Latest Steam Beta Expands Xbox Controller Support In A Big Way
When it comes to using a controller on PC, there's no doubt that a lot of people use Xbox controllers of some persuasion. After all, since Xbox and Windows are made by the same company, Xbox controllers have plug-and-play functionality in Windows 10, making them particularly easy to use for PC games. If you use an Xbox controller on PC, here's some good news: Steam has rolled out a new beta that greatly expands support for your controller of choice.
In fact, it seems that the latest Steam Client Beta is all about Steam Input. The update notes say that Valve has added "a setting for extended Xbox controller support," that can be enabled by going into the General Controller Settings, which are found in Steam Settings. You'll need to install a new driver for this support to work, and once it's installed, you'll also need to restart your computer.
After you've done all of that, though, you'll have the option of turning on these extended support options, which include support for "more than 4 Xbox controllers." Even though Valve doesn't say which controllers those are, we know that two of them are the Xbox Elite controller and the Xbox Series X controller, because with these new settings you're able to map the Elite's paddles and the Xbox Series X controller's share button. You'll find options to map both of those in the controller configuration settings.
The update also delivers support for trigger rumble in games, and it uses the Windows.Gaming.Input API to do that. Aside from the new Xbox controller support, this beta client also gives players the options of disabling the player slot LED on the PS5 DualSense controller by way of a new drop down setting in the personalization menu. The player LED will still show when multiple controllers are connected, but when only a single controller is in use, it'll be turned off with this setting active.
Finally, we have new support for the Wooting Two keyboard, and Steam's update notes also say that "Non-gamepad input devices like the HOTAS and G15 are available to games when Generic Gamepad Configuration Support is enabled in the Controller Settings." So, if you're opted into Steam client betas and you use an Xbox Elite Controller or an Xbox Series X controller as your go-to for PC gaming, be sure to install this update and give it a try.