Steam Machine PC Pricing Concerns, Win 11 Update Kills Perf, Red Dead Returns

The video discusses three main topics related to PC gaming and hardware.

Steam Machine pricing concerns (1:45): Valve’s Steam Machine is expected to be priced more like a PC than a console, targeting a “good deal” relative to similarly powerful PCs rather than aggressive console-style pricing. This likely puts it in the $800–$1,000 range given current component costs and tariffs, raising concerns that it will be too expensive to appeal to a traditional console audience. The speakers also note that limited upgradeability (mainly just memory and SSD) makes it less compelling than a fully upgradable desktop PC.

FSR4 gets Proton support (19:14): FSR4, AMD’s latest upscaling technology, is reported to work under Proton—even on older GPUs—via a leaked DLL. This is promising for SteamOS and the Steam Machine ecosystem, but there are open questions about when AMD will officially release and support the full-featured version of FSR4.

Windows update hurts gaming performance (33:38): A recent Windows update (KB506835) has quietly caused major performance drops in some games, especially Assassin’s Creed. The speakers criticize Microsoft’s handling of the operating system and updates, pointing to poor communication around breaking changes. They express frustration and suggest that, for some players, moving to Linux could offer a more stable long-term gaming experience.