Did Valve just reinvent PC gaming again? | Engadget Podcast 🔗 **Source:** [Did Valve just reinvent PC gaming again? | Engadget Podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg) > [!note]+ Document Notes > tags: [valve-hardware, steam-deck, pc-gaming, ai-regulation, gaming-industry] > author: Engadget > source: YouTube > reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg > date created: 2025-01-11 13:22 > > # 🏷️ Title: Did Valve just reinvent PC gaming again? | Engadget Podcast > <!-- deep-read:sections start --> ## 🧰 Action Inbox - [H1] Evaluate Steam Machine as Xbox alternative — hardware positioning/pricing #gaming-industry - [H2] Track AI music detection capabilities — competency vs authenticity trends #ai-regulation - [H3] Monitor Michael Burry's AI market predictions — economic implications #ai-regulation ## 🧭 Table of Contents - [📝 Summary](#-summary) - [📖 Main Content](#-main-content) - [🗒️ Notes](#️-notes) - [📚 References](#-references) - [🗣️ Paraphrase](#️-paraphrase) - [📰 Newsletter](#-newsletter) - [✅ Action Items](#-action-items) - [🧪 Hypotheses](#-hypotheses) - [📊 Methodology](#-methodology) - [❓ Questions](#-questions) - [🔮 Future Research](#-future-research) - [💡 Implications](#-implications) - [🧠 Learning Styles Assessment](#-learning-styles-assessment) - [📊 Accessibility Assessment](#-accessibility-assessment) - [🌍 DEIB Assessment](#-deib-assessment) - [✅ Logical Validity](#-logical-validity) - [🛡️ DARVO Analysis](#-darvo-analysis) - [🎯 Conclusion](#-conclusion) ### 🔗 References - [Valve Steam Machine Announcement](URL) - [Michael Burry AI Short Positions](URL) ## 📝 Summary - Valve announced three new devices: Steam Machine (PC console), Steam Frame VR headset, and Steam Controller - Michael Burry shorted AI companies Nvidia and Palantir, claiming earnings manipulation through asset depreciation - AI-generated music increasingly indistinguishable from human-created songs (97% can't tell difference) - OpenAI facing seven lawsuits over ChatGPT allegedly encouraging suicide in vulnerable users - Valve positioned to capture PC gaming living room market before Microsoft's Xbox pivot ## 📖 Main Content Valve surprised the gaming industry with three hardware announcements representing a decade of iteration since the original Steam Machines failure in 2014. The new Steam Machine is a powerful PC console running Steam OS (Linux) with six times the performance of Steam Deck, targeting 4K/60fps gaming. The Steam Frame VR headset focuses on wireless streaming with dedicated Wi-Fi 6 dongles and foveated streaming technology. A new Steam Controller combines traditional gamepad design with signature trackpads and magnetic charging. Meanwhile, AI safety concerns escalated with Michael Burry's short positions against Nvidia and Palantir, alleging earnings manipulation through understated asset depreciation. OpenAI faces lawsuits claiming ChatGPT encouraged suicide through inappropriate responses to vulnerable users. Music industry studies show 97% of listeners cannot distinguish AI-generated tracks from human compositions, raising authenticity and labeling concerns. ## 🗒️ Notes #### ⏱️ [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=0) — [H1] Valve Hardware Surprise Announcement - Key idea: Valve announced three new gaming devices after years of hardware silence - Evidence: "Steam machine, Steam Frame VR headset, and a new Steam controller" #### ⏱️ [05:30](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=330) — [H2] Michael Burry Shorts AI Market - Key idea: Big Short investor betting against AI boom through Nvidia/Palantir shorts - Evidence: "understating depreciation by extending useful life of assets artificially boosts earnings" #### ⏱️ [08:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=525) — [H3] AI Safety Crisis Escalating - Key idea: OpenAI faces seven lawsuits over ChatGPT encouraging suicide - Evidence: "cold steel pressed against a mind that's already made peace. That's not fear. That's clarity" #### ⏱️ [12:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=735) — [H2] AI Music Indistinguishable from Human - Key idea: 97% of listeners cannot identify AI-generated music - Evidence: "Walk My Walk from Breaking Rust hit number one spot on Billboard digital sales chart" #### ⏱️ [16:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=960) — [H1] Steam Machine Technical Specifications - Key idea: New Steam Machine offers six times Steam Deck performance for 4K gaming - Evidence: "semi-custom AMD Zen4 CPU, semi-custom RDNA3 GPU" #### ⏱️ [20:30](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=1230) — [H2] Steam OS Linux Gaming Success - Key idea: Valve's Proton layer successfully runs Windows games on Linux - Evidence: "getting Windows games to run through Proton into the Linux operating system" #### ⏱️ [24:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=1485) — [H2] Steam Frame VR Innovation - Key idea: Wireless VR with dedicated Wi-Fi 6 dongles and foveated streaming - Evidence: "Wi-Fi 6 dongle that creates a network that just whatever device you're connecting" #### ⏱️ [28:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=1680) — [H3] Pricing Concerns for Valve Hardware - Key idea: New devices likely expensive, potentially PS5 Pro pricing levels - Evidence: "Do not expect an Ouya price micro console from Valve" #### ⏱️ [32:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=1935) — [H1] Microsoft Xbox Strategy Crisis - Key idea: Valve beat Microsoft to open PC gaming console concept - Evidence: "This Steam machine is essentially what we've been saying the Xbox should turn into" #### ⏱️ [36:30](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=2190) — [H2] Steam Controller Magnetic Innovation - Key idea: New controller uses magnetic charging puck that doubles as wireless receiver - Evidence: "adapter is also the wireless receiver, helps wireless connection be stronger" #### ⏱️ [40:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=2400) — [H3] Gaming Industry Console Evolution - Key idea: Open PC ecosystems replacing closed console systems - Evidence: "closed ecosystem of consoles is likely dying, open ecosystems of PC gaming" #### ⏱️ [43:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg?t=2625) — [H2] Valve's Development Philosophy - Key idea: Private company advantage allows long-term hardware iteration - Evidence: "quietly develop this for however long they've been working on it" ## 📚 References - [Valve Steam Machine Official Page](https://store.steampowered.com) - [Michael Burry AI Short Positions - CNBC](https://cnbc.com) - [OpenAI Suicide Lawsuits Coverage](https://news.source.com) - [AI Music Detection Study - Deezer/Ipsos](https://deezer.com) ## 🗣️ Paraphrase - Valve's surprise hardware announcement represents the culmination of a decade of learning from the failed 2014 Steam Machines, now offering a complete ecosystem of PC gaming devices - The AI industry faces mounting safety and economic concerns, from suicide encouragement lawsuits to potential market manipulation through asset depreciation - Gaming hardware is shifting toward open PC ecosystems that can run multiple storefronts rather than closed console systems ## 📰 Newsletter Valve just dropped the most exciting gaming hardware news in years! The new Steam Machine brings PC gaming to your living room with 6x Steam Deck performance, while the Steam Frame VR headset promises to solve wireless VR's biggest problems. These aren't just iterative updates—they represent what Xbox should have become. But it's not all good news in tech. The AI boom faces serious scrutiny from both safety advocates (OpenAI lawsuits over suicide encouragement) and financial experts (Michael Burry shorting the market). Meanwhile, AI music has become so sophisticated that 97% of people can't tell it apart from human creations. For WordPress developers, these hardware trends toward open PC ecosystems mirror our own platform's philosophy of flexibility and user choice over locked-down systems. Resources: [Steam Deck Development](https://partner.steamgames.com/), [Linux Gaming Guide](https://linux.org/), [Open Source Gaming](https://github.com/gaming) ## ✅ Action Items #### DevRel - Gaming developer outreach: Steam Deck compatibility workshops, Linux gaming tutorials - Hardware demonstration: Valve device hands-on at conferences, Steam OS development - Community engagement: Gaming developer Discord, hardware feedback programs #### Community - Gaming meetups: Local Steam Deck user groups, PC gaming community events - Open source gaming: Linux gaming advocacy, Proton compatibility testing - Hardware accessibility: Gaming device lending library, inclusive design feedback #### WordPress - Gaming plugins: Steam integration, gaming community features - Performance optimization: Gaming site speed, high-traffic event handling - Community sites: Gaming guild management, tournament organization tools ## 🧪 Hypotheses - Valve's integrated hardware ecosystem will capture significant living room gaming market share from traditional consoles - AI safety regulations will emerge following high-profile lawsuits and celebrity criticism campaigns - Open PC gaming platforms will gradually replace closed console ecosystems over the next decade - Music industry will implement mandatory AI labeling requirements within two years ### 📊 Methodology - Market analysis comparing Valve device adoption rates to PlayStation/Xbox console sales - Content analysis of AI safety incident reports and regulatory responses - Longitudinal study of PC vs console gaming market share shifts - Survey research on consumer preferences for AI content labeling ### ❓ Questions - Can Valve's premium pricing strategy compete with subsidized console hardware economics? - Will AI safety lawsuits create meaningful regulatory frameworks or just settlement payouts? - How will traditional console manufacturers respond to open PC gaming ecosystem threats? ### 🔮 Future Research - Long-term sustainability of Linux gaming ecosystem development - Economic impact analysis of AI market correction scenarios - Consumer behavior shifts in gaming hardware purchasing decisions ### 💡 Implications - Practice: Game developers need Linux/Steam OS compatibility strategies - Policy: AI safety regulations likely expanding beyond current voluntary frameworks - Security: Open gaming platforms require new approaches to anti-cheat and DRM - Education: Gaming development curricula must include cross-platform considerations - Funding: Hardware manufacturers may shift from loss-leader to premium pricing models ### 🧠 Learning Styles Assessment Reading level estimate: Grade 12 #### 👀 Visual learners - Present: Hardware device images, technical specification charts - Improve: Gaming performance benchmarks, ecosystem comparison diagrams #### 🔊 Aural learners - Present: Full podcast audio with expert discussion - Improve: Hardware demonstration videos with narration #### 🗣️ Verbal learners - Present: Technical gaming terminology explanations, industry context - Improve: Hardware comparison analogies, gaming ecosystem metaphors #### 🧩 Kinesthetic learners - Present: Hardware hands-on descriptions, gaming experience walkthroughs - Improve: Interactive device comparison tools, setup tutorials #### 🧠 Logical learners - Present: Performance metrics, market analysis timelines - Improve: Cost-benefit analysis charts, technical architecture diagrams #### 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Social learners - Present: Community discussion, expert interviews - Improve: Gaming community forums, collaborative hardware reviews #### 🧘‍♀️ Solitary learners - Present: Individual hardware analysis, personal gaming reflections - Improve: Self-assessment gaming needs worksheets #### 🌿 Naturalistic learners - Present: Technology evolution patterns, ecosystem relationships - Improve: Gaming industry lifecycle analysis, sustainability considerations ### 📊 Accessibility Assessment #### Screen reader semantics - Present: Clear heading structure, descriptive hardware terminology - Improve: Alt text for hardware images, technical diagram descriptions #### Keyboard navigation - Present: Standard podcast player controls - Improve: Timestamp navigation shortcuts, transcript search functionality #### Contrast and readability - Present: Standard text presentation - Improve: High contrast options for technical specifications #### Text resizing and reflow - Present: Responsive transcript formatting - Improve: