Hello,

No idea why this is happening, as apparently no one else is having this issue, but my PS5 controller does not work with linux. I did a clean install of Mint today, and on my old install it was working great. Now, Steam recognizes the controller, testing the inputs shows everything works, and Linux recognizes the controller is connected with the USB, but it is not registering with any game. None of the inputs work, and even more annoyingly pressing the PS button immediately launches steam big picture mode, which I do not want.

I’ve been trying for hours to fix this and everyone else is saying it works great out of the box, but that is the opposite of the case for me. Any advice?

  • @[email protected]
    3•15 hours ago

    Im an arch user, a few days ago the same happened after an update of sdl3 and sdl2_compat. I switched to steam beta and things worked.

    Might try completely removing the controller from bluetooth, rebooting and repairing.

    Might make sure your using the same kernel that the other people are using. Been a very long time since i used mint and dont know how easy it is to change kernels but might be worth a shot.

    • @Cold_Brew_EnemaOP
      1•14 hours ago

      I’m not even using Bluetooth I’ve just been using a wired USB connection. Very perplexing.

      • @[email protected]
        2•14 hours ago

        Ignore the bt part then. Id start with steam beta and see if that works. Then try a newer kernel? Worth a shot.

          • @[email protected]
            2•14 hours ago

            Did you try to pair it with bt just to see if that works? Thats all I got. Hope someone comes along with some other options.

            • @Cold_Brew_EnemaOP
              1•14 hours ago

              I just did. Same issue. Connected just fine, steam recognizes it, the second I launch a game all the controls stop immediately. Tried two different PS5 controllers.

              You know, for linux mint spouting that they are useful right out of the box, I sure have had to spend a ton of time configuring things that didn’t work.

              • @just_another_person
                6•13 hours ago

                Shit down Steam and see if Mint itself recognizes the controller as an input device. This is possibly a steam-input issue with an discrepancy in a library version. Alternatively, try Mint LiveUSB to see if it works there, if so, you have a library or config problem in your install.

                • @Cold_Brew_EnemaOP
                  1•13 hours ago

                  Mint does recognize the controller (checked using lsusb). I’ve shut down and restarted steam and still no luck. I’ve done everything I could think of. No one has ever seen this issue, apparently. I’m absolutely stumped.

                  Just logged back into windows to test games and it worked flawlessly.

                  • @just_another_person
                    4•13 hours ago

                    Then you have a problem with steam, not Mint.

                    • Check the steam settings for controller input
                    • Try a few different games
                    • Try try Big Picture mode
                    • make sure you don’t have any other controller tools running
                    • Open Steam via terminal and watch the logs to see if anything obvious shows up there