Steam To Soon Get An Official Controller, But Not From Valve

Almost after five years Valve discontinued its experimental Steam Controller, and a new officially licensed gamepad is coming for Steam. The new controller was developed by Hori, and it’s only coming for users in Japan.

Called the Wireless Horipad for Steam, the PC-centric controller aligns with Steam Deck’s menu buttons and offers similar touch sensors on top of its sticks to activate gyro controls. The gamepad also supports wireless and USB-C wired connections along with a whole bunch of custom programmability using Hori’s software.

But while it shares a lot with the Steam Deck, it’s not a Steam Controller 2 -- it lacks rumble, a matching set of four back buttons, and the handheld’s signature trackpads. The new gamepad is slated to hit the market in Japan on October 31 in four color options (black, white, neon yellow, and violet), selling for 7,890 yen (around $50).

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What Does The Wireless Horipad Have In Store

There’s no confirmation on whether the new Steam controller will be making its way to the US, but the Wireless Horipad has a striking resemblance to the wired Horipad Pro that’s currently available for Xbox consoles.

However, the Wireless Horipad comes with a lot more features. For instance, it’s wireless, albeit limited to Bluetooth, which is less reliable compared to a USB wireless dongle. The Steam version also comes with four programmable buttons, although, unlike the Steam Deck, there are only two on the rear side, the other two are on the front directly below the D-pad and on the right thumbstick.

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Will New Steam Controller Hit The Right Chords With Users

While it may seem long overdue for Valve to have a branded gamepad for Steam and a docked Steam Deck, users will have to wait and see if it becomes more widely available. Hori’s decision to launch the controller in its home country makes sense, but it could also boost the rise of PC gaming in Japan, with handhelds being such a popular choice there that Valve partnered with a completely different company for Steam Deck distribution.

In general, gamepad usage in Steam is on the rise -- as Valve’s just-released statistics show. Those numbers also come with a summary of new controller optimizations Valve has recently implemented in Steam. Perhaps this could set the stage for a wide stream of licensed Steam controllers from different manufacturers as seen on Xbox consoles with more wireless options.