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Yesterday's morning came alongside a couple of interesting reveals, with one huge reveal being the "Super Mario Galaxy Movie" trailer, and another huge reveal that came as a surprise to many, was a brand new video announcement from Valve unveiling a handful of new hardware that they have planned for release in early 2026.

This new announcement came with 3 new hardware reveals by Valve, with the Steam Controller, the Steam Frame and the Steam Machine joining Valve's lineup in the hardware space.

To start off, the new Steam Controller is based on what the Steam Deck's controller scheme is, featuring the following:

• Usual 4 face buttons (A,B,Y,X)
• Two analog L2/R2 triggers alongside the digital L1/R1 triggers
• Two analog sticks with L3/R3 buttons with next generation magnetic thumbsticks and capacitive touch sensors
• 4 additional buttons similar to those from the Steam Deck, with two functioning as Start/Select, and the other two being the Steam button, and the 3-dot Quick Access button for opening the SteamOS menu.
• Four grip buttons, similar to the L4/R4/L5/R5 from the Steam Deck.
• Two trackpads below the sticks similar to those found on the Steam Deck.
• Motion controls
• High definition rumble
• Grip-enabled gyro
• Rechargeable lithium ion battery with up to 35 hours of playtime
• Each Steam Controller will include a "Pluck", which is a wireless magnetic charger for the controller.

Second, we have the new next generation VR headset by Valve, the Steam Frame, which features the following:

• Stream VR and non-VR games
• Wireless 6Ghz adapter for plug-and-play streaming of games into the headset
• Foveated streaming, which focuses details on parts where the eyes are focusing
• Camera-based tracking
• Special Steam Frame controllers, which can be split up and include almost every feature from the Steam Controller, like the magnetic thumbsticks, motion sensors, and works with the user's normal Steam library
• High-fidelity audio with dual stereo speakers
• 2160x2160 optic lenses, one-per eye
• Steam Frame is basically a PC, with it also running SteamOS, so users can play without a host PC
• Expandable storage with microSD.

Lastly, and without a doubt the most attractive part of the presentation, was the reveal of the brand new Steam Machine, which will serve as a main gaming PC running Steam OS with much higher specs than the Steam Deck, with Valve claiming it's about 6 times more powerful than the Steam Deck. The Steam Machine features the following specifications:

• Runs SteamOS 3 with KDE Plasma, games marked as verified for Steam Deck will be automatically verified for Steam Machine as well. However, the Steam Machine will include an exclusive verification system to let players know if a game is fully compatible with the Machine or not.
• Up to 4k 60 fps gaming with FSR.
• Customizable LED strip
• Small-form factor, with the whole hardware fitting into a 6inch cube, that some labeling it the "GabeCube", with 2.6kg in weight.
• Several peripherals:
  • 1 Gigabit ethernet port
  • DisplayPort 1.4 HDMI 2.0
  • Two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports in the front
  • Two USB-A 2.0 High speed ports in the back
    
  • One USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port in the back
  • One high-speed microSD card slot.
• 2x2 Wi-Fi 6E, plus Bluetooth 5.3 with a dedicated antenna.
• Available in two storage options, 512GB and 2TB, both being NVMe SSDs.
• Steam Machine's power supply is built right into the console.
• Full hardware specifications are as follows:
  • CPU: Semi-custom AMD Zen 4 6C / 12T, up to 4.8 GHz, 30W TDP
  • GPU: Semi-Custom AMD RDNA3 28CUs, 2.45GHz max sustained clock, 110W TDP
    
  • 16GB DDR5 RAM + 8GB GDDR6 VRAM

Without a doubt the most interesting part is Valve's entry into a main gaming console, or PC as some would like to see it, and most importantly, the operating system featured in the device will also be SteamOS, the same as the Steam Deck, giving users complete freedom over the device to install programs, emulators, or even bring their own PC/ROM/ISO library and play at their hearts content.

What new hardware from Valve are you most interested in? Let us know in the comments below!

