They naively expected publishers and developers to give a shit.
But after that failure they worked hard for years and contributed and donated to open source projects.
That allowed Linux to become a true competitor in gaming space with zero vendor lock-in.
Whatever their reasons were, the results are objectively positive for nearly everyone.
I doubt it. On the Windows platform, Valve has to do what Microsoft decides. If Microsoft decides all apps are required to go through the Microsoft store app then Valve would be toast.
Good reason to have an independent gaming OS, I suppose 😉
If Microsoft ever pulled this play at least EU probably would like to have a word. Microsoft already got kicked in the balls over here for such moves, and it hurt.
“We want to make it as easy as possible for the 2,500 games on Steam to run on Linux as well,” said Mr Newell.
“Windows 8 is a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space.”
I don’t think that was Gabe “hating” Microsoft; I think it was him recognizing that the Windows Store/appx stuff that Windows 8 pushed was a threat to his business model.
Yes, this is exactly the analysis that I read back then. The Windows Store presented a clear and present danger to Valve’s business model, so it seems that he concluded that the best way to attack it was to make Linux a viable competitor. That’s some long-term thinking right there, which seems to be rare in corporate leadership for a while now.
There was no mention of motive, just of the consequences. Microsoft going the Apple/Google path was/is an existential business threat to a company like Valve. Microsoft’s coming up short on MS Store mitigated the risk, but still you have a platform that is geared toward Microsoft subscription revenue.
Just because those business concerns factor in, doesn’t detract from the positive ways that it has gone so far.
95% of users are on Windows. If MS one day again decided they’re going to try to limit apps to their own store, much like they did with Windows 8 (which is what kicked this whole thing off) or like Android is suddenly doing right now, Steam will be absolutely fucked without an alternative. So SteamOS exists to give them that parachute. They can keep the freedom of PC without the dedication of creating an entirely new desktop OS.
He doesn’t want his company to be beholden to another for it’s future.
Look at all the issues phone app companies have when Google or Apple just kills their businesses on a whim with a tweak of their terms of service language.
Not sure about hate, but the entire Steam Machine thing happened because Microsoft was making noise circa Windows 8 that they were going to take the platform more closed and require sourcing software from the Windows Store, which would shut out things like Steam. So they said “Okay, we’ll make our own operating system with blackjack and hookers. We could take the PC gaming market with us, and we’ll even come for the living room console market and threaten Xbox while we’re at it.” And if anyone in the world is going to get that done, it’s Valve.
Indeed. I would say the Gabecube is essentially just another PC and a little overhyped already. It‘s SteamOS that deserves a lot of praise. Especially with the upcoming desktop version.
I won’t be getting one (because I don’t need one right now) but I’m hyped for 2 reasons.
First is getting a company to come out with an official Linux gaming OS. Not because I want some kind of a corporate OS-s but because bigger game developers have a reason to target Linux as they will see there’s not only a market but a supported market.
And the second is standardized hardware for a Linux platform. It will make game development easier because you can target specific hardware and (together with the previous point) specific OS to make games for Linux. I can’t find the link anymore but a developer once said that the majority of their bug reports came from Linux while Linux was also the smallest platform they supported and most of the probably comes from the fact that you can have so many combinations of hardware and software that offering Linux support costs more than offering Windows support. If that can be reduced to specific hardware and specific OS that would give more of an incentive for developers to try out supporting Linux (even if it’s only SteamOS on a Steam Machine).
I don’t care what Steam Machines and SteamOS can do when they release, I care what they can do 5-10 years down the line. It’s all about getting the ball rolling and once it’s rolling it’ll get to the destination, making gaming on Linux as good as it is on Windows, on its own. I know, I know, gaming on Linux is already pretty good. But gaming on Linux is still dependent on Windows and if MS wants they can screw proton over (for example making UWP mandatory) so getting native games on Linux should still be a goal. And there’s also the lack of official support from other companies in the gaming space. The most obvious is most popular online games not working on Linux due to anti-cheat but there’s also the fact that some more niche peripherals are hard to use due to no official drivers. It took some tinkering to get my Thrustmaster steering wheel to run, which instantly is a no-go for the average gamer. We’re like 90% of the way there to make Linux a great platform for gaming but that last 10% is going to require collective effort to achieve and that’s really difficult to achieve.
That guy was roasted on Twitter for that comment, and rightfully so. Most bug reports came from Linux users because Linux users actually know how to file them. Windows users are learned helplessness little rats, they see software as black boxes and developers as evil wizards who don’t talk to anyone. Complaining about software to them is speaking to the Eldrich gods and risks burning their retinas and throwing them into madness by their answer.
