One of Valve's most important platforms is Linux, which doesn't have native support afaik.

On Microsoft's documentation

What platforms does GameInput support?

GameInput is available on:

Xbox (V.1+ beginning with the 2510 GDK)

Windows 10 (version 19H1/May 2019 update and later)

Windows 11

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IIlIIlIIlIlIIlIIlIIl@reddit

One of Valve's most important platforms is Linux

still sucks that this means you cant use it on gamepass

https://github.com/Alia5/GlosSI
https://github.com/Alia5/SISR

These tools allow it to be used with Game Pass and any other application that Steam cannot hook into.

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

Has this been tested with the new controller? Because if this works for sure I'll definitely get one.

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MagicalYuna@reddit

No idea if anyone has tested but there's no reason it wouldn't work, Steam Input handles all the device specific communications and translates the data into an emulated XInput device for the application which uses a device agonistic API to interact with it. So any controller Steam Input supports will work with those tools, in fact the developer themselves has already stated on the SISR issues tracker.

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madn3ss795@reddit

Mkb feature can be completely software side. Steam itself supports adding mkb to any XInput controllers, or you can use aftermarket software like Controller Companion for it.

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ramanmono@reddit

This is not good argument. If I buy a 100 dollar controller why not let me use it anywhere. Have an option to disable the extra features so it can be connected as a normal controller on other platforms like an iPad for example.

I now have to buy a 100 dollar controller because yes I do use steam and like the pads and gyro, but have to buy separate controller for platforms that don't support it.

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Vb_33@reddit

You can use with game pass but you have to use workarounds

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MagicalYuna@reddit

As far as we understand, the Steam Input schema is required for it to function as both a mouse + keyboard and a controller.

Ultimately, we did criticize that factor but it appears to be a necessary facet of design, as far as we can tell.

This requirement is due to them choosing to implement the KBM functionality entirely within the host rather than directly on the controller. If they so wanted they could have done it within the hardware by making the controller act as a hub reporting to the OS as a XInput controller, keyboard and mouse device giving native system wide input for all three without the need for Steam running though it would still need specialised software to reconfigure the controller mappings. The problem with this it would have made the controller firmware significantly more complex & expensive to develop and possibly have increased its RRP, it was easier and cheaper to just do it through the already existing Steam Input that already supported it especially considering the vast majority of users will be playing through Steam anyway and it can still work for non-Steam applications if needed whether directly adding & launching them through Steam as a non-Steam game or using software such as GlosSI or SISR to act as a system wide controller for incompatible applications Steam can't hook into.

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Strazdas1@reddit

Why would you want to do that, though?

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Any other bluetooth controller works on mobile devices, so no not an edge case. This is steam feeling like they the good guy monopoly so they can do this crap.

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It's becoming like Apple, and look at how how money they make and how their Hardware is glazed on this sub.

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IORelay@reddit

Yeah, this is practically like ecosystem lock like what Apple attempts to do, and that is heavily criticized.

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f3n2x@reddit

What are you talking about? Both MS and Sony have done shit all to fully support their controllers on anything other than their own platforms and in some cases not even that (e.g. you can't even turn down the light of a series controller in Windows AFAIK) and most if not all other 3rd party controllers just pretend to be xbox controllers running on MS software with no real additional or alternative features.

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lavenderechoes@reddit

Both MS and Sony have done shit all to fully support their controllers on anything other than their own platforms

Sony literally published and maintains Linux drivers for the Dualsense lmao

Considering Valve is "big on Linux" it'd be cool if they did that. Or extended SDL to at least support basic inputs for their controller, like they already do for a bunch of other controllers.

As it stands, I don't really get why this controller can't work as a basic gamepad when Steam isn't running.

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boringestnickname@reddit

It took aaaages before Sony controllers played nice with PC.

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ThatOnePerson@reddit

Sony don't actually do much more for the Dualsense. Like their drivers for that don't support the Edge's extra buttons.

Valve funds SDL. The main developer, slouken, has worked at Valve for years. And they've actually already added open source support for SDL for the Steam Controller: https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL/commit/1998b650452bdf0bee5209e20e4715b4295abe8c

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-WingsForLife-@reddit

The Dualsense still gets crippled once you use it wirelessly too, especially if you enjoy the really great rumble.

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NapsterKnowHow@reddit

And there's apps for both Dualsense/Dualsense Edge and the Xbox controllers to update the firmware and change button mapping

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sh1boleth@reddit

Gonna watch the video later but the controller doesn’t support XInput? In 2026?

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dovahshy15@reddit

but the controller doesn’t support XInput?

watnuts@reddit

You're forgetting the flak from the dogshit redesign in 2019 (or 2020?).
All the bitching about small mode removal; ridicule about game "cards" and religious defense of "it's the dev's job!", etc.

