Niode wrote:Ignoring the fact that you have to shell out £300 for an extra system to play games I can get right now on PC. A cable from your PC to your living room TV is the least of your concerns. I have a 10m HDMI cable I paid £15 for. With Steam streaming, buying a low power media PC (such as the ones from Intel for less than £100) would be the preferred solution.
Agreed on both points. However, if I were to ask my wife if I could run a 30ft HDMI cable across the bedroom, it would most certainly be a guaranteed "no". Its just not an option for some people. While I'm playing devil's advocate, I'd also argue that Steam streaming is only good for the power user. The average user (and maybe young children), can barely handle running one PC, much less two while ensuring that the proper network requirements are met. And speaking of networks, some college residential networks would not allow that kind of traffic.
Anecdotal evidence time! A few years ago, I went to a co-worker's house to help with something tech related. While I was there, I noticed that the kids were playing on a PS3. I also noticed that the screen was really fuzzy. I asked if they were using an HDMI cable to connect it to their HDTV and I was met with blank stares from the entire household. They just used the composite cable that came with it and had been playing in 480i mode for years. They had no clue what an HDMI cable was. There are lots of people out there like this and Steam streaming is simply beyond them.
marurun wrote:But how is latency? I could see the streaming aspect killing responsive fighting game controls.
As a fighting game enthusiast, that had occurred to me as well. My gut feeling tells me that, at best, it would probably be playable but not conducive to practicing for a tournament. But then again, I haven't tried it so I can't say for sure. If I get SFV on PC then I will certainly give it a go. Right now, all my fighting games are on consoles.
