Valve Dispels RDNA4 Steam Console Rumors, Regularly Tests Unreleased Hardware

Recent chatter in the gaming community had some folks excited about a potential new Steam Console, but it turns out those rumors are just hot air. Valve developer Pierre-Loup Griffais officially confirmed via BlueSky that there’s no substance to the speculation. Griffais explained that Valve’s work with Mesa Vulkan on AMD’s RDNA 4 architecture is nothing out of the ordinary; it’s something they’ve been doing since AMD’s Vega days. Sure, Valve is tinkering with upcoming GPU technologies in preparation for what’s to come, but that doesn’t translate to resurrecting the Steam Machine initiative just yet.

So, does that dash our hopes for a shiny new Steam Console? For the time being, yes, but it’s worth taking a closer look at Valve’s journey in the console market. There’s potential for another Steam Machine initiative or even a Steam Deck 2 in the future.

### Valve’s Hardware Trajectory

A lot of buzz around a potential new Steam console was likely just wishful thinking, especially when you consider how consoles like the Steam Deck are built. These devices rely on custom hardware derived from existing technologies, which means they often lag a generation behind the latest advancements by the time they hit the shelves. Launching a console requires extensive planning, which doesn’t align with the rapid changes in tech.

Take Valve’s Steam Deck from 2022, for example. It used AMD’s RDNA 2 architecture, which had already been around for over a year by then. Using the latest desktop architecture like RDNA 4 for something portable would require a significant amount of effort and resources.

Currently, the best integrated GPUs are based on RDNA 3 and 3.5, but these haven’t delivered striking improvements in performance when only powered by batteries. High performance when plugged in is one thing, but for handheld devices, battery life is a big constraint. Only recently have we begun to see Ryzen AI HX 300 Series APUs with RDNA 3.5 iGPUs entering the market.

Another clear indicator that a Steam Console isn’t Valve’s current priority is the timeline for the Steam Deck 2, which is at least two to three years away. Valve is clearly waiting for more significant hardware advancements. While an RDNA 4 iGPU could make it into the Steam Deck 2, it doesn’t seem imminent. It’s unlikely Valve would roll out three different SteamOS hardware platforms within seven years.

RDNA 4 does look promising from the details we’ve seen so far, but there are still many questions — like its power requirements, performance, and cost. It’ll be a while before we see it in handheld form.

### Into the Future

Looking ahead, we can speculate while remaining grounded in what we know about PCs and how they might shape (handheld) consoles.

There were legitimate leaks of new Valve designs last year, showcasing a revamped Steam Controller and next-gen VR controllers. The development of the Steam Controller could suggest a return to the Steam Link or Steam Machine concepts. Alternatively, it could simply aim to provide continuity between Steam Deck handheld and Docked mode for users leveraging Steam Input’s unique features, such as touch-sensitive gyro support.

Does it mean a Steam Console is completely off the table? Not necessarily — at least, it seems feasible that once Steam OS 3 is widely available, more manufacturers will consider using it in mini PCs, laptops, and handhelds. A larger device would also make implementing features like real-time ray-tracing more feasible. On the current Deck, these are limited to mostly-rasterized games at 30 FPS due to hardware constraints and power limits.

For a meaningful leap in handheld performance, Valve needs more than just improvements in RDNA 4’s ray-tracing. It requires a GPU that performs well within a 25W TDP for devices like the ROG Ally or a 15W TDP for the Steam Deck. But RDNA 4 mobile GPUs have TDPs ranging from 80-175W, so AMD has some work to do.

The path to smaller, more efficient nodes could be key. While the current Steam Deck uses TSMC’s older N7 node, moving to the N5 or N4 nodes, or even the newer N3 and N2 nodes as they become accessible, might be what’s needed for future handhelds.

Is a dedicated Steam Console really necessary? Docking your Steam Deck essentially turns it into a powerful home console, superior to the Nintendo Switch. Given that Nintendo has shifted away from traditional home consoles, Valve might see more value in a hybrid approach that offers unique advantages over competing consoles and gaming PCs.