Valve had originally planned to launch its so-called Steam Machines game consoles late last year, but got cold feet. The new launch date is November 2015. Valve will also release a Steam Link box that can stream games to other TVs in your house.
Steam Machines coming in November
The Steam Machines are actually PCs with built-in Steam and a user interface optimized for the big TV. By using PC hardware, you can configure the game consoles as you please. The difference compared to a typical PC is that these boxes are meant to be connected to the TV and compete with the PlayStation and Xbox consoles.
- ”Steam Machines will start at the same price point as game consoles, with higher performance," the company announced.
Alienware and Falcon Northwest and “a dozen other partners” have signed up to launch Steam Machines in November, in all kind of different configurations and price ranges. Valve has developed a game controller that will be available for $50.
Valve also announced its new “Steam Link”. It is a small box that can stream games over your home network to any TV from a Steam Machine or a PC with Steam installed. By using this box you can enjoy high-end games on pretty much any screen in your house in full 1080p at 60fps quality. It will be available in November, too, for $50.
Lastly, Valve announced Source 2, a game engine that developers can use free of charge to create amazing games. Source 2 is the successor to Source, which was used to create Half-Life 2 and Counter-Strike: Source. Cross your fingers for Half-Life 3.
Valve and HTC also announced a virtual reality headset earlier this week.
