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Steam Deck OLED price increase announced
Valve has announced a price increase for the Steam Deck OLED due to rising memory costs. The company cited increased component expenses as the reason for the adjustment.
Steam Deck price increased due to rising hardware costs
Valve has announced price increases for the Steam Deck handheld due to rising hardware and logistical costs, with the OLED 512GB model now costing $789 and the 1TB model $949. Despite the price hike, the device is back in stock and the company teased a future "generational leap" for Steam Deck 2, ruling out yearly models.
Backrooms director Kane Parsons explains how influential Valve's Portal is to his work: 'I frequently have dreams where I'm just in the Aperture Science Enrichment Center'
Backrooms director Kane Parsons revealed that Valve's Portal series has been a significant influence on his work, particularly the environmental design and the concept of an eternal, vast indoor space. He frequently dreams of being in the Aperture Science Enrichment Center and notes similarities between the game's setting and the concept of the Backrooms. Parsons specifically highlighted Portal 2 for its comedic premise and the subtle environmental storytelling through murals.
Harm without a home: Roblox casinos, loot boxes, and responsibility avoidance
Roblox-based gambling site BloxFlip has returned, highlighting a global failure in regulating digital products targeted at young audiences. Despite evidence of illegal gambling and loot box mechanics in games like CS2 and on platforms like Steam, regulatory bodies worldwide have shown a significant lack of enforcement, leading to continued harm and responsibility avoidance by companies.
Proton Experimental gets fixes for Subnautica 2, War Thunder, Far Cry 4 and more
Valve has released an update for Proton Experimental, bringing fixes for several games on Linux and SteamOS. The update addresses issues in Subnautica 2, War Thunder, Far Cry 4, STAR WARS Starfighter, Idle Iktah, and Squad. Proton Experimental serves as a testing ground for future stable Proton versions.
Valve just completely changed the Deadlock Urn again, days after its rework spawned a weekend of mayhem
Valve has released an emergency update for Deadlock, significantly altering the mechanics of the Soul Urn after a weekend of chaotic gameplay. The update moves the Urn's drop-off location, enhances the carrier's movement speed, and adjusts the 'favored' Urn mechanics and deposit timers to create a more balanced experience.
Russian censors target yuri VN titles on Steam
Russian censors have targeted yuri visual novel titles developed by ebi-hime, leading to their removal from the Russian version of Steam. Games like 'Her Love, Like Poison,' 'The Demon Queen’s Dire Dilemma,' and 'Rituals in the Dark' were deemed in violation of Russian distribution laws by Roskomnadzor. This action highlights Steam's policy of placing the onus on developers to comply with foreign censorship regulations, which can be a burden for indie creators.
Yerba Buena, out today, is a Portal-esque puzzle platformer where your weapon of choice is copying and pasting physics
Yerba Buena, a new puzzle platformer, is now available on PC and Steam. The game allows players to copy and paste the physics and movement properties of objects onto other items, enabling unique puzzle-solving opportunities. It is set in an abandoned video game world and features a narrative about an NPC named Barb trying to save San Francisco.
How To Play Non-Steam Games With A Steam Controller On PC
This guide explains how to use a Steam Controller with games not purchased through Steam on PC. It details adding non-Steam executables to your library and using tools like UWPhook for Universal Windows Platform (UWP) applications, enabling Steam Input and the Steam Overlay for a unified gaming experience.
Deadlock new midlane objective turned games into such a mid-only fiasco that it only lasted one weekend, though…
Valve is experimenting with the midlane objective in Deadlock, which was temporarily changed to encourage teamfights but resulted in a "mid-only fiasco." The new urn mechanic required melee interaction, had a depositing phase, and was always placed in the midlane, leading to a shift in gameplay focus. Following player feedback, the urn now spawns in side-lanes, though some of its mechanics have been adjusted.
