Analis Nilai Harga Steam Machine Bikin Konsol Jadi Barang Mewah

Sejumlah analis industri menilai penetapan harga konsol terbaru Valve bernama Steam Machine yang menembus angka 1.000 dolar AS bakal menjadikan perangkat hibrida tersebut sebagai produk segmen khusus (niche).

Pengumuman harga resmi yang dilakukan Valve pada Selasa (23/6) tersebut mengungkap bahwa model dasar berkapasitas 512 GB tanpa pengontrol dijual seharga 1.049 dolar AS, sementara model 2 TB dengan pengontrol mencapai 1.428 dolar AS.

Lonjakan harga ini dipicu oleh kelangkaan memori serta lonjakan biaya komponen DRAM dan NAND akibat tingginya permintaan pusat data untuk kecerdasan buatan (AI), yang juga sempat menunda peluncuran perangkat dari jadwal semula pada Februari lalu.

Merespons kebijakan tersebut, CEO Aldora Joost van Dreunen mengaku tidak terkejut dengan keputusan Valve menembus batas harga 1.000 dolar AS demi menutup biaya produksi komponen yang tidak disubsidi.

"In fact, I predicted in March that we'd see the price of gaming consoles breach $1,000," kata Joost van Dreunen, CEO Aldora.

Van Dreunen menambahkan bahwa kondisi ini mengecewakan bagi konsumen karena Valve biasanya dikenal dengan aksesibilitas harga yang adil.

"If anything, I underestimated the speed: even in my most pessimistic February revision, I had the top SKU near $899, and the entry price alone cleared that. It's disappointing, certainly, because Valve prides itself on accessibility and fair pricing for consumers. But unless Valve is willing to heavily subsidize its upcoming device, it has to price in the runaway cost of memory and storage like everyone else," kata Joost van Dreunen, CEO Aldora.

Lebih lanjut, Van Dreunen memproyeksikan bahwa industri game konsol dan PC kini bergeser menjadi kategori barang mewah bagi kelompok konsumen mapan.

"The Machine has always been a funnel into Steam, not a profit centre. More broadly, console and PC gaming are increasingly becoming a luxury category, catering to a shrinking set of affluent fans. You have to imagine that if Valve is struggling with the increased costs of hardware components, then everyone else is, too. After having crossed the symbolic $1,000 console threshold, the next milestone is the disappearance of the sub-$500 PC," kata Joost van Dreunen, CEO Aldora.

Senada dengan Van Dreunen, Director of Market Intelligence Newzoo Emmanuel "Manu" Rosier berpendapat bahwa harga awal tersebut murni mengikuti pergerakan pasar komponen saat ini.

"The $1,049 entry price tracks the current component market, rather than any positioning choice," kata Emmanuel "Manu" Rosier, Director of Market Intelligence Newzoo.

Rosier menjelaskan bahwa Valve mengambil margin keuntungan yang sangat tipis dan tidak memberikan subsidi langsung pada perangkat kerasnya kali ini.

"Valve set the 512GB model at $1,049, just above a clean $999. Combined with its public line that the original target is 'no longer viable', that points to minimal-margin pricing, not a marketing number. From Valve's own statements and the reporting around launch, the price came in well above the $700 to $800 band Valve had originally targeted. Valve attributes the gap to higher DRAM and NAND costs as AI data-centre demand absorbs supply," kata Emmanuel "Manu" Rosier, Director of Market Intelligence Newzoo.

Ia juga membandingkan strategi Valve dengan pemegang platform lain yang biasanya bersedia merugi dalam penjualan perangkat keras.

"Valve is not subsidizing the hardware. Platform holders routinely sell consoles at or below build cost and recover margin on software and services. Valve's hardware has historically carried thin margins, with the business resting on Steam software and service revenue," kata Emmanuel "Manu" Rosier, Director of Market Intelligence Newzoo.

Sementara itu, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis Piers Harding-Rolls mengaku sedikit terkejut karena sebelumnya ia memperkirakan harga Steam Machine berada di kisaran 700 hingga 800 dolar AS pada Desember lalu.

"Back in December I was predicting a starting price between $700 and $800," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Menurut Harding-Rolls, kenaikan harga Steam Deck sebelumnya sudah menjadi indikasi awal bahwa perangkat baru Valve akan dijual jauh lebih mahal.

"This year it was clear with memory and storage price increases that this would go up. The Steam Deck price increase was also an indication that prices were likely to be significantly more than originally aimed for," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Ia menilai keterbatasan skala produksi perangkat keras membuat Valve tidak mampu memberikan subsidi melalui pendapatan layanan perangkat lunak.

"Valve will be disappointed it can't make Steam Machines more accessible. The company is hamstrung by its lack of hardware scale and the fact it's not in a position to subsidise the hardware through increases in software and services sales," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Dengan fungsionalitas di ruang tamu yang dinilai kurang spesifik dibanding portabilitas Steam Deck, Harding-Rolls memprediksi penjualan perangkat ini tidak akan menembus satu juta unit pada tahun 2026.

"I've always held the view that Steam Machines are a niche proposition for a small subsegment of gamers that are looking for a more console-like way to experience PC gaming," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Faktor keterbatasan stok di pasar juga memperkuat analisis bahwa Steam Machine hanya akan menyasar kelompok konsumen yang sangat spesifik.

"In contrast to Steam Decks, which have a clearly defined mobile use case, the Steam Machine proposition is much less established or defined. As such, it's a harder sell," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Kondisi pasar gawai khusus game saat ini diakuinya semakin tertekan oleh dinamika rantai pasok global.

"This pricing reinforces that view and underlines that this is going to be a niche device. It also sounds like availability is going to be heavily constrained. The Steam Deck price increase and this latest pricing news makes it clear that specialist games hardware and associated markets," kata Piers Harding-Rolls, Head of Games Research Ampere Analysis.

Pandangan berbeda datang dari Senior Director Circana Mat Piscatella yang menganggap nominal tersebut cukup masuk akal di tengah situasi krisis industri.

"I was thinking it would be higher, given everything," kata Mat Piscatella, Senior Director Circana.

Ia meyakini produk ini tetap akan langsung habis terjual saat diluncurkan akibat kuantitas produksi awal dari Valve yang sangat terbatas.

"This seems like a quite reasonable price, all things considered," kata Mat Piscatella, Senior Director Circana.

Menurut pemantauan Circana, konsumen diprediksi masih akan kesulitan menemukan unit Steam Machine di pasar ritel untuk jangka waktu yang cukup lama.

"But the question is the available quantity, which I expect will be very limited," kata Mat Piscatella, Senior Director Circana.