SISAREA

It was a beautiful dream, and someone even went to the trouble of pushing some decent proof, but for now at least Valve is denying any Linux version of Steam in the works. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, when asked about the Linux Steam rumors, Valve marketing VP Doug Lombardi dropped the word: “There’s no Linux version that we’re working on right now.” Of course, things can change, or Valve could be lying to our face in the interest of a good surprise, but for now we’re going assume the worst for our freedom-loving brethren. What, are those penguin tears we see? Don’t cry, Tux. Don’t cry.

Valve denies having a Linux version of Steam in the works originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Download Squad  |  GamesIndustry.biz  | Email this | Comments

No matter which three-legged sentry turret you pick, Steam games run fine if it houses a decent graphics card. That said, stick this in your breech and shoot it — the latest edition of Valve’s hardware survey shows the glossy white Apple models outgun Windows counterparts in a number of areas. Whereas the majority of Windows PCs have 2GB or 3GB of memory, 53 percent of Macs sport 4GB of RAM — though that’s likely attributable to the popularity of 32-bit OS. While 17 percent of Windows users are also stuck with a single CPU, over 90 percent of Macs running Steam have a dual-core… and internet connectivity’s biased towards Mac gamers too, with 65 percent reporting download speeds over 2Mbit compared to under half of PCs. Of course, where it truly counts for games, Macs still sorely lag behind; the top six Windows GPUs reported are all capable performers, but only 32.5 percent of Macs surveyed had anything but a bottom-barrel graphics card. Get with the times, Apple — even your mobile guys know gaming’s not a niche anymore.

[Thanks, Ryan B.]

Macs running Steam are more powerful than PCs, on average originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Jun 2010 01:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Steam Forums  |  Steam Hardware Survey (as of May 2010)  | Email this | Comments

Thanks to Valve, Mac users can finally claim to own a “gaming rig” without resorting to Boot Camp or causing PC gamers to burst into laughter. Sure, you’re still going to be better off cost-for-pixel-crunching with a mid-range PC desktop than anything Apple offers, but for a MacBook Pro user looking to get in a few frags during lunch, the arrival of Steam for Mac is probably the best news they’ve heard this year — and luckily that Source engine isn’t too hard on older hardware. Mostly the same crop of games that were available to beta testers are available in the final product, with Portal and Team Fortress 2 standing atop the heap (Portal’s even free for a limited time!), while Half-Life and Left 4 Dead remain notably absent. Check out Joystiq if you want a full breakdown of the games, including a few of the highlights, we have… um, some stuff to do. You know, boring work stuff. You probably wouldn’t be interested. Hit that source link for the download.

Update: We’re not seeing Team Fortress 2, and we’re not getting an option for picking up the Mac version of Civ IV, even though it’s a “Steam Play” title. The free Portal download isn’t working either, but at least we’re relatively certain that it will at some point.

Steam arrives for the Mac with 57 games in tow, all your PC using friends are really happy for you originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 May 2010 15:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq  |  Valve  | Email this | Comments

With that hotly-anticipated May 12th release date just around the corner, you might be wondering how Steam on Mac will perform. You’re in luck, because some of our favorite Mac news sites have just finished testing the software’s closed beta. The verdict? It’s practically the exact same as the Windows version, except there’s almost nothing to buy. Save for the Growl-like notifications at the top of the screen, the UI is all but indistinguishable, and as promised,data and purchases (if playable) automatically carry over in their entirety from your Windows Steam account. Team Fortress 2 even has cross-platform capability, allowing Mac users to play online with their Windows counterparts, though several journalists noted you might want to invest in a two-button wheel mouse if you don’t want to be found out. Source Engine performance on Mac wasn’t quite as good as on Windows in tests using the exact same hardware (thanks, Boot Camp), but admirably comes close nonetheless; Electronista was able to maintain a similar framerate in Portal just by disabling two levels of anti-aliasing. Not all Mac users will be able to partake in these games, however; though a MacBook Pro with a discrete 512MB GeForce 8600M card could run them well and a GeForce 9400M laptop managed on low settings, those with only integrated Intel graphics chips might find themselves in for a painful surprise.

