Throughout it all, it was patently obvious that PSN and Xbox Live couldn’t measure up to the juggernaut that was Steam. The last reported number was more than 100 million registered users with the recent record of concurrent players online being 8.5 million. Taking the Steam experience into the living room for players to enjoy higher grade sound systems and TVs was an unorthodox decision by Valve but one that seemed like it could work.

Fast forward to 2014 and many of us are still wondering if the Steam Machine is alive.

"Valve has been going back to the drawing board for its Steam Controller and promises to showcase Steam Machines front and centre at the upcoming Game Developers Conference 2014."

This isn’t to say that the culture of living room PCs is dead or dying. In fact, several different types of configurations released throughout 2014, some tied to the Steam moniker and others existing on their own. It’s not as if the success of Steam was declining either. So what happened?

Valve has been going back to the drawing board for its Steam Controller and promises to showcase Steam Machines front and centre at the upcoming Game Developers Conference 2014. However, there’s far less hype now than there was before. Much of that could be attributed to the blockbuster success of the PS4, followed by a strong showing from the Xbox One and Nintendo Wii U.

The past year saw a variety of different games and shockingly enough, the adoption rate for the new hardware was exponentially higher than past iterations of both the PlayStation and Xbox. Perhaps this was due to the many revolutionary features that the PS4 and Xbox One brought about, namely the power of the former and the all-in-one media solution of the latter. It should also be noted that many cross-generational games leaned much further towards the current gen consoles in terms of visual superiority.

Sure, you could still play Destiny on the PS3 and Xbox 360 but the visual quality on the PS4 and Xbox One showcased a far bigger leap than, say, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag did.

Nintendo’s case in 2014 was different with Super Smash Bros., Hyrule Warriors, Bayonetta 2, Mario Kart 8 and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker proving that consumers will invest in new hardware if the games are up to scratch.

"Till now, Valve has yet to deliver a compelling reason to warrant the Steam Machine’s existence – which is fascinating because the developer has a history of always delivering, consequences and delays be damned."

What does a Steam Machine bring to the table then? How does it differentiate from the latest round of consoles in terms of the living room experience? For that matter, how is it better than a normal living room PC or a desktop PC? How is it superior to a gaming notebook or even a hybrid ultrabook like the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 2 which delivers a high resolution display and enough power to handle the majority of available Steam games (with better avenues for portability)?

Does a Steam Machine cater to the hardcore Dota 2 or Counter-Strike player? If this is indeed supposed to be Steam in the living room, what other benefits does it provide other than the ability to play one’s HDTV?

Till now, Valve has yet to deliver a compelling reason to warrant the Steam Machine’s existence – which is fascinating because the developer has a history of always delivering, consequences and delays be damned. Some of the greatest aspects of PC gaming came from this philosophy, from Steam to Half Life 2.

The “solution” for PC gaming doesn’t seem to be taking it into the living room though. Fitting the PC experience into a setting that a console player would feel more comfortable with isn’t the right choice either. So rather than asking what’s happened to Valve’s Steam Machines, the more important question right now seems to be, “What could possibly happen?”

Those answers still elude us as the popularity of the PS4 and Xbox One continues to grow. Valve may eventually throw a curve ball into the mix and convince us that we’ve wanted a Steam Machine all this time but just didn’t know it. Until then though, the “wait and watch” approach continues.

When Valve Software first announced its proprietary Steam Machines, along with the Steam Controller and Steam OS, many believed it would herald a new age of living room PCs. However, there’s been hardly any news on the same in recent months, leading to Origin PC manufacturer CEO Kevin Wasielewski proclaiming their death and the existence of living room PCs independent of Steam Machines.

This doesn’t mean Valve has dropped the device. Speaking to Game Informer, Valve denied that its Steam Machines were dead and that, “We’re planning a very large presence at GDC with Steam Machines being front and centre.”

Hopefully there will be some clarification at GDC 2015, which takes place on March 2nd to 6th. Valve’s hardware proposition may not be dead but it looks to be lost at sea, especially since the release of the Xbox One and PS4. Stay tuned for more information on the hardware in the coming months.

