Don't get too excited about Valve's rumored Steam Box console just yet. The company has denied that it's currently developing a set-top box to support its Steam gaming platform.

Valve's Doug Lombardi says it's true that Valve employees were building custom PC hardware, but not for a new console. The computer making the rounds last week via a Valve developer's Twitter account was a test device for the company's Big Picture Mode, a new feature that will allow users to connect a Steam-enabled PC to their TVs.

While that's something like a set-top box, "it's a long way from Valve shipping any sort of hardware," Lombardi told Kotaku.

He refused to rule out the possibility that Valve may one day ship its own console, though.

Combined with Gabe Newell's previous commments that "we think [hardware is] important enough that if that's what we end up having to do, then that's what we end up having to do," that leaves the door open for Steam Box somewhere down the road.

Sure, maybe sometime after Half-Life 3 is ready.

[kotaku / image: IGN]