The Steam Controller Failed. This is Why I am Excited for the Rumored Do-Over

Controllers bore me. The trendy Xbox controller and Sony DualSense each conform to the identical common form that lightly cups your palms and leads the thumbs proper to the required joysticks and face buttons. A cushty design has led to stagnation, one thing that Valve may very well be able to take a sledgehammer to for some excessive transforming. Positive, the Steam maker’s decade-old attempt at a gamepad failed, however the rumored new Steam Controller might have sufficient going for it that trackpads may lastly substitute thumbsticks… in some instances.

Valve could also be on the sting of releasing its first novel hardware because it gave us the Steam Deck OLED in 2023. There have been sufficient rumors to recommend Valve is near dropping its rumored “Deckard” VR headset as quickly as this month. It could serve as a wireless sequel to the 2019 Valve Index however use the extra frequent Snapdragon XR2 chip just like the Quest 3 and 3S. This headset, which has additionally been known as the “Steam Body” primarily based on knowledge unearthed inside SteamOS, can be distinct from most different headsets.

Dependable VR rumormonger Brad Lynch has catalogued a number of leaks that recommended it could additionally have the ability to play your common Steam library by way of the headset’s built-in shows. However when you’re going to be enjoying these video games along with your head sandwiched between a VR headset, you’re going to want a controller that doesn’t require any additional probing to search out the appropriate button. That’s the place the supposed new Steam Controller is available in.

The brand new Steam Controller will appear to be this when it launches

Im instructed that it may well additionally detect how far your arms are from the handles utilizing a easy capsense function

Much like the index controllers, however not full finger monitoring within the grips pic.twitter.com/loIqpJb0YZ

— Brad Lynch (@SadlyItsBradley) November 9, 2025

Lynch has posted several renders of this controller generated primarily based on his knowledge mining and different sources. He shared a current AI-generated “slop photograph” he claims the controller will resemble upon launch. Lynch suggests the gamepad may detect how far your arms are from the controller, akin to Valve’s authentic Index VR controllers, although with out finger monitoring. You possibly can see by the picture mockup that the 2 giant trackpads are recessed into the controller. The Steam Deck usually used the triggers as a mouse click on in some video games and when utilizing the desktop mode.

The Steam Controller deserves a do-over

Valve’s authentic controller from 2014, constructed for the long-defunct Steam Field, had two huge saucer-like trackpads constructed on an especially light-weight body. It required gamers to make use of these trackpads because it in any other case contained a single thumbstick alongside the standard ABXY face buttons. The thought was that gamers may use the trackpads like a mouse for the sake of first-person shooters or real-time technique video games that required extra exact enter. Whereas the Steam Controller lasted longer than any of the supposed Steam Machines, Valve finally liquidated its inventory for $5 a pop.

That controller labored, however solely to a degree. It took manner an excessive amount of getting used to and lacked the haptics mandatory for exact controls. Dell’s Alienware gaming model additionally developed a Nyx concept controller with a single haptic pad. Valve, nevertheless, may very well be the one to make trackpad controls mainstream. The Steam Deck’s twin thumbpads are simply one of the best of any of the various, many handheld PCs I’ve tried over the previous three years. The microtextured plastic mixed with the pressure suggestions provides higher mouse controls than transferring your cursor round with a joystick. The explanation I don’t usually go for the trackpads in video games is just because the Steam Deck OLED’s small 7.4-inch, 800p show isn’t nice for many CRPGs or RTS video games that I favor to play.

Which is why it makes extra sense when mixed with a VR headset, or higher but, with an up to date Steam Machine console such because the supposed “Fremont” console that’s been in growth inside Valve. Lynch lately posted on Discord that, in accordance with nameless sources, Valve’s subsequent {hardware} may drop as early as this week. Valve’s regular Autumn sale on Steam ran from Sept. 29 by way of Oct. 6, which is sooner than traditional. That’s sufficient to have some Valve superfans speculating the corporate may launch new {hardware} someday this month. Earlier than you begin filling the web with ideas a few shock Half-Life 3 announcement, take a second to breathe.