Valve’s Steam Machine will not launch with a platform-exclusive game, and engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais says that decision reflects the company’s broader view of PC gaming. Instead of restricting games to one device, Valve wants the machine’s main draw to be access to the full Steam catalog.
“Restricting where people can play a game I don’t think is a great model, at least for us,” Griffais told Bloomberg. He added that Valve is “much more interested in having the whole PC catalog as our ‘launch exclusive.'”
That approach puts the Steam Machine closer to a living-room PC than a traditional console. Microsoft’s Xbox Series X|S also launched without a single new game designed to sell the hardware, but Valve’s reasoning is tied even more directly to its open PC ecosystem.
There will not be a smaller bundled title in the vein of Aperture Desk Job, either. That game was designed around the Steam Deck’s controls and features, yet it was still released through the regular Steam Store. Valve’s decision also means the Steam Machine will not have its own software showcase comparable to Astro’s Playroom on PlayStation 5.
Rumors surrounding Half-Life 3 have made the lack of a Steam Machine exclusive easier to notice. However, a game limited to Valve’s hardware would create a difficult fit for a company that is presenting the device as a way to bring an existing PC library to the television.
The machine’s price adds another reason for Valve to avoid locking a major release to it. The base model costs $1,049, before accessories, which could put the device out of reach for some PC players. Making a major title available only there would add another barrier on top of the hardware cost.
For now, Valve’s position is clear. The Steam Machine is meant to offer another way to access PC games, not a separate software platform with its own closed library.
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