Much discussion about Valve’s Steam Machine has focused on pricing since its official announcement, especially amid rising hardware costs amid RAM and storage shortages. Despite warnings that people might hate the actual price of the Steam Engine following early leaks, many were hoping for more accessible prices. Steam Machine finally has a release date, and we now know that it costs over $1,049, which isn’t exactly what you’d describe as budget-friendly. Additionally, some have rightly pointed out that console prices, while also affected by supply chain constraints, remain subsidized and cheaper, at least for hardware only. Pricing debates aside, we still have some positive news to look forward to. If you can’t afford the new Steam machine, don’t want to spend that much, or just can’t get past difficult reservations like we saw with Valve’s new Steam controller, you can make your own.
Starting with SteamOS 3.8, available now, “you can assemble your own steam machine using any parts you want,” according to Valve’s Pierre-Loup Griffais per The Verge. In other words, you can install SteamOS on your own hardware. Although technically this has been possible for some time, only AMD hardware was supported. Valve specifically mentions that they are now working on Nvidia driver support with a “growing team” at the helm. SteamOS will support a variety of hardware at some point – not necessarily yet. It’s not a stretch to imagine SteamOS-powered mini PCs and small form factor configurations as a top choice for good old-fashioned living room gaming when the time comes.
It’s not yet time to upgrade from Windows 11
Windows 11 is known for its performance and user experience issues, especially for modern games, and despite incremental improvements, things remain controversial. However, anyone looking to move away from Windows 11 will need to have a little patience. In that same interview with The Verge, Valve’s Griffais makes it clear that installing SteamOS isn’t ready for prime time. There is a SteamOS installer, but it doesn’t support dual boot yet. You can’t “easily move another operating system and partition your hard drive.” Additionally, Nvidia’s hardware support won’t be streamlined and ready for a while, probably not until next year.
Valve’s announcement of the Steam Machine was met with enthusiasm as it seemed better suited to gaming, much like the Steam Deck. Even with high prices for official hardware, a more open SteamOS offers significant potential for custom builds or compatible hardware elsewhere, like pre-built or mini PCs. This movement should open up a lot of customization, with lower to mid-quality solutions now possible on top of what Valve is cooking up with the Steam Engine, offering a lot more variety.
Griffais explains that the current version of SteamOS is best suited to already compatible hardware that is used as a console, for example when used with a TV or for couch gaming. Linux is an alternative to Windows 11, and has been for a while, with various distributions available for general use or gaming, Bazzite being a great example, so there are options. If you don’t want to wait for Valve’s operating system, you can always turn your old PC into a TV gaming console with Big Picture mode.
