Harrison: Microsoft is watching what Valve does 'with great interest'

[Dohc-WP]

With this week's SteamOS and Steam Machines reveal, Valve's grand step into the living room might make the other major inhabitants uneasy. Microsoft's corporate VP Phil Harrison acknowledged the Steam creators in a recent interview with Eurogamer, saying that "Valve is a very impressive company, and obviously we're going to be watching what they do with great interest."

While the Xbox One's impending launch is set for November 22, Harrison recently said in his Eurogamer Expo keynote that the console will be around for ten years. Valve's Steam Machines doesn't seem to impact that projection.

"I think the death of the video game console was prematurely announced," Harrison continued, going back to an earlier question in the interview about the future of gaming consoles. "Clearly there is a lot of excitement around gaming in the living room on the biggest screen in the house, often times connected to a great sound system and creating that real intensely high quality game experience with a very powerful CPU and a very powerful GPU."

"Our point of view, clearly, is that Xbox One is the best incarnation of that, but competition is good," he said. If Microsoft wants to watch Valve's approach closer, its best bet is getting in on the Steam Machines hardware beta, which includes the Steam Controller announced today.

Source: Eurogamer

 

[Lycanthrope]

I dunno, it's hard to take Microsoft as seriously these days as it was before. The Xbone and Win8 make it seem very clear to me that "the industry" has become tired of Microsoft telling them how things are going to be done and have, instead, decided to show Microsoft a thing or two.

To be honest, I can't say I'd be sad should Linux become a viable gaming operating system. Considering how closely consoles are trying to emulate PCs in a simple living-room environment (indie games, multimedia, gaming, etc) for the masses more and more with each passing generation, I think it's a natural progression that Microsoft's monopoly on both gaming and computer operating systems is becoming obsolete.

Either Microsoft ups their game significantly or they will end up being a memory. I figure they've had a long run, but being out of touch with what their customers want and refusing to be flexible and open is going to cost them.

 

[DieGrootHammer]

It seems as if Microsoft is getting abandoned by the industry it once ruled. With Steam making a move to Linux, and giving us gaming in our living rooms; AMD and Radeon starting to move away from DirectX and Windows 8 not really getting the love it may or may not deserve; it doesn't paint a pretty picture for the future of Microsoft. It certainly feels like a coup d'état is being orchestrated against their mighty empire.

It's sad from a MS fan's point of view to see them floundering and not really being in touch with both the trends of the trade, and their consumers. At the end of the day it's a very good thing for us as the consumers, as the rest of the industry is taking the fight to MS, and all MS really can do is come out swinging. Either outcome will mean better innovation, better products, better services and more choice for us as gamers.

And that is the whole point of a competitive market. The stronger your competitors are, the more you have to ensure that your products are of the highest quality. The world is showing us that we do not need Microsoft and their products to have fun gaming, and it's MS's responsibility now to show us why we need them still. In any case, there are some really exciting times on the horizon, and it's a good time to be a gamer...