Valve have announced the official release dates for Steam products to be November 10th, but you can get all of that in October if you preorder now.
I’ve heard of early access before, but the competition for the Steam machines can’t be that- Oh, right, they’re trying to walk in the giant Xbox and PlayStation shaped footprints, they might want to throw in some bundles or something as well, just to sweeten the deal.
You can already start preordering, and as long as you go through Steam or GameStop, Alienware’s Steam Machines, the Steam Controller, and Steam Link could be all yours on October 16. For Europeans and Canadians, you can get in on the deal by preordering through Steam, GameStop, EB Games, Micromania, or GAME UK.
Valve are trying to accomplish the impossible, producing a machine that’s going to serve as a PC but in your living room. The Steam machines are going to take you out of the gaming chair and back on the couch, offering the PC experience without the need to have a traditional computer. Alienware’s products have been highlighted as being available early in the advertisements, but other systems by Asus, iBuyPower, and Origin will be coming out in November; with price ranges from $450 to $5000, there’s a whole range of boxes to choose from, depending largely on the size of your bank account.
Also coming out is the Steam Link for $50, which will allow you to stream games from your PC onto your TV screen using your local network, and the Steam Controller for $50, a hybrid of gamepad and mouse controls that will mean previously mouse only games can now be played with a controller.