Steam Machine appears in Vulkan’s conformant product database — upcoming Valve console is certified compliant with the graphics API

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Hope is in the air.

Steam Machine
(Image credit: Valve)

Gamers receive hope once again that Valve’s long-delayed Steam Machine is moving forward towards a launch and not ending on the chopping block. The Khronos Group, which created the Vulkan graphics API standard, and is its developer and maintainer, has just listed the AMD Steam Machine as the latest entry in its list of conformant products. While this is in no way, shape, or form a confirmation that the console is arriving soon, it’s still a step in the right direction. It indicates that Valve is still actively working on the console despite the setbacks driven by insane memory and storage prices.

This certification does not mean that all Vulkan games will play well on the console — instead, it only says that the future Valve console complies with all the standards set by the body. In other words, the hardware, operating system, and drivers behave as expected with Vulkan, giving developers peace of mind that the entire stack would work consistently. The console’s inclusion in the list does not indicate performance or game compatibility, though.

Valve announced the Steam Machine along with the Steam Controller and the Steam Frame in November 2025. This has got many fans excited, especially as the Steam Deck brought SteamOS to a level of polish and compatibility that allowed users to play a big chunk of their Steam libraries on the handheld console. Unfortunately, this was also the time the memory and storage prices started to spiral out of control. Because of this, the Steam Machine runs the risk of becoming too expensive and moving out of reach of its target customers, especially as Valve is adamant that it will not subsidize its hardware.

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Even though Valve announced the three gadgets simultaneously, the console, controller, and VR headset weren’t intended to launch simultaneously. So, even though the Steam Machine was delayed several times, the company saw no reason to hold back the Steam Controller. Fans could finally get their hands on the $99 accessory after it launched in late April, with Tom’s Hardware giving it four out of five stars in its review.

The gaming giant still hasn’t announced an official release date for its latest console, but we hope that the company can secure an affordable memory and storage supplier sooner. That way, it can deliver Steam Machine before the end of the year at a price that most gamers can afford.

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Jowi Morales
Jowi Morales
Contributing Writer

Jowi Morales is a tech enthusiast with years of experience working in the industry. He’s been writing with several tech publications since 2021, where he’s been interested in tech hardware and consumer electronics.

11 Comments Comment from the forums
  • ezst036
    Being truly Linux based, this little device is going to change everything.
    Reply
  • LordVile
    ezst036 said:
    Being truly Linux based, this little device is going to change everything.
    It’s really not though is it. It’s going to be 3x the price it should be, be terrible in terms of performance, not upgradable as a desktop PC which is wild and doesn’t run large titles. You might as well just buy a XSX or PS5 for 1/2 to 1/4 of the price.

    If they wanted ti improve Linux they’d release SteamOS as a functional and installable distribution you could install on any PC rather than a proprietary, overpriced box
    Reply
  • usertests
    LordVile said:
    You might as well just buy a XSX or PS5 for 1/2 to 1/4 of the price.
    Your imagination is running wild.
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    LordVile said:
    If they wanted ti improve Linux they’d release SteamOS as a functional and installable distribution you could install on any PC rather than a proprietary, overpriced box
    There is nothing special about steamOS other than that it fully supports the steamdeck hardware.
    Steam already did all of the improvements to linux by helping proton and the whole translation layer thing.

    You can have a mini emulation linux distro like batocera now that supports steam because of that.

    Releasing steamOS would actually probably hurt linux because everybody would only use that due to brand recognition, lowering the interest in any other distro.
    Reply
  • LordVile
    usertests said:
    Your imagination is running wild.
    Valve stated they’d be price competitive with a SFF PC and not be sold at a loss which would put them north of $1000, add in the price increases since that then you’re talking anywhere from 1000-2000. The XSX retails for 600-650 new at the moment with the PS5 being similar meaning the steam machine is likely 2-3x more expensive than either, 4x when you buy used.
    Reply
  • LordVile
    TerryLaze said:
    There is nothing special about steamOS other than that it fully supports the steamdeck hardware.
    And the couch friendly, controller friendly OS which is significantly less work than other solutions.
    TerryLaze said:

    Steam already did all of the improvements to linux by helping proton and the whole translation layer thing.
    Which doesn’t solve how much of a PITA Linux can be and its barrier to entry.
    TerryLaze said:

    You can have a mini emulation linux distro like batocera now that supports steam because of that.
    See above points.
    TerryLaze said:

