One of the first things we did after we touched down in Las Vegas was head to Valve’s press event where they were unveiling the Steam Machine and their 13 manufacturing partners.
We’d already told you about the 12 companies that are developing Steam Machines, Gabe Newell took the stage at the event to announce a last minute console developer. The event was a far cry from exhilarating, but it was exciting to see and touch something that’s been churning in the proverbial rumor mill for over a year and a half now.
Steam Machine Pictures, Because Everyone Loves Pictures
First Hands on With the Steam Machine
Our hands on with the Steam Machine consisted of a bit of Portal 2 and Metro: Last Light. Our experience with both games can be described as painful. It’s obvious that there’s a bit of a learning curve with the machine as a whole, particularly the controller.
The controller feels good in your hands, but the combination of an insane number of buttons being packed so close together may be too much to get acclimatized to. Also, the controller has no directional pad, which is probably the most frustrating part.
To its credit, the Steam Machine controller has many some things going for it. Aside from the part that it’s great to hold, it’s also really light, and the tactile rings are convenient.
Overall, we’re not too impressed with the Steam Machine at all, and we’ll leave it at that.
