Steams Big Picture; 2 Worlds Collide

When I blogged about my changing attitude to computers, I touched upon the fact that Steam were releasing Big Picture mode; a UI that turns the black and white difference between console and computer experience into a nice shade of grey. If you can get a nice shade of grey, I suppose. A few days ago, Big Picture was released into beta, with those who opt into Steams Beta option given the first public test of the feature. As one of those beta boys, I've played around with the experience and I hope to give you an insight as to how important this interface is.

Firstly, one might ask, is what's so interesting about a UI? Well, Steams Big Picture interface is optimised for television. What does that mean? Consider the regular Steam UI. Small text, drop down menus and a fairly cold experience – an interface you wouldn't put on your TV as you most likely wouldn't be able to read the text. Big Picture replaces the small text, drop down menu interface with chunky, square boxes more akin to Xbox360s interface; a solution far better adapted to the TV.

I'm going to take a stab in the dark here. You, the reader, might be thinking this; Why make a User Interface that is optimised for TV when I sit here, on my computer, looking at a monitor and play games with a mouse and keyboard? If that is what your thinking, then Steam has thought it too – the answer is that the Interface isn't just for Mouse and Keyboard – it's been designed for controllers.

More specifically, the Xbox360 controller. PS3 fans, don't worry,there is a way to get your controller to work with the interface. Connecting your controller to the computer while in Big Picture instantly replaces the keyboard instructions with controller buttons. The black and white picture is turning greyer. Big Picture, optimised for TV and navigated by console controller; almost like your on a console, no? Furthermore, many of the multiplatform games, that is games that appear on the 360 and PS3 alongside the PC, have controller support native to said game. Time to take this all for a test.

Once I got my PS3 controller paired to Windows, I plugged my heaterImeanlaptop into the TV by HDMI. With Steam loaded up and the window in front of me, I pressed the PS button. For a lack of a better word, boom! Steams new intro pops in (albeit, on may laptop, jittering). Rather instinctively, I navigate to my games collection and scroll past FM, Company of Heroes and such to the Limbo Demo; a game that was time-exclusive to the 360 and designed more-so with consoles in mind. Couple taps of X and Limbo loads up – no rectangle telling me its launching or pop up which would appear foreign in this interface. With Limbo loaded up, my controller is still working and operating the game. I hit the PS button once more, and I'm greeted with the Big Picture UI layered on Limbo. Back to the game, I sink 20 minutes into the demo before deciding to quit out. Right back to the Big Picture UI.

Although in Beta, the whole experience makes you forget your operating a computer. Big Picture has it's own web browser optimised for the controller, as well as the friend list easily accessible for chating with your fellow gamers. Steam have got around the whole difficulty typing messages by including a new type of keyboard to use with the controller; the daisywheel. From my experience, it compares to the PSPs keyboard, although circular and generally more easy and fast to use. The store is also included in Big Picture, allowing you to browse for games and even purchase – all optimised in the new UI.

There are, at this stage, obviously a few bugs. I've had a little bit of trouble getting the search function to work and I've had a couple of times a sound bug. However, these bugs will be highlighted and fixed. There is no word how long the beta will last but I fully expect that when they remove the “Beta” tag this new interface will be ready to stand up to, and possibily beat, consoles interfaces.

A console experience, on your PC. Games optimised for controllers, being launched by controllers though the UI of the biggest game store on the PC. All that's required is a PC that can play said games (easily achievable for less then £300) and a HDMI cable. The colour is well and truly grey now.

On the 30th of August, I woke up to the news that the next Metal Gear Solid has been showcased as part of the Metal Gear 25th Anniversary. After shutting up the 10 year old screaming girl inside me, I re-read the news report and took in what it meant for me. The game was running on the PC. It wasn't console exclusive. It was the push I needed to abandon the console ship.

Bit of background. I've had a console in my life since before I could remember. Well, that's a slight lie. I remember getting up for Christmas and finding a Sega Megadrive with Sonic. But since then, I've always had a console. I had a PS1, 2 & 3. My brother lent his Xbox to me and I bought a 360 (which then died 3 days later) before I purchased a PS3. My girlfriend has the Wii and DS/3DS, whilst I have had a GBC,GBA and PSP. I also had desktops in my life, on which I did play games such as BF2 competitively, but the console was always around. I have had every generation of console that was possible to buy alongside my life, basically.

Yet I will not be buying the PS4, Xbox720 or WiiU. Even without knowing the features, I know that I will not pick up the next generation. Why the flip in behaviour?

The answer lies with the desktop PC, Steam and perhaps with my age.

