Yesterday, Valve launched its Steam Controller (2026), the follow-up to its 2015 predecessor and an improvement based on the years of learning Valve took from developing that first controller, to the Steam Deck, and now this latest gamepad. The launch went about as well as you would hope if you're Valve. The 'Buy Now' button went live on Steam, the gamepad shot up to the top of the best-selling charts, and it sold out within minutes.
The unfortunate part of that last bit was that it seems Valve wasn't fully prepared for a complete sell-out of the device. In an update on the company's official X (formerly Twitter) account, the Steam operator said the controller "ran out faster than we anticipated," and that it will "have an update on expected timeline soon."
"Steam Controller ran out faster than anticipated, and we hate that not everyone who wanted one was able to get it," Valve wrote. "We're working on getting more in stock and will have an update on expected timeline soon."
It's disappointing and somewhat comical that the device Valve said it wanted to have out sooner because it wasn't constrained by the RAM shortage, was seemingly in just as much short supply as you might expect the first batch of Steam Machines to be, but that also just shows how high the demand is for Valve's upcoming hardware launches.
It'll be interesting to see if this happens with the remaining two bits of hardware when the Steam Machine and Steam Frame launch. It's easy to predict that the Steam Machine will sell out almost immediately, but VR remains a niche part of the video game industry. Even with Valve struggling to get enough memory to manufacture enough of both products for their respective launch days, it wouldn't be surprising if the Steam Frame was the only one of the three to still have stock available in its first week.
Regardless, if you're looking to grab a Steam Controller, then it seems you'll have to keep an eye on Valve's official channels to know when you'll have another chance to pick one up.
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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