Valve's Steam Controller 2 sold out in 30 minutes flat
Valve's Steam Controller 2 sold out within 30 to 40 minutes of its May 4 launch, according to Tom's Guide live tracking. The $99 gamepad went on sale exclusively through the Steam store at 10am PT / 1pm ET, and units vanished almost immediately. Valve had promised a large first batch but acknowledged demand could outstrip supply — it clearly did.
The scalper problem
No pre-orders were offered, which funneled everyone into a single launch-day queue. Flash restocks appeared briefly on the Steam store page but sold out in under a minute. Scalpers moved fast: listings on eBay quickly appeared at $150 or more above the $99 retail price. Valve has not given a timeline for restocking, though the company faced the same situation with the Steam Deck and eventually caught up with demand.
The Steam Controller 2 features dual 34.5mm haptic trackpads and TMR thumbsticks designed to prevent stick drift.
What the controller actually does
The Steam Controller 2 is a PC-focused gamepad built around two 34.5mm square haptic trackpads with adjustable click force — useful for genres like strategy games and complex simulators where a standard thumbstick falls short. TMR (Tunnel Magnetoresistance) thumbsticks replace the analog sensors found in most controllers; the technology is designed to eliminate stick drift entirely. A six-axis gyro with Grip Sense, four rear buttons, and four haptic motors round out the feature set.
Battery life is rated at over 35 hours. Wireless connectivity runs through the Steam Controller Puck — a 2.4 GHz dongle that doubles as a magnetic charging dock — with Bluetooth and USB-C as alternatives. Input latency over the wireless connection measures around 8ms.
Compatibility covers any device that runs Steam Input or Steam Link: PCs, laptops, the Steam Deck, and Valve's forthcoming Steam Machine. One caveat worth noting: there is no native Xbox app integration, so Game Pass titles on PC require workarounds. There is also no headphone jack, and the body is larger than most controllers with no rubber grip coating, as Gagadget EN points out — design choices that may limit appeal outside committed Steam users.
When to try again
The £85 UK price and $99 US price are Steam store exclusives for now — no third-party retailers have been announced. If the Steam Deck rollout is any guide, supply should normalize over the coming weeks. Checking the Steam store page directly and keeping your Steam Wallet loaded (payment processing delays hit hard at the Steam Deck launch) are currently the two most reliable tactics for catching a restock.