[Leak] Steam Controller 2 render thumbnail leaked in SteamVR drivers

It could just be my screen, but that render is hard AF to decipher. Here's a quick n dirty curves manipulation to get better contrast.

Those trackpads better have damn good palm reject because getting to those thumbsticks without brushing the trackpads will be impossible for many people.
- The steam deck already does in my experience!
- People were saying that about the steam deck before it came out. Maybe some people have had issues, but anecdotally I've literally never heard one complaint about that from someone who actually used the device. The way the joystick is elevated above the pad your palm really shouldn't touch it
- The steam deck does
- Aside from I don't think that will actually be an issue, the thumb sticks are likely to have touch sensitivity on top like the steam deck ones have. So they can just disable the TouchPad anytime the thumb stick is being touched.
  
  Again, though. I don't think it will be an issue with your palms.
Thank you - I couldn't see the buttons between the track pads before. Does anyone have an idea what that might be?
- if its the same as steamdeck, those are the steam and ... (status) overlay buttons.
Awww, poor guy looks sad

Anyone got a non-xitter copy of this news?

- Thank you kind person.
  Looks like they want to bring back the Duke
- Can someone put some blush marks and eye dots on it?
There will probably be gamingonlinux/steamdeckhq articles in the morning, but for now this is the only source.

I love it. Absolutely buying one.

Makes sense that it would match the inputs on the Steam Deck.

I love my Steam Controller. I still use it majority of the time over my playstation, nintendo, and xbox controllers because of the touchpads.

But, I didn't like using the touchpads on the Deck because of the size, shape, and orientation making it a regression for maining the touchpads for the games I play. So not surprised by the leak, since Valve would obviously be better off focusing on making the ergonomics better for joystick users than touchpad users. Still let down because it'll mean for touchpad focused users like me Steam Controller is the only touchpad centric controller on the market with great ergonomics, size with 40mm concave pads, and circular shape for more consistent swipes.

But, it is discontinued and the gyro feels aged compared to the options out there. Will still be using it though from the looks of it for years to come hoping for an eventual dual pad centric controller from some niche group.

It would be cool if they made the next steam controller have two versions which are exactly the same both with two touchpads and with two with joysticks except one has the touchpads in the prime ergonomic spot on top the other with the two joysticks in the prime ergonomic spot.

I imagine a decent amount of people would like the "subpar" placement of their preferred inputs too because there is such a variety of hand shapes and sizes.
- I would be so happy if that happened, but I think Valve has moved away from touchpad centric layouts. I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't touchpad enthusiasts involved
  
  There's little signs here and there with the placement and shape, but also signs that people at Valve don't use stuff like dpad modeshift with an inverted outering bind for 5 click inputs over the default 1 click that long time Steam Controllers love. With the biggest sign coming from not separating soft press and regular click for the touchpads in the new Steam Input.
  
  Leading to having to use stuff like action layers on the Deck because regular click pressure can't be set without soft press to set up the touchpad for 5 click functions. Not ideal with how action layers can sometimes get stuck between layers. https://imgur.com/a/b1wyHEK

Looks good. I just hope they bring back two-stage triggers, as those are missing from the Steam Deck.

What's a two-stage trigger? Analogue until it's all the way down, then a click (like the GameCube)?
- This is correct, linear trigger with a click at the end very useful in desktop mode to have it slow the mouse movement with a trigger pull and then the trigger click for the mouse click.
I got an 8bitdo controller (ultimate 2C or whatever), and it feels really nice. Except the triggers are not two-stage. And it's smaller.

Give us the circle pads back! Just keep making the steam controller actually, with another back paddle, hall effect stick... Damn squares.

Honestly not having a dpad and second thumbstick is a deal breaker for me on the original steam controller, it means that most games with built in controller support don't work well without switching to a custom or community layout. I think having a "normal" controller layout + trackpads/etc is necessary for the controller to succeed.

Additionally, having this layout means it will match the Steam Deck, which should make all control profiles interchangable.
- "Additionally, having this layout means it will match the Steam Deck, which should make all control profiles interchangable."
  