    Releasing steamOS would actually probably hurt linux because everybody would only use that due to brand recognition, lowering the interest in any other distro.
    Or it would serve as an entry point
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    LordVile said:
    add in the price increases since that then you’re talking anywhere from 1000-2000.
    The whole reason for the delays is that they want to wait until prices are down again and they can sell at their proposed ~1k price.
    LordVile said:
    And the couch friendly, controller friendly OS
    That doesn't exist, steam big picture is not steamos and also available anytime and anywhere you have steam.
    If you drop down to linux/steamos you need to use the touchpads that simulate a mouse.
    LordVile said:
    Which doesn’t solve how much of a PITA Linux can be and its barrier to entry.
    A standalone SteamOS will have to be installed, that's the same amount of barrier of entry and PITA as bazzite, or any other linux OS that comes preconfigured with steam.
    LordVile said:
    Or it would serve as an entry point
    To steam?! Yes, it will.
    Reply
  • LordVile
    TerryLaze said:
    The whole reason for the delays is that they want to wait until prices are down again and they can sell at their proposed ~1k price.
    Which makes no sense at all becaure prices won’t be down for at least another year and the performance will just be worse competitively. Also the units they have already would have been built on older pricing.
    TerryLaze said:
    That doesn't exist, steam big picture is not steamos and also available anytime and anywhere you have steam.
    And steam big picture isn’t the same as steamos.
    TerryLaze said:
    If you drop down to linux/steamos you need to use the touchpads that simulate a mouse.

    A standalone SteamOS will have to be installed, that's the same amount of barrier of entry and PITA as bazzite, or any other linux OS that comes preconfigured with steam.
    Not really, SteamOS is preconfigured and does have many of the usual Linux headaches. You’re being disingenuous.
    TerryLaze said:
    To steam?! Yes, it will.
    To Linux, steam is an aggressively anti consumer de facto monopoly on PC there’s no real market share to gain.
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    LordVile said:
    Which makes no sense at all becaure prices won’t be down for at least another year and the performance will just be worse competitively. Also the units they have already would have been built on older pricing.
    They HAVE units?????
    Other than a few prototypes (if it wasn't just the one) that they showed how do you know that they do?
    LordVile said:
    And steam big picture isn’t the same as steamos.
    Your point was that steamos is controller controllable, which it isn't, no matter what you call it.
    LordVile said:
    Not really, SteamOS is preconfigured and does have many of the usual Linux headaches. You’re being disingenuous.
    It's only preconfigured for the steamdeck, if they release it standalone it will still only be preconfigured for the steamdeck (and maybe the steammachine if it is out by then)
    You are being the one that is disingenuous.
    LordVile said:
    To Linux, steam is an aggressively anti consumer de facto monopoly on PC there’s no real market share to gain.
    What?!
    Did this make sense in your head?!
    The steamdeck/machine, while being PCs ,are marketed as consoles (like) systems to people that would never buy a PC but would buy a console, that's a lot of untapped market share there.
    Reply
  • LordVile
    TerryLaze said:
    They HAVE units?????
    Other than a few prototypes (if it wasn't just the one) that they showed how do you know that they do?
    Contracts are negotiated before release or production dates, as it was due to launch this year contracts for component pricing would have been negotiated last year. Getting them produced and reestocking from that initial order is the expensive part.
    TerryLaze said:
    Your point was that steamos is controller controllable, which it isn't, no matter what you call it.
    One of the points, the point was it’s couch friendly which big picture mode is until you have to leave steam or have to update the system or it launches not in big picture mode or something else takes you out of it.
    TerryLaze said:
    It's only preconfigured for the steamdeck, if they release it standalone it will still only be preconfigured for the steamdeck (and maybe the steammachine if it is out by then)
    You are being the one that is disingenuous.
    The entire point is that they could release the steam machine version. You’re pretending that Linux doesn’t have accessibility issues. Unless you’re saying that they’re just going to run the SteamOS version that runs on the deck with no changes?
    TerryLaze said:
    What?!
    Did this make sense in your head?!
    The steamdeck/machine, while being PCs ,are marketed as consoles (like) systems to people that would never buy a PC but would buy a console, that's a lot of untapped market share there.
    And it’s not anywhere near price competitive with consoles. Why would anyone buy a steam machine for $1500 when a more powerful console that’s over 5 years old is 650 or less? Ontop of that the benefits of being a PC like being upgradable aren’t present. This is a system for people who have a steam library and want a secondary PC. If it was console price I’d get one to replace the PC and Xbox Series X plugged into the downstairs TV but ultimately for anything more than console price I could just buy a GPU and it would outperform the machine.
    Reply