Valve Says It Wants a Cheaper Steam Machine, But a Price Cut Is Not Expected Soon

Valve has admitted that the current Steam Machine price is higher than it originally wanted, but the company also says buyers should not expect a lower price anytime soon. While Valve remains open to reducing the price in the future, ongoing hardware component costs continue to make that difficult.

The company recently confirmed that the Steam Machine launched with a $1,049 price tag, even though its original target was closer to $718. Rising component costs forced Valve, along with many other hardware makers, to increase pricing before launch.

Speaking to Digital Foundry, Valve engineers Pierre-Loup Griffais and Yazan Aldehayyat explained that the company has no interest in keeping hardware prices high. Griffais said Valve sees the Steam Machine as a way to connect more people with their games, adding that lower pricing always benefits both the company and players.

However, Aldehayyat also gave a realistic update on the current market. He said Valve does not expect component prices to improve anytime soon, making a Steam Machine price reduction unlikely in the near future.

The broader hardware industry supports that view, with memory suppliers and major PC manufacturers warning that component costs will likely remain high for years. Because of that, Valve cannot promise when the Steam Machine will become more affordable.

For now, Valve says it still wants to lower the Steam Machine’s price whenever production costs allow, but players should not expect that change to happen in the immediate future.