Valve lifts the lid on Steam Deck 2 plans but it’s going to be a while

In a recent interview, Valve stated that they are looking into improving the Steam Deck further, addressing battery and screen concerns, in addition to more juicy details about a potential Steam Deck 2

Valve’s Steam Deck has been flying off of the proverbial digital shelf. While the company has found success with the handheld, there is clear room for a lot of improvement for a Valve Steam Deck 2. A second-generation device that we could potentially see officially announced in the future.

Don’t wait around for a Steam Deck 2

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Directly addressing this in an interview with The Verge, the company stated that they’re not looking to rush one out of the gate just yet. They stated the following:

“Right now the fact that all the Steam Decks can play the same games and that we have one target for users to understand what kind of performance level to expect when you’re playing and for developers to understand what to target.”

They followed on to state that they intend to keep the current Steam Deck‘s level of performance for a little bit longer until there is another meaningful bump in power.

Valve continues to iterate on hardware & software

The Steam Deck’s fan issues caused them to completely swap out one supplier, with another. Now, they have replaced the current Steam Deck with the old fan manufacturer’s revised options, which have been shipping since October. Valve claims that this will allow for the Steam Deck to operate slightly quieter, thanks to an adjusted fan curve and a thin piece of foam.

Additionally, the company stated that they are working on making adjustments to the battery, which will make the Steam Deck’s battery much easier to replace and loosen, without the wanton usage of glue that we currently see on the device itself. We’d like to see an easier way to replace your SSD, too.

Valve also looks to continue to refine the software experience of the Steam Deck, in an attempt to make it more seamless for users. Right now to play Game Pass or GOG titles, you need to follow guides. We don’t see that changing any time soon sadly, as Valve wants to keep as many users as possible directly on Steam, instead of pointing to other launchers or installing Windows.

Valve is not afraid of the competition

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According to the interview, Valve handwaved competitions such as the Ayaneo 2 and OneXPlayer 2 away, stating that the sweet spot for performance is between the 8-12W range. Whereas devices using the 6800U still require much more juice in order to surpass the Steam Deck. Valve state that in a few generations, we may see a low-wattage performance increase, but for now, the Steam Deck remains the ruler of the roost.

The company also wants to see more manufacturers make use of SteamOS 3, and potentially bring back the “Steam Boxes” – A failed effort for Valve to push devices running steam into the living room. They are already testing concepts, according to the interview, and are looking to work with third parties to make it happen.

The Steam Controller might make a comeback

Valve’s original Steam Controller wasn’t exactly very well-received and was retired in 2019. However, many design elements returned, refined in the Steam Deck. They once again stated that they were looking for third parties to partner with to make a Steam Controller 2 work. We’d love to see it return, as the trackpads on the Steam Deck felt like the right kind of input device for something to play both console and PC games.