14 DAY TRIAL // At CES, a number of computer manufacturers have revealed their Steam machine prototypes, which will go on sale later during the year, but Valve, the company that has initially created the concept for them, might make its own device in the future.
Initially, the team wants to see exactly how the market reacts to the coming computers and how they will be integrated with the Steam haptic controller, the special SteamOS and its new set of features.
Kassidy Gerber, a designer working at Valve, tells Rock, Paper, Shotgun that, “Right now we’re not planning to bring the prototype to market. It doesn’t mean we never will, but right now we’re really working with third-party hardware to build their own Steam Machines. We think they know their customers and they know hardware better than us right now.”
She adds, “In the first year of Steam Machines, our main audience is people telling us they want to bring their Steam library into the living room. Right now, there’s no way for people to really do that well.”
The Steam machines might represent a huge revolution for PC gaming because they can increase the audience for the Steam digital distribution service while creating a living room experience that’s similar to that offered by the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4.
Some PC gamers have asked Valve to create a pure streaming box to get their games to a TV set, but the company says that this idea is being considered but stays on the low priority list.
Both Sony and Microsoft have said that they welcome any expansion of the PC market because it represents a good sign for the industry overall.
Steam has promised that it is working closely with manufacturers to make sure that all the specifications from its fans are represented in the final products.