Can someone explain the purpose of the Steam Machine to me?

[chris_wing]

Soleron said:

chris_wing said:

To provide a simple living room Steam gaming experience that doesn't rely on Microsoft technology (expensive license),

That's why they're all as expensive as the Microsoft Xbox One or more right?

As for simple - as an uninformed consumer which model do I buy? How do I know what games it'll run? What's "streaming"?

and to foster development of Linux games and drivers that can then migrate back to other Linux distros improving the over all state of Linux gaming& to help level the playing field against Windows based PC's that have traditionally had the lions share of games developed for it & only it.

How does this help Valve or its customers.

That's no explanation at all. What is the purpose for the consumer?

Less expensive then a Windows based PC, by exactually the cost of a Windows license, not hard to follow.

Which model do you buy?  the one that you can afford (pre built units will have Steam Machine rating scores, see below).

How do you know what games it will run?  By the Steam Machine product rating (not yet implemented) that will evaluate your machine, give you a score, and then you make sure the games you buy are playable with that score.  Steam my even notify you before adding games to your cart that are above your score to avoid buying games you can't run.

What's streaming?  Like netflix, but with games.

How does this help Valve or it's customers?  Valve is trying to break from it's dependance on Microsoft who are trying to close in on their market.  It helps valves customers who want a living room Steam experience but don't want to deal with Windows (raises hand).  It also will eventually improve the Linux games library, support and driver performance for all Linux Steam users as the advances made migrate back to the other distros.