Nintendo Switch Pro Controller gyro always drifts after ~20 minutes

[8bit]

I've seen this topic come up a few times and I thought I had it fixed, but it seems to have returned. I really want to get this fixed!

Here are some things I've tried:
-Steam big picture calibrate controller. Works for awhile but then starts to drift again!
-Lay the controller flat for ~20 seconds. Keeps drifting, doesn't seem to re-calibrate.
-Windows game controller calibrate. Controller inputs spazz out so impossible to calibrate, I assume it's working as intended and steam had control over it because it works fine.

Anyone have any suggestions or maybe someone figured out how to fix it? Is it a problem with my controller or is this a universal thing with steam? I've searched tons and haven't found a solution!

Thanks for any help!

[freezy]

O

[8bit]

Indeed.

[Noque]

My newly bought switch pro controller drifts down-left as soon as I connect it ... I haven't been able to test it in a Nintendo Switch to verify...

[IceManLoneWolf]

Not really a solution, but lowering your sensitivity will help. The higher the sensitivity the quicker you'll notice the gyro drift which is going to happen over time as you continue to move the controller around. Another way you might be able to minimize it is to add a minimum movement threshold. Although doing so will reduce responsiveness.

Unfortunately the auto calibration doesn't seem to work with the Switch Pro Controller. With the Steam Controller and DS4 if you place the controller on flat surface after a few seconds it will auto calibrate, but for some reason the Switch Pro Controller doesn't auto calibrate.

Also, when you actually calibrate the controller in the Steam General Controller settings menu the Switch Pro Controller (at least mine) takes a while to calibrate. The other controllers calibrate pretty quickly. If you calibrate the Switch Pro controller using the Switch system it calibrates after a second or two.

This leads me to think there is a bug in the Steam software.


EDIT: Ideally auto calibration would work, but if that's not possible it'd be nice if you could calibrate your controller from big picture mode. I've been playing without big picture because if I do need to calibrate and and open Steam and calibrate that way while big picture mode is on I often find problems occurring. Like big picture mode being stuck on/off.

[8bit]

Thanks for your response. I've tried that before and it worked as expected. It's unfortunate there is no solution for this. Everything you said is entirely correct and my exact experience! I hope there is a bug and they can fix it up but I'm afraid it's actually just the controller's hardware. Although if that were the case then why doesn't it drift when used with the switch? There may still be hope!

I went ahead and bought a Steam controller and I'm loving it, but I still whip out the Switch Pro for platforming games like Celeste.

[IceManLoneWolf]

The Switch Pro Controller is my preferred gyro controller. I just find it much more comfortable than the others. I love the Steam Controller's extra buttons though.

There could be a couple reasons why there isn't drift in Switch games.


1. All games on Switch that utilize gyro (or at least all the games I've played) have something that's like a minimum movement threshold applied. Even Splatoon has this. If you very very slowly move the controller the cursor won't move inside of Splatoon and other games. There's some sort of minimum speed you have to move the controller in order for it to be detected. This reduces responsiveness because it prevents you from making ultra fine adjustments to your aim. It's actually not too bad in Splatoon, but it's very noticeable in games like Fortnite where precision is more important.

Fortnite's a good way to test this since it's available on PC and Switch. You can create a far better gyro experience on PC using Steam and the Switch Pro Controller than what is available on Switch.

The reason games on Switch have the speed threshold thing is either to create a more smooth (less jerky) experience for most users who struggle to hold the controller steady or it's to account for eventual drift, or both.


2. Maybe the games have something that automatically resets the drift. Not sure what that would be though. I do recall when Fortnite first launched on Switch occasionally you'd see the screen seemingly move on its own. Not sure if it was recalibrating itself or somehow accounting for the drift, IDK, but it seemed to be doing something. Don't think it does that anymore though or at least it's not noticeable.


The drift is annoying, but if I had to choose between the way gyro controls work in games on Switch versus Steam I'd choose Steam. With Steam you get controls that are much closer to mouse and keyboard.

[LOWSPECLOWLYFE]

I can't even get mine to work so drift isn't an issue.