Valve Steam Controller launches May 4 for $99, reviews are already live
© VALVE Valve is launching its new Steam Controller on May 4, with the gamepad priced at $99 in the US, €99 in Europe, £85 in the UK, $149 CAD in Canada and $149 AUD in Australia. The controller is being released separately from Steam Machine, while Steam Machine and Steam Frame still do not have final launch details.
The new Steam Controller uses a more conventional layout than the 2015 model. It has two TMR magnetic thumbsticks, two haptic trackpads, a D-pad, ABXY buttons, HD haptics, gyro controls, Grip Sense support and four remappable rear buttons. It also ships with the Steam Controller Puck, a 2.4GHz wireless receiver that doubles as a magnetic charging dock. TechRadar lists battery life at more than 35 hours, with Steam Controller Puck, USB and Bluetooth as supported connection options.
Reviews:
Extra info from The Verge
- Valve is indeed still working on offering replacement parts for the Steam Controller, and is still partnered with iFixit for those
- Valve can’t be sure it’ll meet demand for the controller, but has already built a “significant quantity” of controllers with production capacity for more
- Unlike the original 2015 Steam Controller, it’s not all robots building this one
- Valve may be adding more ways to see the controller’s battery life in Steam
- Valve said it might consider letting users adjust the controller speaker volume in the future
- Valve experimented with additional features that didn’t make the cut for cost, weight, or reliability concerns, including touch-sensitive bumpers
- The Steam Controller may cost slightly more than originally planned because of current conditions, but it’s not necessarily RAM-related. “Shipping anything by sea, by air, the fuel is more expensive than it was last year.”
Reviews are mostly positive so far. The Verge says the controller keeps Steam Deck-style control profiles and customization, making it useful for Steam Deck users who dock their handheld to a TV. TechRadar calls it a major improvement over the original controller, while also listing the price, lack of console support and missing 3.5mm audio jack as drawbacks.
Valve is also making the controller work outside the Steam Machine launch. The Verge reports that it works with any computer running Steam and can also function as a generic controller for phones.
The Steam Machine and Steam Frame remain on Valve’s roadmap, but the controller is now arriving first. Valve told The Verge that it has no update on those devices yet, while the controller is ready to ship now. For PC users, this makes the new Steam Controller the first retail product from Valve’s 2026 hardware lineup.
Source: Steam
