I hope so too, and I think this time Valve has a much higher chance of success. When they launched the Steam machines it was almost guaranteed to fail. The Linux ecosystem wasn't there yet and the prices weren't competitive.
But now with Proton most problems I have are caused by hardware/driver incompatibilities. Which is exactly what Valve can get rid of by launching their own hardware which is actually built and tested primarily for Proton. That's why I'm really hoping this takes off. I'd honestly have preferred a stationary device, but now that the Switch is the only serious portable console they might be able to build a market there. Especially as people can just keep using their Steam library.
> When they launched the Steam machines it was almost guaranteed to fail.
Too true. Steam Machines solved a problem for Valve (existential fear of a Windows store built into Windows), but didn't really solve any problem for the bulk of their customers (existing windows users).
Exactly! Only one hardware configuration makes it easy to program for and test. This will be way more successful than the confusing array of Steam Machines.
Yeah this makes all the investment in Proton make a ton more sense. I've been really enjoying the side effect of pretty much any game I try running on my Linux desktop with little to no extra effort as well.
For me personally, I value the openness and out-of-the-box hackability of this device very much and it will likely be the first handheld gaming device I'll buy since the Nintendo DS. I'm interested to see if that sentiment is shared more widely as well.
Protondb isn't completely reliable, it's all based on user generated reports of how well a game works. I've had games that were rated gold and platinum on ProtonDB fail to launch on my PC. Then you have people reporting that a game works great, but they say that they had to compile a custom version of Proton, not just use what's included with Steam.
Honestly, it has never been easier to get a version of proton that makes gaming on linux seamless. Of course, I understand "run these terminal commands" is the usual defensive linux nerd^H^H^H^H coward's reaction, but installing Steam and this package from flatpak and then going from there is a _vast_ improvement from yester-years. I've been fairly happy with it, and I didn't have to do any actual compiling / building!
It runs many more games than the Nintendo switch right from the start, with many people being able to play games on the go without buying them again.
It's not perfect, but it sounds like a much better deal than the Steam Machines which didn't really offer any additional value to anyone and were much more limited.
It does look very appealing: it could become a Switch with the whole PC library available. Damn cool.