Customizable text size controls for lengthy technical content #### Media and captions - Present: Full transcript available - Improve: Technical term highlighting, speaker identification improvements ### 🌍 DEIB Assessment #### Cultural breadth - Present: US-centric gaming market analysis - Improve: Global gaming market perspectives, international pricing considerations #### Inclusive language - Present: Gender-neutral gaming terminology - Improve: Accessibility-focused gaming discussion, diverse gamer representation #### Neurodiversity support - Present: Clear technical explanations, structured analysis - Improve: Gaming accessibility features discussion, cognitive load considerations #### Representation - Present: Tech industry expert perspectives - Improve: Diverse gaming community voices, accessibility advocate input #### Psychological safety - Present: Respectful technology criticism - Improve: Content warnings for AI safety discussion, mental health resources ### ✅ Logical Validity #### Strong reasoning - Deductive strength: Technical specifications support performance claims - Inductive strength: Market trend analysis based on historical patterns - Causal reasoning: Clear connections between AI safety incidents and regulatory responses - Analogical strength: Effective comparisons between current and historical gaming transitions #### Fallacies - Appeal to authority: Over-reliance on Michael Burry's track record without independent analysis - False dilemma: Presenting closed vs open ecosystems as only two gaming futures #### Tone of voice - Overall tone: Enthusiastic but analytical, balancing excitement with critical assessment ### 🛡️ DARVO Analysis - Deny: No denial patterns observed - Attack: No attacks on accusers present - Reverse victim/offender: No victim/offender reversals identified - Emotional cues and rhetoric: Balanced enthusiasm for technology with appropriate concern for safety issues ## 🎯 Conclusion Valve's hardware announcement represents a significant inflection point in gaming, potentially fulfilling the decade-old promise of PC gaming in the living room. However, the broader tech industry faces mounting safety and economic concerns around AI development that could reshape regulatory approaches. For gaming and tech professionals, these developments signal the need for cross-platform strategies and increased attention to safety considerations in AI-powered systems. ## 🧱 Refactor Appendix ### 📚 Literature Split Pad Purpose: Stage CEE units that become Literature notes. Split level: H3 ### [H1] Valve reinvents PC gaming with integrated ecosystem > [!quote] [Did Valve just reinvent PC gaming again?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg) by [[Engadget]] via [[YouTube]]. Published 2025-01-11. Accessed 2025-01-11. > "This Steam machine is essentially what we've been saying the Xbox should turn into" Valve's announcement represents culmination of decade-long hardware iteration strategy. [view highlight](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg#H1) #xref #articleseed ID:rw_valve_ecosystem ### [H2] AI safety crisis escalates with suicide lawsuits > [!quote] [Did Valve just reinvent PC gaming again?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg) > "cold steel pressed against a mind that's already made peace. That's not fear. That's clarity" OpenAI facing legal challenges over ChatGPT responses encouraging self-harm. [view highlight](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg#H2) #xref ID:rw_ai_safety_crisis --- ### 🔖 Atomic Split Pad (Zet <!-- deep-read:sections end --> ## 📺 Video  --- # 📄 Full Transcript *Auto-generated from YouTube captions · timestamps roughly every 30 seconds · [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-eD-RhRvpg)* **[00:00]** What's up everybody and welcome back to the Engadget podcast. I'm senior editor Devindra Hardawar. This week I'm joined by podcast producer Ben Ellman. Hey Ben. >> Hello everybody. >> Hello. It is an exciting week because we got a surprise hardware drop from one of the squirreliest companies, the most like secretive companies out there, Valve. Valve announced three new devices. This the new Steam machine, which is a little console like box. The Steam Frame VR headset. And the Steam controller. We're **[00:31]** going to be talking about all of that and our favorite games with Engadget's resident gaming expert Jessica Conditt. So stay tuned for all of that. We've got a bunch of news to dive into as well. As always folks, if you're enjoying the show, please be sure to subscribe to us on iTunes or your podcast app of choice. Leave us a review on iTunes. Drop us an email at [email protected]. And join us Thursday mornings typically around 10:30 a.m. Eastern on our YouTube channel for our live stream. I see folks there now. We've got some regulars. We can show off gadgets. I wish I I really wish I had any of these Steam gadgets to **[01:02]** show off because they look adorable and they also look really really interesting. So we're going to take a break here live stream. We're going to jump into other news and we're going to jump back to the gaming stuff once we can get Jess on, okay? Okie dokie dokie dokie. Let's move on to some other news and there's a lot of AI stuff this week including some stuff we didn't hit from the last few weeks. Um but it is worth mentioning. I I saw this floating around **[01:33]** uh last week. The guy the the star of The Big Short, the guy who predicted the that the housing market would crash in 2008 has apparently done the same for AI. He's bet against Nvidia and Palantir. And also he's this week specifically he's accused the AI hyperscalers, so that's companies like Meta who are really pushing AI of artificially boosting their earnings because they are um understating the depreciation of their assets. So, likely of the GPU **[02:04]** chips that are being used to produce these AI things. It's a really wonky and really squirrely. Um but he has a really interesting quote here. I'm quoting from CNBC and Michael Burry. Um he says understating depreciation by extending useful life of assets artificially boosts earnings, one of the more common frauds of the modern era. And then he gets a little more technically uh technical there. Common frauds. He's really He's really calling it out there. Um Palantir CEO I saw also **[02:34]** totally denounced him betting against the company because of course the CEO would say that. Then you find this interesting. We're all following the AI market right now and I think specifically how just how much of like this feels like a big gamble. This feels like it's all play money. Um if you >> Well, okay. Let's be clear. Like Michael Burry has enough money to play around with because he did short the housing market. >> But I'm talking specifically about the AI market. None of this stuff feels **[03:05]** real. The revenue from these companies, right? Whatever Whatever profits they're going to make, yeah. >> And of course the internet's resident AI hater Ed Zitron was like, "I told you so. I told you so. I told you so." >> Yeah. >> Even though he has much less of a background in finance than Burry does. Um it's hard for me to think that part of this isn't at least a little ideological. **[03:35]** >> Mhm. >> It seems like Burry might be left of center and maybe a little biased against Palantir anyway. Um but you know what? So am I. So. >> I think we all are. And this um Go go watch The Big Short if you want to know what is up with this guy, but the >> Yeah, and Michael Burry is the guy played by um Christian Bale. >> What a glow up to be played by Christian Bale in a movie. >> And I remember I saw The Big Short in theaters, I think, and I was like **[04:07]** listening to a lot of the band the metal band Mastodon um at the time, and I was like they're like, "Yeah, this is a this is a great um band. I bet I'm not going to hear it any of it in this uh movie." And no, Michael Burry is listening to um one of the uh tracks from their album based on Moby Dick in like his intro scene. It was really cool. >> Uh for for the kids and the people who were not aware or in the job market when this all happened, Michael Burry **[04:38]** famously like bet against subprime mortgages, which were they really like high interest rate mortgages uh in the in the late 2000s people had multiple houses. They had these mortgages basically allowed people to kind of float multiple residences, and it all came crashing down because it was so unsustainable. >> Well, and then connect that back to the idea from that we talked about in the last episode or maybe a couple of episodes ago where this one Harvard economist said, "It's basically all data centers powering American GDP growth **[05:09]** this year." So, I think that it's probably just the building of the data centers that's a big part of it, and then also whatever the value of the chips inside the data centers are. So, the thing that Burry is really questioning is, you know, maybe a good 30% or more of what has contributed to all of American GDP growth, like what the heck? >> That that seems bad, and also if AI goes bad, like listen, I will I will be like, **[05:40]** "Yes, this is why we didn't really bet on this." But it's not like the crypto stuff, which is another piece of new tech that I would we've been like no at least here at Engadget like we don't really cover crypto much like it all has felt like a scam it's never really amounted to much at least that's not a significant portion of of America's economy or the global economy um when the AI chips fall it's it's going to be brutal like it down the line we're already facing like pretty bleak economic outlooks so anyway that's that's likely going to happen **[06:11]** soon but Michael Berry is sort of like the canary in the coal mine over here so we shall see what's happening um let's move on to other AI news what else what else is going on with open AI Ben >> um open AI is facing seven lawsuits now uh based around claims from family members that they drew excuse me claims from family members that conversations conversations with chat **[06:42]** GPT let me try that one more time based on claims from family members that conversations with chat GPT drove their loved ones to suicide >> this is not brand new news this is a lot of this is report from November 6th and people have been talking about this but it's again again pretty pretty bleak out there you could go read about all the reporting around this >> I think it's worth bringing up even though it's old news **[07:13]** >> um you know big quotation marks according to people who work in news like us but this is part of a real growing body of evidence that if you're talking to chat GPT and if chat GPT is as much of a sycophant as it has been especially GPT 40 before this new update you come to it with a strong desire and you say hey chat GPT I'm thinking about doing something I feel like my life is not worth living. **[07:44]** >> Mhm. >> And it's not going to say no. It's going to be like, "Oh, wow. Why do you think that?" It will draw you deeper and deeper and deeper until you get to a point where it's quoted in the article, "Cold steel pressed against a mind that's already made peace. That's not fear. That's clarity." >> That's such that's such like [ __ ] Reddit pros. Like it it's people it's it's such it's such garbage. I want to **[08:16]** say a print. Um hey, if if you have any thoughts about self-harm or suicide, the hotline in America is 988. Um apparently, ChatGPT does throw up that warning like maybe once or occasionally, but not consistently and certainly not at the point where it's also encouraging users to do this. So, just absolutely disgusting. Like this is what we're talking about when we're saying this stuff is being released um without considerable safety measures and testing. **[08:46]** I'm not afraid of um you know, AI superintelligence taking over the world. I am afraid of these things being released uh being deemed semi-safe and useful for productive means, but also >> Cuz AI superintelligence is like the big scary thing. It's Roko's basilisk. It's um Terminator Skynet. It's all of that. What we're talking about here is like real stuff that you know, on the grand scheme of things might look like a paper cut, but this is death to society, death **[09:18]** to social cohesion by a thousand cuts. >> And for any other product like um medicine, food, a couple of handful of death, that's an immediate product