Former Xbox exec and Blizzard boss urges Valve to "please just let 3rd parties use SteamOS" to make their own Steam Machines: "SteamOS will take off and your Store revenue will only go up"

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Although some argue that goes against what the Steam Deck's best asset is

Hand placing custom face plate on Steam Machine mini PC.
(Image credit: Valve)

Former Xbox exec and Blizzard boss Mike Ybarra thinks the way forward for Valve is to allow third parties access to SteamOS to build their own Steam Machine hardware.

In a tweet reacting to rumours the Steam Machine will be more expensive than some are hoping, Ybarra tagged Valve and said, "please just let 3rd parties use SteamOS and make the HW with many different configurations. SteamOS will take off and your Store revenue will only go up." And to Valve's credit, it has let other parties make hardware – with Lenovo releasing the Legion Go S SteamOS earlier this year – but as of right now, third-party Steam machines are unconfirmed.

However, there are a couple of quirks with this idea. First off, SteamOS is currently not supported by a number of multiplayer games, with Rust's developer saying there are still no plans to support the OS even after the Steam Machine announcement. Of course, this could change as the OS gets more popular, but it may turn some hardware makers off.

Also, as a user replying to Ybarra points out, part of the appeal of something like the Steam Machine is having a standardized platform where developers can specifically target the specs provided with it – effectively giving console reliability on a PC. They argued that users probably won't be interested in the OS itself when it comes to Steam Machines, given Windows has a number of benefits.

Ybarra also thinks his idea should apply to the Xbox OS, but that Microsoft would have other intentions: "They will likely be forced to push Windows with AI, co-pilot, teams, and more," which would make it a far less appealing prospect.

Valve's Steam Machine is "great news" for Microsoft because it means Xbox can just "make great games" and worry less about hardware, says former Blizzard exec: "All will go in the right direction"

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Scott McCrae
Scott McCrae
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Scott has been freelancing for over three years across a number of different gaming publications, first appearing on GamesRadar+ in 2024. He has also written for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, VG247, Play, TechRadar, and others. He's typically rambling about Metal Gear Solid, God Hand, or any other PS2-era titles that rarely (if ever) get sequels.

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