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SchighSchagh@reddit

5 years? Bro, all us millennial grew up with Steam since the early counter strike days. They've not perfect, but they generally move the gaming industry in a Pro-gamer direction. They've had big W's the past 5 years with the Deck and all the awesome Linux/Proton stuff, but they were doing great things long before that too.

As for they controller being tied to their platform. OK? What do you want to use it on, a Nintendo? Fact is anyone who's interested in the SC2 already has steam games they want to play. And any gamer who doesn't have steam games already has quality first party controllers for their console of choice. So who exactly is harmed by requiring Steam to be running with the SC?

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

No true millennial would mention growing up with Steam in a positive light. The introduction of Steam was literally one of the worst things back in the day. I took years for it to be seen as anything positive when they introduced their sales as before it was literally a major annoyance.

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42LSx@reddit

As someone who was there when Steam was announced, no, already by the release of CS:S it was seen as a positive.
Sure, at the very beginning it wasn't good, but that was more because of the server issues rather than a principled stance against it.

It offered so much usability (never again did you have to download 4 seperate patches and install one after the other) and completely replaced things like XFire.

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KoolAidMan00@reddit

Buddy I have a four digit Steam account created on September 12th 2003, the day it launched when it was just an optional launcher for CS 1.6 and over a year before HL2 came out.

People HATED the Steam requirement for HL2 for years. People would buy a boxed copy from the store and be furious when it just had the Steam installer and license key. The actual release of HL2 was a mess, authentication and launch issues for weeks.

More to my post, Steam was in horrible shape for most of the 2010s, stagnant in features while getting flooded with software. The last five years represent massive leaps in library management and store discovery, not to mention the UI improvements and integrations with their own hardware starting with the Steam Deck in 2022.

As for the controller being tied to their platform. OK? What do you want to use it on, a Nintendo?

Its funny you mention that given that the Switch pro controller has much wider hardware compatibility than the Steam Controller. I travel for work and if I pack a controller it will be a single one that works with a variety of hardware. The DualSense works with pretty much everything and I can pair it with four devices. The Steam Controller doesn't even work with a MiSTeR FPGA, something that literally all of my other controllers work on. Its nuts.

If I get a SC it will just be for my HTPC, a shame because having the same broad compatibility as my other gamepads would put it over the top.

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Strazdas1@reddit

Valve wasnt the one monetizing skyrim mods. It was Bethesda that did this.

Lat time valve got seriuos backlash was when CS:GO skin gambling scandal happened.

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

Considering that Gabe did an AMA fighting any criticism against that tooth and nail I very much doubt the idea wasn't brought up by Valve first.

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Strazdas1@reddit

If it was brought up by Valve, why is Bethesda the only publisher to ever try to implement it and why did Bethesda implement it on non-steam platforms too?

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KoolAidMan00@reddit

Part of fighting it tooth and nail included Gabe pushing back on accusations that a paltry 25% commission to mod creators was exploitative.

KoolAidMan00@reddit

This was at the height of Valve's innovations with MTX, loot box gambling, Steam Marketplace transactions, etc. By 2013 I already assumed that their next step would be monetizing mods.

I thought they were going to do with mods in Dota 2, just like they rolled out new forms of monetization and distribution in their prior games (HL2, TF2, CSGO, etc). It made since given how huge mods were in Warcraft 3. Valve would love to have a tollbooth in front of something like that. Instead they salted the earth for that idea by launching it with Skyrim.

It is possible that Bethesda approached them with the idea but I am positive that Valve was going to attempt with some game no matter what.

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Sictirmaxim@reddit

Steam greenlight was also a huge blemish, they would let every single asset flip and scam on their storefront. It made the whole app a shovelware heaven.

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BrushPsychological74@reddit

fleet of mega-yachts is not their friend.

That's real funny how he keeps doing real friendly stuff and often times has to do nothing and be the best option by a country mile.

I'm so tired of this stupid conflation where just because someone is successful and rich, they must be your nemesis or at the very least they cannot be our friend. This is clearly poisoning the well fallacy with some genetic fallacy built in.

Being rich and being our friend are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE.

Just because valve isn't perfect doesn't mean that they've not been incredibly friendly to us consumers.

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max123246@reddit

No they really haven't. You've been Stockholm syndromed because the alternatives have been even worse

They invented loot boxes in AAA games

They tried to make paid mods a thing on steam for Skyrim. Gaben defended a 30% cut for modders. 70% would go to Bethesda and Steam.