Rather than stressing about Steam Machine performance, I'd start thinking about your TV's specs
This article argues that instead of focusing on Steam Machine performance, players should prioritize their TV's specifications for an optimal experience. It highlights the importance of modern panel technology like OLED and mini LED, high refresh rates, and features like AMD FreeSync for reducing screen tearing, especially when using PC hardware like the Steam Machine.
Ah, yes, a custom PS2 handheld that could slice a limb off, but beats the Steam Deck on battery life
A custom PlayStation 2 handheld has been created by modder James Channel, featuring a modified PS2 Slim console with an exposed disc drive and a new LCD screen. Despite its crude appearance, the handheld boasts impressive battery life, potentially lasting around 5 hours, surpassing modern devices like the Steam Deck OLED and Nintendo Switch.
World of Tanks: HEAT released free on Steam and works on Linux / SteamOS
World of Tanks: HEAT, a free-to-play hero-driven tank action game, has launched on Steam and is compatible with Linux and SteamOS, earning a Steam Deck Verified rating. The game features cross-platform play across Steam, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and GeForce NOW. Despite a rough initial reception with mostly negative user reviews, Wargaming has confirmed the use of generative AI solely for development support, with all final content created by human developers.
Proton-CachyOS adds low latency layer and Discord rich presence support
Proton-CachyOS version 11.0-20260519 has been released, introducing support for a new open-source low-latency layer and Discord Rich Presence integration. This update includes fixes for color management, mouse pointer warping, and video playback, along with improvements to Wine and updated patches from Proton Experimental Bleeding Edge.
Colorado and California age verification bills exempt open source operating systems
New age verification laws in Colorado and California will exempt open source operating systems and applications. The Colorado bill, effective July 1, 2028, and the California bill, effective January 1, 2027, both include similar exemptions for software distributed under licenses that permit modification and redistribution. This distinction is expected to benefit Linux distributions and devices like the Steam Deck, while proprietary systems like Windows will still be subject to the regulations.
"I'm very rusty:" Counter-Strike creator 'Gooseman' doesn't play CS2 much these days, but he did check out Cache
Minh 'Gooseman' Le, co-creator of Counter-Strike, admits he doesn't play Counter-Strike 2 regularly, having not been a consistent player since around 2007-2008. He recently checked out the updated Cache map and still feels he's skilled despite the long break. Le's current focus is on his arcade-inspired FPS, Alpha Response, which is nearing its 1.0 launch.
Shape the planet and evolve strange creatures in Planetary Life with Steam Deck support
Planetary Life, a planet and life simulation game, has received official Steam Deck support and is now Steam Deck Verified. Players can shape planets, evolve creatures, and manage ecosystems in this "god game" currently in Early Access. The game is set to release fully on August 15th, 2025.
HID Remapper added support for the new Steam Controller
The open-source programmable adapter HID Remapper has added support for Valve's Steam Controller. This hardware adapter allows for button mapping, sensitivity changes, and input type modification, with configurations saved directly on the device. Recent updates on May 20th and May 25th have improved compatibility with the controller and its firmware.
Steam Machine release closing in with an appearance on the Vulkan conformant product list
Valve's Steam Machine has appeared on The Khronos Group's official Vulkan API Conformant Products list, indicating an imminent release. The listing confirms it uses an AMD Navi 33 GPU and the Mesa RADV driver on the Linux kernel. While its appearance is a formality for Vulkan compliance, it suggests pricing and launch date announcements are approaching.
The design lead of Half-Life's biggest competitor says that its publisher was so 'pissed off' by the time the game launched that it didn't bother testing it properly: 'We got trashed in the press because of bugs'
Robert M. Atkins, design lead for the 1998 first-person shooter Sin, revealed that its publisher Activision was upset with the developer Ritual Entertainment's formation of the Gathering of Developers publisher alliance. This strained relationship led to Activision allegedly not properly testing the game's gold master, resulting in significant bugs at launch that harmed its reception. The game also faced immense competition from Valve's Half-Life, which released shortly after.
