Valve's next-generation Steam Controller reportedly in mass production

Valve does not have many hardware releases, but each one has landed out of nowhere. A leak may have ruined the surprise for one of these launches, though, as a brand-new Steam Controller is reportedly now in mass production.

The report comes from analyzer and leaker Brad Lynch, who says the new Steam Controller is currently being tooled for mass production in "later stages of production."

Codenamed Ibex by the company, the new hardware reportedly has taken some pointers from the Steam Deck"s control scheme. Lynch says the Steam Controller 2 has "symmetrical sticks." The old generation controller famously only came with one thumbstick.

The original Steam Controller launched in 2015. Its unique design of having two trackpads for finer, mouse-like control instead of two thumbsticks was a divisive decision, though, with many growing to love it or hate it. Much like the Steam Machines that it launched with, the hardware didn’t last long. Valve halted production of the Steam Controller four years after the launch in 2019. It has transformed into a piece of cult-classic hardware since then.

Valve"s standalone VR headset and sequel to the Index, which has been going around the rumor mill codenamed Deckard, was also mentioned in the latest leak. The new VR controllers that will come with the headset are reportedly codenamed "Roy," and those too look to be going through mass production, hinting at an upcoming announcement.

In SteamVR code, Lynch has found signs pointing to these Roy VR controllers having a D-pad, bumpers, grip buttons, triggers, ABXY, a system button, and a strap function to interact with games. If the report is accurate, these controllers might have uses outside of VR, too, thanks to its ample selection of buttons.

As always, take this with a grain of salt until Valve comes out and announces its next hardware plans. Don"t forget that it recently surprise-released a limited edition white version of the Steam Deck.