Valve jokes about component shortages at GDC, asks the industry for more RAM

The company has also released its latest performance metrics for Steam.

At the recent Game Developers Conference (GDC), Valve presented a comprehensive overview of the Steam ecosystem. During the session, representatives combined hard data with humor, addressing the ongoing hardware component crunch by playfully asking the industry for a little extra RAM.

According to the company’s report, 5,863 titles generated over $100,000 in revenue during 2025. This represents a substantial increase over previous years, signaling that the platform continues to foster successful projects despite persistent concerns regarding store saturation.

Valve also shed light on the increasing effectiveness of its Daily Deal promotions:

• 1,500 games participated in these featured slots.
• 69% of these titles were participating in a Daily Deal for the first time.
• Approximately 8.2 million Steam users purchased games through these specific offers.

These engagement figures show a remarkable 125% jump compared to the previous annual cycle.

Beyond software sales, the presentation pivoted to the challenges of the hardware market. With component costs rising and supply chains remaining tight, Valve admitted that engineering new devices has become a complex endeavor.

In a lighthearted moment, the team joked that there would be no new hardware announcements at GDC 2026—unless a generous attendee decided to supply them with the necessary memory modules.

Journalists in attendance noted that the speakers went so far as to issue a tongue-in-cheek appeal to the audience:

Source: iXBT.games