(Credit: PCMag)
Following Monday’s troubled launch of the latest Steam Controller, Valve is reopening orders tomorrow using a new reservation system that’ll limit orders to one per customer.
The company will accept new orders on Friday, May 8, starting at 10 a.m. Pacific on the Steam Controller purchase page. “Once you reserve, your place in line will be saved. When we go back in stock, order emails will be sent in the same order that reservations were made,” Valve said today.
Once a customer receives an order email, they’ll have 72 hours to confirm their purchase on Steam. “Replenishment of inventory will vary from region to region. We will start fulfilling reservations next week in the US / Canada, and UK / EU / AU in the following weeks."
The “reservation queue” approach promises to improve the buying experience after numerous consumers reported errors that prevented them from ordering the product from Valve’s site during Monday’s launch. Valve’s site was also letting people who made it through the order process to buy two controllers, not just one. Valve now says, “Reservations will be limited to one Steam Controller per user.” Those who already nabbed a controller during the initial launch are barred from reserving another unit, for now.
To further deter scalpers and bots, Valve is only permitting Steam users who’ve made a purchase on the gaming marketplace prior to April 27. As a result, no newly made Steam accounts will be able to reserve a controller.
Valve indicated that it was surprised by the demand. “Steam Controller ran out faster than we anticipated, and we hate that not everyone who wanted one was able to get it,” the company said on Tuesday. Scalpers on eBay have been reselling their confirmed orders for twice or triple the normal $99 price.
It’s not the first time Valve has implemented a reservation system. The company also used one in 2021 for the initial launch of the Steam Deck, and even required a $5 pre-payment. The system seemed to work, ensuring that legitimate consumers snagged the handheld.
That said, we wouldn’t be surprised if the Steam Controller orders tomorrow face some problems, due to an anticipated flood of interest that could overwhelm Valve’s site. So, interested consumers should brace for potential site errors when placing a reservation.