It will probably take forever for Valve to release the much awaited sequel to Half Life 2 but in the mean time we can keep ourselves occupied with some awesome Half Life videos. Fan made Half Life videos are nothing new and in fact, the absence of Half Life 3 has resulted into a renewed interest in user generated Half Life content.

We came across this short but amazing fan made Half Life 2 video developed by Deviant Pictures Films. Developed using the Source Filmmaker, this Half Life 2 themed video is about the harsh realities of City 17’s Civil Protection. Although never showcased, the video depicts torture and how one of the enemies can’t stand this injustice and becomes a Protector.

The only thing which put me a bit off is the music. I am sure the developers could have gone for a better score but regardless take a look. It will be well worth your time and might very well hold you over till Half Life 3 comes out.

Thanks, Kotaku.

With Valve showing no interest to announced the next entry in the Half Life series, Half Life 3, something interesting happened over the last couple of days. The owners of the Half-life3.com domain have apparently let it to expire. The domain was first registered in 1999 and previously it was redirected to Half Life 2’s site.

The domain now simply directs to a parking page which is kind of weird since why would anyone change it after 15 long years is beyond us. Another point to be noted here is that Valve are not listed as registrants of this domain but the same information is also present on their steampowered.com domain, which Valve does own. So it is not clear who actually owns the domain.

So what does this mean? It could mean that Valve might have redirected the domain on purpose or some guy who registered it forgot about it. OR it could also mean that Valve might be launch a new website for Half Life 3. Whatever it is, Valve have always been very secretive about Half Life 3 so far and its not a stretch to think this is some sort of a ruse from Valve. This has obviously led to more hype and renewed interest for Half Life 3 across Reddit and several internet forums. We will keep you updated as it develops.

Thanks, Huffingtonpost.

With Valve apparently not interested in announcing Half Life 3 anytime soon, people have opted to invest their time in doing strange things. A couple of days ago, the reader blog at Jalopnik  got a deal wherein they can get their names on a car that was participating in Germany’s 24 Hours Nürburgring race for less money.

This is obviously a major racing event in Germany and getting your name on a car for just $10 is a steal. However, not everyone went ahead and sent their real names. One reader named Savant spent $10 and sent ‘Half Life 3 Confirmed’ instead. The name appeared on an Audi TTRS which by the way is driven by one of the most active member of the Jalopnik’s community.

Kudos to Savant who apparently did a better job of confirming Half Life 3 than Valve could ever do. At least it’s better than the bloke who launched a Half Life 3 kickstarter last week. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section below.

Source: Kotaku

This is rather hilarious. Someone actually started a Kickstarter project for Half Life 3 and guess what? It got cancelled almost immediately after its launch. Launched by some bloke in the UK, the Kickstarter project promises to deliver the game by April 2015, along with Alpha and Beta Testing in the lead up to the launch.

“We are looking to create a full playable game of half-life 3 as we feel the game needs a continuation which we loved playing so much and as valve seem set on not re-creating a half life 3 then we are looking to steal the market for this ourselves,” the page states.

This really makes me wonder how was this project approved by Kickstarter in the first place. Anyways. If only Valve would listen to its fan base and just announce the damn thing already. At least the fans will keep themselves busy into something worthwhile instead of launching these meaningless Kickstarters. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section below.

If there’s one thing that most gamers can agree on it, it’s the universal hype for Half Life 3. It currently exists in a flux state of existing and not existing, as Valve Software itself is unsure what to do with the game. So what is Managing Director of Equity Research at Wedbush Securities Michael Pachter’s opinion on the game’s delay? Is it too focused on free to play titles like Dota 2 and its digital service Steam to care about crafting another single-player epic like Half Life 3?

