It shouldn’t come as a shock to hear that Valve is taking longer than you might have hoped to develop a sequel. Rumor has it that the company is making a Steam Controller 2, but there has been no official announcement just yet. So, in the meantime, dedicated modder, electrical engineer, and YouTuber TommyB has created their own version, tentatively calling it the Steam Deck Controller, and you’ll soon see why.

The original Steam Controller was released back in November 2015. In fact, there is still an entry for it on the Steam store, though it was officially discontinued in 2019. Its dual trackpads didn’t catch on compared to the more conventional dual thumbstick design of pretty much all modern gamepads. The use of trackpads, however, did make it to the Steam Deck – Valve’s incredibly successful PC handheld released in 2022.

Steam Controller 2 with custom trackpads

TommyB has created a working prototype of the Steam Deck Controller (or Steam Controller 2, whichever you prefer) using off-the-shelf parts to make it “look and feel as close to an actual Steam Deck as possible,” minus the screen in the middle. It essentially looks like the Steam Deck equivalent of Nintendo’s Switch Joy-Cons when you pull them off the handheld and attach them to a charging grip, reworking them into a traditional, larger controller. And just like Joy-Cons, TommyB’s custom controller also splits in half.

The tech YouTuber says that it was “a lot of work to put together,” so we recommend giving the video above a watch (and a like and subscribe, and all that business). There’s plenty covered from the development of the trackpads, assembly, and firmware. If you’re less interested in the specifics of actually building it, then TommyB also shows off setting it up in Steam Input and testing it with some games towards the end of the video.

Covering a few genres, including games such as Apex Legends, Elden Ring, and Schedule 1, the DIY pad definitely looks to be a good demonstration of what the official Steam Controller 2 could be. Previously leaked renders of a prototype showcase something similar to the Steam Deck-esque trackpads. And since this custom-made device is modular, TommyB tested a couple of configurations to alter the ergonomics of the controller to your liking.

Source: TommyB

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About the Author

Jack Goodall

At PC Guide, Jack is mostly responsible for reporting on hardware deals. He also specializes in monitors, TVs, and headsets and can be found putting his findings together in a review or best-of guide.