They had an anti consumer arbitrage clause. And then when a legal company set up the arbitrage for a case, Steam last second changed their arbitrage clause and told the legal company that now their arbitrage is invalid according to their TOS.

I can keep going. It's actually insane that you think Valve is your friend, I'm sorry. You're deep in the Stockholm syndrome.

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42LSx@reddit

So only a single criticism is still valid (loot boxes).

And you said yourself, every alternative is much, much worse.

So yeah, why not say that Valve is friendlier to customers than literally every other big publisher? It's just true..

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BrushPsychological74@reddit

Obvious mental filter fallacy. Also, I never said they are my friend. I said they're friendly. That's an important distinction. None of that matters because you're doubling down on your fallacy.

Also, the clear and obvious argument is that there is no perfect friend. And only focusing on the negative of your friends is obviously fallacious. So let's stop making the word friend synonymous with perfect because it's not and acting like it's not. It's clearly distorting and taking away from the obvious good that they do.

But let's just cut the fallacy completely and stop with your nonsense garbage about Stockholm syndrome.

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max123246@reddit

Being rich, being successful, and being our friend, are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE.

Yes, you did call them your friend.

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BrushPsychological74@reddit

No. That's clearly and obviously a refutation of your fallacy and the words 'they are my friend' are not anywhere in my post.

Things you disagree with are not inherently anti-consumer, and again, only focusing on the negative is an obvious fallacy which you seem to triple down on.

Instead of attempting to gatekeep the friends of others, how about you reflect on your own fallacious nonsense.

You're more than welcome to say that they're not your friend, but you're not welcome to gatekeep mine.

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DotRakianSteel@reddit

I do get that we share the same point. They know, they had the choice, and yeah, here we are in the matrix, reading the manual, knowing Mr. Smith wanted it that way.

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aj_thenoob2@reddit

Right because it's not like you can operate steam Big picture with any sort of controller or VR headset. It's over

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MagicalYuna@reddit

Which Steam Input supports, it hooks into the game process intercepting the XInput library and translates the data from the controllers it supports into XInput regardless of whether the controller natively supports it or not. This does require Steam to be running and the game (or rather application, doesn't have to be a game) being launched through Steam, and isn't only restricted to Steam applications but works with many non-Steam applications too that have been added to & launched properly from Steam save. Unfortunately there are some non-Steam applications that Steam can't hook in to though, for such incompatible applications however tools such as GlosSI/SISR exists that essentially allow Steam Input controllers to act globally on the system to work with them.

So it does support XInput games perfectly well, you just need to run them through Steam which I personally don't think is a real issue as this is designed as a PC controller and honestly what PC gamer doesn't use or even have Steam at all?

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Because it's designed by Valve specifically for their Steam ecosystem to take advantage of. Support outside of Steam and especially on consoles would add more complexity to the controller and potential licensing fees (for consoles) which increases the costs for them and would likely be passed onto consumers, and all for something that is honestly counter intuitive to their business model of having people in their ecosystem since as much as Valve seems like the good guys at times they're still a business in it to make money.

Like it or hate it that's the brutal truth of why they can't, or rather won't, do the same.

And for the record as someone who has long used the original Steam Controller I wouldd love it if they had added a native XInput mode when used without Steam or at the very least gamepad support within the desktop layout, would negate some of the need to add applications to Steam or use GlosSI/SISR unless you want a custom layout for it.

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DotRakianSteel@reddit

Yes, backward compatibility is not a feature to take lightly when we are talking about millions of end users and almost four decades of games available to play. I mean, even my 15-bucks GAMORY gamepad from years ago supports it.

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Verite_Rendition@reddit

Probably because neither Xinput nor DirectInput supports some of the features of the Steam controller, like gyro or the touchpads (or using it like a keyboard and mouse).

I can't watch the video at the moment, but is there any mention of GameInput support?

XInput and DirectInput are both legacy APIs at this point. GameInput is Microsoft's contemporary controller API, and it does support mouse/keyboard inputs as well as haptics. Which is to say that it should support all of the features of the Steam Controller.

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Ebih@reddit

"I think we'd rather just make it as easy as possible to get it added to Steam so you can, you know, benefit from that functionality without needing any sort of kernel driver that would potentially, down the line, cause system instability or things like that," said Valve programmer Pierre-Loup Griffais. "Like, we're really happy with not having a kernel driver, because it comes with the onus of not messing it up, right? And so right now, the current method of supporting the controller is pretty safe."

Valve Steam Controller review: Every input to PC game from the sofa

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

That just sounds like an Apple level excuse imo.

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Of course, but it would be great to be able to use it as a regular controller for games you don't want to or simply can't launch through Steam. It's not like you can't make good use out of the controller without the trackpads.

