Update: Valve says Steam Deck pre-orders "on track" for February — but there's a catch.
If you were looking forward to getting your Steam Deck this year, we have some disappointing news. Valve just announced that its portable gaming PC will be delayed by an entire two months.
Valve delivered the news today to pre-order customers via email. The reason for the delay should come as no surprise to anyone who has tried to snag a current-gen console or PC graphics card: The ongoing global chip shortage. Valve said it did its best to work around the global supply chain issues. However, due to material shortages, components won't able to reach Valve's manufacturing facilities in time to meet the original launch dates.
- Steam Deck could be the PS Vita 2 Sony will never give us
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Valve’s updated build estimates have the Steam Deck shipping no earlier than February 2022. This is now the new start date of the reservation queue. Pre-order customers will keep their place in line, but their respective ship dates will shift back accordingly. Valve says reservation date estimates will be updated shortly after today. The company plan to keep customers updated about the new ship dates.
I was among the first to pre-order the Valve Steam Deck. The ability to play many of my favorite Steam games on a handheld powerhouse is a huge draw, and the fact that each Deck is a portable PC means there's a lot of room for customizing it to my liking. The fact you will also be able to play Xbox games via xCloud (as stated by Xbox head, Phil Spencer) is another reason why I’m excited for Steam Deck.
Waiting another two months to get our hands on Valve's portable gaming PC hurts, but there is somewhat of a silver lining here. With the holidays fast approaching, Steam will offer many games at a discount over the coming weeks. This makes it the perfect time to stock up on titles you can play on Steam Deck whenever it eventually comes out. That may be small comfort, but it’s certainly more productive than being upset over the news.
We’ll keep you updated on Steam Deck release news as it arrives. In the meantime, Valve has dropped a load of new information about the Steam Deck that's well worth checking out. And Valve has reconfirmed that February of 2022 is when gamers should see Steam Decks Arrive. It also believes that stock should be good throughout next year.
