After picking up my own Steam Controller at midnight from GAME on the day of release back in November of 2015, it has become practically the only gamepad I use. To the point that anything else just feels—wrong. To be clear I own a Logitech F310, a DualShock 4, an Xbox One Controller, I've also extensively used an Xbox 360 pad and so many more.
One of the problems I have with gamepads, is that I often can’t reach multiple buttons at the same time (small hands problems). With the Steam Controller, it’s not much of an issue thanks to the back paddles. Seriously, they’re part of the reason why I love it so much! Take Rocket League as an example, I’ve switched Boost and Slide to the back paddles, so that I can do all sorts of crazy tricks. Before I did that I was honestly terrible at the game. Now though thanks to that? Well, I can do silly things like this:
Another point is the batteries and battery life I wanted to touch on. I rarely have to charge or change batteries, you get a ridiculous amount of life out of it. The fact that batteries aren’t built in, for me, has also been a huge bonus since I never have to worry about it fully dying due to a dead built-in battery. In the time I’ve owned a PlayStation 4, I’ve gone through three DualShock 4’s due to the battery in it just completely dying and no longer charging.
What’s also great about it, is that for games that don’t directly support it and for those times you perhaps want to use it with some sort of media centre PC, SC Controller comes to the rescue. I actually have two, my second one is attached to my TV PC which runs Kubuntu and I have it set to load SC Controller on boot so I can instantly use the Steam Controller to load up anything I want from streaming services in the browser, to games as I can happily flick the mode from desktop to gamepad at the touch of a button with SC Controller’s built-in overlay for switching configs.
Thankfully, support for the Steam Controller has improved dramatically in the last year and it’s now reasonably rare for games not to support it.
Sadly, after a good few years of constant use, the left stick on the Steam Controller has worn down quite a lot. The left side of the stick is noticeably worn out and the right side of the stick has a dip in it of material missing. Thankfully, protective covers for the stick of the Steam Controller that are designed for other gamepads seem to fit quite well. For those interested, I picked up a bunch of Silicone thumb grips from eBay (specifically these) and it’s a perfect fit:
I’m hoping Valve decide to do a second generation of the Steam Controller, there’s a lot of ways they could improve it still. For starters, they could probably shrink the size just a little, it’s a bit large honestly. Not much, but a really-small shrinkage which probably make it a perfect size as it’s so close. The battery compartment, it’s a bit of a nuisance. Some batteries are a tiny bit thicker than others, making them incredibly difficult to get out so I would also love to see some improvements there too.
After enjoying mine so much, I would happily wait in line again if a next generation Steam Controller comes along. Back paddles, wireless with batteries you can replace and the amount of configuration you can do with it and more make it such a good choice. Considering the price of it, it’s quite ridiculous compared to some alternatives with comparable features.
You can grab a Steam Controller from Steam and other online stores.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Quoting: melkemindI started packing to move and now can't find mine! :( I'm going through serious withdrawal right now.
Ah, I know that feeling :P.
Just imagine you have it (pick up an object the same shape) and pack it where it makes sense, I usually find that after some thinking I pick up the exact same place as the actual one most of the times ^^
I like the steam controller. It works well for most uses. But the best part of it is the API. I love it when games are integrated and allow you to select different bindings depending on whether you are in a menu, driving a vehicle, etc.
Most games work fine with it after some tweaking. All of them, actually. Though it was a bit difficult to configure it to easily play Nier Automata, and I still have some glitches with shadow of mordor (thankfully there's the gyro aim).
However, the in-game overlay has regressed quite a bit lately (there are some glitches, such as with the deazones configuration).
I also wish we could access the BP overlay when using a controller, regardless of whether we're in BP mode or not.
no_information_here Jun 10, 2019
Quoting: MayeulCI also wish we could access the BP overlay when using a controller, regardless of whether we're in BP mode or not.Yes, I miss that as well. I have taken to doing "big" picture mode in a smaller window so it doesn't take over my desktop. However, other than the controller interface, I would rather be using the normal steam client.
Quoting: no_information_here- Right thumb-pad for First Person games. As long as you aren't doing something competitive, this is the best thing next to a mouse.
Exactly!
Quoting: no_information_hereThings I don't like:
- Left thumb pad. I really want a D-pad instead for many platformers. I find it interesting that other people like the left pad, so it is obviously a personal thing.
A suggestion, if you haven't tried it yet. For platformers, set the Lpad as a DPad (4 or 8 way) that fires on touch instead of click. For my money this is a thousand times more responsive than the other console pads I've used. :)
Quoting: no_information_hereMinor things ... Batteries hard to remove sometimes.
I meant to say something when Liam mentioned this. Early on I learned that Panasonic's "Eneloop" rechargeable batteries fit perfectly. They're all I've used ever since my first purchase in 2015, and I've not had to buy any more since then.
Hope that helps. :)
Quoting: HoriI bought silicone covers too, from AliExpress. [...] I like one in particular that's very thick (making the stick larger, which I like) and converts the stick to a concave shape. It's also a nice matte material with good grip. [...]Any chance you could post a link? :)
benoliver999 Jun 10, 2019
I also love that it works with Wake On Lan. I can just grab a steam controller and boot my whole PC right up like a console.
no_information_here Jun 11, 2019
Quoting: NanobangA suggestion, if you haven't tried it yet. For platformers, set the Lpad as a DPad (4 or 8 way) that fires on touch instead of click. For my money this is a thousand times more responsive than the other console pads I've used. :)Thanks for the idea. I have tried this and my problem is hitting the wrong part of the pad about 30% of the time. If the shape or texture was more defined like a D-pad, maybe I could get used to it.
I managed with the thumb stick for Hollow Knight, twice through Salt & Sanctuary, and twice through Sundered, so it isn't slowing me down too much. I just think back to some of the hard parts of Guacamelee and how I really needed a D-pad for that!
Quoting: no_information_hereSame here! I keep having to look down to realign my thumb. If only I could find some skin stickers with a bit more definition, like you said.Quoting: NanobangA suggestion, if you haven't tried it yet. For platformers, set the Lpad as a DPad (4 or 8 way) that fires on touch instead of click. For my money this is a thousand times more responsive than the other console pads I've used. :)Thanks for the idea. I have tried this and my problem is hitting the wrong part of the pad about 30% of the time. If the shape or texture was more defined like a D-pad, maybe I could get used to it.
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