Valve says it has a "road map" for the Steam Deck 2

Last week, Valve surprised us with an OLED version of the Steam Deck. While an improvement in many aspects from the original handheld, it by no means is meant to be a successor to the existing hardware. But Valve wants you to know it is committed to the Steam Deck and a sequel is on the way.

In an interview with Axios, hardware designer Yazan Aldehayyat told the publication that Valve sees the Steam Deck 2 as something they are definitely going to pursue. “We do think that a Steam Deck 2.0 is necessary,” said Aldehayyat. “Steam Deck OLED was necessary. We feel like there’s a road map ahead of us.”

We already knew Valve plans on making a Steam Deck 2 based on previous interviews with other Valve employees. However, in this new exchange, Valve is reaffirming its commitment to the system. Valve is essentially confirming it is invested in this particular product for the long term.

For the next-generation hardware, designer Lawrence Yang says, “We really want it to be a generational increase.” There are chips that are available now that could provide a performance boost, but Yang points out that these chips wouldn’t work out well in a handheld device. But Yang believes this will change in the next two or three years.

As for something more immediate, it’s reported that the company is considering making different-colored Steam Decks. The first of these may be a limited edition Steam Deck with orange highlights.

When it comes to Valve, the company has a history of moving on to new interests after releasing a product. So this reaffirmation should be reassuring to Steam Deck fans.