Source

 

[SaudiCraft]

The most interesting thing from this is ARM support. This means that future Switch 2 emulation can run SteamOS.

 

[Dark_Ansem]

Well, might be neat to have a Steamcube ... but price is going to be the factor here.

And that embarrassing Vram

 

[Kioku]

And that embarrassing Vram

Not really.. People keep poking at the vram like they’re advertising this as a high end product. Such a weird sticking point.

The price will determine whether this sinks or swims.

 

[MarkDarkness]

They seem to be taking a bottom-up approach by targeting the low end users. It's smart in a way but also frustrating for those that just want a proper desktop release of SteamOS.

An intermediate step that I am cautiously exploring on my second SSD is Nobara Linux. It liberally borrows many ideas from SteamOS and delivers a mostly "here, just do multimedia outside of Windows/Mac and enjoy" experience.

 

[Dark_Ansem]

Not really.. People keep poking at the vram like they’re advertising this as a high end product. Such a weird sticking point.

The price will determine whether this sinks or swims.

A functional one would be nice

 

[subcon959]

Not really.. People keep poking at the vram like they’re advertising this as a high end product. Such a weird sticking point.

The price will determine whether this sinks or swims.

To be fair, they directly said this machine is targeting all games on Steam at 4K60 (with FSR if needed). Right now RDNA3 only supports FSR3 which has pretty poor image quality compared to FSR4 and DLSS4, so if the specs force a 1080p (or lower) upscale then it might not be a great experience for the more demanding ones. There were already some games this year that really struggled on higher tier graphics cards with only 8GB VRAM even at lower settings. Couple that with the 2026 launch date, it will be interesting to see how long that claim lasts for "all" games. I really think they should've only mentioned 1440p and then let anything better be a nice bonus. Ray tracing probably should've never been mentioned either.

I've already said it's all about the price though. Unfortunately, they also hinted it will be "PC" pricing rather than console so that's a worry. I'm not sure this is a slam dunk like the Steam Deck was, but I think it's really important that they make it successful somehow.

 

[hyprskllz]

Well, they announced 3 device, on the 3rd day of the week (was wednesday here)..
Sooo, Half-Life 3 confirmed?

 

[Kioku]

To be fair, they directly said this machine is targeting all games on Steam at 4K60 (with FSR if needed). Right now RDNA3 only supports FSR3 which has pretty poor image quality compared to FSR4 and DLSS4, so if the specs force a 1080p (or lower) upscale then it might not be a great experience for the more demanding ones. There were already some games this year that really struggled on higher tier graphics cards with only 8GB VRAM even at lower settings. Couple that with the 2026 launch date, it will be interesting to see how long that claim lasts for "all" games. I really think they should've only mentioned 1440p and then let anything better be a nice bonus. Ray tracing probably should've never been mentioned either.

I've already said it's all about the price though. Unfortunately, they also hinted it will be "PC" pricing rather than console so that's a worry. I'm not sure this is a slam dunk like the Steam Deck was, but I think it's really important that they make it successful somehow.

4k60 with FSR was a key marketing factor. Even if FSR3 isn’t up to snuff. While I don’t agree with them using RDNA3, for various reasons, I would hope that people would keep their expectations in check.

 

[subcon959]

4k60 with FSR was a key marketing factor. Even if FSR3 isn’t up to snuff. While I don’t agree with them using RDNA3, for various reasons, I would hope that people would keep their expectations in check.

I think Steam users at least will be familiar enough with PC gaming to know what to expect. However, I think there will be some sticker shock when the price is announced. I would love to be pleasantly surprised on that though.

 

[ShadowOne333]

If someone wants to donate me a Steam Machine, I'll be eternally grateful!
In all seriousness, I'm really looking forward to it!

 

[ZeroT21]

Valve has become fat from all the support we gave it

 

[MeowthBlep]

Valve gon turn the big 3 into the big 4

Post automatically merged: Nov 14, 2025

If someone wants to donate me a Steam Machine, I'll be eternally grateful
Really looking forward to it!

