Valve Eyeing Arm Architecture for Future Steam Machines

Arm chips are making increasing inroads into the realm of PC gaming, and Valve is paying close attention. With the company already planning to launch an Arm-specific version of SteamOS alongside its upcoming Snapdragon-based VR headset, the Steam Frame, the question of whether this architecture will make the jump to the desktop has finally been addressed.

When asked if Arm was being considered for a potential Steam Machine 2, Valve engineers Yazan Aldehayyat and Pierre-Loup Griffais confirmed that it is definitely on the table. "We're just trying to be able to support everything, right?" Griffais said. A key part of that strategy involves FEX, a translation layer designed to allow games built for x86 architecture to run on Arm chips. According to Griffais, the goal is to provide users with more options to play their back catalog libraries while potentially finding hardware that is cheaper for the necessary horsepower.

The Potential for Arm in Gaming

The push toward Arm isn't happening in a vacuum. Nvidia has already committed to a custom Arm architecture for its RTX Spark lineup, and game developers are beginning to experiment with native ports. Dave, our Gaming Hardware expert, recently observed an Arm-native version of Alan Wake 2 running on a pre-release model of Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Ultra.

For Valve, these developments serve as catalysts. "When we're designing a system like that, we're just like users: Picking parts, trying to figure out what makes sense," Griffais explained. "For us, yeah, things like FEX and the work that we've done on SteamOS and Proton are more like catalysts to get to a better outcome in terms of price performance, and all that—for sure, we would consider any platform."

Why You Shouldn't Expect a New Steam Machine Soon

Despite the interest in Arm, users should temper their expectations for an immediate follow-up to the current Steam Machine. Valve has noted that while the Steam Machine won't have as long of a development timeframe as the Steam Deck, new models are strictly constrained by the availability of games, the target price point, and the timing of hardware upgrades.

The ongoing memory supply crisis has hit the industry hard, creating significant uncertainty for hardware manufacturers. Valve was reportedly unsure if it would even have any Steam Machines available to sell at the start of 2026. Given that current projections suggest the "RAMpocalypse" may not ease until 2028, it is highly unlikely we will see a successor to the current Steam Machine before that time.