The first of the three new pieces of hardware that Valve announced back in November 2025 will arrive next week on May 4, 2026, and it would be a much bigger surprise if a review of the product hadn't leaked days ago. The Steam Controller, as we already learned, will arrive next week and be priced at $99 USD, and now Valve has officially confirmed the leaks. We also got an update on the Steam Machine and the Steam Frame, which is that Valve has no real updates to share for now, but programmer Pierre-Loup Griffais thinks "in general, things are going well."
That comment comes from an interview with IGN, where Griffais and his colleague Steve Cardinali are mostly talking about the Steam Controller, but as they would've expected, also had to answer questions about what's happening with the Steam Machine and Steam Frame. When asked if there was an updated timeline for either product, Griffais replied, "Yeah, we don't have exact details about the timeline to share today."
"And we're hard at work on trying to get them out the door. I think we are definitely expecting to roll out some news soon about that, but in general I think things are going well."
Last month, we heard that Valve was still targeting 2026 as a release window for all three products, so it's a good sign to officially see the first one make it out the door. But the memory crisis that has impacted the entire tech world isn't over, and it has already delayed these products once. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if they are delayed even further.
On that topic, Griffais said, "We're trying to make sure to keep options open and to work with as many different manufacturers as we can. I think in general, that's something that we're doing throughout our hardware design and production phase where we're always cognizant of the fact that having a single source for a given part would put us downstream of potential shortages, and things like that in a way that affects the continuity of the supply and the price for end users."
So Valve is clearly taking steps to avoid any further delays and prices that players could determine to be out of what they'd pay for a Steam Machine or Steam Frame, but for now, we can't really do anything more than hope it'll turn out in a reasonable way.
On the topic of good news and the Steam Controller, however, a report from The Verge includes a few more now-confirmed details about the upcoming controller. Firstly, Valve has partnered with iFixIt to work on replacement parts for the controller, so players can not only fix the device themselves but have a handy, well-crafted guide to provide the know-how.
Second and thirdly, Valve could add more ways for players to see the Steam Controller's battery life within the Steam dashboard, and while the company isn't absolutely positive it'll be able to meet the demand for the controller, it has built a "significant quantity" to handle the launch rush and is capable of making more.
It's also worth noting that The Verge's report confirms that the $99 price tag for the Steam Controller is actually higher than it was initially meant to be, and while the RAM crisis may certainly be a factor, it's also due to global shipping costs. "Shipping anything by sea, by air, the fuel is more expensive than it was last year," Valve told The Verge.
Hopefully, we don't have to wait too much longer to hear more about the Steam Machine and Steam Frame, as Valve promised, but at least for now we can look forward to the Steam Controller.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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