One of the reasons consoles are so compelling is that everything just works out of the box

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One of the reasons consoles are so compelling is that everything just works out of the box. You can buy hardware that’s as powerful as what everyone else has and expect that games will meet a minimum quality standard for years to come. The current spread of Steam Machine hardware is a confusing mess, and betrays the promise of console convenience.

Even though Alienware and Syber are now offering flagship devices, the "Steam Machine" is really just a blueprint for a console-like gaming PC that encourages manufacturers to focus on things like form, size, and noise. That has resulted in way too many options, which actually contradicts the vision of simplicity Valve is working toward. Even the "official" offerings from Alienware and buy csgo skins Syber range in price from $449 all the way up to $1,419 — at which point you have to ask, how is this different from shopping for a regular gaming PC? To add insult, Valve is offering Steam Machine preorders through the strangest of bedfellows: Gamestop.

There’s no clear reason for anyone to buy into Valve’s platform right now. The audience that might be most sympathetic to the idea, devoted PC gamers, are far better off just buying or building a Windows-based machine so they can take advantage of everything Steam and PC gaming has to offer. And there’s a lot to offer! The idea of the Steam Machine is actually really compelling, provided it brings everything that’s great about PC gaming to the couch. PC gaming has long had a leg-up over consoles in important areas: the games are usually cheaper, there’s a lot more indie stuff to play, the graphics are better, you can upgrade the hardware over time, and there’s a whole world of game modification that unlocks and transforms popular titles in weird and surprising ways. Instead of offering the best of both worlds, Steam Machines sit in a strange middle ground that’s too confusing and too compromised to make sense for anyone.