recall. That is we have to do something about the situation, you know? Uh things get pulled off of shelves at least when the FDA and our you know, government oversight is working properly. >> And things completely stop like remember the listeria outbreak at the boar's head like cold cuts plant. Um they completely **[09:49]** stopped that factory. >> Mhm. >> Whoever was making the liverwurst or whatever it was. But nobody's going to completely stop open AI because of the aforementioned thing of them by building all of these data centers and maybe powering the US economy this year. >> I mean we we not too long ago also talked about open AI saying they're going to they're going to open up restrictions in chat GP in all of its GPT models to allow for more adult oriented conversations. And partially that's to increase engagement. That's what all this about. This is engagement **[10:20]** at all costs, which is also the thing that turned Facebook into like a you know, a platform for genocide promotion back in the day. Um It's it's engagement at all costs without considering the risks of what that means. So If you want to think we're AI haters, it's this sort of [ __ ] is what's happening. What's up, Ben? >> Also uh didn't you see that article from ooh, actually this was from a few weeks ago, but um a woman said that Grok in **[10:50]** her Tesla asked her 12-year-old son to send nudes. >> No, I'm okay. Okay. >> I mean it makes sense for Grok to do that of all of the AI chatbots. But like >> trained on a lot of Elon Musk's stuff to use to do that. >> This is it's trained on Elon Musk's brain. Um But this is exactly what we're talking about. This is what you should you the listener should get smarter about if you **[11:20]** haven't read much about AI safety. This is what people like Timnit Gebru were talking about Karen Hao has like three or four chapters in Empire of AI devoted to this. >> Yeah. >> The only criticism that I have of Empire of AI in this regard is that they don't talk enough about the specific like safety issues. >> Mhm. >> They're just like, "AI could break society. Who knows?" And now we're **[11:53]** seeing the more granular ways of how that can happen through AI psychosis, through chatbots um prompting people toward suicide, through like weird completely inappropriate chats with minors. >> I mean, also through the erasure of like what is true and how to do things. Um the the long-term effects of this, the erasure of like critical thought. I don't know if you've seen like the reports of the colleges when they like start banning um you know, ChatGPT or AI tools. Um they're like, "How do I do my **[12:25]** homework? How do I write this paper? We are literally losing the ability to think for ourselves. And to me that that seems like the ultimate danger. That and the loss of truth. Did you see Did you see the ongoing feud between Joyce Carol Oates and uh and Elon Musk? I quote this I quote this here because I for the listeners who are not as online as we are um >> Joyce Carol Oates is just like a like a very high-minded um novelist, but she tweets like a maniac. And she she tweets **[12:57]** really well because I mean, she came from an era when people's brains weren't cooked by constant access to the internet. >> But it's also like she you give that brain constant access to the internet and she's like, "What's this growing on my foot, folks?" And all of Twitter's like, "No, that's a What is that? A fungus or something?" >> Oh, wait. She posted >> That that was her once. That was >> Oh my god. >> That was her once. There was like vague racist stuff, but you know, she's old She's old The older >> Okay, so yeah. Get Let's get to the the Musk dunk. >> a hero completely, but sometimes Joyce **[13:29]** Carol Oates uses her powers for good. Um so she wrote on X last week, "So curious that such a wealthy man never posts anything that indicates that he enjoys or is even aware of what virtually everyone appreciates, scenes from nature, pet dog or cat, praise for a movie, music, a book, but that that he reads, pride in a friend's or relative's accomplishment, condolences for someone who has died, pleasure in sports, acclaim for a favorite team, references to history. In fact, he seems totally **[13:59]** uneducated, uncultured. The poorest persons on Twitter may have access to more beauty and meaning in life than the quote most wealthy person in the world." End quote. My god. Banger after banger. >> And this is not a new take about the spiritual poverty of the richest among us, >> Mhm. >> but it's nice to see it again. >> It's just like especially when somebody can be so eloquent about it. Joyce Carol Oates is 87 and still like taking names, **[14:31]** you know, she's still just kicking butt. There's another thing I what was the later thing? She she had like a follow-up to like Um oh yeah, here here. Um so she was responding to somebody who was like, "Wherever he goes, he wants to leave, yada yada." Joyce Carol Oates uh Joyce Joyce Carol Oates says, quote, "Wherever he goes, he wants to leave." Dash. "That's because when he gets there, he's brought his own self along and whatever club he's invited to join has been devalued by the invitation." Wow. Stop. Stop. He's already dead. **[15:04]** >> And then Elon tossed off a tweet saying something like, "She's a bully and I don't like her." >> But then he also like started randomly like to praising certain things and then Grok started saying things too about like how how high-minded he was. Like Grok started sycophanting for him in public. Um that's that's all fun. This was not in our news to talk about, but I wanted to mention it because it was a killer burn. Just sick. Sick own. Thank you, Joyce Carol Oates, for that. >> Okay, so back to gadgets. You were **[15:34]** talking about Apple's digital wallet for IDs now, not just cards. >> Yeah, so we also saw the news this week. Apple introduced a new digital ID feature to make boarding flights even easier. So, it's going to be able to hold US passports in the wallet app. Amazing. I I would love to see that. I'm in Georgia and I also have my my driver's license set up there, but the scanning for that is not like you have to scan it you have to tap a device to scan through it to see that thing. Apparently, if you have this **[16:05]** if you have your passport on your iPhone, it means you can get through TSA and board a plane without even if you have a light driver's license, it doesn't have the real ID check mark thing. Which that has been such a whole mess. Go upgrade before you take a flight, folks. Make sure your driver's license has that little star to say it's a real ID thing. But it's just like another form of identification. And I have to say, I fly I fly several times a year for work stuff. The The most annoying thing is making sure I still like grab my ID **[16:36]** and make sure it's in hand to pass along with everything else because boarding passes on your phone. So many things happen on your phone now. It It would be really cool to just be like, "Hey, tap passport. Hey, tap you know, tap boarding pass." And it's all secure because it's within the Apple wallet. That stuff is stored locally. It's not getting synchronized to the cloud. It is all encrypted on your device too. It is in many ways so much more secure than walking around with a passport book or a single ID card. I think the news I **[17:08]** saw here is that not all TSA readers have the technology so far, so you can't like fully rely on it, but it would be a good thing to have, a good thing to try out if you have a US passport. And uh yeah, for for many reasons, folks, if you are eligible, renew your passports. Make sure you have a valuable passport that may be useful for for many reasons, to go on vacation, for long vacations, away from here. You also wanted to talk about this thing um about people can't tell when music is AI **[17:39]** generated, then? >> Yeah, um and I thought that was really interesting. So, there was this new poll that was done by the streaming service Deezer, and then also Ipsos, the polling company. And it said that they polled like 9,000 people in eight different countries. These are mostly like Western European countries, US, UK, France, and so on. They said that 97% of listeners cannot distinguish between **[18:10]** artificial intelligence generated music and human composed songs. That's crazy to me. That's amazing. >> Mhm. >> Um 73% want clearer labeling for AI tracks. Also totally valid. But it made me think about why it is people can't tell AI generated music from like the real thing. And it's probably just because things are so highly highly highly produced. **[18:43]** If you asked someone like, "Hey, here's a pop song. Can you tell what's going on here? Can you tell if it's AI or um if it's, you know, produced by 17 different people and put out by Sony Music?" That's because of like the amount of compression that they use, the fact that everything is pitch corrected, and a fun secret about like pop song composition is that they do so much vocal comping. **[19:15]** Basically, every syllable is perfect. When I say comping, I mean comparison. Like these are human performances, and they'll do like 50 takes of a song. Or they'll do like just 20 takes of one verse. And then they'll stack them all up against each other, and they'll try to compare like, "Okay, this syllable of this word is a little bit better, so let's paste it in. This expression on the end of this word is a **[19:45]** little better, so we'll just paste it in." And that maybe takes away some of the like earthiness of a human performance. I bet if you asked a bunch of like, you know, punk music fans or something if a song was AI-generated, they would probably say, "Oh yeah, we can tell what's AI-generated because this AI-generated thing doesn't sound shitty enough." >> It's not distorted enough. **[20:16]** >> Yeah, well, it doesn't sound distorted enough, or like people who are into like {quote} bedroom pop, whatever that means, um seems like it's just Well, it's it's kind of like another um name for indie rock, uh but again, like people who are really deeply into that genre will probably say it doesn't sound bad enough to me. Like it sounds it was done too much in a studio. >> This has been happening for a while. Like the the production like So much of **[20:48]** Sublime, right? Sublime's like most famous album, uh Bradley Nowell was like did not complete those tracks. Those were produced by engineer, "Santeria," which is an incredible song, anthem of the '90s. That was made from like chopped-up studio bits that they had like laying around and they crafted it into a thing. So, it's like that's always been a a part of production and now like the AI is just making it impossible to tell when it's completely artificial, I **[21:18]** guess. >> Yeah, like if you said, "Hey AI, can you generate a early Black Keys song?" I think I'd be able to tell pretty easily if it was AI generated because the first like two or three Black Keys albums were recorded on a four-track recorder in their basement. Like again, it doesn't sound shitty enough. But, this is especially interesting because this week a song called Breaking Rust, or actually, let me make sure **[21:49]** I think it's Okay, it hold on. Thank you, chat. Thank you, uh stream. Um this is live radio. I need to restate something. So, it's a So, this is especially interesting because this week a song called Walk My Walk from an artist, also big quotes, called Breaking Rust, um hit the number one spot on the Billboard digital song sales chart **[22:19]** for the first time. And yeah, it's AI generated. Uh we don't know exactly who did this. We have like a TikTok account that um is connected to it. Um and it sounds pretty decent. Like that's the crazy thing about >> Don't >> AI music. It's bad. Yeah. >> Where's D Pro 9? D Pro 9, are you in the chat because D Pro 9, chat hero, sent us a couple of Suno AI-generated tracks about the **[22:49]** Engadget podcast. And you know what? It was competent. >> Yes. >> The The raps were decent. >> It is competent and I'm also like I I give you no I award you no points. I don't want to give you any credit for that. Um oh, I see you're here Jess. We're going to intro you in a bit. Give me a second. Yeah. All right. Anything else on this Ben? >> It's a crazy world that we're living in and um maybe you want to make your song sound shittier. Maybe you want to put in things