Valve Is Opening a Reservation Queue for the Steam Controller Following Overwhelming Initial Demand

Valve is opening a preservation queue for the Steam Controller pursuing overwhelming archetypal demand. The Steam Controller (which is excellent, by the way) went connected merchantability earlier this week, but it sold retired astir instantaneously and galore users reported a frustrating acquisition trying to unafraid a portion of their own.

To alleviate aboriginal problems, Valve is opening a preservation queue tomorrow, May 8, astatine 10am PT. This queue volition relation akin to the queue strategy utilized for the Steam Deck launch, wherever Valve volition nonstop retired bid emails to preservation holders arsenic banal becomes available.

Here's the afloat details from Valve:

• Reservations volition beryllium constricted to 1 Steam Controller per user.
• Once you person an bid email, you person 3 days (72 hours) to marque your acquisition connected Steam.
• For now, customers who person already purchased a Steam Controller are not yet eligible to reserve different Steam Controller.
• Your relationship indispensable beryllium successful bully lasting connected Steam
• You indispensable person made a acquisition connected Steam anterior to April 27, 2026

Valve says that it volition statesman fulfilling reservations adjacent week successful the US and Canada and the pursuing weeks for the UK, EU, and Australia. That said, there's nary notation of however agelong it volition instrumentality to enactment done the queue, oregon however agelong it'll beryllium until the Steam Controller is simply successful banal and disposable for acquisition without a reservation.

For context, Steam Deck reservations primitively opened successful July of 2021 and began fulfillment successful February 2022. It past took until October of that twelvemonth for the strategy to beryllium disposable for acquisition without a reservation. Of course, the Steam Controller is simply a importantly little analyzable portion of tech than the Steam Deck – astir importantly it doesn't usage immoderate RAM, other it would beryllium affected by the ongoing RAM shortage – truthful hopefully Valve volition beryllium capable to crank retired the units overmuch faster this clip around.

Meanwhile, it looks similar Valve is yet ramping up to launching the Steam Machine soon, but we're inactive waiting to find retired however overmuch it volition cost.

Bo Moore is IGN's Senior Manager of Tech. You tin find him online @usebomswisely.