The Steam Machine might launch with a higher price tag than the PS5 or Xbox Series X, but a new study suggests PC gaming could win out long-term thanks to cheaper software.
Even if the machine pushes past $700, the average cost of games on Steam has dropped significantly over the past year.
Steam Machine pricing won’t rival consoles
Valve hasn’t committed to console-level pricing for its hardware. If anything, it’s trending the opposite direction. The expected price point makes the Steam Machine more of a high-end entryway than a budget option.
Yet recent pricing trends in PC games could soften the blow. According to GameDiscoverCo, the median launch price of the top 50 monthly titles on Steam has fallen from $19.50 to $15.64 since February 2023.
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney warns that the RAM price hike isn't going anywhere, as AI demand eats into DDR5 production and gaming takes a hit.
Mid-priced PC games are losing steam
The study also spotted a clear pattern: titles priced between $25 and $55 tend to struggle. Gamers either flock to cheaper games with tight gameplay loops or go all in on massive blockbusters with recognizable names.
Here’s how game pricing shakes out:
- Under $20: Strong sales across the board
- $25–$55: Struggling to attract buyers
- $60+: Thriving if backed by big brands
For example, Hollow Knight: Silksong and Megabonk sold better than Borderlands 4 and Dying Light: The Beast, despite the latter being much more expensive.
Steam Machine still faces stiff hardware costs
The software savings don’t erase one major obstacle: building or buying a gaming-capable PC remains expensive. The recent RAM shortage only makes that worse. With DDR5 prices surging and SSDs also rising, replicating console-level performance on a desktop is tougher than ever.
It’s unclear if Valve will adjust the Steam Machine price to reflect component inflation but if they don’t, they’ll likely be eating some of the cost themselves.
Console gamers find savings in different places
While Steam offers low-cost indie titles and frequent sales, console owners benefit from physical media. It’s not unusual to find AAA titles discounted at retail weeks after launch something PC gamers can’t take advantage of.
This trade-off means each platform offers value, just in different forms.
Steam Machine will test how much upfront cost players will tolerate
Between rising hardware prices and shrinking software costs, the Steam Machine sits at the intersection of two trends pulling in opposite directions. It’s not a cheap entry point, but over time, it may win over players looking to stretch their dollar across more games not just one $70 blockbuster at a time.
