Steam Machine just put the PS5 and Xbox on notice – if Valve nails one more thing
Things just got very interesting, gamers
💪 Valve has unveiled a new Steam Machine, a compact PC aiming to disrupt the console market, provided it is competitively priced
🙌 The device, powered by SteamOS, offers a console-like, user-friendly experience while retaining the flexibility and open nature of PC gaming
🎮 Its hardware performance is positioned between the Xbox Series S and PS5, promising 4K 60fps gaming using AMD’s FSR upscaling
💰 For the Steam Machine to succeed as a genuine console alternative, Valve must price it attractively (ideally $699 or less) to capture a wider, non-enthusiast audience
It’s official. After years of fervent speculation, Valve unveiled its second attempt at the Steam Machine. And it could be the disruptor that the console space desperately needs – if it’s competitively priced.
The diminutive black cube won’t be the most technically advanced box on the market. However, it promises to deliver six times the power of the Steam Deck and sits somewhere between an Xbox Series S and PS5.
That might not sound overly impressive. In fact, it may even be disappointing to some. But Valve says the Steam Machine will play almost every Steam game at 4K 60fps using AMD’s FSR upscaling technology.
We’ll have to wait and see if that’s the case, but the Steam Machine’s goal isn’t to deliver jaw-dropping graphics and the highest frame rates possible. You can already achieve that if you’re willing to part with thousands of dollars for the latest GPU and CPUs.
No, the Steam Machine’s mission is to make PC gaming in the living room a more viable, consumer-friendly reality. And it’s SteamOS, not the hardware itself, that is the driving force.
Decked out
The Steam Deck was a proof of concept for Valve. It proved that Valve could transform its digital distribution platform into its own console-like ecosystem. Your library of games, achievements, friends list, custom controller profiles and more were suddenly no longer locked to a hulking desktop PC but in the palm of your hand.
Crucially, though, the pain of Windows was nowhere to be found. We no longer had to deal with an operating system that often feels like it wants to prevent you from gaming, with its countless updates, unnecessary bloatware, and poor optimization.
To put it simply, SteamOS delivered the console-like interface and features (like suspend and resume) that ultimately transforms the PC hardware found inside Sony’s box into a PS5. Yes, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S are basically just custom PCs.
Open the release valve
However, what makes the Steam Machine more exciting than Sony and Microsoft’s systems is that it isn’t confined by the trappings of a traditional console. It retains the open-ended nature of PC gaming, which has always been the platform’s biggest strength.
Being able to tinker, tweak and customize the experience to your liking is why millions of people choose PC gaming to begin with. The Steam Machine is still a PC – something that Valve explicitly highlights in its marketing material – and it means you’ll be able to make the Steam Machine yours.
It’s impossible to dismiss just how intoxicating the freedom PC gaming offers can be.
Don’t like the stock look of SteamOS? No problem, you can change it. Want to add some new functionality that Valve hasn’t covered? You can trust the PC gaming community to step in. Maybe you want to play at a lower resolution but at a higher frame rate? Easy, just head to the game’s settings. Or maybe you just want to use the Steam Machine like a traditional PC and do some word processing? That’s covered too.
This type of flexibility just isn’t there on consoles. You’re at the mercy of what Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo decide to implement. And the same is true for the games you play. It’s impossible to dismiss just how intoxicating the freedom PC gaming offers can be.
It also helps that Steam generally offers cheaper game prices than Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo. Plus, you don’t have to pay to play online, and there are countless more games available on Steam, from breakout indie hits to decade-old classics.
It’s not all rosy in the SteamOS garden
Of course, SteamOS still isn’t the cure-all for PC gaming that Valve is working towards. Despite being compatible with thousands of games, there are still titles that simply don’t work on the Linux-based operating system. Games that use anti-cheat are the most glaring examples, which means household names like Fortnite, PUBG and Call of Duty are still off the table.
Compare it to Microsoft’s new Xbox Full Screen Experience for handhelds, and it’s laughable just how ahead of the game Valve is with SteamOS.
This isn’t Valve’s fault, to be clear. These games could work on SteamOS, but it’s up to the developers to make them compatible. At the moment, it clearly doesn’t make financial sense to do so. If the Steam Machine takes off, that could change.
It’s also worth stressing that as fantastic as SteamOS is, it’s still more complex than the user interfaces you’ll find on the PS5 or Nintendo Switch 2, for example. There’s a learning curve, and sometimes the console-like spell is broken when an old launcher pops up or you need to do some troubleshooting. But compare it to Microsoft’s new Xbox Full Screen Experience for handhelds, and it’s laughable just how ahead of the game Valve is with SteamOS.
A breath of fresh air
With Nintendo finding continued success with its blue ocean strategy and Sony obliterating Microsoft’s Xbox for the second generation running, there was a worry that the status quo had been firmly established.
That was a chilling prospect for gamers, or at least it should have been. No matter where your allegiances lie, the video game industry thrives when competition is rife. After all, there’s a reason so many look back fondly at the Xbox 360 and PS3 generation as Sony and Microsoft went blow for blow.
Valve has a real chance to capture a growing base of disillusioned console users and satisfied Steam Deck owners who want another way to play.
Naturally, as appealing as the Steam Machine is, its success will largely depend on the price. If Valve can hit a price point of $699 or less for the 512GB model, it has a real chance of establishing itself as the de facto PC for the living room, and a genuine alternative to Xbox and PlayStation. However, if the Steam Machine is priced significantly higher than that, I fear it will be a product for the enthusiast market only.
And that would be a shame, as Valve has a real chance to capture a growing base of disillusioned console users and satisfied Steam Deck owners who want another way to play.
Whatever happens, the Steam Machine just made this pastime so many of us love a hell of a lot more interesting. Now… what about Half-Life 3 as a launch title?
Up next: Lenovo Legion Go S is the Steam Deck 2 I’ve been waiting for in all but name
Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. He also runs a retro gaming YouTube channel called Game on, boy! Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.