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NapsterKnowHow@reddit

DInput will be the closest for matching the support. The Xinput feature-set is ancient at this point.

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MairusuPawa@reddit

Xinput is shit so no wonder

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100% unique

name another controller combining two trackpads as Inputs.

The controller needs a basic mode

It has. the basic Mode is a mouse.

That shit should have been a mode on the controller.

Why? Do you think anybody buying a STEAM controller does not have STEAM running?

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ramanmono@reddit

That doesn't make it 100% unique. It has a d-pad, it has 2 analog sticks, it has 4 buttons on the right. 2 buttons and 2 triggers at the front that is a basic gamepad. On top of that is has some other stuff. That doesn't make it 100% unique.

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absolute-degen1337@reddit

but that does work? it works as a mouse without steam.

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NapsterKnowHow@reddit

Yes it works just fine

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absolute-degen1337@reddit

no, I meant that it works on the New one just the same

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RabidHexley@reddit

This is a 100% unique device, so there's no standard to build on.

Numerous controllers have featuresets that go beyond xinput while still supporting it. Face buttons, two sticks, a d-pad, four shoulder buttons, it's a regular controller.

The Steam Controller isn't alien tech, like basically all modern controllers it can be described as essentially an xbox controller with extra stuff.

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absolute-degen1337@reddit

lmao

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

What exactly is unique? The Dualsense has all the features of this, from trackpad to gyro. In fact the Dualsense has more features with its adaptive triggers.

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absolute-degen1337@reddit

lmao

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Poufee1233@reddit

Yeah but this device has a lot of weird things that would require proprietary software to run, Windows doesn't really talk well with multiple trackpads and gyro stuff unfortunately.

Plus I wouldn't be surprised if that was a little overselling on the requirement since the Steam Deck is sort of like that. In desktop mode, everything is like a base config and you can only use the trackpads as trackpads, I would imagine it is similar for this device, but honestly I'd never see me using this w/o Steam config anyways just makes no sense really.

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smackjack@reddit

Just another example of Valve getting away with things that other companies would never get away with.

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iwasnotsospecial@reddit

To be fair this happens when you have a lot of goodwill with consumers.

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doscomputer@reddit

Im pretty sure its all internet advertising because valve started with a bad reputation, and there are a lot of people upset with them

ask anyone who actually bought an index about what they think of the controllers which cost $300 to replace

its a thing online, anyone who talks bad about valve gets downvoted and hidden. they definitely use the same marketing agency as nvidia and apple.

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42LSx@reddit

its a thing online, anyone who talks bad about valve gets downvoted and hidden.

That's just complete conspiracy bullshit lmao, just look at this thread or your post!

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rayquan36@reddit

they definitely use the same marketing agency as nvidia and apple.

NapsterKnowHow@reddit

most advanced controller in existance

LOL good one

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iConiCdays@reddit

You're sadly misinformed on the matter. Yes, technically speaking there could be a hypothetical switch to go between X input and D input.

The problem is those input methods don't support all the features of the Steam Controller and the device can't report to an OS as more than one unique input. So you can't have it across one USB port report as a Keyboard and mouse as well as an Xbox Controller. This is mainly a windows issue but it does appear on MacOs and Linux too.

The solution is a software wrapper that lets the device output as whatever it needs to. Their solution is to use Steam. Other controller manufactuers do a similar thing too, such as 8Bitdo.

If you or anyone else wants a standard Xbox style controller... Why are you even considering wasting your money on this? It's such a weird hill to die in... If you want the features of this controller (Trackpads, Gyro ect...) on PC they currently only really work through Steam. Other than a 3rd Party Gyro app I've heard of, there's no other software to map and control trackpads like these - plus they're not just laptop style trackpads, they simulate motion and inertia, so you can flick them like a track ball.

If you want these features... You'd have to use Steam ANYWAY. If you don't well why even bother looking it?

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ThankGodImBipolar@reddit

The problem is those input methods don't support all the features of the Steam Controller and the device can't report to an OS as more than one unique input

If you want these features... You'd have to use Steam Anyway. If you don't well why even bother looking it?

If I go over to a buddy's place and he asks me to bring a controller, then I can't bring a Steam Controller, because it only works on one type of device. It'd be nice to bring one, because he's got a SteamOS PC docked to his TV, but we could just as well be playing Switch or something else. That sucks.

The problem is those input methods don't support all the features of the Steam Controller

The actual problem here is that the Steam Controller doesn't work as a regular controller for when you need a regular controller. I don't need the features to be enabled when I pair it with a device without Steam Input; they'd be useless anyway.