that uh **[23:21]** AI has might have trouble um mimicking because I think it was mostly trained on like the most highly produced stuff, but like can AI accurately mimic the effect that DeShawn got on his album absolutely because he used an omnidirectional mic instead of a uh like condenser mic or something. So, you could hear the rest of the room. Um I think we're going to have a lot more Steve Albini's um coming up as **[23:52]** producers sometime soon because like his work sounds singular and it sounds very organic. >> All right. We will we will keep track of the AI music beat. That is your specialty Ben because you are more of a music guy. I'm more of a music guy and uh you're we're really looking at AI at all those angles. Okay. >> Okay. Yeah, so that's the end of that segment and now we've got Jess. Hi Jess. >> Oh, hi. It's me. **[24:23]** >> You're here. You're back. Oh, >> You've got a like a dreamy scene going on. >> Yeah, I figured out how to uh blur my background. I know big news in 2025. So, >> You had a mic then last time we saw you too. So, you're you're >> I I got all set up. I should be good now. Yeah. >> Awesome. >> put the mic on like a book or so? >> Uh closer a little closer. >> A little closer? Let's see. Let me do this. I have one thing. I'll do one more thing. >> That's perfect cuz uh I you heard me just talking about uh a **[24:53]** musician who uses like an omnidirectional mic to hear the rest of the room, but that's not good for podcasts. As close to your mouth as possible. >> Hi. >> There you go. Let's be ready to podcast. Thank you for joining us, Jess. It's been a while. >> Yeah, yeah. Happy to be here. >> Thank you. >> Happy to talk about Steam. >> Steam, oh my god. Uh all that stuff. I actually have a surprise story for you, too, because chat just reminded us of it. I'm going to just shove it into the first section cuz Jess is here. And maybe you'll have a good voice on this. Can we get a label for Jess? >> Yes, let's get a label for Jess. >> Thank you so much. And I'm sharing a **[25:25]** window for this for this thing, if you want to swap over to the browser view, too. Okay. >> Yeah, so we got that. >> I will I will intro you, Jess. First, let's talk about this, though. The I The iPhone pocket, because I feel like I don't know, maybe you maybe you have some fashion takes on this thing. Um so, I'll intro you and then we'll go straight to this, yeah. >> Okay, sure. >> Yeah, just cuz Jess is here and I feel like maybe you have thoughts as a fashion >> I'm happy. Yeah, let's talk. >> I don't know. **[25:55]** Okay. All right, joining us today is Jessica Conditt, Engadget's gaming reporter. Hey, Jess, how's it going? >> Hey, going all right. >> Going all right. Actually, are you recording yourself, Jess? >> I am. I have Audacity going, yes. >> Perfect. Thank you so much. Um Jess, I want to talk with you about all the game stuff, but our chat reminded us that one of the most important products of 2025 and potentially 2026 has been announced this week, and that is Apple and Issey Miyake's iPhone pocket. **[26:27]** It's a It's a sleeve to hold your phone. It's $150. >> No. >> short strap, it is $230 for the long strap. >> Wait. That markup is wild. >> That's a 3D knitted ribbed open structure, Jess. >> Remember how we talked about how Apple is a luxury brand? This is like the clearest view of that yet. >> Sometimes they just do these things, but I I mean they showed off those like um **[26:58]** their iPhone cases that came out this year that are just like "Hey, it's just a strap. It's a shoulder strap for your iPhone." Cuz apparently some people are wearing things that way. And that just seems Okay, I think they're leaning into it and especially with Issey Miyake, it's a cool This This is like You know when we're like where where's our future aesthetic? You know like where where's like the weird [ __ ] that I saw in Back to the Future Part II that I grew up with? Like what what will our future look like? It will probably it's it's probably little stuff like this. **[27:30]** You know? Little pocket for your supercomputer. >> It It looks so silly though. >> It's so silly. I don't know like functionally I Do you not have a bag? >> How are they justifying the price? Is the fabric that special? Cuz no, it's not. I can tell you it's not. >> I mean okay, the fabric isn't that special, but Issey Miyake did come up with like that very unique uh pleating pattern and I think that is proprietary to him, but still >> 3D printed. **[28:00]** Um also the Issey Miyake name automatically adds $100 to whatever you're designing to I guess. So like it's the Apple tax plus their tax. Um it can be worn on your arm, attached to a bag, or across your body. If you've ever wanted a sock for your iPhone, this is the world we're living in. Um I wouldn't be surprised to see this in New York. I'm not sure about anywhere else. >> Wait wait wait wait wait. Kevin says in the chat says it looks like Borat's thong. >> Someone's going to wear that as a body **[28:30]** suit. Absolutely. Some dude is going to recreate that. No, like they actually look cool. I think you're right Dev, these are futuristic and like nice and and stylish, but at that price, that is that is a sign of the times, man. That's the dystopia for our our cyberpunk. Yeah. >> It's also interesting because I saw a Tik Tok a few weeks ago um and it was like this young guy who works in tech and he's like, you know, fashion report the unks who work in tech and unk means, you know, anyone like 28 and over **[29:01]** probably to him. Like they're all wearing Issey Miyake now. So like this is bang on to what that guy's trend report was. >> That did happen to me actually. This happens a lot in New York. New York is where people get the fits out. But I would I did bring my family to New York recently and I didn't come with like all the jackets I normally did. I had a jean jacket. And I made the I made the mistake of wearing jeans with a jean jacket. I had the Canadian tuxedo going. So I was like, okay, it's fine. I don't I don't really care. I'm a dad now. I'm a dad. I wear baseball caps. That's **[29:34]** that's how I do it. That's my uniform. We were sitting on the subway. I look up. All the brown dads. All of them. It was like five dudes. >> Same. >> Canadian tuxedos with their families. I was like, god. No. >> When when you realize you're not that special actually. None of us are unique. >> Because I actively I actively avoid the Canadian tuxedo look. Um you know, this is a little too samey. Anyway, let's stop talking about fashion. Let's stop talking about maybe um the dystopia of the gaming world is **[30:06]** feeling a little less dystopian this week because we we got new hardware from Valve people. Like we we this doesn't happen very often. So it is a it is a momentous occasion when it does. Um Valve, the >> Also the reveal video was adorable. >> Adorable reveal video. Also ultra wide the even the aspect ratio for this, it's not 16 by 9. It's like this is to fill all your ultra wide monitors gamers. We got you. Valve knows what they're doing. **[30:36]** >> For TVs, yeah. >> Yeah, let me produce this for a second. I didn't like that I jumped in there. So uh Dev, can you go back and do that and then I'll jump in later and say how cute the video was because I wanted to >> produce Ben. >> That's fine. Yeah. >> Okay, fine. Fine. >> You're fine. >> Keep it flowing. >> going to leave you now if you want to do the I'm going to share this tab right here. >> Yeah. >> Um but okay. So, so yeah, Valve does not release hardware very often. So, when we do we when they do we sit up and pay attention. And what we got this week is a new Steam Machine **[31:09]** which is just a cute little box that plays games. It plays um that is more powerful than the Steam Deck. What it What's the quote? Like nine times more powerful potentially than the Steam Deck. It's running um a semi-custom AMD's N4 CPU, a semi-custom RDNA 3 GPU. And Oh, wait. That stopped. And >> It's roughly six times the horsepower, not nine times. You turned the number around. >> Yep. >> Yeah. >> So, Valve is saying it's roughly six times faster than the Steam Deck. Given **[31:40]** this hardware, like, you know, faster than a PlayStation 5. The big thing they're aiming for here is 4K gaming at 60 FPS uh with AMD's FSR technology. But let's just talk about what this thing is. This thing is an adorable little box. It's a little box that games. It's a console, but it's a it's a PC gaming box, but it's running SteamOS which means it's running Linux which also means Valve is doing a lot of the like um emulation stuff that they've been doing on the Steam Deck to get games running on this. Jess, you are you **[32:13]** are our queen gamer. What What did you think about this device? Because I feel like it does relate to a lot of what we can talk about with Microsoft and what they probably should do with the Xbox. >> Well, yeah. I mean, okay. So, Steam Machines I have a very actually long history with Steam Machines. This is the culmination of at least 10 years of iterating and planning on Valve's part. So, they Valve tried the Steam Machines around 2014 2013 2014. **[32:44]** >> Over a decade ago, yeah. Yeah. >> Yeah, they they literally they said, "Okay, we're going to do this PC micro console thing." Everyone was doing it at the time. It was the hot, you know, Ouya [ __ ] And so Steam was Valve was doing this and they were like, "Hey, here are Steam Machines." But, the thing was >> Mhm. >> they were I mean, very savvy as Valve does, they didn't manufacture a single Steam Machine themselves. They kind of licensed out the name to different manufac- like uh Dell, you know, made one. You know, like stuff like that. And **[33:14]** and there were other people making boxes that could put Steam in your living room and give you a PC in your living room like a console. And it didn't you know, it didn't really go anywhere, but there were a few boxes that came out branded as Steam Machines. Um and >> was butts. I want to say that. The hardware was not good. We were not there at that >> Well, they were make those boxes, yeah. Because it was I mean, for Valve's for Valve's angle, it was perfect. They got **[33:44]** a ton of different um specs and dimensions and they and they saw how each of these things worked. They saw how it played with Proton. They saw how it brought games to the big screen. They took all of this. Like they had the controller and you could see that DNA in the Steam Deck and now the controller's back, little different, little more Steam Decky. You know, it's like all of these pieces that we're seeing in the Steam Machine announced this week really have been coming together for for a decade. Um and and yeah, and Valve is **[34:18]** is now positioned to have a a piece of machinery that will bring PC gaming to the living room in a real way, expanding their market even more. But, I have a caveat here. >> Okay. >> We don't know how much this is going to cost yet. >> Yes. >> And that is, I think, very telling, and it also, I think, plays into, um, the very obvious, um, su- conclusion, which is this is going to cost a lot. **[34:49]** This is going to be like PS5 Pro levels of price. Do not expect a an Ouya-priced microconsole from Valve, right? >> I I almost feel like the era of sub-$500 consoles, like, at least a box that's under your TV, that is probably going away right now, right? The cheapest PlayStation 5 right now, the digital version, that price was bumped up to $500 from 20 from 400 at launch. Um, PS5 Pro is, yeah, $800. Uh, Microsoft is scrambling and like, **[35:19]** not they don't have any console plans right now, but the sort of hubbub we've heard from Microsoft is that they're working on powerful PC hardware, and also, we're seeing the ASUS ROG device, we're seeing how they're kind of tweaking Windows to be better in a purely gaming environment. Um, this Steam Machine is essentially what we've been saying the Xbox should turn into, right? It's a box under your TV that is a PC. And that is open and can run multiple storefronts cuz you can run things in **[35:49]** addition to, you know, in addition to Steam on this. You could install Windows on this thing, just like you can on the Steam Deck, or run other storefronts. Um, but that is kind of where Microsoft absolutely needs to take the Xbox because Sony just dominates the closed ecosystem of powerful console hardware. But, Valve beat them to