In a surprise move, or perhaps not so surprising given current market conditions, Valve has not only stopped stocking the Steam Deck LCD in the U.S., but has also explained that it is phasing out the entry-level gaming handheld.

Other regions may follow, but that has not been confirmed, and Valve has yet to officially comment on the phasing out of the LCD model.

The Steam Deck LCD has been Valve’s most affordable handheld to date. If I’m allowed to speculate, rising RAM and storage prices could be part of what is making the LCD model harder to justify in the current market.