Steam Machine is $1000+
Remember eight months ago where I imagined a fantasy of the Steam Machine costing $650? Apparently, it was a bargain at nearly twice the price:
I took that screenshot directly from the Steam interface. It’s official. Valve is legitimately selling a 512GB Steam Machine with no controller for $1049. That’s a big yikes. Suffice it to say, Valve will not be capturing the coveted Azuriel market, or arguably any reasonable market whatsoever.
The funny/tragic thing though, is that this pricing is actually pretty spot-on when it comes to off-the-shelf computer components these days. From the various Reddit posts, a few people have been able to use PC Parts Picker to find slightly cheaper configurations. For example, this one clocks in at $971. However, there is a big difference between a 6-inch cube and a bog-standard 17″x8″x17″ case.
That said, once you are in $1,428 territory, you may as well buy a CyberPower or other prebuilt PC.
Ah well. I still anticipate the Steam Machine will sell out, considering how the Steam Deck also sold out despite getting a huge markup. At this price though, I just don’t see it affecting the broader videogame market in the same way that the Steam Deck did. I never bought the Deck, but it absolutely influenced what other companies offered in the handheld space. In this case, the Steam Machine is likely just another grave marker for the AI madness that has gripped the economy.
Posted on June 23, 2026, in Commentary and tagged Spit Take, Steam Deck, Steam Machine, Too Damn High, Valve. Bookmark the permalink. 3 Comments.
In An Age 
It’s the one ‘console’ I’d actually consider buying, even at a slightly higher price point, if it could guarantee top performance of current and near-future high-demand PC games through some combination of optimised chips, Steam OS, etc. Unfortunately, it does no such thing.
Assuming the market bubble doesn’t collapse soon, either via the AI-bearish route of investor skepticism or the AI-bullish one of government restrictions of supposedly too-powerful AI, maybe the hardware drought is perversely good for game development. It might force studios to do less with more, to optimise code better, and innovate on the ideas/mechanics/narrative front rather than layer on more eye-watering graphics. Either that, or they’ll simply accept higher prices and lower sale volumes and double down on the K-shaped economy, much like FIFA with the World Cup.
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The great irony is that AAA game developers are already being squeezed out of existence, without even considering how game consoles will be vaulting into high-class, luxury goods in this next generation.
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