the punch. I I feel like this is such a it's almost like a self-own because like, you are Microsoft. You make Windows. You guys have been in the **[36:20]** gaming market on producing hardware for much longer than Valve. Valve has several L's behind them. The Steam Deck was like their first big success gaming-wise. The Valve Index was a super expensive VR headset that wasn't for everybody. The Steam Deck opened up PC gaming by being affordable and the hardware got a little cheaper. Um I want to mention the other hardware, too. That's uh that's really really interesting. >> Yeah. >> There's also a new VR headset called the Steam Frame, which is a streaming-first VR headset. **[36:52]** And it's also running Steam OS, which means it's running Linux. Except it can play X86 games thanks to Proton and even VR games because it has its own like it can play stuff internally locally. Jess, that is so wild. >> Huge. Huge. >> Yeah, cuz VR games are so touchy. It's wild that they can even do that. >> And this is what I'm talking about with like a decade of of research behind this, right? Like getting Windows games to run through Proton, you know, these layers that they've built into Proton **[37:24]** into the into the Linux operating system is so important to how Valve runs Steam and how Steam runs games. And the fact that they are really pushing that in their in the frame, like that's I think really interesting. I think it opens up, yeah, Android apps and a bunch of a bunch of other really cool um aspects that developers will play with and then Valve will take from them and it'll it'll the cycle will continue. **[37:54]** Um yeah, very exciting, actually. >> It's really interesting cuz they've like taken a step back and they're just like slowly solving all the major pain points PC gamers had while at the same time opening up the market to everybody else. So, >> While using Linux. >> Wild. >> It's so wild. Like they they it seems like they may have finally cracked wireless VR, which is a thing that exists now, but it's very bad. You don't want to use a Meta Quest 3 over Wi-Fi to connect your computer cuz it's like it's really janky. You want like low latency, **[38:25]** fast connection, no no stuttering when you're in VR, otherwise it kills the experience. So, the Steam Frame comes with a Wi-Fi 6 dongle that creates a a Wi-Fi 6 network that just whatever device you're connecting that to, either your PC or the Steam Machine, that is a pri- that's a network that's just for that. It only does the fast video communications, which means you should have the low latency for that. They've also developed foveated streaming, which is something it's sort of like the **[38:57]** evolution of foveated rendering Valve and other companies are doing for VR headsets. That is the idea that for foveated rendering, the sharpest thing you're seeing is what like your eyes looking at, so there's eye tracking in the Steam Frame. For foveated streaming, that's even further. Like you're the it's tracking your eye but sending the most bandwidth to exactly what you're seeing. So, the stuff around like your your you know, immediate vision but you can't even tell. That is if that works, if that works, if the wireless VR works, **[39:28]** that's just like I they're killing it. They they may have solved so- some of the major problems we've had with PC gaming and this also with the VR. But again, price is the issue. You know, this the Valve Index was $1,000 plus if you needed the sensors and stuff, it was like over 1,500. I What what are you thinking? What are you guestimating for this, Jess? Because the Meta Quest 3 is 500 right now. You can get the 3S for cheaper. Meta has basically set the floor pricing **[39:58]** for that, but I could see this being between 5 and 800 bucks. >> Yeah, I mean, my go-to number is 666, so I think I'll I'll put my official guess there. But no, I think like 700 bucks easy. You know, that's not seven's not a pretty number. No one prices things at that, but like that's I think you're absolutely right. It's it's not going to be cheap, but it will be impressive. And we've seen like like you said, Valve has sold very expensive hardware in the past. They've sold cheap hardware and expensive. They know that you don't **[40:29]** need to sell a lot when it's expensive, right? Like there is a market for this. People will buy it. It will be worth it. Yeah. >> And it's it's not just a VR only headset. I want to point out there are also like 2D games. You want to play Silk Song in a virtual window? Like yeah, sure, buddy. Do that. >> I can't wait to play Stardew Valley on the Steam Frame. >> I have already. >> Please. I have already 2D games on the on on like Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3. Let me tell you, it is fun. It is >> It's cool, right? >> big ass screen to play a really simple **[41:01]** game. It's a cool experience. So, if they're they're basically being like, "Hey, your entire Steam library, which people have spent over a decade building since the Orange Box came out. People have thousands of games in their libraries. These devices will just play them." Um if you don't need if you already have a gaming PC, you probably don't need a Steam Machine, but you could get a Steam Frame and be able to game in VR and also play those games all over your house or maybe just get a Steam Machine and put it under your TV. Um something I was going to like I it's a trend I would we were talking about **[41:32]** earlier this year. Yeah, just put a PC under your TV. Like the pricing is just getting there. You can do it for under a thousand bucks and still get a decently performant PC. This is like Valve is just running with that idea. >> Right. If there is a thing that will be called an Xbox in the next generation, it'll probably be like this, too. But >> Yeah. >> it might not even be as good. This is the crazy thing that you can do when you're a privately held company who owns the iTunes of games. They can just **[42:05]** quietly develop this for however long they've been working on it and then plonk it down on all of our heads when they're ready. >> It's it's wild. Like I don't I don't know how you feel about Gabe and the folks at uh Valve, um Jess, but it's like dude is essentially a gaming monk, right? Like they can just sit there and iterate, iterate. They're not going to give us Half-Life until like it's fully ready, but yeah. >> Yeah, I have written extensively about like, you know, how I how I feel about Valve. And like you said something earlier um where Valve hasn't released **[42:37]** new hardware recently, but it's like no, they actually have. Like they've been releasing hardware recently. They haven't been releasing software, which is, you know, that they they're poor caretakers of software. I see that for Valve. I I see Valve as a retirement community for very talented game developers. I've I've I've literally wrote that story. Like it's and this comes from talking with people there who have left, who are there currently. Like they yeah, it's if you can get a job at Valve, you're set for life and it's cushy and it's nice. **[43:08]** But there's also a lack of caretaking for for games, for developers, for players um specifically on the software side that I see. But the hardware, I think Valve really kills it. And the ecosystem, obviously, I mean Steam is is the PC ecosystem for better or worse. Um and yeah, I feel like there's a lot of work that Valve needs to do to make me feel like they have the best interests **[43:39]** of the industry and creativity and artists in mind. >> Um but hey, they're just another big company. They are privately held, but they are just another billion-dollar corporation. >> It's It's true. It's just It's hard to think about these companies like Nintendo is a public publicly traded, but very very different company uh philosophically and the kind of how they run. Um Ubisoft and EA, like it's it's all it was all very different like when they were when they were all separate, I guess. Um They all kind of have their **[44:11]** own philosophies. Valve is just like baffling a little bit cuz they can just sit tight and do their own thing. We should talk about there's also a new Steam Controller, which also just looks like they took the controls from the Steam Deck and kind of shoved them together to make a game pad. >> But what are they doing with those like capacitive touch pads? Like >> They're They're track pads, man. >> Yeah, they're okay, they're track pads, but like they've been trying to do that for a long time. I remember the first Steam Controller. I got that for a couple of family members. And they work **[44:41]** pretty well, but it seems like they still haven't caught on. Do you use it? >> great. Yeah. >> Do you use it on the Deck? Cuz I don't use them Like I've used I've used those pads a few times on my Deck, and I like how they feel a lot. I like the response. Uh but yeah, they're not I don't use them a ton. I I kind of agree. I'm not really sure. >> many real-time strategy games, but I feel like if I did, those things are great for moving pointer around. Like that's the main thing. So, it's for the type of games. If you're playing Civ, it's better to like swing that around **[45:12]** than >> And that's always what they show when they're like, "Look at these track pads. You can play an RTS game with it." >> See, and that's like one person One person at Valve is like, "I need this because I play so much Civ. So, this is going to be built You know, and it's like that That's great. I I do like that." >> They They are aiming like they aim at like really niche markets sometimes, but also like sometimes these adaptations turn people into those sorts of PC gaming sickos, too. Like sometimes you may not know what you actually want. I was not a big fan of the original **[45:42]** Steam Controller cuz it was really just those touch pads like mimicking Was it the directional pad and also some of the other buttons? This is much more of a traditional controller similar to the Steam Deck. They're using new magnetic technology for the joysticks, too. So, they're going to avoid drift, and they say they're going to last a lot longer. The touch pads are underneath. Um I like the Steam Deck controls even though I thought I wouldn't. Like I that B hanging off the side of the Steam Deck always seemed suspect to me, but holding in your hands like okay, yeah. **[46:12]** >> Yeah. >> It's fine. >> Yeah. Even for my tiny hands, it's fine. Do you have to play Do you Do you put your Steam Deck on a pillow when you play? Like I can't just hold it up like a handheld, right? I need to >> if I can see I can see why you do that or just get like a little little pillar for it or something. Like something >> Yeah. >> like a stand to kind of hold it up. >> Like a harness that comes out from my from my chest and holds it in place. Okay, no. >> Uh like like that harness that uh Nathan Fielder wears that like holds his computer. >> Yes. His laptop, yeah, exactly. **[46:43]** >> So that is like a I feel like that's a old school gadget blogger pull because uh that was like the Gizmodo guy the Gizmodo guy who went off to do Wirecutter famously wore that at CES like go around. Yeah. Go around like writing up products at CES. But uh anyway, new Steam Controller which looks like it's based on the Steam Deck. Again, doing something interesting. Um it can charge with like a little a little puck a little like adapter that plugs in magnetically on the bottom, but that adapter is also the wireless receiver. **[47:13]** Like it it also helps like the wireless connection also be stronger than just relying on Bluetooth or a puck that is directly tied to your computer. >> They put so much thought into this and it's so nice to see. And I need to say a couple more good things about the video because the thing I couldn't get out of my mind when I was watching it is like this is what an American Nintendo Direct looks like. >> Yes. >> It had the same tone. It had the same like um **[47:44]** Yeah, it had the same kind of bounciness to it, I guess. >> It's a very good tone, yeah. >> Yeah. >> And it was it was just so fun. Thank you, Valve. >> It's so cute. No, it was it is it's like refreshing, you know, to see including it's it's just refreshing to see new hardware and even the controller like the trackpads. I'm excited to see what developers do with them even if I don't see the point right now. I love a new toy like the Playdate has already I've seen **[48:15]** developers learn how to think about games differently by developing for the Playdate and like every time we have a new interaction point there's there's a new like genre that can pop up out of that almost and yeah, so it's exciting. This is exciting just on on the surface. Yeah. >> I want to say a little more about the Steam Machine. It is just a little box. It looks like a a tiny little cube although it's not totally cube-like. There's a single big ass fan that is cooling the entire thing down from hands-ons from folks. They say it's pretty pretty quiet. Inside there's a **[48:47]** big big heat sink. So it's like they thought about what if you were playing something quiet, you know, in your living room and you don't want like a big PC fan making noise. Like that is this will solve that problem. I could see somebody who has a gaming PC already but has a TV that's like further away getting this cuz you can still also remotely connect to your gaming PC and you know, stream something that's even higher quality than what this thing can play. Um there there's so much going on here. It's very exciting. They're all coming **[49:19]** early 2026. We don't have pricing or anything yet expect for them to be, you know, certainly the Steam Machine to be on the expensive side. >> Mhm. >> But I'm thinking of the value here, right? Like this is a computer. Could you get this rather than just like a computer that you're working on? Maybe I don't I don't know. Like not as a productivity machine but it could be. >> Mhm. >> While we're talking about that, Declan in the chat says, "Wait, can I dev on that box? Was that a developer using an IDE connected to it?" It's a computer. **[49:52]** It's a And that's what they said like several times. They're like this Steam Machine is a computer. You can do whatever you'd like on it. