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“Steam Frame”: Valve’s next VR glasses must not allow themselves any compromises
The successor headset to the Valve Index, which has been doing the rounds under the codename “Deckard,” may now have an official name: “Steam Frame.” Valve filed a corresponding trademark application with the US Patent and Trademark Office at the beginning of September. This not only fits in with the company’s naming logic—Steam Deck, Steam Link, Steam Controller—but also with a new focus on spatial interfaces. In recent SteamVR updates, data miners have already discovered the first lines of code that refer to “frames” instead of “overlays.” Time to take a closer look at the next Valve Index.
What we think we know about Valve’s next VR goggles
The device itself is set to be a hybrid: a self-sufficient headset with its own SteamOS operating system that also functions as PC VR glasses via USB dongle or cable. The goal: a Steam Deck for the head. At least that’s how VR leaker Brad Lynch, who has been working intensively on Deckard since 2021, is excellently networked and is constantly extracting new details from lines of code with his team, describes it. Lynch accidentally found render models of new VR controller prototypes in SteamVR last year. Just a few days ago, he finally managed to extract such models again—this time, it is said to be the final version of the VR controllers for Valve’s next headset, known under the project name “Roy”.
This is what the VR controllers of the next Steam VR glasses could look like – at least if you believe dataminers.
(Image: Valve / X-Nutzer @Down_90)
According to Lynch, the entire hardware is now almost fully developed and is already being prepared for series production. The release is scheduled for late 2025 or early 2026, although Valve is keeping a low profile as usual. The design of the Roy controllers is strikingly reminiscent of classic gamepads. Instead of distributing the action buttons A, B, X, and Y across both controllers, as is usual with most common VR controllers, Valve has placed them all on the right-hand side. Instead, there is a directional pad on the left—a first for pure VR controllers. There are also the usual analog sticks, shoulder, and grip buttons. Both controllers have a Steam button and a Start and Select button, as known from the Steam Deck.
Steam games on the virtual screen
If this layout is retained, “flat” Steam games could also be played comfortably on a virtual large screen. According to Lynch, the goal of making as many Steam titles as possible playable locally and without an internet connection directly on the headset is an important point that could also become a key selling point for the “Steam Frame” for people without an affinity for VR. Unlike Meta’s half-baked Xbox cooperation, which relies on cloud streaming, Valve wants to deliver a completely local experience. Whatever is installed on the computer can be streamed directly to the glasses.
To deliver the sharpest and clearest possible image, the headset will have pancake lenses, displays with at least 1,440p per eye, and a 120 Hz refresh rate. According to Lynch, the whole thing is powered by an ARM-based Qualcomm chip, presumably an XR2+ or similar, similar to Samsung’s upcoming XR headset. To make conventional PC games run on ARM, Valve is said to be working internally on an emulation solution. Similar to Proton for Steam Deck, this should ensure that Windows apps work under Linux—or SteamOS.
What initially appears to be of interest only to gamers could, at second glance, also appeal to a target group that has so far only been served by Apple in this quality. In addition to gaming, the Steam Frame could also handle media playback on the big screen, productivity in mixed reality, 3D design apps, or the virtual mirroring and extension of your desktop.
Standalone in focus: no headset for PC VR enthusiasts?
Valve apparently doesn’t just want to deliver another enthusiast headset but to build a system that transfers Steam as a platform into the XR world. Developers should be able to easily port their Quest apps. According to Lynch, some studios are already working with dev kits. This would allow Valve to break up the fragmentation of the market in one fell swoop and make many standalone exclusive titles accessible to Steam users. Rumors of a native standalone version of Half-Life: Alyx have even been circulating for some time.
Steam Frame could also deliver the long-awaited leap in graphical quality for standalone VR, as it is said to be capable of both eye-tracking and foveated rendering—i.e., the technology in which only the image area focused on by the eye is rendered in full resolution. This saves computing power and increases the display quality where it counts. The necessary power is supplied by a battery, which is located at the back of the head, similar to the Pico 4 Ultra, to better distribute the weight.
Valve is also breaking new ground when it comes to tracking, abandoning the extremely accurate but cumbersome Lighthouse with its external base stations as the only tracking solution. Instead, Steam Frame is to rely on the now also very accurate camera-based inside-out tracking. There are also said to have already been prototypes that also feature IR-based depth light, possibly as a kind of “Lighthouse 3.0” for dark environments or to make the new headset compatible with existing Lighthouse configurations.
How certain is the release of Steam Frame?
According to several sources, the price of the headset is around 1,200 US dollars, a far cry from Quest prices but roughly on a par with the Valve Index. At the same time, the Steam Frame with similar specifications and features would be far below the price of an Apple Vision Pro. Valve is said to be prepared to sell the hardware at a loss—an indication that the company is not interested in quick profits but in long-term platform loyalty.
Although the signs for an actual release of “Deckard” or “Steam Frame” have never been so good, they are not set in stone. Valve is known to cancel projects at the last minute. A revised version of the Index with WiGig wireless technology was once canceled shortly before its market launch. A Steam console that was supposed to play SteamVR content on the TV or the Valve Index also disappeared into the drawer. However, the underlying technologies remained and were revived in Steam Link and the Steam Deck, for example.
Whether Steam Frame will actually appear or end up as a research basis for future devices therefore remains to be seen—even if the timing is right. The technical basis seems solid, the platform idea clear, and the target group defined. In addition, the XR market has changed since the Valve Index. Meta is looking for direction, Apple is looking for buyers, Sony is holding back, and Microsoft seems completely uninterested. Valve could therefore strike at exactly the right time with a counterproposal that is more than just the next compromise.
Josef Erl is a freelance online journalist specializing in virtual reality, augmented reality, XR technologies, and gaming. Since June 2025, he has been writing regularly for heise online about the latest developments in immersive technologies.
(joe)
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This article was originally published in
It was translated with technical assistance and editorially reviewed before publication.
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