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Steam Founder Gabe Newell Says Apple Could Be Biggest Player in Games Market
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Bumped up Apple TV with a bit more storage space (64gb ideally), with access to games Via the Appstore and a bluetooth controller, allow the controller to be paired with iPhones, iPod touches, and iPads, which would also run the same games, from the same store,
Buy a game once, and it plays on all your devices, iCloud saves,
Sold, now release it, shut up and take my money !!
yeah and we can all play iOS games (aka mobile games).
The current ARM based hardware is nowhere near powerful for 'real' games. you try running something like Grand Theft Auto, Formula 1 or Far Cry 3 on an iPhone.
It is possible, but at the moment it appears Apple knows of nothing but casual gaming and are useless for people who want something more than a five minute game of chopping fruit at the bus stop.
They'll need to take gaming a little more seriously to achieve this.
They'll need to take gaming a little more seriously to achieve this.
Sorry, but this guy is out of his mind. There is no way apple will enter the gaming industry. I love apple but it's on it's way down already. The iphone is already showing its age and they just can't seem to innovate anymore. Not the way they did with the original iphone. The ipad is a paper weight, and Apple TV can use a lot of work. On the other hand, I love MacBooks! Best laptops around. So, no to gaming. I would be more impressed if they decided to make the ipad useful. They need to kill iOS and put OS11 on the next ipad.
Thats not true at all. The facts are that Nintendo's overall portfolio is one of the strongest in the industry. Much like Apple, they have an insanely huge and fanatic base that'll buy anything they put out. They've got a ton of big name franchises that have been multi-platinum hits for 20 years, and they don't need the half-billion dollar budgets of a game like Battlefield. Companies like EA and Ubisoft are only competitive because they are prolific.
I totally agree. Nintendo has the best games around. None of that black ops ********. Those games are mental masturbation. Nintendo games are just good old fashion fun. Just take a look at the vita. What a waste of good hardware. I'll take the 3ds xl any day over the vita.
Please no.
Retro gaming in an Apple world is a tough challenge.
Some years down the road lots of your iOS apps won't even properly open or play anymore, because Apple loves deprecating parts of the OS both on desktop as well as in mobile devices.
I know Window's future is all awkward, but at least it works well for games.
Everything else is gladly done in OS X.
Glassed Silver:mac
Retro gaming in an Apple world is a tough challenge.
Some years down the road lots of your iOS apps won't even properly open or play anymore, because Apple loves deprecating parts of the OS both on desktop as well as in mobile devices.
I know Window's future is all awkward, but at least it works well for games.
Everything else is gladly done in OS X.
Glassed Silver:mac
Phone games are not even real games. Besides how come they dont say how many of the app downloads are games and how many are fart apps, flashlights, ect.?
I know where you're coming from but this game for example is amazing....
Table Top Racing
If they can get games like this to Airplay to an Apple TV then things will get very interesting.
In terms of Mac gaming, it was. At least back in the late 90's. Halo was set to release on the Mac in 1999/2000. When Microsoft bought Bungie, that prospect ended. Gaming on the Mac was already bleak. With the loss of Bungie, future prospects of Mac gaming seemed even worse....and it was until the turnaround events in the 2000's.
Phone games are not even real games. Besides how come they dont say how many of the app downloads are games and how many are fart apps, flashlights, ect.?
What do you define as a "real game"? There are plenty of iOS games that provide just as much playability as a game on a console or PC. Me and buddy play L4D2 all the time against each other and then compare our Happy Street scores.
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I could see Apple being on the forefront of gaming, they already got a head start with the App Store, Game Center, Apple TV, Mac Mini. Beef up the Mini, better incorporate Game Center and the App Store for gaming and they're good to go.
Thanks for the heads-up. I love racing games (have most of the other mini-racing games, Mini Motor Racing, Reckless Racing, Death Rally etc.), I'm actually surprised there aren't more of them on the App Store. Downloading this one now.
You can’t play touch screen games on a TV because you need to watch the touch screen to be sure you’re on the buttons. That is one of the things keeping me from getting the Wii U.
Like many, I don't believe gaming is in Apple's DNA. I think that on this one, they should partner with those who "know gaming". Of all, Valve would be a prime candidate.
But in a way or another, they should invade the gaming market: so many people hold onto Windows only for gaming purposes. I am one... I use Mac for everything but I have a monster beast of a PC for gaming.
But in a way or another, they should invade the gaming market: so many people hold onto Windows only for gaming purposes. I am one... I use Mac for everything but I have a monster beast of a PC for gaming.
Sorry, I thought the Apple/Bungie/Microsoft story was well known.
The move by Apple to embrace Bungie with Halo was seen as an attempt to breathe a little life into the Mac games market. If memory serves, it was already in decline.
Microsoft jumped, and bought Bungie. What was to have been a Mac/Windows game turned into an X-box exclusive. Bungie became what we all know today. This was pretty much the final nail in the coffin for Mac gaming, and embarrassing for Apple, because they were the ones who first promoted the game. So I would be very surprised if Apple dips their fingers into ANY gaming endeavour. The last two big pushes that I can remember both ended in disaster for them.
Oh. Wow, that's too bad. I wasn't aware of all that.
I thought maybe it was something embarrassing, like Steve Jobs getting up in front of a huge audience and blue-screening himself into a game in order to show his support of gaming. Not that anyone would ever do that . . .
They don't really need to "do" much to take on the gaming market - iOS gaming thrived with little or no support or push from Apple. Apple just created the market and the gaming companies filled the void.