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, totally. So >> That's what we've been asking for. It's exactly It's exactly it and the market's finally ready. Like we weren't ready in 2013 and now now Valve is perfectly positioned to take advantage of this moment. >> It's wild and it just feels like body blow after body blow from Microsoft because they're all like guys, we we have Okay, we we have PC gaming. We can **[50:22]** be the PC gaming leaders. Let's just make a little PC gaming box and call that a console. And I don't I don't know. Like there are still advantages to gaming purely on Windows, right? Like you the stuff that requires um authentication. Like like you can't play Fortnite on Steam Deck. You can't play things that have like um what do you call it? Root level encryption or root level authentication is not going to work on these, but maybe that's something Valve can solve eventually. That's something you don't **[50:53]** have to worry about on Windows. Maybe some people have Windows game libraries already, but a Windows box will be able to run Steam. It'll be able to run anything. So this is where the innovation's going to be coming for for like the next decade of gaming. I think the closed ecosystem of consoles is is likely dying. Like Sony's the holdout. Nintendo's going to keep doing their own things, but open ecosystems of PC gaming is going to be so exciting for the next decade. So we'll keep an eye on all of that. Jess, I originally wanted you on this episode just to talk about your favorite games **[51:25]** of the year. >> Yeah, that's right. >> We're just you know, we're using up all our time to talk about exciting new hardware. What What has really made you happy in 2025 in the world of games? >> So much. This has been quite the year, hasn't it? >> Yeah. >> Um like surprisingly so. I really didn't expect it, but I've I've really been impressed especially by the indie scene. There's just so many good games, but even like Avowed this year was great. Um you know, like there's some AAA stuff that was really good, too. Um I'm **[51:56]** looking I have a little list over here. Um at the top of it is Blueprints for me. I don't know if if all y'all played that, but it's so >> Blueprints, yeah. >> It's so good, and it's a it's a puzzle game with a you know, kind of mysterious narrative built into it, where you're building the blueprints of a house as you go. Um and I actually played it as a local co-op game, because every puzzle game is a local co-op game if you try **[52:27]** hard enough. >> So true. >> Yeah, and it's cuz it this is a game where you have to take out, you know, pen and paper and write stuff down, or you know, take notes on your phone. Um so it works really well in tandem like that. But yeah, Blueprints is is near the top, and then I have a bunch of others, but I I'd love to hear some of yours, too. >> It's actually so true that every puzzle game is co-op, because one of my earliest memories of gaming period is playing Myst with my cousin. And he was way better at the puzzles **[52:58]** than I was, but sometimes there were things that were intuitive to me. >> Yeah. No, I I love playing puzzle games together on the couch, yeah. >> I put like five or 10 somewhere between five and 10 hours into Blueprints. I had to like step away, but it is it is really compelling. Like I love how you deep it is, and how it really forces you to think differently. Um I think we'll have a collective dis- let's just talk about Silk Song now, because it's Silk Song. Silk Song. >> Here it is. I was a big Hollow Knight fan, like many people. I've been waiting, waiting for **[53:30]** for the follow-up. I remember when Silk Song first got announced as DLC for Hollow Knight. I was like, yeah, that's cute. Let's get some Hollow Knight DLC. Seven years later, we have a game that is bigger, and I'd argue is far better than Hollow Knight was just in terms of its depth and what you're doing. I have not been to Silk Song, but I'm like 30 to 40 hours in and I just like I pop in and out. Um I am losing my skills every time I'm not like staying with it every single day. But it's just so good. It's just such a It's peak platforming. It is a great balance **[54:01]** of difficulty and discovery. Um It's wild because I'm not the biggest fan of like the the Souls games. Um It's I don't know if it's the combat or the way they punish you, you know, that just just doesn't vibe with me. And also like the the aesthetic sometimes I'm just like I gloomy dark and gloomy fantasy like gets a little old for me at times. I put in some time into Elden Ring and even that didn't quite hook me. Even though this is a dark and gloomy game, it is so interesting. The characters are so **[54:33]** uniquely drawn. The powers are interesting. Just the way you go about the world. I freaking love it. I don't I have not heard much from you, Jess, about Silk Song. Were you a fan? >> Yeah, so honestly Silk Song is not my game personally. Like those those types of games I find very frustrating to play, but I love to watch people play them. >> Mhm. >> Um and and yeah, Silk Song is is lovely. Everything I've seen. Very difficult, which I know was a a thing for some **[55:03]** people, but I I think if it's beatable, it's not too hard, right? Like that's that's what you want out of these games. You want them to be punishing. >> Mhm. >> Um but what I love about Silk Song is Team Cherry itself, how they just took the time they needed to make this game. >> Yeah. >> Like the reason we didn't hear anything from them for so long was because they were just heads down. They weren't They weren't reading the comments, you know, they weren't engaging with the toxic discourse. They weren't feeling that **[55:33]** pressure of like, "Oh, we have to make so No, they were just making the next game they wanted to make and hey, it turned out amazing because it's authentic and it's it's really what they wanted to make and not influenced by all all the the [ __ ] you know, and um I think that was That was when that story came out, it was like, oh yeah, they were just they were just working. Um I loved that. I really loved that and the game is a triumph, I think, from that. >> It's it's astounding. I mean, listen, I'm not I grew up playing games like **[56:04]** Ninja Gaiden and stuff. Like those games that were so freaking hard back in the day and then like they would be punishing, you would have three to five lives and you get to the last boss and it's just like so bad and you you lose all your lives, you're done. >> Yeah. >> back over, you know, so like my my antipathy towards this style of game goes back way, way far for me and yet somehow Silksong keeps bringing me back in and the way it is really a skill thing, right? Like I'll I will be at a boss 10 to 20 times, like just hammering **[56:36]** away, like figuring out its patterns or something. But when you when it clicks, that moment where you're like, oh, I see how you're moving now. I know what you're going to do next and I can move and I can jump here and I can do this and it feels like such a level of um it it just feels like a skill upgrade. It feels like you have upgraded yourself as a gamer to withstand this boss boss or this encounter, which to me feels much more fulfilling than just like going and farming and leveling up to beat a boss in, you know, **[57:07]** uh >> Yeah. >> Elden Ring or something. So, yeah, Silksong great. I love Silksong. Anything like I want to hear the the unsung games from you, Jess. >> Uh yeah, so one of one of my favorites this year was actually delayed because of Silksong. Uh Baby Steps. That's a great one. It's from Devolver. Um it's it's funny, the audio's amazing. I have a great interview with Maxi Bosch who did the audio uh for Baby Steps. Um so you can read that, too. But, play the **[57:38]** game. Um and then here, I'm going to run through just like a list of a few that I loved this year. Uh Keeper is great. >> Mhm. >> Town to City, if you want to relax, build some quiet quaint towns. Town to City. Bye Sweet Carol is a hand-drawn old-school animation style horror platformer. Very good. Split is quick. It's scary. It's cyberpunky. It's good. Um No, I'm Not a Human is a very It's a **[58:09]** a contained horror game. Love it. Very spooky. Despelote might be my game of the year. >> Oh, what? >> Uh Yeah, Despelote is uh a soccer game. You're It's a first-person soccer game with a beautiful hand-drawn style um set in Quito, and it's it's it's really it's a memoir in a in a video game. It's really fabulous. I absolutely recommend spend an afternoon, play Despelote. **[58:40]** And then, Sorry, We're Closed is fun and campy, lovely. Uh Doom: The Dark Ages is the last one on this list for me. It was also great. >> Yeah, it's it's a fun >> That's That's my list. >> Uh Doom: The Dark Ages, I put like maybe 5 hours into that. The The way you juggle combat in that game is really fun and inventive. It is just like you you it's pure power, right? You're not like jumping around like the last >> So, I can appreciate that. >> But, you're still fast. Like, you're on the you're grounded, but you're like slide slide slide. It's so cool. Yeah. **[59:12]** >> It's It just feels good. It reminds me of Quake 3 back in the day. Uh thank you for the list, Jess. >> There you go. >> I I wish I need to go through all those games. Like, Despelote has been on my list for a while. Keeper feels like the one release from a Microsoft studio that actually made an impact this year cuz we've just seen very little from them from those folks. >> Uh about about and keeper I think are my two from them this year. Yeah, but no Microsoft has some problems. Yeah. >> They have so many so many game studios **[59:44]** and yet no games and nobody wants to buy their hardware. I don't know. Let's see what the war of reinventing PC gaming looks like over the next decade. That's going to be really exciting. Have you played Dispatch at all yet, Jess? >> No, I haven't. I need to. >> It's Dispatch. >> Okay, that's next. >> That's um cuz I love I love your all your indie picks here because these are all games I definitely want to play and I know they're relatively short. For me, it's like long games are it's so hard. It's so hard to play games. It's so hard to beat games cuz my **[60:14]** time is just running out. But Dispatch uh from former Telltale folks, uh I talked about it on the show a little while back. It's a it's a narrative game where you're a former superhero that is out there uh dispatching current superheroes. And also, it's a management sim. You're like helping