On Mac, PS4 controller not working in game

[Magnoleah]

Hi all,
I'm sorry if this isn't the right place to post this, but I'm desperate.
I've been playing Stardew Valley for awhile just with my keyboard and since all this quarantining began to happen I thought I'd buy a PS4 dual shock controller to make my life easier.
Two days of googling and trouble shooting has not made my life easier.

The problem:
Both USB and Bluetooth connect to my computer and work perfectly fine for Steam in big picture mode. It's not until I actually click on SV that the controller isn't recognized in game.

What I've tried:
Turning on and off the "Playstation Config Support"
Turning on Beta form for Steam (I'm still in Beta currently)
Resetting the controller in game
Turning off the controller, turning off "Playstation Config Support", going into game, turning on controller

Please, anyone, I would be so grateful for any help.

[Magnoleah]

So I found the solution, finally. I decided to post what helped me, so if anyone comes across this, here ya go.

From a person named Hobbes:
I was having the same problems with getting the PS4 controller to work with my Mac with Steam games (I didn't try this with games outside of Steam). I had this problem in both Bluetooth mode and USB-wired. After hours of hair-pulling, internet searching and the like, I think I've finally got it working with Bluetooth by accidentally stumbling upon a fix. Maybe this will help some of you?

First, I got the controller recognized as a "Wirelss Controller" on my Mac over bluetooth. I also have "PS4 Configuration Support" checked and made sure that Steam recognized the controller - even though all it can do is rumble the darn thing and change the color.

At this point, Steam can see the controller and my Mac can see the controller, but every time I loaded up a game (Lego: Avengers, for example) I would get "No Input" for all my controls and would need to keyboard my way back out. I limited my testing to Lego games since that's what I had loaded and wanted to use the controller for anyway. I didn't try this with Dust or D3 or anything.

Next, with my controller now working in Steam itself, I switched to Big Picture Mode and navigated to Settings -> Base Configurations -> Desktop configuration. This was set to nothing and I went through the Templates and seclected "Gamepad with High Precision Camera/Aim". The templates, in the lower-right-hand corner of the box should say "PS4 controller" or somesuch to give you a sense for what you are picking.

To check my settings, while still in Big Picture, you can navigate to your Game Library, pick a game, and Manage Game -> Controller Application Options. You should see "Global Setting (PS4)". Also check Manage Game -> Controller Configuration and make sure you have the same Template from above shown there, "Gamepad with High Precision Camera".

Now when you load your games from Steam, even outside of Big Picture Mode, you should be able to use your PS4 controller. I'm hoping this helps other Mac users that have struggled with their PS4 controllers!

EDIT: One more oddity I just noticed. If you plug in your PS4 controller while it is connected as a BT controller, it'll show up twice in Steam. This can happen if you're using your controller and then plug it in to re-charge the battery while continuing to play. You'll notice this because in Big Picture underneath "PS4 Configureation Support" checkbox, you'll see the PS4 controller listed twice. To get things working properly again, you should always use the controller either as USB OR Bluetooth, otherwise steam treats every button press like a double-press, which is creepy. On Macs, this means you'll need to manually his "Disconnect" in your Bluetooth menubar settings under Wireless Controller. If you don't do this, you may get the dreaded "No Input" error when you try to play a game.

NOTE: I can't seem to get the PS4 controller working as a usb gamepad, which others seem to have working without a problem. I can only get it working as expected as a BT device.


and from a person named DrewP
hobbes you are amazing. I just bought a shiny new DS4 controller and was about to send it flying through my laptop's screen when i came across your post. I was having the exact same issues as you including the weird double input thing in big picture mode. Just wanted to add that for some games (in my case Valdis Story: Abyssal City), that specific template doesnt work. Mess around with the different templates until one works. Usually it recommends one for you when you go into "Manage game" but make sure the template you set in "Desktop configurations" is THE SAME as the one you set in "Manage game". Other than that, everything you said was spot on and well explained. Thanks again dude.


READ IT, FOLLOW IT, IT WORKS.

[Yen]

OMG thank you so much, I couldn't figure out why it wasn't working for me either. This really did the trick for me.

[greengirl315]

OH WOW. I found this after posting on another comment about the same issue. I tried it and it worked for my Xbox controller!!! Not only that, I have always had to hard wire my controller to my macbook before now. I can finally use it as a bluetooth controller!!! Thank you so much for posting this!

[Stew]

Unfortunately the solution doesn't work anymore because the big picture mode got updated and the templates option removed. So for now at least in stardew valley there's no way to get the controller working without external software.

It's sad that the Mac users doesn't get enough attention from valve...

Edit: this solution never worked for me, my problem was a bug in the M1 Monterrey DS4 driver. The solution was disabling "PS4 configuration support" in big picture controller settings and "forcing off" in controller application options.

[nigerian_prince92]

Stew is correct. For M1 Macs with Monterrey installed (such as mine) disabling the configuration settings worked and worked well. I don't know if it really is a bug, but steam has to sort it out so that this confusion is avoided by others in the future.

[maccentris]

For anyone who finds this useful, I also play on my Mac, and iPhone, I found a controller at the Apple website for iOS called: RIOT, I've no idea if it works with Mac but I'm dying to find out. If I manage to get it working will let yall know.

[peite]

This is how you enable DualShock 4 support to Stardew Valley on Mac:

1. Make sure "PlayStation Configuration Support" is activated in Steam Settings > Controller Settings.

2. Start Big Picture > Stardew Valley > Manage Game > Controller Configuration > Browse through the controller templates or choose the top recommended option "Stardew for Dualshock 4 (PS4 Controller)".

3. You are good to go! It works amazing now to play the game and browse through option panes only with the D-pad. And you can shift through Tools left and right with L2 and R2!
Great stuff!

[EnderTaco]

Wow, thank you so much @Magnoleah, those were the exact instructions I needed to get it working. I have no idea how I would have figured it out on my own, so thanks!

[👽Shini]

Originally posted by Stew:

Unfortunately the solution doesn't work anymore because the big picture mode got updated and the templates option removed. So for now at least in stardew valley there's no way to get the controller working without external software.

It's sad that the Mac users doesn't get enough attention from valve...

Edit: this solution never worked for me, my problem was a bug in the M1 Monterrey DS4 driver. The solution was disabling "PS4 configuration support" in big picture controller settings and "forcing off" in controller application options.

Originally posted by nigerian_prince92:

Stew is correct. For M1 Macs with Monterrey installed (such as mine) disabling the configuration settings worked and worked well. I don't know if it really is a bug, but steam has to sort it out so that this confusion is avoided by others in the future.

Can anyone help me? I have a M1 imac and can't use my DS4 or xbox controller on it.