Steam Input is Valve’s best kept secret. Most Steam users aren’t even aware of its existence despite being a part of the software for over two years. Steam Input is the name given to the controller profiling software aspect of Steam. It functions very similarly to Pinnacle or XPadder, allowing the user to assign a variety of inputs to each button on a controller. While Steam Input used to be exclusive to the Steam Controller, Valve has since opened it up for other controllers to use as well. Since this software *can* be quite complex, this video will only serve as an introduction to the software, focusing on the basics. Future episodes in this series will take a magnifying lens to specific features, breaking down the topics to make them easier to understand. As usual with my videos, timestamps are provided in the description for those wishing to skip around between topics.
Steam Input currently supports the Steam Controller, the Dualshock 4, the Xbox 360 and Xbox One controllers, and any controller that uses DirectInput (which is mostly going to be fight sticks or older PC peripherals). The first step is to make sure that your device is properly connected to your PC. If you want to play wirelessly then you will need the proper USB receiver for your device. The Steam Controller comes with its own but the Dualshock 4, Xbox 360, and the older Xbox One controllers all require additional hardware. The newer Xbox One controllers connect via Bluetooth and will work with any generic Bluetooth receiver. Otherwise you can use a wired Xbox 360 controller or use a USB cable with the Steam Controller, Dualshock 4, or Xbox One controllers for a wired connection.
Before we get into using the software, we need to know what the two core screens are and how to access them. The first is the Controller Settings screen and the second is the Steam Input Configuration Software, or SICS. There is a common misconception that Steam Input, and subsequently these two sections, are tied to Big Picture Mode, Steam’s console like experience. But that hasn’t been the case for almost a year. While I will demonstrate how to access these areas through both BPM and the desktop interface, I will subsequently be using footage exclusively from BPM since it is full screen rather than windowed. But everything that I show in this and future videos can be done entirely from the desktop interface.
For the desktop interface, Controller Settings can be found in Steam, Settings, the Controller tab, and then the Controller Settings button. SICS can be found either in a game’s right click menu — listed as Edit Steam Controller Configuration — or in the Links column on the right hand side of the window — listed as Controller Configuration. Though these settings will only be available if a controller is connected to the PC and powered on.
For BPM, Controller Settings can be found in Settings (the cog icon at the main screen), then Controller Settings. SICS can be found in each game’s Manage Game tab. And just like with the desktop interface, a controller must be connected and powered on for the menu to appear.
Now that we know how to access these menus, let’s get our devices setup for Steam Input. The Controller Settings area will be our first stop. While not a requirement, I strongly recommend registering and personalizing your device. For the Steam Controller you’ll need to press the “Add a Steam Controller” button and then, with your controller turned off, hold the ‘X’ button and press the Steam button. This will power the device on in pairing mode. You’ll see a prompt on your screen requesting that you input a string of buttons to finish the pairing process. For the other controllers, just make sure they are properly connected to your PC and check the proper box — PS4 Configuration Support for Dualshock 4 controllers, Xbox Configuration Support for Xbox 360 and Xbox One controllers, and Generic Gamepad Configuration Support for DirectInput devices.
Now we can customize our controller. Highlight your controller and you’ll see a “Preferences” button in the top right corner now. While every device can be named, they all have varying sets of options. The Steam Controller can customize its power on and power down jingles as well as globally enabling or disabling haptics and rumble emulation. You can also alter how bright the Steam button logo is on your controller. The Dualshock 4 can globally disable its rumble support as well, but also has access to the color, brightness, and saturation of the controller’s light bar. The Xbox and DirectInput controllers only have access to global rumble support settings.
