whatever game.

Could work, eventhough they tried it before. Don’t think your PC gamer will get one of those as it’s essentially nothing different from what they have apart from the size.

 

[Midn1ght]

I like to play with a controller most of the time, even first person view single player games but Half Life is keyboard and mouse for me, wouldn't feel right to play it any other way.

Also, if I really wanted to play one game on the tv I would just plug the computer on the tv.

A Steam console would be appealing for me if the box is powerful (4070S - 4080 level) and affordable like the other consoles (500 - 700 USD). I'm not sure Valve would take such a big loss to get people into their ecosystem.

 

[ChoosableOne]

You have that with the Steam Deck right, which you can also hook to your TV. Albeit not exactly as powerful as a regular gaming rig, it’s managing some demanding games quite well to really good.

If you want such an out-of-the-box experience, they would have to make you launch the games in the best settings to run stable without going into the settings of whatever game.

Could work, eventhough they tried it before. Don’t think your PC gamer will get one of those as it’s essentially nothing different from what they have apart from the size.

It will be powerful, offer out-of-the-box stable performance, be small-sized, easy to transfer, and have a strong library... just for 800-1000 dollars(or 500-600 for base version)?

I'm not sure Valve would take such a big loss to get people into their ecosystem.

Imagine if it took Xbox's position and sold 50 to 60 million units.

 

[Fess]

My PC is already hooked up to my TV using the ungodly power of an HDMI cable.

Same here plus the black magic that is Steam and booting it in big picture mode. Such blasphemy!

 

[Dr.D00p]

It would be awesome if they used HL3 as a launch title for Steam Deck 2 in 2026...

 

[Sintoid]

No
I will cry and complain onto online boadrs until it comes out for console

 

[Topher]

I'd buy Half-life 3 day one, but obviously this is automatic "no" for folks with gaming PCs.

 

[Bonfires Down]

If it’s cheaper than a regular PC I might buy one next time I upgrade. Then again, they will likely go with AMD GPUs so I dunno about that.

 

[Dr.Morris79]

A Mini PC to a TV?

What trickery is this? Has anyone tried it before?

Sounds dangerous

Will I need to download anymore MHz?

 

[00_Zer0]

I already own a Steam Deck, and an upgradable PC, both hooked up to my television, but would buy an official Steam Machine from Valve just for Steam OS features. Truthfully though, I'm waiting on Valve to unchain Steam OS from handhelds and stop prioritizing hand held style updates to it.

I think I would be happier with Valve if they make Steam OS a universal OS for handhelds, desktops and televisions. To do this they need to start developing specific features for desktop/bigscreen mode in conjunction with Steam Deck updates.

They also need to work with Nvidia and Intel and stop tethering Steam OS to AMD GPU's. If they do all that then there's no need for Steam Machine 2.0 for me because I already have my PC hooked up to my television.

 

[nightmare-slain]

Deleted

 

[CliffBronger]

Nah I'll play it on PC thanks

This is the correct answer.

 

[KyoZz]

Why would a buy a console to play an FPS when a potential HL3 would definitively comes to PC too?

Tried it way back when HL1 released. Didn't care about it then, still don't today.

So just to be sure: you think Concord is a better game than Half Life? I've seen some bad takes but damn, you and Men in Box are in a death battle for the stupidest take

 

[Rob_27]

Anything new I'm there

 

[Hohenheim]

No way.
Half Life, along with every other fps, is games I always prefer to play in front of my monitor with keyboard/mouse.

 

[Holammer]

The framing of the question is bad. If it said "Would you as a non-PC owner buy a Steambox for HL3?", that'd be fine, but as you phrased it everyone thinks you mean HL3 would be exclusive to such a device. If that's what you actually meant? It's needlessly inflammatory because that's not how Valve operates. kneecapping what could have been a good topic right out of the gate and yes, everyone noticed the passive aggressive poke at the Xbox.

Anyway... Would I buy a Steambox? Nah, I have a great PC. However, I know plenty of friends that would buy one to their kids or for themselves in a heartbeat. I think there's a demand for a console form factor PC with basic expansion capability for one additional NVME and one 2.5/3.5" HD.
PCs like the atom or the universe is mostly empty space anyway.

*you should have seen my first draft for this post, lots of colourful metaphors and even a hard R.

 

[BlackTron]

If MS made a new game in a beloved FPS IP, would you get a console to play it on TV or download the PC version?

 

[Senua]

*you should have seen my first draft for this post, lots of colourful metaphors and even a hard R.

 

[Holammer]

the R-Word, not the other.

 

[Senua]

the R-Word, not the other.

Hard R means something very different, as Linus found out.

 

[Madserb2023]

You can connect a PC to the TV.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

So just to be sure: you think Concord is a better game than Half Life? I've seen some bad takes but damn, you and Men in Box are in a death battle for the stupidest take

Where did you see me say that Concord is a better game?

I'm well aware that objectively speaking, Half-Life is one of the best games.

Thing is, I just don't care about it.
It's not that complicated.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

I would rather get a Steam Deck 2, tbh.

 

[simpatico]

Sir this is "Neo" GAF. You might be looking for "Mid" or "Low" GAF. We build PCs here.

 

[EverydayBeast]

TOTK I gave a chance, really good game unfortunately not in Zelda circles, at the same time half life 3 could have that element.

 

[Bonfires Down]

It would likely also mean a new version of the Steam Controller so yeah, I’m all for it.

 

[RoboFu]

The difference with these mini PCs is that all Steamboxes will have similar specs and provide a standardized experience to all users. By not using Windows, they'll minimize compatibility issues and focus solely on gaming. They will be supported by Valve and may even come with a few unique features.

Valve has already made that. It's called a steam deck.

 

[Deleted member 1159]

Playing a PC game on my TV is just as easy as switching the input, clicking which game I want and, if desired, turning on my PS5 or XBone controller, which are paired to it. No extra equipment required thanks

The difference with these mini PCs is that all Steamboxes will have similar specs and provide a standardized experience to all users. By not using Windows, they'll minimize compatibility issues and focus solely on gaming. They will be supported by Valve and may even come with a few unique features.

This is silly. What you’d get with a Steam Box is what you’d get with a Steam Deck: most games work fine but there will always be more compatibility issues vs running a game made for Windows natively. I could see a market for it but not for enthusiasts. We already have gaming rigs that are the price of a mortgage payment

 

[hououinkyouma00]

I’d just move my iTX build to my tv just like every other time I want to play a pc game at my tv.