  Additionally an order of magnitude more indie devs who don't have the cash for a steam deck could pick up used/new steam controllers for not too money and that will inveitably lead to an order of magnitude more devs actually trying out their game using steam deck control schemes and I think that will be hard to overstate in impact longterm on gaming... especially because transformative, revolutionary new gaming experiences almost exclusively come from these kinds of developers.
  
  Look at the anemic evolution of VR games, it is because the developers who could innovate and grow the medium with the next big VR hit is sitting in the bedroom of their parents house making a different game because neither them or any of their friends can afford VR goggles.
I was going to say that if you wanted one they're cheap on eBay, but after checking, they're $50+
- Consider yourself lucky you can even find the damn things, where I live they simply don't exist on the used market.
  
  I'm getting ready to eat the bullshit import taxes and buy the SC2 as soon as it drops, I'm so pissed I missed out on v1 😒
Square pads are where it's at until you start playing on a round TV screen. Besides, it's way easier to set up hockey buttons in a square Touch Pad than a round one.

"...it clearly has both 2 thumb sticks and 2 track pads."

Hell yes, I am very bullish on the two thumb sticks and two touchpads being the controller format that will establish the steam deck/handheld gaming pc as the future of gamepads.

It won't necessarily be a quick, all at once change, but that is because it is a strategic longterm play to reframe what a gamepad is, what its limitations are, and what kind of games can be played with a gamepad.

It will be the kind of thing people look back and point to as the beginning of the whole industry shifting into a new paradigm where playing cool indie games with a gamepad is something people associate with pc gaming first, console gaming second.

They just better have a gyro sensor in there too!

This seems like a prototype that they can make using the parts from the current deck.

I'm not sure the two square pads make sense on an actual controller, and I feel like those thumbsticks would be just out of comfortable reach.

I remember seeing the Steam Deck and thinking "the button placement is really weird, none of this looks comfortable". Then when I took it in my hands for the first time, everything made sense.
- It mostly does.
  
  As someone with big hands, I can't use the touchpads comfortably without scooting my grip downwards in a way that makes it precarious and less than comfortable.
  
  I have a similar problem with the Index controllers. My thumb is too long to comfortably rest on any of the controls if I grip the grip where you're supposed to to be able to strap your hand in.
  
  Good economics is supposed to work for everyone, and I've yet to try a valve hardware product that fully pulls it off. Maybe the first controller did, but I haven't tried that one.
It seems to me like the thumbsticks are in the same ergonomic location as on a Playstation controller, and the trackpads are just in the empty space that would otherwise be there. I’m fully into it even if this is what it looks like when complete
- To me it looks like they've shoved the joysticks up where the trackpad is on playstation controllers. If they haven't, that's even worse.
  
  There's nothing below the joysticks on the playstation controller, because that area isn't within comfortable reach for your thumbs.
  
  Sure you can put stuff there, but bending your fingers there isn't fun. That's already true for some users when using the trackpads on the deck.
I'm a big Steam Controller trackpad user, and I already nearly never use my Deck trackpads because they're too low down. This new one just looks like a normal controller with extra bulk, and nonsense in the area no controller except the N64 used because it's not where most people grow fingers. I guess it'll at least have paddles, but they're hardly a unique feature these days. I really just wanted the existing one again, but with more paddles, an option for an integrated battery, USB-C instead of micro B, and an official supply of replacement thumbsticks instead of having to bodge in 8bitdo ones that aren't quite the same shape.
- Oddly, I almost exclusively use the trackpads on my deck. I tend to play mainly mouse-driven games.
- I can understand where you're coming from, but this is realistically a better option for Valve and most consumers right now.
  
  When Valve made the original Steam Controller they were trying to kickstart the Steam Box, which at the time played PC games that were not optimized for controller input on a TV. They needed to have a very outside the box contoller to accomplish this, and so they gave the Steam Controller a try. The touchpad inputs with enough custom mapping really were revolutionary, but only for a small crowd that wanted to play Sim City on their TV.
  