But some moves - such as Apple refusing to release a reasonably priced Mac with upgradable graphics, and not enabling apps on the AppleTV - seem to be almost actively fighting against (non-mobile) gaming.
I LOVE Apple, but gaming is not their strong point. They do not understand it at all. iOS is a great platform, but most of the games are utter garbage. Sometimes you just need a standard controller, other times, it's the business model that's at fault. There is too much free crap. And the worst trend is the "free" version that is anything but if you want to actually enjoy the game. People whine about any game costing more than $2, it's insane. Now developers are afraid to charge a sustainable price for any of their games and the quality of the games available suffers because of it.
Eventually
More and more MAC clients are coming out for games because the MAC OS is gaining steam (no pun intended...well kinda).
I've been gaming for a long time, built custom machines with the latest and greatest but I found my 27 inch Mac I bought about 2 years ago to be really solid. I don't have any issues with the high end game I play. Lots of players have trouble with their PC's with hardware failures. I don't want to be a PC hobbyist anymore. I could care less what graphics card I have as long as I'm having a good experience with the content.
I actually do bootcamp Windows 7 because some of the MAC client issues on some games. It works great. The only thing I haven't gotten to work is the Apple provided headphones microphone to work with Windows 7 so I got a separate headset. I prefer the earbuds because the headset is uncomfortable after wearing it.
Point is, I hope Apple gets in the game, (ugh another pun) more competition in this space is good. I really enjoy all of my Apple products for content consumption and gaming seems to be the next logical step. They could do something no one else has done with the money that have piled up.
More and more MAC clients are coming out for games because the MAC OS is gaining steam (no pun intended...well kinda)
.I've been gaming for a long time, built custom machines with the latest and greatest but I found my 27 inch Mac I bought about 2 years ago to be really solid. I don't have any issues with the high end game I play. Lots of players have trouble with their PC's with hardware failures. I don't want to be a PC hobbyist anymore. I could care less what graphics card I have as long as I'm having a good experience with the content.
I actually do bootcamp Windows 7 because some of the MAC client issues on some games. It works great. The only thing I haven't gotten to work is the Apple provided headphones microphone to work with Windows 7 so I got a separate headset. I prefer the earbuds because the headset is uncomfortable after wearing it.
Point is, I hope Apple gets in the game, (ugh another pun) more competition in this space is good. I really enjoy all of my Apple products for content consumption and gaming seems to be the next logical step. They could do something no one else has done with the money that have piled up.
It's strange that he says this, but I think it's true. I heard that Valve was working on a "Steam box" which is technically a console for Steam games, but then apparently that won't or wasn't going to happen. I think gaming doesn't deserve its own expensive device, for most people, so it makes sense.
It's also interesting that he says Apple has a big opportunity in gaming, since the Mac has never been a good platform for games until Steam became available on OS X, and iPhone/iPad games are very different than the typical Steam games: they're casual and simple, and quite disposable (you'll play Angry Birds for a bit of time but you won't come back to it all the time and it won't be your favorite game for the next 5 years).
Maybe the Apple TV could become a "console" of sorts that could be coupled with a controller and work with "proper" Steam-like games… But then you can already do that with a Mac. Maybe he just means that there's a new category of casual gaming, and it's becoming increasingly important.
If we see a console from Apple, I wonder If it'd be called iGame
Maybe they'll call it Pippin?
Steam is a great product, and I greatly admire Gabe and what Valve does. But I think he's wrong. I think the Steam Box will have limited penetration into the living room because Valve does not have a rapport with the average consumer, nor will that consumer be inclined to put a whole PC in their living room when the consumer electronics trend is towards low power, dedicated set top and streaming boxes. Those devices are taking on the capabilities of what enthusiasts have been using HTPCs for, further eliminating the need for such devices.
And if the Steam Box wants to compete with the average console, it has to do it on a cost basis. When a next generation console launches, to get the same performance out of a PC, you're likely going to spend double, or at least 50% more of what the console cost. That will erode over time, but then what is your model? More frequent updates like mobile hardware? Sure, they can market that you have your games wherever you have steam, but if Sony and MS have streaming ambitions (Sony's Gakai acquisition suggests so), they may be on their way to enabling remote play themselves, either via a vita, PC, tablet, or what have you.
The Steam Box has very little novel value proposition for the average consumer, and that's why I don't think it will gain good traction with consumers. It may win over the people that already use Steam, but those are dedicated gamers already. Steam made PC gaming easier and more accessible, but that didn't drive people back in droves. That just convinced the people already there that the open nature of the PC was working and the proper things were being leveraged to make it a compelling experience from a purchaser's standpoint.
And if the Steam Box wants to compete with the average console, it has to do it on a cost basis. When a next generation console launches, to get the same performance out of a PC, you're likely going to spend double, or at least 50% more of what the console cost. That will erode over time, but then what is your model? More frequent updates like mobile hardware? Sure, they can market that you have your games wherever you have steam, but if Sony and MS have streaming ambitions (Sony's Gakai acquisition suggests so), they may be on their way to enabling remote play themselves, either via a vita, PC, tablet, or what have you.
The Steam Box has very little novel value proposition for the average consumer, and that's why I don't think it will gain good traction with consumers. It may win over the people that already use Steam, but those are dedicated gamers already. Steam made PC gaming easier and more accessible, but that didn't drive people back in droves. That just convinced the people already there that the open nature of the PC was working and the proper things were being leveraged to make it a compelling experience from a purchaser's standpoint.