Quick vent, just need to get off my chest!
Got the email earlier in the week to get my reserved Steam Controller, placed the order and watched the tracking. Of course it got delivered just as I left my apartment to visit family. I tried repeatedly to set the UPS shipping for pickup, but the option wasn’t available. Asked a friend to swing by, they couldn’t make it on Friday but went yesterday…
Of course there is no package, someone clearly nabbed it and now I’m $100 down. Can’t refuse the charge because it’s tied to my Steam account and UPS will tell me to check with my neighbors and open a case with them!
Feels like Valve created this scarcity with the stupid ordering process, if it’s anything like my Steam Deck, the packaging wasn’t discrete and they wouldn’t allow me to adjust the shipping.
Feels like I have no options and just need to accept that I’ve lost the money.
Rant over
No, Valve did not create this on purpose. The ordering process is done to fight scalpers. In fact the first batch of Steam Controller did not have any special ordering process and that’s when scalpers and bots purchased all controllers in short amount of time. That is why Valve made it more complicated and limited to order. Yes your situation is frustrating. But you can’t fault Valve for you not being able to pick the controller up or how UPS handles the situation of what is possibly be a theft. Don’t blame Valve for this.
I was referring to the first batch… when an abundance of scalpers forced me to press the order button for 45 minutes and then told me it’s sold out.
Valve simply underestimated the demand for the controller, and that scalpers would buy it for that price. I don’t think they did that with the purpose to scarcity. Why would Valve do that, what is the reason in your opinion? And why would even Valve give free games by choice (even expensive games) for anyone who did not get the controller?
To be fair, it was really stupid of Valve not to anticipate a massive interest from both customers and scalpers. The internet collectively went crazy like a hamster on coke when the hardware announcement dropped. They should’ve had the reservation system and per-account ordering limit in place from the first moment. Not that it would’ve prevented the unmitigated clusterfuck of logistics companies.
I agree with you and do not dispute this claim. It was wrong from Valve to not do the pre-order dance and special ordering process they already did before. All I am saying is, that Valve did not create this with the intention of scarcity. Instead getting mad at Valve, one should be mad at scalpers and UPS.
¿Por qué no los dos?
Your comment admits that Valve fucked up the first wave, then circle back and say people shouldn’t be mad at Valve. You can be mad at more than one thing.
You seem to not realize that Valve didn’t “fuck up” (or created scarcity). It is the scalpers and only scalpers to blame.
Edit: As an analogy (don’t take it literal, its just an analogy) would you blame a shop owner for getting robbed, because he did not stop the robbery and now you can’t buy your milk? It is not the shop owners fault that you can’t get your milk now.
This you?
Make up your mind. You said you agreed with the commenter above, said Valve was in the wrong, and then when I suggest it’s okay to be mad at multiple parties, you switched your tune about Valve being in the wrong.
To counter your analogy, it would be a like a shop owner had been robbed before and knows the method by which they have been robbed. They also have, in the past, successfully combated the robbers. Then, the shop owner announced a highly sought after new product and… took no precautions against the robbers. In fact, this is less of an analogy and just… what Valve did.
You can be mad at the robbers and also be pretty annoyed with the shopkeeper for not doing the thing they had done in the past to successfully counteract robbers.
Edited to add, I also kinda hate that analogy because in your analogy you’re painting Valve as a victim (having been robbed). Valve isn’t a victim here; they made bank.
Wrong, Valve is a victim here. That’s the point. One should not be mad at a victim.
Channel your hate towards who are the actual problem and causing this.