Valve Adjusts Steam Machine Claims Following Review Criticism

WHO:

Kotaku - Valve is the company involved in the Steam Machine's claims and updates.

IGN - The article mentions Jackie Thomas as the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor at IGN.

WHAT:

Kotaku - Valve removed the claim of “4K gaming at 60 FPS” from the Steam Machine hardware page.

Kotaku - Valve's updated statement now claims the Steam Machine is capable of "up to" 4K gaming with FSR.

Kotaku - The Steam Machine is priced at $1,050.

IGN - The Steam Machine's performance is compared to that of a PS5, with many games unable to achieve both 60 FPS and native 4K resolution.

IGN - In testing, the Steam Machine averaged around 50 FPS for the game 007 First Light at 4K with FSR set to performance.

WHERE:

Kotaku - The Steam Machine is designed as a living-room gaming device.

WHEN:

Kotaku - The claim of “4K gaming at 60 FPS” was present on the Steam Machine page as of June 24.

Kotaku - The alteration to the hardware listing was noticed on June 25.

WHY:

Kotaku - The removal of the claim followed backlash from early reviewers who struggled to achieve the promised performance.

IGN - The update to the store page was made to temper expectations regarding the Steam Machine's capabilities.

HOW:

Kotaku - Valve used AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) to enhance performance claims for the Steam Machine.

IGN - The Steam Machine's performance can be improved by tweaking settings to reach the claimed performance targets.

(UPDATED June 26, 2026 11:57 UTC)

Valve has updated the Steam Machine's hardware page, removing the claim of "4K gaming at 60 FPS" and replacing it with a more modest assertion that it can achieve "up to" 4K gaming using AMD's FidelityFX Super Resolution. Priced at $1,050, the Steam Machine has been compared to the PS5, with testing showing it averaged around 50 frames per second for the game 007 First Light at 4K with performance settings adjusted. This change comes after early reviewers expressed concerns about the device's ability to meet the initial performance promises, prompting Valve to temper expectations.