Read – Electronista
Read – MacRumors
Read – MacWorld
Read – AppleInsider

Steam on Mac preview roundup: all but identical to PC originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 May 2010 18:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

There’s some old adage referring to smoke and fire meant to explain this phenomenon, but frankly, we’re too focused on the promise of the future to go and look it up. Merely weeks after the Steam for Mac beta proved that Linux support may be in the works, along comes this: two glorious screenshots proving as much. ‘Course, nothing much about this situation has changed, but having pictorial evidence that a Steam client exists in some stage for Linux is a boon for hopefuls. A Phoronix reader managed to snag a capture of the client working its magic early on, and while it’s pretty obvious that it’s not ready for primetime, we’re just stoked to see that there’s legitimate reason to believe such an app is on the way. Hang tight, Penguin Nation — your Steam should be just about the bend.

Screenshots emerge of Steam Linux client, BeOS wonders if it’s next originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 May 2010 14:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Phoronix  | Email this | Comments

Valve promised that Steam on Mac would arrive in April. As you’re no doubt aware, April is nearly over. Does that make Steam… vaporware? Not quite. Put away the Caruso sunglasses for two more weeks, because our friends at Joystiq just received a one-line email reading: “Valve today announced the public release of Steam for the Mac is May 12. Please stay tuned for more information.” Oh well — at least you’re not waiting for Steam on Linux, and you can always stock up on Razer peripherals while you endure the delay.

Steam for Mac opens a portal to May 12, steps through originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Joystiq  | Email this | Comments

Valve promised that Steam on Mac would arrive in April. As you’re no doubt aware, April is nearly over. Does that make Steam… vaporware? Not quite. Put away the Caruso sunglasses for two more weeks, because our friends at Joystiq just received a one-line email reading: “Valve today announced the public release of Steam for the Mac is May 12. Please stay tuned for more information.” Oh well — at least you’re not waiting for Steam on Linux, and you can always stock up on Razer peripherals while you endure the delay.

Steam for Mac opens a portal to May 12, steps through originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Joystiq  | Email this | Comments

Valve promised that Steam on Mac would arrive in April. As you’re no doubt aware, April is nearly over. Does that make Steam… vaporware? Not quite. Put away the Caruso sunglasses for two more weeks, because our friends at Joystiq just received a one-line email reading: “Valve today announced the public release of Steam for the Mac is May 12. Please stay tuned for more information.” Oh well — at least you’re not waiting for Steam on Linux, and you can always stock up on Razer peripherals while you endure the delay.

Steam for Mac opens a portal to May 12, steps through originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Joystiq  | Email this | Comments

Valve promised that Steam on Mac would arrive in April. As you’re no doubt aware, April is nearly over. Does that make Steam… vaporware? Not quite. Put away the Caruso sunglasses for two more weeks, because our friends at Joystiq just received a one-line email reading: “Valve today announced the public release of Steam for the Mac is May 12. Please stay tuned for more information.” Oh well — at least you’re not waiting for Steam on Linux, and you can always stock up on Razer peripherals while you endure the delay.

Steam for Mac opens a portal to May 12, steps through originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Joystiq  | Email this | Comments

Gaming on Linux? That’s not something we hear every day just yet, but it looks like the good folks at Valve might be considering a penguin revolution. In one of the latest beta releases of Steam for Mac, Phoronix spotted a mention of the open-source platform in the launcher script, and we were also able to verify this code ourselves. Furthermore, the eagle-eyed Linux blog has previously seen a handful of evidence hinting Linux compatibility for Valve’s Source gaming engine. We’re probably still a ways off from any announcement (if ever) so for now, let’s just leave the guys alone — we don’t want to distract them from bringing the Portal goodness to our Macs now, do we?

Steam for Mac beta reveals possible Linux compatibility in the pipeline, penguins rejoice originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Never Know Tech  |  Phoronix  | Email this | Comments