Valve Pushes New Steam Controller Shipments Into 2027 As Demand Surges
Valve's new Steam Controller is selling so fast that the company is having trouble keeping up with demand. As such, shipments for new orders have been pushed out to 2027, and the same is true of some existing reservations, the company announced. If it comes as any consolation, at least AI is not to blame for this one (unlike memory and storage chips).
The other silver lining is that Valve is vowing to keep cranking out new Steam Controllers, though realistically, we don't think anyone thought it would pump the brakes.
"We have no plans to stop making Steam Controller. But as we look at the current demand compared to how many we know we can make by the end of the year, we want to manage expectations as much as we can with regards to when folks can expect to receive their order," Valve states in an update to its reservations status.
If you already reserved a Steam Controller, you will see an estimated order window when visiting the Steam Controller product page. It will be one of these three:
- By September 2026
- By December 2026
- In 2027 (with additional information on specific timing to come)
You must be logged into your Steam account to see the status of your reservation. For those who have not yet placed a reservation, you still can, just be prepared to wait until sometime next year. Valve's wording in its update makes it sound like there is a chance it could ship sooner, though it presumably depends on many users follow through with a purchase when a their time comes.
Speaking of which, it does not cost anything to place a reservation. When it is your turn, you will receive an email giving you three days to finalize the purchase, otherwise you have to place another reservation and get sent to the back of the line.
The new Steam Controller costs $99, which positions it between standard controllers like Sony's DualSense and Microsoft's Xbox model, and premium variants like the DualSense Edge and Xbox Elite.
Valve's initial batch sold out almost immediately, leading to a flood of overpriced listings on eBay. Valve responded by pivoting to a reservation system to thwart scalpers
