Valve's Steam Deck Will Not Ship In December After All Because 2021 Stinks
The highly anticipated handheld gaming PC from Valve was expected to start shipping in December of this year, in time for Christmas, to those hopped on the reservation system right off the bat. But 2021 isn't finished playing the role of the Grinch—a shortage of components (what else?) has forced Valve to delay Steam Deck shipments until next year.
"We are sorry we won't be able to make the original launch date—we did our best to work around the global supply chain issues, but material shortages have disrupted our shipping plans. We will continue working to improve reservation dates based on the new timeline," Valve said in a statement.
Valve decided to enter into the extremely profitable world of handheld gaming devices when it announced its very own handheld gaming PC, the Steam Deck. Since its announcement and initial pre-orders, Valve has given teasers as to what owners might expect once they receive it. There have been hints by a Valve exec that it may power VR headsets. Microsoft has also teased that it may allow for xCloud gaming on the device, and leaked performance benchmarks have shown to be promising. The one thing that is certain is that the hype has been real, and anticipation sky high.
Unfortunately, those who were lucky enough to attain a reservation for a first-batch Steam Deck got some disappointing news today concerning when they will finally get to lay hands on one. Valve said it was having to push back the shipping date until February of 2022, amounting to a two-month delay. It stated that it had done its best to overcome material shortages and delays at manufacturing sites, but had not been able to do enough to make the December date.
If you are currently in a reservation queue, Valve will hold your place in line, but the dates will shift accordingly. Valve said that it will update those dates shortly following its announcement. So you may want to keep an eye on your expected order availability on the Steam Deck page, and make sure you are logged into your account when doing so. You can also view more information concerning reservations as they pertain to the Steam Deck by going down to the FAQ section.
So, if you were hoping to give little Jimmy a Steam Deck for Christmas, he is just going to have to wait. Hopefully Valve has done its due diligence this time around with estimating a shipping date, but as we have all learned this past year or so nothing is certain in the world of tech and availability.
