SteamOS

This current generation of consoles, both the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, did something substantially different from their predecessors. For the first time, they sported desktop PC components inside, practically making them special purpose PCs fine-tuned for gaming. That fact, of course, has piqued the curiosity of many modders and hackers in actually making those machines run a different operating system, usually Linux. One such modder is OsirisX, who has not only successfully loaded Linux on the PS4, but was able to get SteamOS games up and running at decent performance.

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Earlier this month, sad news was delivered to Linux gamers everywhere. Arkham Knight was canceled on their OS of choice (as well as on the Mac). Of course, with all of the issues that PC gamers encountered with the game since its original launch, it really wasn't much of a surprise to see it get canned on other platforms. Thankfully, there are other, better games that will see Linux releases.

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Some things that sound too good to be true sometimes do turn out to be such. A SteamOS PC gaming handheld might sound nice, offering the ultimate PC gaming on the go, but turning that dream into reality is going to take a lot more than just a nice idea and a couple of hundred thousand bucks. That's the reality that the team behind SMACH Z is now facing as they cancelled their Kickstarter campaign in order to re-evaluate their goals, requirements, and financial needs. In other words, back to the crowdfunding drawing board.

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While Valve has done a lot of work trying to push their SteamOS, it's still far from popular. And while we've seen a lot of games make their way to the platform, it's still missing a lot of big names. Today, Capcom announced that they are working closely with Valve to bring one of their biggest titles to the Linux-based OS.

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Wouldn't it be great if you could take and play your game anywhere? That has been one of the holy grails of gaming, which gave rise to handheld consoles and, now, mobile gaming on smartphones. Technology, however, may have reached a point where even PC games can be played on something as small as, say, a PS Vita. That's definitely the motivation behind SMACH Z, a handheld gaming device on Kickstarter that's taking the Steam Machine concept and SteamOS on the road.

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As of today, there are 1,699 games on Steam compatible with Linux. That's just one game short of a 1,700 of a significant milestone. But why the obsession with numbers on a platform traditionally associated more with servers and render farms and very rarely modern games? Because Valve has placed all its Steam OS eggs in one Linux basket and the adoption of the operating system in this market will ultimately seal the fate of what is perhaps the company's biggest, not to mention riskiest, business venture.

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You have to admit that Valve is a pretty interesting company when it comes to the world of gaming. They could have easily just been another great game developer with a strange fascination with hats. But instead, over the last decade, they have completely changed the way we play games on a PC. This started with their release of the Steam client, and more recently by developing an entire OS just for playing games. But how well do games perform on their SteamOS?

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Valve has made some interesting moves over the last few years, first announcing their own Linux-based OS specifically tailored for gaming, and then stepping into the hardware business. So far, they have only released a controller, and a streaming box, but they have started partnering with a few different companies to make “Steam Machines.” These are small, yet powerful boxes that run their special SteamOS, and give you more of a console-like experience. Today, ZOTAC has shown off their first Steam Machine, dubbed the ZOTAC NEN.

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Don't bother going out and buying a several thousand-dollar Steam Machine, Valve says you already have one at home. Requirements for installing SteamOS on the computer you already have are relatively low - just so long as you've been upgrading over the past couple of years. Installing and customizing SteamOS will require that your computer be wiped out - but once you do that, you'll be ready to roll. In other words: the Steam Machine you have at home isn't going to be your main desktop - it'll need to be a machine you don't use that often.

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Steam will be opening up shop within shop in your local game store soon, bringing Steam products to GameStop, GAME UK, and EB Games Canada. This new section in each of the stores will include sales of the Steam Controller, Steam Link, and a number of Steam Machines. Also present will be "a variety" of Steam-related prepaid cards. This team-up will be exclusive for all Steam Hardware products in the USA, UK, and Canada through the holidays - after that, all stores are fair game.

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Before today the device now known as "SMACH Zero" was far more recognizably called the "SteamBoy". Of course the company Smach Zero more than likely ran into some early legal trouble (or sensed trouble on the horizon) with such a name, so it's been changed to SMACH Zero. This device is a handheld gaming device that runs Valve's SteamOS. That means games from your Steam account accessible on a handheld mobile device.

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Back in September of 2013, Valve revealed SteamOS - now it's time for action. Here in June of 2015, just a bit under two years later, Valve's revealed the final iteration of the Steam Controller, the key to the system - the one component you can't buy anywhere else. Every other piece of this gaming environment can be had elsewhere, or run on a PC you've got at home. After months and months of preparation, Valve's presented a system they hope will take over your living room. Is it too late? Has the company lost all momentum? Is SteamOS dead in the water before it launches in ernest?

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