External Keyboard wont change language to correct one

[Epi]

The steam deck automatically sets the external keyboard to follow an english keyboard layout. Even if the keyboard inserted had a different layout. This can be changed in desktop mode, but currently it cannot be changed in gaming mode. I've searched around for solutions, and it turns out people have been having this problem.. basically ever since the steam deck came out.
Please, make it so that we can change the external keyboard layout in gaming mode too. It's really problematic when i can barely type, and it also locks me out of using my languages beloved Å Ä Ö in gaming mode, without being forced to use the internal keyboard. It also makes it hard to write commands or anything that is different from the english keyboard. There are games on steam that require typing, such as "Kind Words" to give one example, and same goes with non steam applications. I love the internal keyboard on the steam deck, but it is not enough for everything.
Again, this problem has been here for years already. Please do something about it. Submitted as a feature request, because the feature literally does not exist.

[Mblaze]

Would be indeed nice to have this feature without changing settings in the desktop mode.

[tatzelwesen]

Agreed. It makes playing on Steamdeck very user unfriendly for any games that require a keyboard sometimes.

[tatzelwesen]

There is a solution that works!
You need to open desktop mode, then open the file in /etc/environment.
Then add this line and save the file:
XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=se
(Perhaps it's also XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=sv for a Swedish keyboard layout. For other languages, the last two letters are different).
(no # in front of the line).
And then reboot your Steamdeck.

Here's some more info: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/SteamOS/issues/798

I wish Steam made it easier. Or even just told users who don't use the standard US layout that this workaround exists.

[lornlynx]

Originally posted by tatzelwesen:

There is a solution that works!
You need to open desktop mode, then open the file in /etc/environment.
Then add this line and save the file:
XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=se
(Perhaps it's also XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=sv for a Swedish keyboard layout. For other languages, the last two letters are different).
(no # in front of the line).
And then reboot your Steamdeck.

Here's some more info: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/SteamOS/issues/798

I wish Steam made it easier. Or even just told users who don't use the standard US layout that this workaround exists.

Thank you, that worked for me!
But I had to set layout and variant (de and quertz in my case).

Oh and it was a bluetooth keyboard.