  Nowadays, every game has standard controller input. Trying to get people who are used to the joysticks to switch to virtual trackpads is a non starter, even if it could be technically superior in some circumstances. The compromise is what we have now, a full controller layout with touchpads as extras, to maintain that backward compatibility with old PC games. I think it's the right decision, and this is personally the controller I've been waiting for.
  
  I'd love to see Steam re-make the old Steam Controller to give old fans a replacement, and I hope they do someday, but they have to pick their battles as they certainly wouldn't sell in any volume. In a previous quest for a perfect controller I came across an open source 3D printed one called the Alpakka. Maybe DIY or a startup indie company will pick up the torch where Valve left off to give a true replacement? I hope so because the right controller for the right job is a wonderful thing.
Looks about the same layout as the steam deck, and it's great on there. Dunno about the pads not being squared up, though. Dunno that I would like that, even if it would make the pads easier to reach, I still might rather have them squared up.
- Or since they are right next to each other, it could be just one big touch surface.
  
  The deck isn't great, it works for some people, and is still really good for the rest, but the touch pads are pretty awkward for a lot of us. If the new valve controllers ergonomics are equivalent to the deck, it won't be worth ditching the DS5 for me.

Fantastic. I love my steam controller, I'll buy the next one in a heartbeat

They need to market it properly. The average gamer didn't know how to use the SC to its fullest potential. I would recommend free software that showcases the controllers abilities that can be used with competitor controllers for comparisons. Software with simple games that teaches the user how to make use of all the functions would be a great boon to their sales. It would also help reviews spread the word.

Honestly, the biggest issue with the original was that it's non-traditional layout meant that games with built in controller support didn't necessarily work well on it. This layout will make it full featured as a "normal controller", while offering additional input options when the game benefits from it.
- As an avid and current Steam Controller user, top-down twin stick shooters are still awkward. Having a second stick while still having both pads will be a monumental improvement.
Iant that what Aperture Desk Job did?
- It did, and I think it did so very well

I've pretty much been asking for a steam deck without a screen, so if this leak is accurate than I for one am fucking STOKED

I have big hands, and just looking at this picture makes me think even I'm going to have trouble using the control sticks normally. They're literally the closest thing to the center of the controller.

That being said, it's just my first impression of it, and this looks like it might just be a prototype, so I'll wait and see.

There were similar concerns when the steam deck was first revealed, and it works fine. So I'm not too worried.

I fricking love it, I am really stoked for this.

The thumb sticks seem high. Not sure it'd be fun to use

They look like they're in about the same position or lower than the sticks in the steam deck.
I'm guessing it's a little lower since there's no screen in the middle so your hands are angled together a little more.
- Idk, it just looks weird, maybe since its a render, but unless this controller is very small it does not look comfy. The steamdeck controls seems fine, due to how you're forced to grip it, although I've never tried it.

This thing looks almost as big as The Duke.

Down voted for the Twitter sauce. We can do better, people.

He's a well known steam data miner, it's not just a random Twitter user claiming to have a leak.
- Screenshot it and link to twitter in the post body, so no one has to visit the cancer-site.

I fear that, just like the Steam Deck's controller, it won't be usable without Steam running. IMO by default and without any special "driver" running in the background, the sticks and buttons should just behave like a Xbox controller.

The original Steam controller worked without Steam running, even including some of the extra features like mouse and scrolling functions for the trackpads if you wanted it to. So here's hoping
The Steam Deck's controller is usable without Steam running, except for that long, looong pause when Steam has taken over the controller but isn't doing anything about it yet.

I wish that Steam would not put the mouse buttons on the triggers, just leave them on the trackpad-click. And put "high res trackpad scrolling" on the left pad. But you can't have everything.
- As you wrote yourself, the controller acts as a mouse, not as a regular Xbox controller.

WOOOOOOOO

Non concave? Square trackpads? Clear preference to analog sticks? This seems like a worse Xbox controller on the surface. Unless the ergonomics are somehow amazing I would be hesitant to buy it (and I own an original steam controller).

what 650g shape are you holding for an hour that doesn't cause wrist pain?

SadleyItsBradley is the bane of every developer trying to keep a secret.