Linux user knows that software is just something people do, and if you ask nicely and comcompetently, then a human being will try their best to assist you. Above all, Foss users are drilled that if something doesn’t work, report it so it might get fixed in the future. It’s part of the collaborative effort into software openness, bug reports are free QA. Unlike proprietary culture that sees bug reports as customer support requests.
It was a most poignant situation because, as reported by another developer who blogged about Linux support positively, all of the bug reports filed by Linux gamers are about bugs that affect everyone playing the game and not Linux specific support requests. Since Linux users know how to file bug reports and have done so before, they are usually of higher quality than Windows users bug reports who don’t know how to extract information out of their system or might not even have the tools to do so.
Had to look up the tweet specifically for this. So here it is
It’s not actually bug reports and it wasn’t the majority. It was automated crash reports where over 20% came from Linux which at that point amounted to less than 0.1% of the sales and most of them were driver related issues. That issue is hopefully solved as driver support has gotten better over the years, but it had nothing to do with Linux users reporting more often or being more thorough in their bug reporting.
Complement with the alternative view offered by the developer of ΔV: Rings of Saturn. Also, there’s a lot of erased responses and contradicting tweets he made.
Yes, I recall that one developer saying that Linux users provided ultra-detailed, highly technical bug reports that helped immensely in finding and fixing bugs for everyone, or something like that. I think they even said that Linux users were in a way providing free QA.
Edit: ah, yes, I see you linked the positive post below. Thanks!
I would bet against this. I think people who buy a steam machine (and same for steam deck) will know what they get into.
And the device is focused on gaming and the games will probably run worse on that hardware if one installs Windows. Therefore I think that people who want to use Windows will not buy a steam machine.
I would be surprised if the average person knew how to install an OS. The OS generally comes with the PC so the average user never need to install an OS. I imagine the average user doesn’t even have a USB stick to turn into bootable media and that’s just the first step. You have to know how to turn it into bootable media (the easiest way expects you to already have Windows) and then if the BIOS doesn’t automatically boot into it you have to know how to go into the BIOS to change the order and then you have to get through the installation. No average user is going to get through all that. Anyone doing that is already capable of installing Linux themselves and they’re probably more willing to give Linux a try because they can always install Windows if they don’t like it.
I can’t remember how many OSs I’ve installed at this point, and if the amount of frustration I feel when Windoes does an update and decides it’s time to ask half or more of the Starting for the First Time! questions is at all indicative of the fear and dread someone who has never installed an OS in their life before feels, these people would rather return the machine than pay $200 for Windows+installation, and installing it themselves is out of the question. I might be surprised, but the average user, even the average gamer, is unikely to want that hassle.
The actual software target is their Steam Linux Runtime container. So all you need to install is the container environment, and if your 3rd party OS does that for you then you’re already done.
Pretty spot on, it was so worth it to remember, that Valve actually seemed to remember.
Their first go at it was “make a viable platform and the developers/publishers will make the effort to come over, and hardware partners will step up with offerings because of Valve’s brand strength and fear of the Microsoft Store screwing everything up”. That didn’t work, and Microsoft Store also didn’t pan out as far as Valve and others feared, but they have been kind of screwing up the platform particularly for games as they chase other things that would be subscription revenue instead of transactional revenue.
Valve learned they needed to work harder to bring the platform to the Windows games, so heavy investment in Proton. They learned that they had to take the hardware platform in their own hands because the OEMs aren’t committed until they see proof it can work for them. They learned that the best way to package their improved efforts was with a “hook” with mass-market appeal, enter the Steam Deck, recognizing the popularity of the Switch form factor and bringing it to the PC market at a time no one else was bothering.
So now they have a non-Android, non-Windows ecosystem that covers handheld, console/desk, and VR with a compelling library of thousands and thousands of games…
They’ll sell games for 227, 375, and 510 UbiPoints^TM^. The UbiPoints^TM^ are only redeemable on their online shop, and are only purchasable in units of:
$10 for 50 UbiPoints^TM^
$50 for 275 UbiPoints^TM^. That’s 10% more UbiPoints^TM^ for free!)
$150 for 938 UbiPoints^TM^. That’s 25% more UbiPoints^TM^ for free! Our best deal ever!
Why is it necessary to go on the attack over a past attempt that didn’t work? That’s how innovation functions. Sometimes you hit the mark and sometimes you don’t, but everyone learns from the process.