Firstly, my age. When I was a young whippersnapper, I bought the magazines previewing games, I went into Electronic Botique wide eyes and read the back of the games cases with vigour. Nowadays, I look at the price tag of a new console game - £40 in most cases – and say “Fuck no”. I see the latest releases and hardly any interest me. Uncharted 3 disappointed me, F1 2011 was, well F1 2011. Battlefield 3 is fun but anyone can see that the 24 player experience is nowhere near the awesomeness of 32-64 players – and thats without examining Armoured Kill. My latest game and the game thats made me return to the PS3? Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection – games from the PSP and PS2? The only game that interests me is The Last of Us, and even then I won't slap down £40 for it.

My age has taught me that gaming is expensive and that my golden generation will be the games I was playing when I was younger. Yeah, I'll still buy the latest FM, Metal Gear or the like, but most games these days are no longer “exclusives”. This trend will do nothing but continue and while the PC suffers from piracy and horror stories of software which does more to offend the customer then the pirater (Ubisoft!), [deep breath] there is one shining hope of becon; Steam!

Steam is the argument for the desktop PC, in a gaming sense. They have recently announced Big Picture mode. The premise? Console UI for your TV, PC games. There has been a trend alongside this of games becoming more “Console” on the PC as well, with interfaces designed more for controllers along with the option of using controllers for operating the game itself.

The benefit of this is clear to see. Why do you need to fork out for a console with static hardware, closed software and relatively high (at launch) failure rates when you could buy a PC and hook it up to your TV for a console experience?

An argument can be made that the initial price for consoles are lower then when buying/building a PC. An argument which is, in my opinion, fairly wrong. I've been doing some research and found that I can buy a pre-built barebones computer, missing around £40 worth of hardware, for £120. This PC can play current games such as Dirt 3 at 40FPS. The system can then be upgraded whenever you have the available funds – building a PC which far surpasses the current crop of consoles for minimal cost and will cost less then the next generation of consoles.

Consoles are known to be friendly to use. Plug it in, launch it and stick the disk in – game away. Well, with the computer literacy of children and our generation, not many people don't know how to use a PC. Steam once again comes into the argument with their store. It's simple to just download games from them and Big Picture mode will make the UI even better.

The most compelling argument is consoles normally come with some form of proprietary hardware. PS2 came with a DVD drive which helped justify it's position as not only a console but a system which lets users watch films. PS3 followed suit with the Blu-Ray player, as did the 360 who tried to wage war with the HD-DVD add on. At the time of launch, the PS3 was the cheapest Blu-Ray player on the market. It could be possible that a next gen console will use a new proprietary hardware, giving us a cheap way to have some more expensive kit. It is, however, possible it will go the other way – cloud source gaming, download only games or the like. Cloud source and download gaming is already available on PC and, what with games no longer trending towards exclusivity there is no strong argument against the PC gaming.

There is, however, one huge cloud on the gaming horizon that I have to consider when ditching the SS. Console for the Battleship PC. Windows 8. There has been much rumblings about how gaming will be segmented by the new “Metro although its no longer call Metro” UI. It seems that Games for Windows, the Steam like download service, will be the only “apparent” gaming application on Metro. Steam will be relegated to the normal desktop view, hidden away in Microsofts eyes. Not very, erm, user friendly.

There is of course ways around this. Firstly, we don't even know if Windows 8 will sell well. The new UI is very Tablet friendly – why would a business or customer want that for their home desktop – why not just get a tablet? Secondly, Windows 7 isn't going anywhere. Game companies won't suddenly lose compatibility for their games with Windows 8 much like the new consoles do. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly in the long run, Steam are not taking this lieing down.

What hasn't really been mentioned is the other benefits PC gaming gives the console user. FPS become more competitive and full of teamwork. Real Time Strategy games are only really viable on the PC and are complex and interesting. Racing games can take advantage of the superior CPUs to deliver better physics and driving experience. Other games, like platformers and Sports games, are now playable on PC due to the console controllers working on PCs. Games also normally have vibrant communities, offering user patches for games that are no longer supported by the developers or even full modifications of games, turning them into something new or adding massive amounts of content.

On the productivity front, desktops offer word processing, image editing and many other abilities that completely escape my brain. Although the browsing experience of the internet is perhaps better on tablets, it can't be denied that there are many things the computer does better and tablets are more supplements then replacements. Except when Tablets are compared with Laptops. Bloody laptops.

To sort of put a lid on all of this, there is very little reason as to not jump ship anymore to computers. Perhaps these arguments have always existed but it has just taken age to finally understand them and make them for myself. Or perhaps I'm just such a MGS fan that it took the announcement of the game coming to PC as well that made me see the light. I haven't mentioned University; a desktop will certainly help that. But these are more general arguments and I hope those who have read it will perhaps consider the Desktop option in replacement of consoles.