I approve.

@Fubarberry Sadly caving to the need to have so many different inputs much like the Steam Deck, it looks much less elegant and striking than the original Steam Controller. Like it's trying to be several different things in one package instead of the bold new single direction of the original SC.

Yeah, I find the controller disappointing as a Steam Controller user because I want a new touchpad centric controller for updated gyro with the old one not feeling smooth for high refresh rate displays.

The approach they went with is one that satisfies joystick users who aren't really lacking for options when it comes to joystick controllers, but disappointing for the few half dozen users who main the touchpads and have only the option of the discontinued Steam Controller. The Deck pads were a let down for me with the ergonomics, placement, size, and shape so they didn't end up being a good touchpad successor for my use case opting for the joysticks when I use the Deck.

I'm not surprised with the more mainstream direction they went. Just disappointed but I expected to be disappointed.
- I'm pretty surprised nobody seems to like the Deck's touchpads. Yes they're a bit of a compromise, but I have been playing hundreds of hours using the right trackpad for camera control on my Deck and they're pretty great. Maybe my hands are weird.

Looks like I'll be spending $200 for 4 controllers

^Original ^SC ^price: ^$50

I have the original Steam controller still in a box. I didn’t like it at the time, but others seem to love it. I’m wondering if I should dig it out and give it another try, or did another iteration come out that improved on it?

I use the Steam Controller for games like Doom Eternal, Left 4 Dead 2, Spin Rhythm XD, The Finals, etc.

Using steam input is a requirement to get the most out of it.

This is my basic approach for most games.

Mapping mouse to touchpad and adjusting sensitivity to 180

Mapping mouse (beta) to gyro and adjusting sensitivity until 90 degree turn of the controller turns in game camera 675 degrees for first person/450 for third person

Setting up a dpad modeshift on right touchpad click and inverting outer ring so I can set the touchoutput 5 different actions depending on if I click up, down, left, right, center as opposed to only a solitary single click action. If I need more I set up a chord so holding left grip shifts the same actions into another set of 5 inputs. I got for Dead Zone: 181919 and Outer Ring Binding Radius: 16750 when it comes to values in the new Steam Input.

Setting movement to left pad and and setting an outer ring sprint bind on it and mapping crouch/slide/dash actions on click

I saved the template for gamepad bindings for games that support mixed input and full mouse and keyboard for ones I don't. So I don't have to go through the whole thing all the time. I just apply my template and then just switch the bindings around and adjust the sensitivity.

If you want to try out a config I have one uploaded for the Finals called "dualpad with gyro update..." Some changes you'll want to make to the settings is Mouse sensitivity to 20, mouse focal length sensitivity 106, swap ping and emote in game, change sprint and crouch to hold, and obviously turn off aim assist. Holding the right start buttons switches into an action set I use when playing light where left grip is crouch as opposed to a chord modifier like in the default and left pad click is for dashing and grappling. Default action set clicking the left pad is crouch/slide and left grip changing the right pad clicks to gadget switching.
- Wow, this is great! Thanks! I’m actually excited to pair it up with my Steam Deck for the first time.
They're apparently worth a fair bit now if you're looking to just get rid of it

I hope not. To get to the sticks you'd need giant hands.

God dammit, why will nobody bring back 6 button pads? I'm so sick and tired of having to buy a separate controller just for fighting games. This controller would be absolutely perfect if it just had two more buttons...

Not the same thing, but the steam input allows you to make virtual buttons and assign them to the area of a touchpad.
- Well that's better than nothing so I'll take it.
  
  I'm just glad that Valve is bringing back the Steam controller. So sick and tired of boring, uninnovative Xbox and Playstation controllers. I like the idea of toggle switches under the controller that aren't just remaps of existing buttons, and actually usable touchpads. I hope the left stick and D-pad are hot-swappable in the final version, but beggars can't be choosers.
Doesn't everybody play fighting games on "a piece of plywood with a bunch of arcade buttons jammed into it"?

Oh, and the backside buttons on the deck are pretty convenient. You might end up liking them more than having "more face buttons than your thumb can reach".