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iConiCdays@reddit

Well, if you're playing on steam it will just work, if you're not, then yeah you've got some hoops to jump through. This is the pro and con of this controller.

I mean... It was revealed with the Steam Machine, where it syncs without a dongle and can wake up the device from sleep, it's pretty clearly designed as a controller for Steam, but more importantly SteamOS.

You're asking this device to be something it isn't.

There are god knows how many standard xinput devices on the market for people to buy - there is ONE trackpad and gyro based controller now and to get those features to work, they've had to go through software... So yeah that IS the problem.

In fact, Valve held a GDC talk a decade ago about why xinput is a problem for any sort of non conformant controller and because of that, you can't just expose gyro and trackpad data to windows on a controller.

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ThankGodImBipolar@reddit

You're asking this device to be something it isn't.

I'm asking it to be a controller, which it is. It would be nice if it supported basic functionality on devices without Steam Input... which you've already stated is only needed for advanced features.

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iConiCdays@reddit

Yeah... But to even get those advanced features working at all, you need to go through this method. If another company tried to do this, they'd have to do the same thing with their own software.

This is the trade off for this device, there is no denying it has it's cons but that's the point, it's made for a specific use case of people who want those features. If you don't, then there's plenty of other options for you.

You want one controller that does both? Complain to Microsoft, their xinput stack is the culprit. If it was more flexible, you wouldn't need steam at all.

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max123246@reddit

They could have added fallback mode where it works with X-inout. No one expects the unique features to work without Steam, but yes, I expect a controller's thumb sticks to work wherever.

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ThankGodImBipolar@reddit

Yeah... But to even get those advanced features working at all, you need to go through this method

I'm literally not complaining about that

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ramanmono@reddit

So what if there is a switch to make it a basic controller that doesn't support all features. It should be there. It's stupid to pay 100 dollars for a controller, but then you have to pay more for another controller to use where steam isn't available / possible.

The messed up part is that it does connect, but the basic controls just can't be mapped.

There needs to be a basic controller switch this thing is also a Bluetooth controller afterall.

"If you or anyone else wants a standard Xbox style controller... Why are you even considering wasting your money on this?" Do you even have a brain?
You can't bring a Bluetooth controller to anyone else. Or god forbid you play games on more than just PC/steam.

With this brainless argument anyone who not uses all the steam controller features 100% of the time is also wasting money. You need to use the features to justify the price, not using it is wasting.
A great game that doesn't use the steam controller features: doesn't matter. It's a waste to play it, and don't go playing it on another controller either because even if it's cheaper it still a on top of the 100 dollars spent on those great steam features and thus using another controller is even more wasteful. 100% use all the features is the only way.

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NapsterKnowHow@reddit

You're sadly misinformed on the matter.

I haven't even said anywhere near enough for you to make a determination on my experience nor background on the topic. A very strange comment to make right away.

The problem is those input methods don't support all the features of the Steam Controller and the device can't report to an OS as more than one unique input.

Yet the Steam controller 1 works completely fine without Steam being open. That doesn't appear to be the case with the V2.

NapsterKnowHow@reddit

It works that way for me. Sorry you don't believe me. I've had the Steam controller for years. While some of the controls are for mouse control, the face buttons do in fact work as regular controller face buttons. Sorry you don't believe in the truth.

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f3n2x@reddit

No idea what you did or if you're hallucinating but the other guy is absolutely right. The default mapping for the buttons without steam running is ESC, space, backspace or something like that and left and right mouse buttons for the back buttons.

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BallMeBlazer22@reddit

I mean fair, but of all the big panies I have to interact with during PC gaming, Valve is the one I trust to not fuck me as a consumer the most and this has been built up over decades!

So like sure it sucks it requires proprietary software to work properly, and maybe valve changes drastically in the future but I, for now, somewhat Valve and am willing to download and use steam to use this controller.

Like there is a benefit to not fucking over consumers at every turn because you are big enough that they have no other choice and this is one of them.

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Vitosi4ek@reddit

Also, how large is a segment of users that would want a $100 Steam Controller yet do not use Steam?

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Dependent-Zebra-4357@reddit

I think it’s less about not using Steam and more that even predominantly Steam users also sometimes play non-Steam games, and proper support for that would be nice on a $100 controller.

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danny12beje@reddit

For anything that's not through the xbox app, you add a non-steam shortcut to steam and there you go

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Dependent-Zebra-4357@reddit

What about platforms that don’t have Steam? Other controllers work perfectly well on iOS and Android too. If I’m paying so much for a controller, it would be nice to be able to use it everywhere.

What I think would make sense is for the controller to work in Steam Input mode when Steam is running, and fallback to one of the other compatibility modes when Steam isn’t running. Best of both worlds.

