The original Steam Controller is undoubtedly one of the coolest pieces of gear I own—and one of the most innovative, too.
I got mine right when it launched in 2015. I wanted to solve a very real problem: I was trying to turn my PC into a console.
You see, Valve had Big Picture Mode, which truly turned your PC into a console-like experience. The problem was that some of my favorite PC games didn’t support controllers. They were keyboard-and-mouse only.
But then—here comes the Steam Controller. Suddenly, I was able to reprogram all the inputs. I could take basic keys, like the spacebar, and map them to a button on the controller—like the A button. And once you did that, you could share your controller configuration with the Steam community, or reuse a config someone else already made. It was pretty awesome.
And those dual trackpads? They were swank. Incredible for first-person shooters and real-time strategy games. They were the next best thing to a mouse. And because of the angle of the handles, it all felt very comfortable in the hand—probably the most comfortable controller experience I’ve ever had.
It’s funny—just a little over five years ago, gamers hated it. Not because they ever used one, but because it was a failure. And as we all know about gamers, there’s nothing they hate more than a failure. It was dismissed as a novelty—something no one would ever use again.
Well, Valve had the last laugh. A few years ago, they released the Steam Deck. And what do you know? It’s a direct evolution of the Steam Controller. And now everyone loves the Steam Deck.
Just take a look at it—it’s got so many of the same things the Steam Controller had: dual trackpads, back paddles, the ability to remap buttons and customize layouts. Having owned a Steam Deck since launch, I can say this confidently: the most killer features on the Deck originated with the Steam Controller.
That said, it wasn’t perfect. There were a few quirks I wish they had fixed. For one, it would’ve been nice if it had dual analog sticks instead of just one. Using a trackpad in place of a right stick is fine in theory, but let’s be real: a trackpad does not replace an analog stick.
Also, unlike most modern controllers, this one didn’t have a rechargeable battery. You needed AA batteries. Now, to be fair, those batteries lasted a long time—but it still would’ve been nicer to just recharge it and forget about replacements.
Then there’s the back paddles. Only two of them. In hindsight, yeah, Valve knew they needed to evolve. I’ve grown so used to having four back paddles on the Steam Deck. They’re incredibly useful—especially in games with lots of inputs. Just good to have.
Still, this was one of the first mainstream controllers to even have back paddles. So hats off to Valve for that.
Honestly, I really wish there was another Steam Controller on the market. I know Hori makes a licensed controller for the Steam Deck in Japan, but it’s missing a core feature the original had: the dual trackpads.
To me, the dual trackpads make the Steam Deck experience. It’s something almost no other handheld has. My wife has a Legion Go, and it does have a trackpad—but only one. And honestly? That makes all the difference. It’s fine. But man… it would’ve been a better handheld with two.
Definitely one of the most innovative controllers ever made.
And yeah, I still use mine. I use it when I dock my handheld. Or when I’m on my living room PC.
But then—here comes the Steam Controller. Suddenly, I was able to reprogram all the inputs. I could take basic keys, like the spacebar, and map them to a button on the controller—like the A button. And once you did that, you could share your controller configuration with the Steam community, or reuse a config someone else already made. It was pretty awesome.
Reprogramming inputs is how I use my ps4 controller to play RuneScape
Truth 🤌🏼
I miss mine. 😭
Is there any controller like it? I wish I could buy a steam controller, but they discontinued it.
I still have 2 and use them daily. Definitely want a controller based on Steam Deck layout.
Maximum gaming
I’m still hoping for a new steam controller with inspiration from the steam deck. I loved the original controller and used it on the rare occasion that I needed controller input or for couch gaming. a newer version with all the upgraded components, hall effect joysticks, better trackpads, extra paddles, would be an instant buy for me.
Its really frustrating they haven’t released the steam controller 2 modeled after the steamdeck, because it makes the steamdeck not as useful for docking situations. You get used to the 4 back paddle buttons and then dock it and try and use the steam controller and it’s missing the extra 2 back buttons, and other analog stick, so your muscle impulses are thrown off when playing your favorite games.
I’d recommend the 8bitdo ultimate 2 wireless. Has two back paddles, but also has two additional bumper buttons so is actually 4 buttons in total. The back paddles of the controller is also much easier to press in than the Deck and extra bumpers easy to access, so even though the locations wouldn’t be 1 to 1 the use I find easier.
