[Resolved] Controller detected in Steam but not in game

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Phantasy 11 Sep, 2021 @ 4:52pm

[Update]
The problem is a bit dumb. The company laptop I used blocked the driver installation update from Steam.
Finally I tried on my old personal mac laptop. After installing the driver, the controller could work with "Steam Input" enabled.

It seems that only some games can work with "Disable Steam Input" although the controller itself could be well detected in steam client / online controller testing website.

Would love to know if there are ways to play more games with controller under "Disable Steam Input".
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My controller can be detected in Steam and works fine in Big Picture mode but couldn't be detected in some games marked with support of controller. It works in some other games though.

My setup:
Controller: Xbox Elite Wireless Controller 2
OS: Mac OS Big Sur 11.5.2
Game that didn't work: Shovel Knight, Metaverse Keeper
Game that worked: Hades, Broforce
All four games are marked with full support of contoller.

Some trial and error

1. Controller can be detected and works in Steam client
2. All controller buttons can be detected correctly in https://gamepad-tester.com/
3. In game Hades, the controller can be used after I chose "Disable Steam Input"
4. In game Broforce, the controller can be used after I chose "Disable Steam Input"
5. In game Shovel Knight, the controller can be detected whether I disable or enable Steam input.

Would really appreciate any help!

Last edited by Phantasy; 16 Sep, 2021 @ 10:06pm

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Showing 1-7 of 7 comments

_I_ 11 Sep, 2021 @ 7:46pm

steam -> library -> select game -> properties
make sure controller input mapping is enabled
controller tab -> check its mappings

Phantasy 11 Sep, 2021 @ 9:41pm

Originally posted by _I_:
steam -> library -> select game -> properties
make sure controller input mapping is enabled
controller tab -> check its mappings

Thank you for your reply!
I checked the configuration and it looked correct to me and I didn't know what went wrong. Could you explain a bit more what mapping I need to check?

Using game Shovel Knight as an example. Below are my settings.

In Steam Controller Settings
Both "Xbox Controller Support" and "Generic Gamepad Configuration Support" were checked

There are two items under "Steam Input" for this Game in Big Picture mode.
In Controller Options for this game, "Global Setting (XBox/Generic)" was selected.
In Controller Configuration, I am using the default "Official Shovel Knight Gamepad" config recommended by Steam.

A few mappings I saw in Controller Configuration:
JOYSTICK MOVE -> LS CLICK
Y on controller -> Y BUTTON
X on controller -> X BUTTON
B on controller -> B BUTTION
A on controller -> A BUTTON

When I launched the game, it did show I am loading the controller config. In the game however, even the "Edit Controller" is grey. And there isn't any response from controller.

Are you suggesting that I should map the controller button to keyboard key instead? The game was marked with full support of controller though. I was quite confused so asking here for help.
Thank you!

_I_ 11 Sep, 2021 @ 11:44pm

then change steam controller mapping to none, it should pass controller directly to the game

Phantasy 12 Sep, 2021 @ 9:56am

Originally posted by _I_:
then change steam controller mapping to none, it should pass controller directly to the game

Thank you for your help! By "change controller mapping to none", do you mean choosing "Disable Steam Input" in Controller Options for the game?

I tried that as well. This worked for some games (e.g Hades, Broforce) but didn't work for some other games (e.g Shovel Knight). All these games are marked with full support of Controller. This was really unexpected and confused me.

Phantasy 17 Sep, 2021 @ 8:27am

Resolved.
The problem is a bit dumb. The company laptop I used blocked the driver installation update from Steam.

Finally I tried on my old personal mac laptop. After installing the driver, the controller could work with "Steam Input" enabled.

Thanks for all the help from _I_