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danny12beje@reddit

You're not buying a steam controller to use on an android, my guy.

The main selling point is trackpads. You don't need that on a damn smartphone.

Nobody's forcing you to buy it, you don't need to be upset over something that's not for you.

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Dependent-Zebra-4357@reddit

Not exclusively, no. But like I said, it would be nice if it could work like every other existing controller. Not sure why that’s to hard to understand.

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danny12beje@reddit

It's not hard to understand.

It's hard to make you understand a steam controller is built for steam.

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

It's hard to make you understand a steam controller is built for steam.

Yet the Xbox controller works on Xbox, PC (all storefronts and launchers) and Android and iPhone.

Yet the Playstation controller works on Playstation, PC (all storefronts and launchers) and Android and iPhone.

rpgarry@reddit

Yea I was referring to Steam controller support, I see Cemu uses SDL, do you know if there's a way to use my Steam controller with it without opening Steam?

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ThatOnePerson@reddit

Found a way to get it working: it's not officially into Cemu yet, but this patch updates it to SDL3: https://github.com/cemu-project/Cemu/actions/runs/24311845047

chapstickbomber@reddit

Steam is now the Microsoft of Gaming. They ARE the platform.

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RabidHexley@reddit

Pretty much nothing good for consumers ever happens from a corporation being definitively on top. I can like Steam and Valve's products, but it's plainly clear that being the platform for PC-gaming enables them to make choices they wouldn't as easily get away with otherwise.

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ConfidencePast6763@reddit

Valve has a huge crowd of die-hard fans who seem unwilling to acknowledge any criticism of the company, yet they’re quick to mock Nintendo or PlayStation fans for behaving the same way...talk about projection.

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havoc1428@reddit

Mocking Nintendo or PS for that behavior is not projection. Do you know what projection even means?

Hear this, a controller can operate in "multiple modes".

Wanna use the Dpad as a mouse? Sure.

Wanna use it as Direct/XInput? By all means

Wanna use it as SteamInput? go right ahead.

This is a concious decision by Valve to tie the controller to Steam platform rather than the PC platform, Valve made this controller for Steam users not PC users.

If EA/Ubisoft/Epic came out with a Controller that only worked for games on their platforms they would get crucified and hounded for it.

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

Exactly, no one complains that the advanced features require Steam, the issue is that for it work as a controller at all it needs Steam.

It literally flies in the face of PC not being a walled garden. This is literally something I'd see Apple do and most of the people defending it now with Valve would be up in arms.

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atatassault47@reddit

Xinput will be able to read the steam controller just fine, at Xinput's limit of functionality.

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Action sets may be an entirely software side thing. So the "need" is if you want action sets. Let's not misrepresent the video or the device please. The controller works out of the box on any OS as a controller, just not that one specific feature which is probably not handled on the hardware directly.

If you want to justify why this is grim, I'm all ears, because maybe this is a tradeoff of cost to do it in software, or some other limitation that isn't revealed. You'll have to tell me how they can do it better, and you need to be specific, because it may not be possible for what you're buying and the conditions it will be exposed to.

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Fair point.

I am buying it to use with Steam, so I'm fine with this functionality and do benefit from it.

But it is still disappointing that it cannot operate outside of Steam as an X-Input and DirectInput controller, as well as for mobile devices as you noted.

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MyUserNameIsSkave@reddit

But on an other hand this make sens with the features and Steam is well known and respected piece of software.

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ScoopusJackson@reddit

But the mouse and keyboard functionality work without it? What a bizarre choice, if it doesn’t work over BT as a gamepad by itself that’s a huge misstep even if most people are going to be running this on something with steam.

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LapnLook@reddit

It makes sense to prioritise mouse input over gamepad input if you think about the use case of this. If you want to control your living room PC with this thing, and you don't have the wrapper (SteamInput in this case, but there were non-Steam alternatives for the first controller, so I assume the same will happen here) running, you can either have:

gamepad output by default, which allows you to play games that support that, but you won't really be able to interact with your OS, unless you also have an actual mouse somewhere in the living room that you connect to the PC
mouse output by default, which means you can fully use your OS without any extra devices, but the tradeoff is you can't play controller based games until you launch the wrapper

If you want the user to have a decently seamless living room experience, I think the second option is better. Having to get up, grab a mouse, plug it in, etc. just sucks, especially if your living room isn't set up in a way where the USB ports are very easy to access.

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Hum, I mean if it works in the bios I'm pretty sure it can work without steam

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LAUAR@reddit

If you compare with other first party controllers, only Microsoft is better, but they literally own Windows and made the XInput API is made for the XBox controller layout. Sony and Nintendo both need to be supported directly by the game or third-party programs to use it system-wide.

