When it comes to underwater adventure games, there’s nothing that comes close to Unknown Worlds Entertainment’s Subnautica. Released back in 2018 for PC, the game has since been ported over to other major consoles, including the Nintendo Switch. Despite being a single-player game and this old, Subnautica continues to host an active and thriving player base. So much so that the Steam version alone saw a 24-hour peak of about 5,089 players (data sourced from Steam Charts). And a subset of this amazing player base also exists thanks to the Steam Deck. But unfortunately, recently there’s been this controller issue that’s been troubling the Deck players a lot.
The Steam Deck is not a perfect device and from time to time, issues like this one can pop up. Although, almost all of the time, it’s due to the game itself and not the hardware. Movement is a pretty big part of Subnautica so ignoring this issue isn’t ideal at all. As such, here are some workarounds that will help you fix this issue.
Subnautica Steam Deck controller not working: How to fix it?
The following workarounds will help you deal with this issue. Try these and find out which ones are of help to you.
Restart –
Sometimes a simple restart is enough to fix an issue like this. As such, we recommend that you start the fixing process by restarting the game, and if that doesn’t work, restart the Steam Deck too. Now, there is a chance that simply using the restart method will not be enough to deal with this issue. If that’s true for you, try another fix.
Enable controller support in the in-game settings –
u/Methanoid faced this same issue and fixed it by simply enabling controller support in the in-game settings. As such, if you haven’t done this already, we suggest you do so. Simply launch the game, head to Options, and then switch to the Controller section, located just below the Keyboard and above Accessibility. Now, take a look at the right side of the screen and you will find the Enable Controller option right at the top. If the checkbox beside it is unchecked, just checkmark it. And that will enable controller support. If it’s checkmarked already, try unchecking and checkmarking it again. In case this method doesn’t help, you can switch to another workaround.
Update –
Make sure that Subnautica is updated to the latest version. Furthermore, you should also update the Steam Deck, if it happens to have an update available. If updating isn’t helpful, check out other workarounds.
Use Proton Experimental –
u/Luke-Hatsune, on the other hand, fixed this issue by using Proton Experimental. To be more specific, what this user did was delete the Proton layer and then have the game use Proton Experimental. You can do this by highlighting Subnautica from your library and then pressing the three-line button. From the options present, scroll down, select Developer, and then Delete Proton files. After the files are deleted, switch to the Properties option located right below Developer. Next, switch to the Compatibility section and then select Proton Experimental from the drop-down menu.
Connect an external controller and disconnect it after –
If you happen to have an external controller lying around, we suggest that you connect it to the Steam Deck. Once it’s connected, disconnect it and then see if the Steam Deck controller works. Additionally, you can also simply opt to use an external controller.
Use a community layout –
Some players were able to deal with this issue by using community layouts instead of the official ones. But first, you need to find a community layout. That can be done by highlighting Subnautica from your Steam Library and then clicking on the controller icon located next to the cogwheel icon. After that, click on your current layout. On the next screen, you will find four main sections: Recommended, Templates, Community Layouts, and Search. Now, all you need to do is switch to Community Layouts and select a layout of your choice. Keep changing layouts until you find the one that works.
Well, that’s all the workarounds we have for this issue. You can also take a quick look here if your Steam Deck controller isn’t working after re-image. And for more such content, keep following DigiStatement. Also read: Fallout New Vegas Steam Deck controller not working: How to fix it?