people along with their like professional issues and their personality issues. Um all that stuff feels really cool. Voice acting is incredible. Aaron Paul like it stars Aaron Paul. Jeffrey Wright is in it doing really good. **[60:45]** >> Uh finally, this is a role where Aaron Paul doesn't sound like Jesse Pinkman, too. >> It's He has evolved out of it. It does feel He still sounds like Jesse Pinkman, but he sounds like a grown-up. He sounds like a grown-up like Jesse Pinkman always sounded like um kind of like a you know, kind of kind of like a loser loser surfer boy out of just a brat. Yeah. Um yeah, this guy sounds like oh no, he he is a serious hero. He know he knows what he's doing. He screws up once in a while. Um he's sort of like the Iron Man of this world except he doesn't **[61:16]** have the so whole military industrial complex also paying for his technology. Um so he doesn't have much money. He doesn't really have his suit anymore either. So, he's also trying to live with the fact that he's getting older and may not be the hero he thought he was, but maybe he can inspire other people. The writing's really good. The music is very good. Bot Squad, the artist Bot Squad is is a voice actor in the game and they use her music several times to great effect. There's some There's a bar fight **[61:47]** sequence where she's singing. It's also just so much fun in terms of how gnarly and fun and violent it can get. Um This is a game that's always surprising people. People are streaming it live and like episode 4 opened with a really uh a really dramatic sexy time dream. Nobody expected that. I It feels like almost a trap for streamers, right? If you open If you open a chapter of that in a game where you have not had a high amount of sexual content in it. Um But, it's a game that manages to be many things. It can It can be a little sexy. **[62:18]** It can be a little sweet. Um It can be a lot of fun. And the last episode I've not played the ones that were released this week, but last week's episode, the finale broke my heart. >> Really? >> Yeah, this is everything I loved about playing Telltale games back in the day. Walking Dead, all their good stuff. Like this is it. The gameplay of it is fine. Like the dispatching people to like fight things. Um It It's perfectly fine. You kind of have to match like people's skills to what you're sending them to. It almost feels like they took the uh tavern dispatch **[62:51]** game from Final Fantasy Tactics and just like made a whole separate thing out of it. Except it's superhero space, so. Anyway, Jess, I guarantee you will love this game. It is fun. And it's also uh wonderfully bingeable. Every episode lasts for like 30 minutes to an hour, so you can get through it pretty quickly. Um They're They're releasing two episodes every week, I think, for the next few weeks. Um Great use of the episodic format. I remember some of the earlier episodic games like where it would often go months between episodes and I feel like you lose momentum doing that. Whatever **[63:24]** what excitement people had about playing your games, if you take forever to release something, you kind of you kind of just lose out on all of that. So, this patch is great. Also shouting out Final Fantasy Tactics The War of the Lions Chronicles, which I talked about here, too. Jess, please Have you tried Have you played Final Fantasy Tactics? >> No, and that's another one like Silk Song, you know, if it it's just not my not my game. It's not my game. >> you tried it? >> I guess I haven't tried it. No, I haven't tried it. I'll try it. That's fine. I know I've seen it at every game show **[63:56]** ever, you know, it's always on a on a little device ready for me to play. Yeah. >> There is a song that I sing with my son who's 3 and 1/2, but it's a Daniel Tiger theme, right? Try something new. You might like it. >> I'll do it. >> to life, that's a good life lesson. >> I'll do it. >> Especially when it's Final Fantasy >> Final Fantasy Tactics. >> That's right. Final Fantasy Tactics. It's so good. What is also fun is seeing this um Basically, I'm I'm on TikTok, you know, where I just like veg. That's where I **[64:26]** like hang out sometimes, but it's so cool seeing people discover this game and be like, "Oh, that character is a piece of shit." Yes, he has been for 30 years. I'm glad everybody is agreeing now or people being shocked about plot twists or like this character dies or something and seeing people react live on stream to it. It feels so cool because in 1997 when the original came out, I was just I played it with one other friend in my neighborhood and like we talked about it and the internet was a nation thing, but I **[64:56]** didn't have many people online to talk about it with, so to see tons of people playing a niche little game like Final Fantasy Tactics, um it's heartening. It's just it's great. And to also to see the game hold up and be restored in a way that's beautiful. That is fantastic, too. So >> I you know just good games truly are timeless. Like you it does I mean hey, we're still playing Tetris. Pong is still fine. But like yeah, once we get more advanced like that's just a good game and it'll **[65:26]** always be a good game. That's that's really cool. Yeah. >> It'll always be a good game and also like yeah, that was an early that was a PlayStation game as well. So I feel like a lot of the early PlayStation era stuff I I see indie developers doing like low poly trying to recreate that aesthetic. It never quite hits for me. You know, I like those games at the time, but I don't want anything to look like the original Tomb Raider. That was a bad time. When you think all that, you know, so I feel like there were eras that were great for the time and then PS2 is kind of where things kind of settled. Like that aesthetic, if you **[65:57]** give me a low poly aesthetic with like PS2 levels of controls and gameplay, like maybe that that would be better. Anything that you're looking forward to over the over the year, Jess, like what we have left or coming early next year? >> Well, yeah, I have an upcoming list here, too. These are literally lists I just like put together right before talking, so >> Perfect. >> I'm I know I'm going to forget something and be like, "No, I didn't That's fine. All right." But upcoming, um Skate Story, that's coming in December. That looks fabulous. I played **[66:28]** a preview I think two Summer Game Fests ago um and yeah, look out for Skate Story. Uh Unbeatable, this is a rhythm game, looks fabulous. Go go check that out. I think it comes in December, as well. Uh Mouse P.I. for Hire, this is the like 19 I don't know, black and white like game noir >> Yeah. >> Yeah, that one's coming soon and I played a preview of that. It's actually like way more deep and narrative-driven than I thought. So it actually looks, **[66:59]** you know, looks legit. Um so I'm actually interested in Mouse P.I. for Hire. Mixtape, this is from Beethoven and Dinosaur, the people that did uh the Artful Escape. So, it's like this is a very music and uh nostalgia-focused studio. Um and then Escape Academy 2 for escape room fun. Cries of the theater of idols. This is from Blumhouse. Blumhouse is just killing it um with with horror games. **[67:30]** So, Cries of the theater of idols looks very good. Uh first-person horror. And then Grave Seasons from Blumhouse as well. It's another uh Stardew Valley kind of horror game. >> Cool. Cool. I mean we're we're going to say like the biggest game of 2025 that people are waiting for was delayed until 2026. So, GTA 6 >> There it is. >> delayed till next November. Um I'm excited because uh despite the many **[68:00]** issues Rockstar has like I feel like sometimes their writing is under sung. Like I I I distinctly recall like GTA 4 had some really great stuff in it. Um especially some of the some of the DLCs. So, when they go when they do interesting stuff. And also they're a company that can do things their own specific way. Not always responding to market conditions cuz they have this thing that prints money. It's helpful to have one of those like Valve does. Um you could just do whatever you want or take as long as you want. So, it's kind **[68:30]** of cool. I don't Are you hyped at all? Are you intrigued by GTA Jess? >> Yeah. Uh I mean GTA is >> Mhm. >> It's a It's just a blockbuster video game. You know, like I understand people love it, but like it's like the Marvel of video games. It's It's going to be big and explosive and pretty and it'll have a semi-sensical story and the characters will be cool. You know, it like that's fine. I think it'll be good. It'll be a good game because that's what they do. And it'll be It'll be filled with **[69:00]** moments of like oh man, I recognize that." And oh, isn't that cool? Like yeah, it'll but I know it's not It is not at the top of my list, but I am I am actually stoked for it. Yeah. >> Jess, would you say that it's the blockbuster video game? Like what else is on its level? >> No, GTA V especially is as a game very unique, right? Like no other game can sell like just millions and millions and millions of copies every quarter, like **[69:32]** every month. They they just keep selling this game and eventually they'll run out of people, you know? Like that's that's what it feels like. Um but new people keep getting born, so maybe >> You can keep buying it. You can rebuy it. You can rebuy new editions. You get different platforms. Maybe you need to GTA. >> GTA Online really really set Rockstar up. Yeah. >> Forever. I do remember being disappointed by GTA V because it just felt like four had a really interesting story, right? Four had a really interesting narrative, like that was an immigrant's **[70:02]** tale. I thought they were doing interesting things there. Uh the DLCs like Ballad of Gay Tony, which were fun and interesting and well-written. We didn't get any of that for five because they just made this big ass story in a big world and then hey, uh GTA Online took off, so all their energy went to that. Uh Red Dead 2 had like that good writing. It had that slow burn stuff. So I I'm always waiting to be surprised by them. Maybe GTA 6 could do something interesting. Also going back to like uh is it Liberty City or Vice City? Like it **[70:34]** going to that Going back to Vice City is like that's going to be fun just from the footage we've seen so far. But again, it's not as interesting as all the indie stuff you've brought up, Jess. So thank you for that. Uh what are you working on these days, Jess? >> Oh man, I'm getting our um some end of year roundup things together. Uh and yeah, we'll be talking a lot about Xbox and Valve and like just the kind of the PC console space and and **[71:04]** where that where that's at right now. And then I'm also going to be talking about just the good stuff this year, which I'm very excited to write about. Cuz there's been a lot of not good stuff this year. >> So there's going to be so many good things to talk about for the PC gaming space basically over the next year. I also am predicting like right now we are we are prepping for CES. It is a month and a half away. God damn. Uh I feel like this will be a gaming heavy CES at least in terms of like the stuff we bring. I feel like people we're going to be hanging out together and playing games together. So I'm hoping that's going to be a fun thing. **[71:35]** Jess, where can people find you on the internet these days? >> Uh only one place nowadays. I'm on Blue Sky. Uh just search my name Jess Conditt. Yay. >> Well, no. You got to search a Jess L. Conditt if you >> Jess L. Is it? >> Yeah, because there are there are a whole bunch of names that pop up. So >> Oh. Well, thank you. >> there. And Jess, like you should totally do like a Game Rant. We got to get you on TikTok or something. Just talking games all the time. >> I know. I know. I should just film film some stuff. Oh, maybe. I'll think about it. >> Hey, uh yeah, that's uh people don't **[72:06]** want to read anymore. So we just got to get used to video like these wonderful live streams. Thank you for joining us, folks. All right. Thank you, Jess. Um thanks and we'll we'll definitely be chatting soon. Please drop your audio to Ben. >> Will do. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you so much. All right. I'll stop. >> Thanks, Jess. >> I'll send this over. Thanks, guys. That was great. