this post was submitted on 17 May 2026
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I want to replace my old GameSir G3s with a controller preferably under €70-75. Initially I wanted an european gamepad but the only 2 options (ready2gaming and snakebyte) was so non existent or questionable that I had to swallow my EU nationalism.

Gaming style:

  • Only use controllers where it's highly recommended
  • Preferred genre for controllers would be arcade racing and JRPGs mostly
  • Will only play on wireless (2.4ghz)

Preferences:

  • Either TMR or high quality HE sticks
  • Doesn't look boring (preferably it has some amounts of LED / RGB)
  • Xbox stick position layout (I want to try it out)
  • Linux compatibility (don't care about consöles)
  • Doesn't have a shit QC (8bitdo's are apparently like that)
  • I have larger hands, so maybe not a small controller

Currently these are some controllers that seems to be in my range. I'm interested if you know about even better controllers.

  • GameSir Cyclone 2
  • GameSir Supernova
  • FlyDigi Direwolf 4?
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[–] rtxn@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

That's not true. If you don't use Steam Input, you only lose the Steam-specific inputs, like the touchpads, gyro, grip sense, and back buttons. Otherwise it is pretty much equivalent to a modern Xbox controller:

  • Two analog stick inputs
  • Analog triggers (LT/RT)
  • Digital bumpers and stick buttons (LB/RB, LS/RS)
  • D-pad
  • Face buttons
  • Menu/select/guide buttons

I've played a lot of Project Wingman with it, and the TMR inputs are actually a massive improvement.

[–] PrivateNoob@sopuli.xyz 0 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I believe in you, then do you actually see your Steam Controller being recognized as an actual controller in non-steam games?

I've heard the argument that it is recognized as a KBM if you're not on Steam.

[–] rtxn@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Yes, it's recognised as a controller both in non-Steam games and in other applications like KDE Settings. It works just like any other controller with the usual, quasi-standard inputs (analog sticks, face buttons, etc). Steam support regarding non-Steam games:

Everything should work as intended if you have purchased and launched your game directly through Steam, but in many cases you will also be able to use the Controller with non-Steam games that run independently.

I’ve heard the argument that it is recognized as a KBM if you’re not on Steam.

If Steam isn't running and there are no other games that capture the controller input, the SC enters "lizard mode" where it emulates mouse and certain keyboard inputs. The right touchpad becomes a mouse, the left touchpad becomes a scroll wheel, R2 is left click, L2 is right click, A is Enter, B is Escape; wev displays the correct input events. Lizard mode is disabled when you launch a game.

(edit) It sounds like this only works in Linux. Windows needs a separate utility to use the SC with non-Steam games.

(edit 2) This is what KDE reports:

It can detect the back buttons (Paddle 1-4) and the quick access menu (Miscellaneous). hid-recorder also shows that all other inputs are also available through the /dev/hidraw* device. I wouldn't be surprised at all if someone released a standalone Steam Input emulator app within a few weeks.