Merus Posted October 19, 2015 Wait, so if the thumbpads can't emulate analog sticks, how are you supposed to play games that use two thumbsticks like Dark Souls? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 19, 2015 Oh boy, you guys are using it wrong. You have to set the right touchpad to act as a mouse if the game doesn't have it enabled by default (a lot of devs are slacking off setting up their configs). The controller is amazing when it's set up right - I played through Liberty Island in Deus Ex using it. Deus Ex 1! All tranqing dudes almost as well as on a mouse. It's the best controller I've ever used. To set it up, you have to launch games in Big Picture mode and press the Steam button while ingame, and go "configure controller". Most games you can just pick the "gamepad with mouse" template (might be called "gamepad with high precision aiming" or something now). The analog-stick-emulation mode for the right touchpad is definitely pretty shit. I really hope games defaulting to it doesn't sour people on the controller generally. Gamepad with mouse makes the UI in Game of Thrones go back and forth between gamepad UI and kb+m UI. So I'm not really using it wrong. And I wouldn't mind gamepad on its own, but it has some sort of issue with the bottom right edge of the touch pad circle. This isn't exclusive to gamepad mode. This is a problem with the controller itself. Maybe I have a defective controller? I don't know, I can't get anyone to tell me if they're having problems or not. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joewintergreen Posted October 19, 2015 Defective controller might be the thing, mine doesn't have that. But yeah, in that case it's Telltale using the controller wrong - some games switch UI and behavior (and even lock the other input device up) based on mouse movement rather than just presses, which was actually never a good idea imo. Hopefully a lot of those games patch that, it's a pretty minor thing to fix. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
undermind9 Posted October 19, 2015 This controller talk is disappointing and off putting - at least for Gen1 Has anyone tried using any of the other supported controllers - Xbox360, Xbox1, etc? I've got a like-new 360 controller from a red-ringed box collecting dust - if it only needs that ~$10 windows wireless adapter to work i'd be very excited to get on the Link train There is also report of PS3 controllers working (wired only) and PS4 being supported (wireless?) - if the Steam controller isn't super great i guess ps4 would be the next best (and cheapest) - anyone with first hand knowledge? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zerofiftyone Posted October 19, 2015 I got my Steam Controller on Friday and have had a great time with it so far! I'm really impressed with how versatile it is, bearing in mind there is nearly no native support for it in games (I'm only aware of Portal 2 being natively supported). The few problems I've had with it are due to some games locking mouse input when it detects an XInput controller in use. It's frustrating, because it means you have to bind all of the controller buttons to keyboard inputs if you want mouselook on the trackpad. I can't really blame the controller for that though. So far it's happened rarely enough to not be too bothersome. I tried to play a lot of games to get a feel for what works and what doesn't, and while it's clear that it's not especially designed for every type of game; I get the impression that that's not the point of its existence. I don't think its purpose is to perform better than a 360 controller for traditional controller-oriented games. I think its purpose is to be a good enough replacement for a mouse and keyboard that you can use it comfortably for those kinds of games; while still allowing you to play controller games if you want. In short, I'm really pleased with it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sclpls Posted October 19, 2015 So the weird thing is this controller is great for turn based strategy games, but a lot of strategy games don't have UI that works when you're using a TV for a display (it'll be too hard to read all the text in the menus). The one exception to this is Endless Legend, which has a big picture mode in the UI tab, so the Steam controller is amazing for that game! I tried playing Surgeon Simulator too and it was hilariously difficult. Played some bot matches in DOTA and CS:GO. DOTA was awful. CS:GO was okay, but I still wouldn't want to give up the precision I get with my mouse. I think I'll be totally fine using this controller for single player shooters though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zerofiftyone Posted October 19, 2015 Wait, so if the thumbpads can't emulate analog sticks, how are you supposed to play games that use two thumbsticks like Dark Souls? The thumbpads can emulate analog sticks, but it's better to make the right thumbstick emulate the mouse instead. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 19, 2015 So thanks to Lacabra and one other source I do in fact think my controller is defective. I'm going to wait until this weekend when a friend can bring his controller over so I can test his out, and if it is indeed exclusive to mine, I'll attempt to get a replacement. I hope the process is easy. \: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zerofiftyone Posted October 19, 2015 So thanks to Lacabra and one other source I do in fact think my controller is defective. I'm going to wait until this weekend when a friend can bring his controller over so I can test his out, and if it is indeed exclusive to mine, I'll attempt to get a replacement. I hope the process is easy. \: That sucks. Sorry to hear that Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 19, 2015 It does suck! But I am otherwise very happy with it, so while I may be unlucky, at least my luck is with a mere defect and not with wasting fifty bucks on something I ended up hating. In happier news this is super neat! Splatoon-ish style aiming in MGSV. (Combines mouse-touchpad with motion control.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zerofiftyone Posted October 19, 2015 Yeah the gyro aiming is awesome! