The Steam Deck is Selling Fewer Units Than Ever Before, Likely Due to Huge Price Increase - IGN

What the report says

IGN reports that demand for Valve’s Steam Deck may have fallen sharply after a major price increase for the handheld gaming PC. The outlet cites analysis from Boiling Steam, via Gizmodo, that used the device’s position on Steam’s top-sellers chart as a rough proxy for sales performance. According to that estimate, the Steam Deck has dropped from a steady placement around fifth on the chart to roughly 14th, which the analysis interprets as potentially reflecting up to 82% fewer units sold than a year earlier and about a 72% decline in revenue.

IGN stresses that these are not official sales figures. Valve has not publicly released current Steam Deck unit sales, and chart-position estimates are inherently imprecise because they depend on assumptions about revenue and ranking behavior. Still, the reported trend is notable because the Steam Deck has long been viewed as one of the stronger value options in the handheld PC market, particularly against more expensive or higher-powered rivals.

The article points to the Steam Deck’s new $789 price as a central reason the device may now look less competitive against alternatives such as the Xbox Ally or Lenovo Legion Go S, except for buyers who strongly prefer Valve-specific features like its haptic trackpads. IGN also notes that broader hardware price pressures could change the comparison if rival handhelds become more expensive too.

For context, IGN says Valve has warned that retail pricing can trail supplier costs, while Microsoft has also signaled further cost pressure, including higher memory prices and an upcoming Xbox Series X price increase. That suggests handheld gaming hardware prices may remain under pressure in the near term.