According to Pachter, “I think Valve is a brilliant company, and I think – they won’t do this, but I think it would be brilliant of them – that they release Half Life 3, and they make it exclusive to Steam Machine, because that would sell 10 million Steam Machines right there. So, I don’t know what they’re doing, but it’s possible they’re doing something just like that. I mean, they could put it out on PC and sell 15 million copies just like that, but I do wonder if part of the delay involved is somehow tying it in with the Steam Machine.”

As for the current direction of the Steam Machines, especially since Valve hasn’t been able to deliver a concise message thus far, Pachter said, “It’s very expensive. And there’s really not any justification to buy one, unless you’re an uber hardcore PC gamer, and you have a very strong desire to play in your living room, and you’re somehow not technologically capable or inclined to connect your PC to your TV, because if anyone really wants to, they can just use their TV as a monitor, and just play their PC games on the TV that way. But I will say, the way that Steam Machine sells and gets content is for Valve to create that content, and the best content they have is Half Life 3, I think.”

Valve has said time and time again that it won’t be creating exclusive titles for the Steam Machine/SteamOS. Could that change down the line? Let us know what you think in the comments.

A “trusted hardware source” that spoke to PC Gamer has apparently revealed the release window for Valve’s upcoming Steam Controller which will be used in conjunction with the upcoming Steam Machines. The controller will apparently be out by October or November this year, which indicates that the hardware could be available this Christmas.

Another rumour suggesting the console will be available after the controller indicates that. The same source also indicated that there will be roughly 500 games that natively support SteamOS by 2014 end.

Remember, this is all still rumour so take it with a grain of salt. Nonetheless, it indicates both that Valve is moving along with production and that ample preparations are being made for support. The question, with more next gen titles to be out by Autumn/Winter this year for PS4 and Xbox One, can SteamOS and the Steam Machines possibly compete? Stay tuned for more information.

Leaving aside the fact that Epic Games sold off the Gears of War license to Microsoft and is generally cooperative with the latter, Epic Games founder Tim Sweeney recently expressed his concerns about Windows 8 to Polygon, especially regarding the operating system’s closed nature compared to the likes of Steam Machines.

“I genuinely worry about the future of Microsoft. They’ve locked down this Windows 8. They say future app developers should focus there, but you can only ship that with Microsoft’s permission and Microsoft’s approval through Microsoft’s store. And that sucks compared to the open nature of the PC platform before…”

In comparison, Valve’s Steam Machines are regarded by Sweeney as the “most open high-end gaming platform ever.”

However, Sweeney does believe that Microsoft will be more open thanks to recent changes in management, especially with regards to the recently revealed DirectX 12. “I sense kind of a renaissance at MS in the last six months. Talking to the DirectX team for example, they’re making some brilliant decisions on DirectX 12 to make it more efficient and more open than ever before. You just generally sense a momentum to be more open with the community and more broad with their Windows strategy. I’m hoping that takes root.”

What are your thoughts on Microsoft’s PC gaming strategy? Let us know below.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced today that Gauntlet will be reborn as a new action RPG this summer, coming to Steam with full support for SteamOS as well as the Steam Machines that will be going live… well, some time in the future.

The game is being developed by Arrowhead Studios, and will further improve on the base that the classic game established- there will be four character classes, each with its unique traits, and a distinctive artstyle. The dungeons will also all be procedurally generated.

“With Gauntlet we combined the arcade style of the original game with an entirely new look and feature set that includes emergent, local and online four-player gameplay,” said David Haddad, Senior Vice President, Digital Games, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “Gauntlet will be the first title in the WB Games Vault portfolio, which will provide us with an opportunity to access emerging talent within the game development community and match unique skills and experience with our extensive library of properties.”

“To us at Arrowhead, Gauntlet is one of the most defining games from our childhoods, and it’s amazing to be able to work with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment on a brand new version,” said Johan Pilestedt, CEO of Arrowhead Game Studios.  “Gauntlet is one of the original and best known video game properties and we are looking forward to creating a fresh, yet true to the original, take on a multiplayer masterpiece.”

We’ll have more for you on the game soon as it develops. In the meanwhile, check out the trailer above.