GameStop has been announced as the exclusive Steam Hardware retailer on their Nov. 10 release date. But will the retailer help Valve's gaming platform become successful?
According to Wired, GameStop will be the exclusive retailer of Steam Machines, Controller and Link devices in the US starting Nov. 10. GAME UK and EB Games will cater to the UK and Canada markets, respectively.
"GameStop, GAME UK and EB Games are leading retail destinations for core gamers and early adopters," Valve boss Gabe Newell said in a statement.
"Creating a 'store within a store' across North America and the UK is a significant win for getting the first generation of Steam Hardware products into gamers' hands."
For PC World, putting Valve's upcoming gaming platform in stores "lets potential buyers see the PC-based consoles first hand - and hopefully buy into [it]."
Steam Hardware was developed in the wake of the backlash against Windows 8, as the website pointed out. But its Nov. 10 release date may already be "too late" with Windows 10 and the PS4 and Xbox One already out.
Valve's PC-based consoles, which run the firm's Linux-based SteamOS, sell at different price points with some going over a thousand dollars, as Forbes noted. It's here where it thinks GameStop can help Valve sell more of them by having "an actual human being who can explain to you the difference between each of them."
Forbes also pointed out that "[GameStop's] PC gaming presence has been minimal the past few years given the rise of Steam itself."
But as commenters in Wired's piece pointed out, Valve's Steam Hardware is meant to pull console gamers into PC gaming.
"If those console gamers decide to buy set-top gaming rigs, it can help expand the market which ultimately means more people buying games through Valve's store," one commenter said.
To that end, it remains to be seen if GameStop can successfully market and sell Steam Hardware on their Nov. 10 release date.