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sh1boleth@reddit

Sony and Nintendo both need to be supported directly by the game or third-party programs to use it system-wide.

Obviously there would be community work on that, but it takes time

It's the same with the first Steam Controller and Steam Deck. So it's not exactly new, but the only one for those (on Windows) is reWASD, which is paid.

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Party-Exercise-2166@reddit

I've heard people also got banned for using reWASD in some games.

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PualFromBoston@reddit

There will almost certainly be a community made xinput wrapper at some point, like DS4Windows.

Valve pushes a lot of anti-consumer initiatives, and uses their near monopoly on game distribution to encroach on other areas that should be storefront independent. Mod distribution is a prime example.

I'm not the person you asked, but if I had to pick a company, it would probably be GoG for their archival efforts.

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Wander715@reddit

Still kinda mixed on this thing. If it was multi-platform with Switch and mobile compatibility I would be more interested. The trackpads imo are kind of a niche feature that a lot of people will end up using less in practice than they initially think.

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DoorStuckSickDuck@reddit

Trackpads are the entire reason why anyone would buy a steam controller, what are you talking about? If you want a normal controller, there's countless. Half of the reason why the Steam Deck is so good is that it has near flawless mouse emulation on their track pads. Why squander that advantage?

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slrrp@reddit

Half of the reason why the Steam Deck is so good is that it has near flawless mouse emulation on their track pads.

It's also huge for anyone playing on an HTPC or streaming games to another machine in your house where you don't have / want a full fat keyboard just laying around and being in the way 99% of the time.

Who said I'd only use the trackpads?

It's a controller, not a touchpad

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psynautic@reddit

im curious wht the usecase is for this controller and android?

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furiat@reddit

Maybe emulation, otherwise I don't know.

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psynautic@reddit

right but you should use a regular controller for emulation, not a control specifically made for couch PC gaming with mouse emulation. its a weird argument that people keep harping on.

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11BlahBlah11@reddit

I was looking for a replacement for my DS4. I use it for my pc as well as for many android games (including emulated games).

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lordmycal@reddit

My wife streams Steam games to our Apple TV so she can play her stuff in the living room. If it doesn't have Apple TV capability, that kills an important use case.

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IsometricRain@reddit

The trackpads imo are kind of a niche feature

I disagree. This has to be the most out of touch thing said about this thing.

WHY spend $100 instead of $50-60 on a perfectly good trackpad-less controller if you're not pretty sure you'd be using it a whole lot?

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QuadratClown@reddit

As someone with a steamdeck, the track pads killed every other controller with sticks only for me. I use it all the time, for a lot of things. Its genuinely so much better than any other controller I've used (and I've used a lot) that it even killed every other non-steamdeck handheld for me.

It works actually well as mouse replacement. I couldn't play shooters or strategy games without it. Its no mouse obviously but it is very close. I've tried playing older RPGs like dungeon siege with sticks, it's awful and no fun at all. No problem with the track pads at all.

And even while using the sticks in favor of the pads, you can bind it to different buttons/keystrokes or gestures, which allows playing keyboard focused games without having have multiple button layers.

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VampiroMedicado@reddit

I couldn't play shooters

You should user Gyro for that specific case.

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VaiFate@reddit

They said they couldn't pay shooters WITHOUT it

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rkoy1234@reddit

i always found gyro to be too limiting in terms of my playing position.

90% of my deck usage is either in long plane rides or when I want to cocoon in bed rather than playing upright on my pc.

in both situations gyro is kinda hard to use (unless I want to start a war with my seat-neighbors mid flight).

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NapsterKnowHow@reddit

As someone with a Steam deck I rarely use the trackpads. It's mostly for typing and that's it. Even tho the keyboard is super fucking buggy...

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FabianN@reddit

I have the steam deck and I use them HEAVILY. There are lots of games I play where the normal gamepad support is poor, or it just doesn't work for the grant format.

It will all depend on what games you play.

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michaelsoft__binbows@reddit

Yup. I swapped to the g7 pro from an 8bitdo and it’s significantly more comfortable due to the angle of the handles. It also has clicky shoulder buttons which is a huge upgrade over the extremely mushy ones on the 8bitdo. The abxy buttons are also clicky which I like, and the joysticks have anti-friction rings which is a nice improvement as well. My only major gripe is that the start/select buttons (or whatever they’re called now) are in awkward places and take a while to get used to.

The 8bitdo is a solid controller, but after swapping back to one with handles that are angled more similar to what the stock Xbox controller has I don’t think I could go back.

