How to use controllers on the Steam Deck

You can use practically any controller on the Steam Deck thanks to Steam’s wide controller support. When I evaluated the Steam Deck, I critiqued its weight but commended Valve for including full-size buttons. Analog sticks in a handheld that was substantially larger than the Nintendo Switch.

Xbox controller on the Steam Deck

To link an Xbox Series X/S / Xbox One controller, hold down the pairing button on the controller until it flashes. “Xbox Wireless Controller” will appear under “Available to pair” just on Steam Deck’s Bt screen after a few seconds. Hit A after you’ve highlighted it. Paired!

Note on compatibility: Bluetooth is supported by all Xbox Series X/S controllers. Bluetooth is also supported by later Xbox One controllers. It’s an earlier model without Bluetooth if the plastic all around Xbox logo is the shiny plastic that forms the top of the controller with bumpers and triggers.

It’s a newer version with Bluetooth built-in if the plastic all-around Xbox logo matches the rest of the controller’s face. Using an Xbox controller with the Steam Deck: Once linked, you use an Xbox controller just like the Steam Deck’s built-in control. With the exception that their button configurations are similar. Simply choose a game to play.

 

PlayStation controller on the Steam Deck

Press and hold the PlayStation symbol key and the Share key (next to the D-pad) till the LED on the DualShock 4 or PS5 DualSense begins quickly flashing. “Wireless Controller” should appear under “Available to pair” here on Steam Deck’s Bt screen after a few seconds. Hit A after you’ve highlighted it. Paired! Using a PlayStation controller just on Steam Deck: Because PlayStation controllers are recognized by Steam, they work much like Xbox pads in the UI. It’s even clever enough to mimic the PlayStation keys in terms of UI! That’s fantastic.

When you enter the game, the Steam Deck will remap the control to your PlayStation controller by default and display a warning that the key icons in the game may not match. Many PC games have only UI elements that resemble the Xbox controller layout, however some will have a setting in the options menu to display PlayStation symbols rather, and a select number will rrecognize PlayStation controllers natively.

 

Switch Pro controller or joycons on the Steam Deck

Press the pairing button in the upper of the Switch Pro controller for just few seconds. You won’t see a bright flash, but the controller will enter connection mode as long as the battery is charged. “Pro Controller” should appear underneath “Available to pair” just on Steam Deck’s Bt screen after a few seconds. Hit A after you’ve highlighted it. Paired!

Using a Switch Pro controllers on the Steam Deck: Because the Steam Deck UI recognises that you’re have used a Nintendo controller, you may click A on the Switch Pro controller (which corresponds to B on the Steam/Xbox pads) to receive the correct input. Please remember that almost all games will display Xbox UI buttons in the places where A and B reside.

Note on compatibility: The Switch’s joycons can also be attached to the Steam Deck through Bluetooth, but they must be paired as distinct devices. In Arch Linux, a utility may be used to combine the joysticks into a pair.

 

The steam controller on the Steam Deck

Hold the Y + Steam buttons together to put the Steam controller into Bluetooth pairing mode. (If you just dug the barely-used Steam controller from a closet, you may need to upgrade its firmware to allow Bluetooth by using Steam Big Picture mode on your desktop.

Using a Steam controller with the Steam Deck: Because the Steam Deck has the same input as Valve’s original controller. you can utilize the buttons and trackpads in the same way. Only two more grips just on the ack are missing.

 

wired controllers?

 

Those, too, are completely functional. I put the Xbox Series X, DualSense, and Switch Pro controllers into Steam Deck via a USB-C cable, and they all functioned right away.

I also used a USB-A to USB-C adaptor to connect an Xbox 360 controller, which worked well. So is the Steam controller, which comes with a micro-USB cord adaptor.

 

controllers in emulators?

I added emulators to my Steam library so that I could view them from of the SteamOS UI and utilise Steam Input to control them, with one trackpad acting as my mouse as well as the back grip buttons acting as my left- & right-click buttons. Because of such bindings, I was able to simulate the original system controls using the normal controller buttons.

In emulators, I had varied experiences when it came to keymapping external controllers. I was able to bind keys to a DualSense in Dolphin, but the inputs did not appear to register when I started a game. The inputs were quickly detected by the PS1 emulation DuckStation, which includes a controller-navigable UI. It is completely possible using a GameCube controller with the Steam Deck. The Wii U GameCube controller adaptor was inserted into a USB-C hub. While SteamOS didn’t recognize it, the Dolphin emulator did, and it worked wonderfully.

 

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