This isn’t exactly news anymore, but I wanted to talk about Valve’s surprise announcement last week. I mean it probably shouldn’t have been a surprise since Valve already has the Steam Deck and its VR device, and it already tried the Steam Machine thing once before. Yet, this time it feels different. This time Valve seems to be making a real effort, and it might just be enough to up-end the console side of gaming and change it for the better.

Before going further, it should probably be acknowledged that all of this hardware is probably going to be expensive. Prices were not mentioned, but, considering that the Steam Deck and the Valve VR device are both pricey items, it’s probably safe to say that these aren’t going to be for gamers playing on a budget. That said, there isn’t really any such thing as a “budget” option any more, so it’ll likely be par for the modern gaming course here.

Everything else about this, though, looks great to me. Starting with the Valve controller, it just looks super intuitive, with features you’d actually use as opposed to existing mostly as gimmicks. I’m sorry, but limited mouse functionality (Switch 2) is a gimmick. So is the touch pad on the PS4/PS5 controller most of the time.

In the latter case, it’s purely because it’s just a bit too inconvenient to use. The Valve controller though? Its pads are right where your thumbs are already hanging out! Also, finally someone’s making a controller with Hall Effect sticks. They are meant to last rather than going cheap in order to sell more controllers. I’m looking right at you, Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft!

As for the Steam Machine (aka the GabeCube) itself, PC players are saying it’s underpowered, and it’s disappointing that there’s no means of using physical media. Still, I’m just happy to see some thing that is designed first to be easy to use as well as to be both fun and practical in terms of form.

A simple cube is much easier to make space for than a tall fridge or Sony’s wavy monstrosity, and it’s much more fun to customize than either of those or even Nintendo’s screen with detachable handles. Also, it’s a PC, so no pocket-fleecing subsriptions for online access. That alone makes this worth it, especially since even Sony now wants close to $100 a year for basic service. Seriously, go Steam Machine!

This is the kind of competition that Sony and Nintendo need to light a fire under their behinds and get them to actually start offering us value again. They’ve both gotten way too comfortable demanding more for less, Nintendo especially. Seriously, so long as the price is right, I’m thinking of ditching them both for the GabeCube once this hardware generation is done. I’ve got no problem going to the overall cheaper platform that has more games and is run by a company that actually *wants to give me value for my dollar.

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What do you think of Valve’s new hardware? What kind of impact do you think it’ll have on console gaming?

Image from The Verge