Just have to update the firmware of the controller and dongle and then start the controller in dinput mode to be able to bind the extra buttons through Steam Input.
can they be unique buttons though? I thought they had to be copies of existing buttons, or macros or something.
Yes they can be set up like any other button through Steam Input. I’ve tested it myself on the 8bitdo Ultimate 2 wireless, and analog triggers and gyro also works. The only other controller that offered that functionality was playstation before the firmware update with other third party controllers having to enter switch mode, which has digital triggers.
There is one thing that needs to be worked out with vibration, since if it is on it can cause the controller to stop working in game while using Steam Input. Have to leave it off for now. But, it’s been getting worked on.
So over bluetooth or (i assume) 2.4ghz it supports more buttons than playstation/xbox, works with analog triggers, AND supports gyro?
That’s a feature set I’ve been really desperate for! And I really liked my 8bitdo Ultimate (1) Bluetooth until my puppy chewed it up. I might need this new one!
I haven’t tried over bluetooth but it does work over the 2.4 ghz dongle. I stick with the dongle over bluetooth, since polling is supposed to be 1000 hz.
In case you are curious how the extra buttons look in Steam Input for the 8bitdo ultimate 2 wireless I included a pic.
That just looks like you must bind the new back buttons as duplicates of other regular buttons tho, what if I want a back button to be presented to a game as a brand new, unique button
It’s a cool controller, but I find the analogue stick and face buttons are in an awkward position even for my large hands, and the buttons are a bit small. I prefer an Xbox controller for controller games, and I struggle to use the trackpads for mouse and keyboard games, so I barely use it.
I have one that I got second-hand at some point, and used it for a while. I dusted it off a few months ago, but I find that the trackpads on the Steam Deck are so much better that it now feels like a sub-par experience. I just end up using an Xbox controller instead (I agree with the annoying lack of a second trackpad, and I also find the face buttons a little too out of the way).
I disagree with the AA batteries being a negative though. If you use rechargeable batteries and make sure to have spares, you can just swap them and charge without interrupting your session. It also becomes one less point of failure for the controller.
I disagree with the AA batteries being a negative though. If you use rechargeable batteries and make sure to have spares,
yep, fully agree. I don’t particularly care for the move to rechargeable internal batteries for literally every device. I can just cycle through a pack of rechargeable AAAs every year or so and be fine.
my favorite are when it uses rechargable AAs, but can recharge them itself.
This should be the default.
I really don’t understand this fixation on internal batteries from users. It’s almost guaranteed to be the first thing to fail on your device, and turn it into e-waste.
I remember a Wirecutter review on beard trimmers, where they outright dismissed any product that didn’t have an integrated battery that lasted more than an hour. I trim my beard about once a week and it takes me less than 5 minutes. (Sorry for the unrelated rant here, needed to get it off my system)
I know my family is so used to thinking of batteries as ultra cheap and disposable that there was a lot of resistance to using rechargeables purely because of the increased cost.
An hour long battery on beard trimmers is crazy, I agree. I actually have no clue how long the battery in my beard trimmers would last because I use them for five to ten minutes and then plug them up for a week.
I think the Steam controller is great and still use it from time to time. Having track pads on the go is really handy.
I found it too big and clumsy, but I’m glad others liked it!
They should’ve paid an intern to create button layouts for popular games. Way too annoying to program every single button when I can plug in a random console controller and have it all work.
They have default configurations available for many popular games. The problem is, there’s over 100,000 PC games out there. Which is why it’s generally a good idea to look for community-built configurations before making your own.
The Steam controller was definitely interesting. I bought two, one shortly after they released, and another when they were clearing them out. I never could get the hang of using the trackpad in place of an analog stick, though, and eventually bought an Xbox controller to game with on the pc. I still use one of them with my Steam Link when I stream tv shows from my pc to the tv.
I kinda wish I had bought one when they were clearing them out, even if I would’ve hated it. I hope Valve releases another version at some point. I have to imagine they will, given the success of the Deck.
I have tiny trump hands, so ergonomically not the best controller for me
But i still love my steam controller.
I was an early adopter as well… I hated it. I don’t know why but I never got used to it and it has collected dust at the bottom of a box for almost a decade now. Which is sad, because I really wanted to like it.