They get paid to spread FUD, lots of actors would prefer the current approach with Windows to continue, pcgamer included (just disable ublock and watch the advertisements they run, you will get an idea on why they don’t want a successful prebuilt).
Thank god one can see how it will work right now, just try to game in any desktop Linux, it works wonders.
Cause if you dont give reality checks, you end up with shit like Theranos when idiots run wild with hype and hope, and fall to their knees with mouths wide open before even knowing WTF is going on or if it works.
Valve did such a good job learning from the original Steam boxes too. The controller was weird, but the best parts lived in in the Steam Deck and the new controller. The incompatibility issues with the original Steam OS showed how critical getting Proton right would be to the Steam ecosystem. Multiple hardware configurations for each SKU made it harder to verify compatibility, so now they have just 1 for each hardware type. A dedicated Steam Link box was kind of a waste, but now Steam Link works great on Android TV, Android phones, and on Steam itself. And then they built Remote Play Together on top of Steam Link, which is amazing.
Many other companies just abandoned their failures, but Valve took the time to analyze the “why” and salvage the good parts to them. No company is perfect, but kudos to them.
The article is hardly attacking Valve. Just acknowledging how they got here with a bit of good nature ribbing. Nothing wrong with being able to laugh at ourselves.
I mean, they claim there’s one, but evidence says otherwise. Them spending a lot on their shitty arena shooter with boats didn’t make it any higher quality.
The most recent release is probably Anno 117 which came out yesterday. While decently looking it’s lacking features of the previous title (like coop mode and mod browser) with the promise they will be added later and is priced at around 60€ or 90€ if you want to gamble on the quality of the promised to be released DLC. They also relied on AI generated images in some of the assets used in the game instead of paying their artists. Optimisation for the game seems to be ok, but not great but it might be too early to judge that fully yet.
I don‘t get why they’d cheap out on artists, a couple people drawing illustrations is surely not gonna balloon development cost - and arguably one of the easiest places to spot when it‘s AI slop. It‘s as if they think there must be gen AI stuff in the game somewhere or the game‘s worse or something.
If you look at the older titles, there’s so much love and passion that went into the artworks. 1404 is 16 years old and has aged incredibly well, because of the high quality of the work that went into it. This is missing in 117.
Yes because stocks are a straight up scam. It should be able to swing up and down as the market demands, but it doesn’t because every time there’s a potentially life changing movement up or down they halt it. They’ve done it many, many times before.
It happens sometimes. Usually it is when there are rumors that will have a significant impact on the stock. In that case the stock can be halted until the company gives a statement about it. I’m not sure if it is the company can halt it, I think they can request it and provide information why it should be halted and then it is up to the stock exchange to determine. And the stock exchange has its own rules for when to halt the trade.
I expect Ubisoft to update during the next week or perhaps already during the weekend and then the trading can continue.
Ubisoft is a textbook example of what happens when you pin your companies revenue on a small handful of IPs and milk them to the absolute fucking limit. I like assassins creed, but I’ve played enough of them for the rest of my life. Make something new my dudes.
A lot of very confused people here who think an earnings delay means ubi havent made much money. Cant say if they have or not, but if they havent thats still not a reason for this kind of delay
They haven’t been doing too well recently. The trade halt is because they’re afraid that everybody would read the halting of the report as admission they’re barely afloat and start dumping shares, killing the company.
Which is what leads me to believe that they caught an error in the report and needed to re-print it. Halting it now wouldn’t change anything financially.
The Ubisoft trading community are coping to justify holding on to their tanking investments. It’s a gambler doubling down on losing.
Christ, how the mighty Ubisoft has fallen. They will go the way of EA and become a spyware company for the decadent Arab royals. I’m just crying that Ubisoft made some of my favourite games growing up and look what they have done to my boy-- a rotting zombie 🥲
I still recoil from the memory of Far Cry 3 dropping in the middle of the game because thier launcher had an issue, three times in one hour. Which reset my progress. Uninstall, never bought shit from them again.
It’s disappointing. I’ve been going through some of their older catalog recently and it just has a lot more passion behind it i feel.
AC Shadows felt like when i write an essay, where i get really motivated at the start, completely drop off and try to stuff the middle with as much as possible to reach the page count, then get motivated again at the end just to finish the conclusion. They always had their bugs, but lately it’s felt soulless.
In the Ubisoft trading community that I mentioned, some folks blamed UbiSoft’s downfall for “being woke”. As if Ubisoft’s blind chasing of money, abandoning most of their IP, selling broke products, and last but not least an executive telling consumers to get used to not owning games are not bigger factors.
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