Controller use by Steam players has tripled since 2018
Valve has shared how many of its Steam users play games with a controller.
In a new Steam blog postValve revealed that more players are choosing to play Steam games with a controller than ever, and that since 2018, daily average controller usage has tripled from 5% to a maximum of 15%.
It also confirmed that 42% of these controller sessions use the Steam Input feature.
As for which controllers are used the most, Xbox wins hands down. According to Valve, 59% of sessions are played with an Xbox controller, while 26% are on PlayStation – likely the DualSense or DualShock 4 – and 10% are on Steam Deck.
“As usage has increased, our team has continued to work on improving and adding features to enhance the controller experience for these players,” Valve explained, before listing some of the new features it recently released for Steam Input and controller has released.
These include a Big Picture Mode update, which introduced a complete redesign of the controller-first experience on Steam, which also brought the Steam Deck user experience to the big screen, as well as new controller configurations, Gyro aiming, virtual menus for the desktop client and support for PlayStation and Xbox controllers.
Valve has also just added support for the latest Horipad controller for Steam. The Wireless Horipad, from Japanese peripheral manufacturer Hori, will be available in Japan on October 31, priced at 7,980 yen ($50 / £40).
It comes in four color variants including Midnight Black, Shiny White, Neon Yellow and Luminous Violet.
Steam now allows over 300 supported controllers, and if you’re looking for recommendations, you can check out our guide to the best PC controllers of 2024.