By Robert Carnevale

Valve’s Steam, the dominant sales platform in PC gaming (wherein the majority of PC games are bought and sold), is having its big annual summer sale, which puts deep discounts on a vast collection of storefront content. As a result, old bestsellers with long, long legs are seeing a resurgence in top-tier revenue gains. Massive AAA games from previous years (“Cyberpunk 2077,” “Elden Ring”) are back in the top 10 revenue earners lineup despite their peak relevance having passed long ago.

The No. 1 spot in the weekly top 10 revenue earners on Steam was earned by Valve’s own Steam Deck hardware, which is seeing a variable discount as part of the summer sale (the $400 model is 10% off, the $530 model is 15% off, and the $650 version is 20% off). The hardware, which is essentially a portable, handheld PC primarily built for gaming on the go, has proven popular with a dedicated audience, hence its staying power on the top 10 list. Its three-figure price tag gives it a foundational revenue advantage over software (chiefly games, which typically cap out at $70), but still, the handheld is estimated to pass three million units sold in 2023, suggesting the niche device isn’t doing too shabbily.