Controller inputs not working at start (Steam / Steam Deck)

Hi guys ! I'm facing an issue when launching my game on Steam desktop and Steam Deck.

Some other people also have the same problem, but it doesn't seem like anybody found a clear solution, at least none I could find...

When I open my game on steam deck, my gamepad controls do not work right at the start. I need to:

- Go to input settings,

- Activate Keyboard controls

- Use the keyboard a bit

- Then switch back to gamepad.

Only then will my game work properly...

When I play on my computer, it's a bit more random. It seems like some controllers get instantly recognized, and some others need to be plugged in & out first.

Maybe this is an Xinput thing ? Or Steam Input ? I've tried a lot of things, and nothing seems to be working on my end...

Also, I've been using NW.js, if you think that may be part of the issue.

Apologies if it was answered somewhere else. Thank you all in advance!

What method did you use to add your game to Steam Deck?

Are you uploading to Steam itself, or just testing: where you right click on the game file in desktop mode and select "add to steam"?

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I haven't had any issues with input when adding non-steam games to the Deck.

But when I uploaded my Angvik 2 linux depot to Steam I did get that issue you mentioned, but only for a while, then when Valve approved the game did it get fixed somehow (maybe they made controller input default instead of keyboard).

I had this exact issue except not on Steam Deck. In my case the setting for "Steam input" was incorrect. I set it to use "Steam input" and for some reason this made the xbox controller not work/be detected properly.

You can also quickly test and disable this in the steam library: right-clicking the game in the library -> properties -> controller

If it's enabled there you can try disabling it. If that fixes it as it did for me, you have to change the settings for steam input in the backend.