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Even though Steam has put a dampener on Steam Machine plans by announcing that SteamOS will be delayed to at least 2015 “to fix issues with the Steam Controller”, partners to the project are still continuing to design, prototype and demonstrate their own Steam Boxes ready for sale as soon as SteamOS officially launches. Taking the stage again to kick off today’s action for day two of COMPUTEX Taiwan, ASUS announced two new Steam Machines under it’s gaming-orientated brand, ASUS ROG.
While both machines may run SteamOS, the two ASUS ROG Steam Machines share very little in common when it comes to either size or features. We’ll start with the smaller machine first – the ASUS ROG GR8 (ten bucks says you’ll pronounce that like “great”) comes equipped with a Core i7 processor and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti graphics card inside, but is incredibly slim – ASUS wouldn’t give the exact dimensions, but did state it took no more than “2.5 litres” of space on a desk. The device is also capable of supporting 4K HD output – though you’ll have to supply your own screen – and also supports Miracast, making it a plausible console alternative. ASUS claim the device’s size-to-power ratio is the best it’s ever made.
Meanwhile, the ROG G20 is not only bigger, but more powerful as well. While it keeps the Core i7 Processor of its smaller sibling, the G20 swaps the graphical chippery for the GeForce GTX 780 – truly a gaming machine. ASUS claims that because it uses a hidden airflow tunnel for cooling, it’s capable of “near silent” operation; and has supposedly measured it to emit just 25dB of noise while idle. We at Sanitarium.FM point out that an idling machine is always quieter than one actually being used for gaming, which is what SteamOS is primarily about, and the real test for how “quiet” a machine may be is in measuring its loudness during a hardcore gaming session. The hidden airflow tunnel does, however, result in a machine that has no visible exhaust system whatsoever, which is unusual for gaming-orientated computers. For that added touch of class, the G20 also has built-in lighting – and even here ASUS feel the need to show off, claiming that the lighting is capable of cycling through millions of colour shades. Really, ASUS? Millions?
ASUS have decided to withhold further details of both Steam Machines until Valve reveal their own Roadmap for Steam OS’ eventual launch, which as stated at the top of this article has suffered some delays. Additionally, as is typical of Computex reveals, ASUS are currently keeping mum on expected retail prices for the machines as well. We expect more details to appear alongside Valve’s next announcement.
A classic RTS game is to return with an upgraded look and enhanced features next month. Set to be sold on Steam by new owners Skybox Labs, the new Rise of Nations hopes to capture the elements that made it originally a well-received game while providing a smooth updated feel.
Originally developed by Big Huge Games, Rise of Nations combined two of the other best-selling strategy games – Civilization and Age of Empires – into a game that made use of some of the best parts of each back in 2003. Big Huge Games was eventually acquired by 38 Studios and along with other properties, Rise of Nations was snapped up at auction by Skybox after 38 Studios went into liquidation. Skybox have also touched up other classic property Age of Mythology, so they’re not new to the game of enhancing older games.
The new Rise of Nations Enhanced Edition will include both the base game and the Thrones & Patriots expansion, and comes with upgraded graphics, fixes to allow the game to run better with newer hardware as well as Steamworks and Twitch integration to allow for easy multiplayer connection and streaming respectively. It’s also available with a 20 percent discount if pre-ordered.
Today I decided to take a look at the game T.E.C. 3001. While this game has been on Xbox Live Indie Games for quite a few years, it recently came out on Steam. T.E.C. 3001 is an endless runner game where you play a robot that needs to collect leftover energy for humanity.
There are a few ways to play this game. There is both Singleplayer and Multiplayer modes. Unfortunately Multiplayer is only Local. So there is no playing with friends unless they are in the same room as you. Anyway, in Singleplayer, you can either do the Campaign Mode or the Endless Mode. The Campaign Mode consists of 41 levels which vary between 3 different race types: Speed Run, Drag Race, and Free Run.
The first mode, Speed Run, is a mode where you are set to 3 lanes on a track and you dodge obstacles by just movie left or right. You can also can jump and slide under obstacles as well.
The second mode, Drag Race, has you stuck to the middle of the track, you can’t move left or right. You need to reach the end within a certain time. To do this you need to activate boosts as you run over them. Each time you hit it right you get an extra boost. If you activate it too early or too late you get slowed down. You are also required to jump or slide under obstacles as you run as well.
The third mode, Free Run, is probably the harder of the modes. This mode gives you free movement anywhere on the track. These levels usually have multiple paths you can go, a lot of times making you jump from one path too another to get around obstacles.
You will have to manage your speed on some rounds for if you are going too fast or too slow it can mean the death of you. For example if you are going too fast around a sharp bend you are most likely to go flying off the edge. If you end up being too slow at a certain jump you may not make it to the next platform.
Another way to play the game in Singleplayer is the Endless Mode. This is basically a Free Run mode where you try to last as long as you can. As you go, you end up getting faster and faster till almost everything is just a blur around you.
As I mentioned earlier there is also a Local Multiplayer mode where you can play split screen vs a friend. You can race on all three of the modes in game: Free Run, Drag Race, and Speed Run.
T.E.C 3001 is a good game to hop on and off if you are craving some high octane fun. This game can get frustrating at times when you can seem to beat a level. Some levels, especially the Free Run ones, can be really challenging at times, but when you finally beat them you can’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment. You would most likely find yourself going back to older levels to try to get better scores.
The gameplay, the music, and the general look of T.E.C 3001 make this an awesome game to have in your collection if you are looking for a challenging, high energy game. Also it is pretty cheap ;).
You can buy it on Steam, as well as on the Xbox 360 though the Xbox Live Store.
Got Steam? Have you got multiple computers at home (or wherever you usually do your gaming)? Are they networked? If you answered “yes” to all of these, then this news might interest you.
Three months ago, Valve enabled ‘Family Sharing’ for all Steam users, to allow customers who know each other to share their libraries of games among one another (with some restrictions). Today Valve have launched a feature that takes it even further, letting users stream installed Steam games on any machine with any other computer on the same local network.
By logging into the same Steam account on two connected computers, Steam will now allow a remote computer to install, launch and play games by streaming them from the computer they were first installed on, allowing less powerful computers and laptops to stream games from a high-end gaming computer (for example) and enjoy the games just like they were installed on that computer, but with performance closer to that of the high-end computer since it’ll do all the work instead. Assuming a solid internet connection, this potentially means even an old junker can now play top-end Steam titles with little effort required.
Games can be transferred from the host computer to another – and vice versa – at any time, even mid-play. Bandai Namco Games has even stated that with a proper set-up, gamers might even “forget” they’re playing the game remotely instead of locally – or so claims a quote attributed to the company on Steam’s in-home streaming page.
While the feature at the moment is restricted to Windows-based PCs, Steam state they will attempt to introduce it to MacOS and Linux versions of the system in the future – given the company’s desire to improve gaming on non-Windows PCs, I expect we’ll hear about this very soon indeed. We assume this will also include SteamOS, being a Linux variant of Valve’s own design – if so, the new Streaming capabilities open up a whole realm of possibilities. Raspberry Pi-based SteamOS Gaming Computer for little more than the cost of a screen, keyboard and mouse, anyone?
