Does it look better than a standard gamepad? Definitely. But then, the Steam controller is supposed to be a substitute for our setup of choice, so I don't really see it getting the upper hand in many genres. Then again, these are legacy mode games, so of course mouse-and-keyboard is preferable over thumb-warring them into submission. That's my big concern, really: this all looks nice enough, but each demonstration made my brain scream, 'YEAH, BUT MOUSE AND KEYBOARD WOULD FEEL SO MUCH BETTER.' Sorry about the caps. It'll definitely take some getting used to, but I could see myself piloting my way through the future with one of those if a mouse-and-keyboard setup isn't readily available.

Seems solid, no? It's definitely versatile.

To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Go below to see it power through Portal 2, Civilization V, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and Papers Please. But now, at the very least, we can see - with eyes or echolocation - how it functions moment-to-moment. And with good reason: Valve's haptics-powered Franken-pad is kinda bonkers. We've heard tell of the Steam controller's ins and outs (and ups and downs and lefts and rights and Bs and As and starts) from many a developer, but still skepticism reigns.