Ask Gaben

 

[Mortphose]

And as a device that runs the shitty SteamOS, it cannot run Battlefield 6, Stalker 2, Black Myth: Wukong, etc.

Every game I want to play runs fine with Proton. If I'm truly stuck, I have a PS5 and Switch 2 to take up the slack. What a shame I can't play generic, boring FPS or Dark Souls rip-offs on PC. Truly devastating

 

[MeowthBlep]

Every game I want to play runs fine with Proton. If I'm truly stuck, I have a PS5 and Switch 2 to take up the slack. What a shame I can't play generic, boring FPS or Dark Souls rip-offs on PC. Truly devastating

Even then there are ram upgrades

 

[Xzi]

Every game I want to play runs fine with Proton. If I'm truly stuck, I have a PS5 and Switch 2 to take up the slack. What a shame I can't play generic, boring FPS or Dark Souls rip-offs on PC. Truly devastating

He's not even correct about the games he listed, it falls between minimum and recommended specs for STALKER 2, and it meets recommended specs for Black Myth: Wukong. Kernel-level anti-cheat is the last big hurdle for Proton being able to play absolutely everything.

 

[Mortphose]

He's not even correct about the games he listed

Oh, I'm not surprised, even though I didn't look at the list. As you said, once they get anti-cheat down, that really dwindles down the non-working games. I feel they'll get it eventually

 

[BasedKiliK]

I don't quite understand the comments about the 8GBs of VRAM. I think many people are missing something big here.

Since the introduction of the Steam Deck, there have been several developers who have worked to optimize their games for that particular system over the last couple years; with how popular this device appears to be among the online consensus, we can expect the same for the little black box.

Pair that with the evolution of upscaling technologies, alongside the fact that you do not have to force games to Ultra when medium/high looks more than good enough (which is what the other consoles are already doing for the most part), and the GabeCube is positioned as essentially the perfect device to enter the console market with, if they price it appropriately (between $600 to $800 is what I expect). It's really only the latest triple A games and unoptimized UE5 titles that may have issues, which accounts for an extremely small percentile of the market (although they tend to be the most popular). But with how most people seem to be getting fed up with those games...

I genuinely do not see a scenario in which Valve does not succeed with this product. Folks need to understand that this goes far beyond just the gaming enthusiasts, and Valve may actually be in a position to sell it at a loss (just like Sony and MS) in order to build their customer base.

My only real concern are how the upsurge in RAM prices will affect it.

EDIT: Additionally, if it really does become popular enough, Linux may finally be taken seriously enough for more and more developers to support that platform especially. The industry may very well be in a historical and critical transition period.

 

[GengarsGhostlyGiggles]

holy shit, the steam frame is cool

 

[SuffahBish]

The console that is neither a console nor a PC: Massively underpowered GPU with only 8GB of VRAM, no upgradeable parts, and according to GamersNexus, will be priced higher than the consoles, including the PS5 Pro.

And as a device that runs the shitty SteamOS, it cannot run Battlefield 6, Stalker 2, Black Myth: Wukong, etc., etc. Here's a list of over 8000 PC games it cannot run.

The fact that this is a 1080p device for playing circa 2020 AAA games but won't even be as powerful as a base PS5 and won't be upgradeable like a real PC makes this dead on arrival. Only fools will purchase this obsolete-on-debut device.

OK, so I took your bait and clicked the link. One of the first games on the list is No More Heroes 3. That doesn't sound right. I know that game runs on Linux. So I hop over to protondb and what do you know? It runs fine on Linux. Even on the Deck. Nice list bro. Lmao.

 

[sarkwalvein]

That Mofo troll, he spits nonsense, but to be honest it was so funny how in the old Valve hardware thread he went completely ignored, other than a "low quality bait" picture reply and that was it... nonsense trolling only deserves being ignored...