Valve’s Steam Frame reservation lottery is the story in the U.S. In Japan, the channel is different. GIGAZINE reported September 15 that official distributor KOMODO STATION opened sales the same morning — first-come, first-served — at ¥199,980 for the 256GB kit and ¥244,980 for 1TB.
That is the local story worth separating from the Western coverage stack. Steam’s direct store still runs a randomized reservation window through Thursday, September 17 at 10:00 a.m. PT, with purchase emails expected September 18 for winners, per Road to VR. KOMODO, Valve’s authorized reseller for Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, skipped the lottery. GIGAZINE says units ordered by 11:59 p.m. on September 17 ship September 24 — and that its own editorial desk already secured a 256GB unit for review.
What Japan is actually buying
GIGAZINE’s rundown matches the global kit: pancake optics, 2160×2160 LCD per eye at 72–144 Hz, a bundled 6 GHz wireless adapter for PC streaming with foveated streaming, capacitive finger tracking on the controllers, replaceable AA batteries (not rechargeable packs), standalone SteamOS play, and flat Steam games on a virtual display. Half-Life: Alyx is included with the purchase.
U.S. MSRP on the same configs is $1,059 / $1,299. Converted roughly at mid-September rates, Japan’s ¥199,980 / ¥244,980 lands in a similar band once local tax and distributor margin are in the sticker — the sharper difference is fulfillment mechanics, not a surprise discount.
Lottery vs. queue
Valve’s Steam Machine-style randomization is designed to blunt scalpers: sign up by the September 17 cutoff, get sorted onto a reservation list or a waitlist, then wait for a purchase email. KOMODO’s first-come shelf is the opposite bet — stock until it is gone, with a published September 24 ship date for early orders. If you are buying in Japan, the relevant clock is the distributor’s cart, not Steam’s lottery timer.
That split will matter for the first wave. Early Western reviews already flag comfort and wireless streaming as strengths and battery life plus unfinished software as the soft spots. Japan’s FCFS channel simply means those first domestic units may land on desks before some lottery winners in Steam territories finish waiting for a buy link.
Primary sources: GIGAZINE (Sept 15), KOMODO STATION Steam Frame, Road to VR pricing and reservation details.