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fnv_fan@reddit

No mention of the face buttons, how the D-pad feels and the bumpers? The triggers being Hall Effect was mentioned once which isn't even listed on Valve's own website. No 2.4GHz testing either?

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SuperAwesomeNiceGuy@reddit

A useful detailed video, appreciated.

I grew up on a SNES, N64, and PS2 before pivoting to PC for the Xbox era and forgetting how to use dual analog control.

Flimsy_Swordfish_415@reddit

Low demand for Steam Controller, low demand for Steam Machine, and low demand for Steam Frame by the time it is released

and all of those others will eventually drift.

Sony will let you pay $20 to replace them if you pay up for the Edge.

$100 is reasonable for this many inputs and TMR

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porcinechoirmaster@reddit

Eh, there's also the low latency and the large degree of input customization. Power users are going to love that.

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michaelsoft__binbows@reddit

I havent seen the price yet! But it cant be more than playstation edge or whatever. I can stomach 100 or 150 for couch practicality. Mouse on a couch mousepad just isnt cutting it for me.

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robbiekhan@reddit

I like it, 250Hz isn't an issue as even the DualSense is that anyway in wireless mode and functions just fine for performance.

This will likely replace my G7 Pro unless I find a reason to get the Apex 5 Pro instead which also supports keyboard mapping and 8 extra buttons to configure.

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warp37@reddit

I have Steam Deck but I don't use features like trackpad and gyro in games. I play on Xbox Elite Controller 2 on my PC.

I really want to try Steam Controller on my PC but I think it's not necessary. Maybe I will buy used SC in future.

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count_dijkstra@reddit

Having to separately plug in the controller and the puck for updates is not great. This was also an issue when updating the dock, where you would have to disconnect the power for it to successfully flash its firmware.

The price is a little high as well, they're relying on their brand a lot here. I'm sure this will sell quickly, regardless.

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BioshockEnthusiast@reddit

Having to separately plug in the controller and the puck for updates is not great.

gabeandjanet@reddit

Its astroturfing.

The moment GN started to investigate billion dollar corporations (instead of just small fry hobby building corps that sucked) you see the same talking points appear on all reddit posts about him.

This didnt happen before that

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Guilty_Rooster_6708@reddit

Because he fully becomes a drama channel and people don’t like to watch drama constantly.

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Neosantana@reddit

Yes, talking about bribing US presidents is just high-school drama, am I right?

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Guilty_Rooster_6708@reddit

I don’t know what videos you are referring to. I don’t watch US politics on a tech youtuber channel lol. What a weird point to make. Do you get news channel from this guy?

More like his video moaning about AMD, while its looks like neither HUB or LTT, or Pauls Hardware got their sample. Just a drama queen.

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Neosantana@reddit

I don’t know what videos you are referring to

Nvidia? AMD? Palantir? Ring?

He's been doing videos on their corruption in bribing the US government and complicity in war crimes for months now. Keep up.

What a weird point to make. Do you get your news from this guy??

Do you get your news from anywhere? All the details he listed in those videos are accurate. Whether you consider his interpretation of the facts proper is another story, but I didn't need Steve to tell me that Palantir is a war crime and fascism factory.

More like his video moaning about AMD, while its looks like neither HUB or LTT, or Pauls Hardware got their sample. Just a drama queen.

So you seek drama, and act like drama is all there is? Got it.

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Guilty_Rooster_6708@reddit

No son, I just read about those news rather than listen to a guy yapped about it non stop for hours. I listened to his stuff on NVIDIA and it was uninformative or at least very surface level.

No details about large scale shipments, most of his Q&A about 4090s are done by interviewing 2 DUDES FOR NEAR hour. No breakdowns of. Routes, shipments, etc, and sooo much speculations. No explanation on what china is using those GPUs for, why they need them, where are they going to.

I'm the first one to be critical of what the hell Gamers Nexus as become these last few years. Where everything is a conspiracy and where everything has to conform to his AI = dystopia narrative.

But, I'll happily downvote comments like yours. We're here to discuss hardware, not what you think about someone's face...

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Big-Note-508@reddit

enjoy that little arrow button if it makes you feel great 😃

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Guilty_Rooster_6708@reddit

Rip. Tech Jesus followers are going to downvote you to oblivion

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2FastHaste@reddit

I'm the first one to be critical of what the hell Gamers Nexus as become these last few years. Where everything is a conspiracy and where everything has to conform to his AI = dystopia narrative.

arahman81@reddit

Gotta love that "Bluetooth Nightmare" comparison. Yeah, discard wired options for this old-ass protocol that does terribly with device connectivity. Lol.

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MadOctopus6@reddit

ooo good they sent Steve a review sample, lest he start another drama lmao