Valve says a "next-generation" Steam Deck 2 is coming, but it's at least 2 or 3 years away

News
By published

Steam Deck OLED isn't even out yet, but Valve is already teasing its next handheld

Steam Deck review
(Image credit: Valve)

Valve only just announced the Steam Deck OLED, but the company is already teasing a much more substantial upgrade to its popular handheld.

Valve product designer Lawrence Yang tells Bloomberg that, following the release of the OLED model, his team is set to start work on Steam Deck 2, which is expected to take at least two or three years to come to market. It will feature a "next-generation" power upgrade, though no specific details on what that means have been provided.

The new OLED model is set to launch on November 16, and while it promises a better screen and battery life, there don't appear to be any meaningful upgrades to the handheld's internal specifications. In other words, it won't offer any meaningful performance upgrade over current Steam Deck models. That'll be what Steam Deck 2 is for.

Valve recently said it doesn't think the Steam Deck 2 would be possible within the next couple of years - and I guess 'at least two or three' does technically take it outside the 'couple' range. In any case, Valve has one of the best gaming handhelds going right now, and it looks like they're continuing to develop it for the foreseeable future. As Yang tells Bloomberg, "A lot of folks at the company are excited about this product. We are very invested in the Steam Deck."

Check out the best PC games if you're looking for something to populate a Steam Deck with - or just dig into the Switch 2 reports and Nintendo's denials of them if you want to start planning out your next half-decade of handheld purchases. 

CATEGORIES
Dustin Bailey
Dustin Bailey
Staff Writer

Dustin Bailey joined the GamesRadar team as a Staff Writer in May 2022, and is currently based in Missouri. He's been covering games (with occasional dalliances in the worlds of anime and pro wrestling) since 2015, first as a freelancer, then as a news writer at PCGamesN for nearly five years. His love for games was sparked somewhere between Metal Gear Solid 2 and Knights of the Old Republic, and these days you can usually find him splitting his entertainment time between retro gaming, the latest big action-adventure title, or a long haul in American Truck Simulator.