MANILA, Philippines – There’s a new wrinkle in the ongoing press surrounding what was once known as Valve’s Piston gaming machine. Valve appears to have distanced itself from Xi3, the company behind the Piston, calling it an unofficial Steam Box.

Following an announcement of the Xi3’s Piston pre-orders opening last week, Eurogamer received word from Doug Lombardi, vice president of marketing at Valve.

According to Lombardi, Valve did have dealings with Xi3, but those have apparently ceased. Lombardi explained this to Eurogamer, saying, “Valve began some exploratory work with Xi3 last year, but currently has no involvement in any product of theirs.”

Xi3 has countered this, however, with a press statement to gaming website Kotaku, saying that Valve invested in the Piston and asked Xi3 to make it.

Jason A. Sullivan, founder, president and CEO of Xi3 Corp, explained that Xi3 “received an investment from Valve Corporation (as we previously disclosed during the 2013 International CES trade show),” and was “asked to build a product specifically for Valve, and both companies showcased this product – the Piston Console – in their respective booths at CES 2013.”

Sullivan continues, “Then, during a meeting with Valve at CES, Gabe Newell personally asked me that we not disclose additional information about our relationship with Valve. We have honored that request and will continue to do so.” He goes on to clarify some points about the Piston console, such as its use of a Windows OS and its capabilities, leaving further explanations up to Valve.

While words between the two companies remain in the air, creation of the Piston appears to continue, with the console scheduled for a holiday release. – Rappler.com