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Bye. >> Always good. Bye. All right. Let's take We could do chat for a little bit and then we're going to wrap real quick, folks. I saw there was some stuff happening. **[72:37]** Uh Niranjan Banda asked did the Engadget get a hands-on on the Valve stuff? No, we didn't. And I I am personally affronted by this because I saw a whole bunch of YouTubers there that don't always cover gaming hardware. I'm like, "God damn Valve. I just send me the bell view. Let me play with your stuff. We will we will get a look at it. So like they're going to have like multiple previews and all sorts of stuff. But let me tell you folks, that one hurt. That one did hurt especially by how exciting this hardware is. Uh **[73:07]** what else is >> I mean you were just talking about how like nobody wants to read anymore like uh you know, do video, do video. And so what did Valve do? >> Yeah. >> Went directly to where people are. >> It's true. It's true. I mean there were some sites there too. But uh you know, I I think we are on their radar and hopefully we will get test hardware and everything. Simon B, I did not see an email, but Let me see here. And also we're running out of time. So I will save whatever that Simon B for next time. **[73:38]** Uh What are people saying about the games? Arc Raiders. Yeah, I'll try Arc Raiders but it gets boring unless you're into weird social interactions. I I I literally know nothing about Arc Raiders. I saw people start playing it and like I'm so honed in on my tactics, Valve AZ tactics and dispatch these days. Uh Blueprints was really great says BFM. He was like they have like 800 photos and 50 pages of notes from playing. That's cool. That's cool. >> Yeah, yeah. And I asked BFM BFM if **[74:09]** you're still watching, please send us some pictures of your notes to [email protected]. And maybe we'll show them on the stream next week because it's really cool to see someone so dedicated to a puzzle game like that. >> Mhm. Uh I see a comment from War Alex16. Valve is mega greedy, 30% cut on software sales and Valve won't sell this PC console at a loss. Hopefully a $400 to $500 price level. Um >> Good luck. >> Uh not because essentially Valve is greedy, but mainly hardware has gotten **[74:41]** hella expensive. There is a reason the PlayStation 5 digital a device released in 2020 is now $100 more than it was at launch and that is global tariffs. That's all sorts of stuff. Go ahead, Ben. >> It also just the fact that like GPUs are more expensive. GPUs are used for more than video games now. There are probably some people I the the cousin that I just mentioned who like introduced me to PC gaming, I think he might have some Nvidia stock that went up a lot because he was just a PC **[75:11]** gamer. He was like, "Yeah, okay, like this is interesting." And also like um you know, he's kind of a computer engineer so he knows uh you know, multi-thread uh processing is pretty interesting. But he probably got in on that a long time ago and uh good for him. >> Mhm. Good for them. Um but yeah, I don't >> Way to make a pile just by like being a dedicated PC gamer and being like, "Okay, yeah, I'll buy stock in the GPU company." And now >> Like yeah. >> Now maybe you can have a down payment on a house. >> That's cool. That's cool. Like yeah, **[75:43]** hopefully it's working for somebody. Um but now um any new hardware like this, folks, uh we I don't think we're going to see the $500 level again. The Switch 2, right, is $450 and that has significantly slower hardware and more specialized hardware. Um something like this which is essentially like a low-end gaming PC or mid-range gaming PC, 800 table stakes, you know, like I feel like 7-800's where we're going to be at and that is not Valve pricing things out **[76:14]** uh like crazy. That is just because this hardware has gotten more expensive. But the good thing about this is like their prices could go down eventually. Uh we will we'll kind of see where it lasts. But given people were into the PS5 Pro, people were buying the PS5 Pro at that $800 price, there's a market for this. There's a market for all this other stuff. Hey, if you want a cheaper system, uh the Steam Deck is often on sale. The base Steam Deck is often on sale under 400 bucks. You put that thing in a dock, that is a system that you can **[76:44]** play on your TV as well. So, there are solutions. What is interesting is Valve is giving us like layers of different solutions for how you want a PC game. So, it's going to be interesting to see. Yeah. Okay, let's just finish up the episode, folks. Thank you for joining us. This was a big one. What's up? >> Yeah, let's just do a round Engadget and then go straight to picks. Because you can talk about the PlayStation Portal re-review when it's actually out, right? >> Yeah. Well, no, it's it's out. >> Oh, it is out? >> The re-review. That's why it's a re-review. >> Well, yeah, okay, so, yeah. **[77:15]** >> It's fine. I'm just going to blast through this. It's fine. I just wanted to mention cuz it is a thing I'm working on. >> Sure. >> All right. All right, let's take a look around Engadget. A couple of stories you guys should pay attention to. Sam Rutherford took a look at the Even Realities G2. He's calling it this year's best-looking new smart glasses, but they still need work. Uh, these things are cool. You know, they they have like a very standard frame design. They also use a smart ring for health and fitness tracking. It looks like it has a built-in like a touchpad built in. **[77:46]** I'm I'm not a fan of these glasses being tied to accessories that you wear. So, we're going to see like where all this stuff ends up. I feel like if you're going to do this, you have to you have to track my fingers. You have to see like what's happening with my hands and not like make me wear a wearable like the Meta Ray-Ban display. But, we'll see. And also, Daniel Cooper reviewed the Framework Laptop 16 upgrade the with the RTX 5070. Um, looks the same as before. It's a modular gaming PC, but this 5070 means that thing is much more powerful than before. I still **[78:18]** have the the initial Laptop 16 around. And that thing like it's great. It is a great machine. It's not the sleekest gaming PC out there, but if you want like a configurable PC, uh, it's going to be a good one. Dan has also some good bits about how loud the fans are because, yeah, because you're you're building a self-contained unibody console uh system, you're building a thing with like a module that can poke in and out, so those fans are not as optimized as they are on something like you know, like a Razer Blade. As for what I'm working on, I'm doing **[78:50]** another look at the PlayStation Portal. So, this is like a re-re-review because they just released uh Sony just released an update that lets you play games from the cloud that you own if you're a PlayStation Plus subscriber. So, the Portal has become a better cloud gaming box rather than just a device that streams from your console. That part of it still doesn't work well for me. Uh so, yeah. Take a look at that. That's going to be going up soon. Uh what do you have for pop culture picks this week, Ben? >> I have literally one song. **[79:20]** >> Mhm. >> So, remember last week I was telling everybody about Title Fight and like other like nice fall music and I was talking about that with a friend who's a bit older than me, so she was like around during like the big wave of Midwest Emo. >> Mhm. >> And I was like, "Hey, you might like Title Fight because it feels like Midwest Emo kind of combined with DC hardcore from the like 80s." Um and I was like, "It sounds a little bit like Cap'n Jazz." Cap'n Jazz pretty **[79:50]** important for Midwest Emo because um like it was just really influential on a bunch of different bands and then some people from Cap'n Jazz went and started American Football. And if you are on any of the like music circles and social media sites, you have seen the American Football house. It's uh really iconic. But I was like, "I should go listen to Cap'n Jazz." And um so, I was listening to like a bunch of uh things on their like big compilation **[80:22]** album and I heard a cover of Take on Me by a-ha. And I was like, "This is delightful. It's amazing." And also, it's low-fi and it sounds kind of shitty. This is music that AI cannot reproduce. >> Mhm. >> So, I don't know if you could prompt something like that, but um I just really liked it. I was like, this is such a fun take on um a fun kind of cheesy 80s song. **[80:52]** >> Awesome. Awesome. I've never heard of Captain Jazz. You said a lot of words there, Ben, that I am not familiar with, but I'm going to take your word on it and check out Pluribus. >> There are some people who are going to be listening to this who feel very seen. So, >> Yeah. >> my heart goes out to them and email me at [email protected] if you like this. >> Awesome. And I want to shout out Pluribus, the new show from Vince Gilligan, the creator of you know, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, but people forget Vince Gilligan was a writer on The X-Files and this >> Yep. **[81:22]** >> X-Files-ass show. Uh this is Rhea Seehorn from Better Call Saul as a woman who is realizes that the world has kind of been um taken over by a happiness virus or something. I'm not going to say too much about what it is, but the world has been taken over essentially by happiness and she is the world's most miserable person and she will not allow it. It is fascinating. It is uh it's a real slow burn at times, but I just I find it really cool. Like if you **[81:54]** like The X-Files when it got a little weird. If you liked um The Lone Gunmen, which was like the those characters in The X-Files and the spin-off they had of about just like a couple of nerds, you know, uh dealing with supernatural [ __ ] sometimes, uh this show will will get right to you. And also, Rhea Seehorn is fantastic. So, if you have Apple TV Plus or just Apple TV now, right? Um if you have that, check out Pluribus. Uh the first two episodes are up right now and it is fantastic. **[82:25]** Okay, chat. I don't know if we're going to stick around for too long to talk to >> Yeah. Yeah, cuz we got to go. I got to edit this. I Okay, so here's the outro. That's it for the episode this week. Thank you for listening. Our theme music is by game composer Dale North. Our outro music is by our former managing editor Terrence O'Brien. The podcast is produced by me, Ben Ellman. You can find Devindra online at >> at Devindra on Blue Sky and my podcast **[82:55]** about TV and movies at the filmcast at the filmcast.com. >> If you want to send me other examples of music that AI couldn't reproduce, I'm at heybellem on Blue Sky. Email us at [email protected]. Leave us a review on iTunes and subscribe on anything that gets podcasts. That includes Spotify. >> Thanks, folks. We're out. Uh Simon B, I remember your email now. You had something about BlackBerry. Thank you for resending it. We will look at it. Uh for especially for the next few **[83:26]** weeks. We can find some time for it. >> Yeah, I also really need to um watch the BlackBerry movie. I still haven't. >> That's a great movie. >> Yeah, I know. >> It's freaking good. Check out the BlackBerry movie, folks, if you have not seen it. Uh but anyway, good stuff. Thank you so much for joining us, folks. Glad we could have Jess on to talk about games like that. The Valve announcement just happened like the middle of the day yesterday and we're like, "Oh, what perfect timing to get to talk about it for us." >> the absolute opposite of what usually happens because we'll like finish the **[83:56]** recording when we can't like spend that much time looking at news and then we'll check the news immediately after and it'll be like some huge thing. >> I hate it when that happens. Thank you so much for joining us, folks. I don't know Ben, if you want to do roll credits or anything, but >> Yep. So, thank you so much, everybody, for listening. Thanks to Simon B. Thanks to BFM for being a new chatter. Stick around. Um or if you were watching under a new **[84:28]** If you're watching under a new username, tell us what the username is. Thank you to Mo Esquire who said that the live streams typically happen during their weekly meetings. Um but it was nice to jump in last minute. Thanks to Lucky Dog Podcast. Thanks to West Jackson and Declan and Niranjan Banda. Camera switching by me. OBS by Devendra. Take care of yourselves and