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BusbyBerkeley Posted October 19, 2015 I'm mixed on the steam-troller. I really like the trackball style aiming for shooters, but fiddling with configuring it leaves me frustrated. Hopefully more community templates will help with that. The Link is fucking rad as hell though. I'm on WiFi now while I wait for a longer Ethernet cable to ship, and most games are perfectly playable, though audio is pretty booked. We couldn't get some games to work properly, like Gang Beasts or Portal 2. I think Portal might have been messed up because I tried to play splotscreen before they added that and never cleaned out the configuration files. Also the Steam controller dodnt play well with 360 controllers, so I wasn't able to play screencheat with it. Boo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tabacco Posted October 19, 2015 This controller talk is disappointing and off putting - at least for Gen1 Has anyone tried using any of the other supported controllers - Xbox360, Xbox1, etc? I've got a like-new 360 controller from a red-ringed box collecting dust - if it only needs that ~$10 windows wireless adapter to work i'd be very excited to get on the Link train There is also report of PS3 controllers working (wired only) and PS4 being supported (wireless?) - if the Steam controller isn't super great i guess ps4 would be the next best (and cheapest) - anyone with first hand knowledge? I've been using a wired 360 controller with the steam link and it's been great. I went ahead and ordered a USB dongle for the wireless 360 controller so I can switch to that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 19, 2015 To be clear, my complaints are entirely, apparently, technical issues. If you want some really cool stuff, maybe browse the gaf thread where people are coming up with really nice configs and are in general more positive than... here. I think the controller is great, other than my defect. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SecretAsianMan Posted October 20, 2015 This controller talk is disappointing and off putting - at least for Gen1 Has anyone tried using any of the other supported controllers - Xbox360, Xbox1, etc? I've got a like-new 360 controller from a red-ringed box collecting dust - if it only needs that ~$10 windows wireless adapter to work i'd be very excited to get on the Link train There is also report of PS3 controllers working (wired only) and PS4 being supported (wireless?) - if the Steam controller isn't super great i guess ps4 would be the next best (and cheapest) - anyone with first hand knowledge? To be fair, my initial impressions are based on about an hour's play with 2 different games and basically no setting changes. While I'm still disappointed at the performance out of the box, I don't think it means that it can't be made to work well. I do wish it was clearer how to actually accomplish that though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tabacco Posted October 20, 2015 I requested an RMA for it today. Honestly, I don't want to dedicate hours of my life to trying to make a controller I hate work better for me. I'd rather play a game and enjoy it. The good news is, wireless 360 controllers (with USB dongle) work perfectly! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BusbyBerkeley Posted October 21, 2015 Did everyone who preordered get that email saying that valve is giving you all their games, including any future games they make both cause the hardware doeant work with OS X right now? I know I've logged on to my steam account a while ago on my GFs macbook, but I've been on windows exclusively for years. Shows up as "valve friends and family" in my account history. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 21, 2015 Yeah I got that, too, and similarly I haven't logged in on a Mac in forever. I did it for the earbuds in TF2, and... then never again. Cool, I guess! (For Link people only, afaik.) Controller is so good tho. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikemariano Posted October 21, 2015 the hardware doesn't work with OS X right now Whaaaat??? I am very thankful I didn't pre-order. including any future games they make LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BusbyBerkeley Posted October 21, 2015 LOL My extra long network cable gets here today so I'll run that around my apartment tonight and start using my stuff more. Excited to play RE 4 again with this thing. Bless you humble bundle. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SecretAsianMan Posted October 22, 2015 Yeah I got that, too, and similarly I haven't logged in on a Mac in forever. I did it for the earbuds in TF2, and... then never again. Cool, I guess! (For Link people only, afaik.) Controller is so good tho. I only ordered the controller and I got that email. I haven't had a chance to log into my account yet though and see if it's actually there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BigJKO Posted October 22, 2015 Weirdly, Portal 2 is one of the few games that just doesn't recognise my Steam Controller through Steam Link. Gonna try it directly on the computer, just to see if it's a Portal 2 problem or a Link problem. Also, running Super Time Force through the Link gives me a mouse cursor in the middle of the screen that I can't remove. Haven't run STF directly on the PC before, so this might not be a Link problem either! But so far, even with my wi-fi issues, I'm really loving the Link + Controller. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tabacco Posted October 22, 2015 I've seen many people complaining about Portal 2, so I don't think it's just you. And yeah the cursor thing is really annoying, I've seen it on several games. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Twig Posted October 22, 2015 I only ordered the controller and I got that email. I haven't had a chance to log into my account yet though and see if it's actually there. Ah, interesting. Well cool that I'm in for future games (believe)! Finally have CS:GO, too. I thought I did already, but apparently not. Hurray! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
