The truth of the matter is that the cost of making a AAA title (especially one based on a licensed property) is skyrocketing such that the $60 price point doesn't provide the level of profit that these companies desire. So they find ways to get each gamer to spend $80 to $100 on average.

This is cool. It brings digital gaming closer to parity with disc-based gaming. And I can easily imagine why Valve wouldn't try to get publishers to agree to sell a digital game once that can be accessed by ten gamers at a time...c'mon people.

I think Valve can be successful here, but I don't think that "success" means displacing any console sales. Many PC gamers already have consoles hooked up their living rooms for the lean-back big-screen gaming, the social advantages (online multiplayer doesn't count here), and the exclusves that aren't on PC. It seems unlikely that they'll drop those consoles to switch to a reference PC with Steam.

If Valve really wants to get away from Windows, then creating a reference spec was probably a necessary evil, but I don't see how they can do it at a cost that competes with a console.

@Vodoo My understanding (caveat: I have not used Big Picture yet) is that Big Picture allows you to navigate the Steam interface more easily using the controller rather than having to switch back to a keyboard + mouse between games.

This is not surprising. Given the R&D costs of current consoles, we can say bye-bye to the five-year console cycles of yesteryear. Except for Nintendo...they may stay on a five- or six-year cycle.

@phbz @Grunt987654 ...unless he wrote it on an XBOX 360 using the controller-keyboard attachment.

Ironically, I think that the continued support for the XBOX 360 would actually help the XBOX One if the latter were backwards compatible with the former. As it stands, people may decide to keep gaming on the cheap for the next few years rather than saving up to take the next-generation plunge.

I'm sure that college athletes work hard, but I would say that a complementary college education with top-flight amenities and the opportunity to build a national profile have got to be worth something. Their compensation may not be direct, but I don't really believe these guys are being exploited.

I was thinking that Steam had jumped the shark with this announcement, but if all the risk is borne by the hardware partners, then I guess Valve doesn't have much to lose by moving more gaming PCs into the living room.

In that regard, this could be a good project. I wish more manufacturers made small, self-contained PCs that could easily be hooked up to a TV and entertainment center. Not just for games, but for video and music and media services.

On the other hand, if PC gamers really wanted to play games on the big TV from their sofa, it seems like they could have solved that problem some time ago for less money.

@Ravenlore_basic @Nintyfan95 I actually think their expectations are on point. Most of those 70M+ PS3 sales were not made at a $400 price point. Lots of people will play wait-and-see until a price drop, especially if game support for the PS3 remains strong.