After reports surfaced from GamingOnLinux and caused a stir, it was clear that speculation about a new Steam Console was a bit premature. Confirming this, Valve developer Pierre-Loup Griffais took to BlueSky to explain: while Valve is playing with new software for an upcoming AMD RDNA 4 GPU, this isn’t a sign of a fresh Steam Machine. Essentially, Valve’s actions align with their ongoing collaboration with AMD since the Vega days. They’re not diving back into the Steam Machine venture just yet.
So, does this mean the idea of a new Steam Console is dashed completely? For now, yes. But let’s dig into Valve’s hardware ventures to explore if there might ever be a comeback for the Steam Machine or what the future holds for a possible Steam Deck 2.
### The Current Landscape of Valve’s Hardware Ventures
If you were hoping for a smoking gun signaling a new Steam console, you might want to hold off on getting excited. The adaptable GPU architecture of AMD’s RDNA 4 wasn’t going to unleash a new console onto the market. Console releases, like the Steam Deck, rely on established architectures and typically lag behind the latest tech trends due to the extensive planning required.
Take the Steam Deck, for instance. When it hit the shelves in 2022, it featured AMD’s RDNA 2, showcased back in November 2020. This timeline highlighted the one-and-a-half-year gap between the hardware’s GPU foundation and release, along with a longer wait for the integrated Zen 2 CPU architecture. The situation with RDNA 4, which is AMD’s incoming desktop lineup, shows how complex and resource-heavy it would be to create a handheld version.
Currently, iGPU solutions center on RDNA 3 and RDNA 3.5 architectures, yet the performance leap, especially on battery power, has hardly set the world ablaze. Although there’s a clear improvement when devices are plugged in, battery constraints are undeniable. It was only in the recent months that Ryzen AI HX 300 Series APUs began incorporating RDNA 3.5 iGPUs.
Adding to the unlikelihood of a new Steam Console on the horizon, Valve themselves have signaled that a Steam Deck 2 is “at least two or three years away,” due to hardware evolution needing a substantial jump. Typically, consoles aim for wider gaps between generations, meaning the potential RDNA 4-based iGPU for the next Steam Deck remains a distant prospect. Getting three SteamOS consoles launched within seven years seems pretty ambitious.
The excitement surrounding RDNA 4, driven by its power and performance allure, comes with a hefty caveat. We’re still uncertain about its power consumption, exact performance metrics, and pricing. As thrilling as it sounds, it’s a waiting game to see it adapted for handheld PCs.
### Gazing Into the Future with a Hint of Optimism
Moving into a speculative dimension, let’s consider what newly leaked Valve designs could signify, particularly concerning the PC hardware and the broader handheld console market.
The leaks from late last year revealed new Valve tech, including a redesigned Steam Controller drawing from the Deck’s design and fresh VR controllers. These developments hint at a possible revival of something akin to Steam Link or the original Steam Machine. However, they might simply aim to enhance compatibility between the Steam Deck and docked setups. This makes the case for maintaining Steam Input features like touch-sensitive gyros for dedicated fans.
Does this keep the door open for a future Steam Console? While it’s not outright impossible, the likelier scenario points to more companies adopting Steam OS 3 for mini PCs, laptops, and handhelds. A larger console model would also ease efforts to introduce real-time ray-tracing, as current hardware limits RT effectiveness to almost 30 FPS in games that are primarily rasterized.
For Valve to achieve a true handheld performance leap, they need more than improved RDNA 4 RT capabilities. A design like the Steam Deck requires a GPU that can perform at lower TDPs (25W like ROG Ally and others, or 15W for Steam Deck). With the range of 80-175W TDP for RDNA 4 mobile GPUs, AMD still has a way to go.
Future technology could help bridge this gap. RDNA 4 relies on TSMC’s N4 process node, which isn’t fresh on the scene, coming behind Van Gogh’s N7 chip. Transitioning to N5 or N4 could be beneficial, but by the time new consoles are ready, N3 and N2 should be attainable, offering efficiency-tuned alternatives for feasible handheld chips, as long as costs stay measurable.
The question of necessity remains. Pair a Steam Deck with a docking station, and you’ve got something more formidable than a Nintendo Switch at home. If Nintendo is moving away from traditional consoles, Valve might see greater value in a hybrid handheld model that doesn’t squarely compete with major consoles or gaming PCs.
