It has been a while since Valve has made a splash in the virtual reality space. The company's in-house-built Index headset and Half-Life: Alyx arrived in 2019 and 2020, respectively, but other than quietly shipping some software upgrades, it has been largely quiet about major developments for VR. However, that may be about to change in 2025, at least according to a new report.
Gabe Follower, the insider that has been spot on about Valve plans more than a few times in the past, is now reporting that Valve is planning to release a brand-new virtual reality headset.
They have received this information from several sources, who say that this will be a standalone, wireless VR headset much like what Meta offers with its Quest lineup of hardware. Moreover, the report says that this long-rumored hardware project of Valve, codenamed Deckard, will release before the end of 2025.
While this may sound like good news for those looking to enter the world of VR, or Valve hardware fans who are looking to upgrade from their old $1000 Index headsets, another part of the report attaches an eye-watering price tag to the headset: $1200. Even at this price point, Valve is said to be eating some of the hardware's cost to offer an "experience without cutting any costs."
According to Gabe Follower, the hardware will also come with some Valve-developed mini-games, possibly similar to the demos that ship the Index headset and the Steam Deck. Moreover, Valve is reportedly looking to offer the headset as a way to experience flat-screen titles on the wireless headset as if they are playing on a big-screen TV, all without an accompanying PC.
As usual, take reports like this with a grain of salt until something official comes out of Valve. If it does turn out to be accurate though, it will be interesting to see just how much horsepower the standalone headset will have, perhaps even shipping with performance similar to the Steam Deck.
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