Now that our controller has been properly set up and customized we can start using it for playing games. Access the Steam Input Configuration Software for whichever game you wish to play. This is where controller configs are created on a per-game basis. Since each controller is different, this screen has minor differences between devices but the process of using it remains the same across all devices. The easiest way to use this is to click on a button and then select what you want it to do on the next screen. These could be any keyboard key, mouse buttons one through five, the mouse scroll wheel, or any XInput button (also known as Xbox commands). There are also some auxiliary functions here like opening an on screen keyboard, bringing up a magnifying glass, or media keys for Steam Music. Additionally, you can press ‘Y’ or Triangle to enable MultiButtons where you can select multiple keys to be pressed simultaneously.
While most of the buttons are self explanatory, not all of them are. On the Steam Controller, these two areas that seem to point to nothing at all are for the rear grips. The Steam Controller and Dualshock 4 both share this glyph and it stands for the gryometer. And finally, this section above the Dualshock 4 is for its touchpad. It can be set up as either one unified section or two separate sections.
Now maybe creating a config from scratch isn’t for you. Some people need a jumping off point and others just want something that works. Steam Input has you covered too. At the main screen, pressing ‘X’ or Box will bring up the Import Config page. From here we can find the Developer Recommended config, configs that your friends have created, configs that have been created by all users, and Templates.
Developer Recommended configs are ones that are made by the developers of the game. These configs can be anything ranging from mimicking an Xbox controller to a handcrafted config that is expressly designed for a single game. Currently you are more likely to see the former but hopefully that will change as Steam Input becomes more popular.
Sometimes there isn’t a recommended config or maybe it didn’t look like it would work for you. That is where the Friends and Community configs come in to play. Here you can find configs that others are using and have uploaded to the cloud server. Left Bumper or L1 will switch between ordering the list by collective playtime or votes and Right Bumper or R1 will upvote the selected config. We can also use Y or Triangle to switch between seeing all of the configs or only ones for your specific controller. If there is a controller name in the bottom right corner of each config then you are looking at all configs. Pressing A or cross on any config will show you exactly how the config works. If you like what you see then press the X or Box button to apply the config. After this you could either back out of the menu or further tweak the config to your liking.
And lastly we have Templates. These are barebone basic configs that either imitate an Xbox controller or places common keyboard and mouse buttons on your device as if it were an Xbox controller — such as putting WASD on the joystick and Left Mouse Click on the Right Trigger. I view these as a last resort. If you don’t want to start from scratch then they are certainly better than nothing, but they are too generic to be good configs without some heavy tweaking.
And that’s it, now you can start playing. Just remember that you will need to set a config for every game you want to play. This could be as quick as picking the top community config or as lengthy as making your own using every single tool that Valve offers. Some users enjoy spending their first 30 minutes of a game perfecting the config while others like the plug and play idea of using other’s configs. Each are valid ways to use Steam Input.
So that covers the basics of Steam Input. Before I end this though, a couple of tips and tricks that will help the first few hours go by a little smoother. I explained how to make a config before actually loading the game but a config can be modifying while in game as well. The configuration menu can be accessed from within a game by hitting the Home button and selecting Controller Configuration. This will take you to the same exact SICS screen as before. This only works for the Big Picture Mode Overlay however. The desktop overlay lacks all of the controller configuration options. There is an option for those who want to access Steam Input while in a game but don’t want to use Big Picture Mode outside of games. This option can be found in Steam’s settings under the “In-Game” tab. Make sure the “Use Big Picture Overlay when using a Steam Controller from the desktop” option is enabled.
So that’s Steam Input, an incredibly powerful profiling software that is built into Steam and given away for free. And remember that we have only scratched the surface as far as its capabilities. Future episodes will tackle Action Sets and Layers, Activators, how to create macros, Mouse Regions, using the gyro for aiming, auto-combos, Input Styles and much more. The best way to learn is to simply dive in but I understand that Steam Input is very text heavy and could be overwhelming for users, which is why I’ll be spending an entire video on each individual function of it. And if you like what you see and are excited about Steam Input then be sure to pass on your knowledge. Steam Input is still widely unknown and is rarely spoken about in profiling software conversations.
