Here is a summary of what you should know when using the current (as of April 2012) Xbox 360 controller on your PC. Aside from detailed technical content, the minimum content is described.
XInput and DirectInput
When using a game controller on a PC, there are two types of game controller formats: XInput format and DirectInput format.
- DirectInput
- A format that has been used on PCs for a long time. It supports various types of controllers, from game pads to complex control stick controllers used in steering wheel controllers and flight sims. Therefore, it is necessary for the program side to support various types such as the number of buttons, the number of sticks, and the presence or absence of the vibration function of the controller. In addition, since the number and position of buttons and sticks are not fixed, it is necessary to set the key assignment according to the controller used by the user in order to operate with the optimum operation method. Depending on the controller and game implementation, there may be cases where the allocation is not successful.
- DirectInput has been provided as a component for input control of Microsoft DirectX, but it has not been updated since DirectX 8 (around 2000).
- XInput
- A format newly created and recommended by Microsoft as an alternative to DirectInput. The format is based on the Xbox 360 controller. The layout and vibration functions of the buttons and sticks are all unified in the form of the XBOX 360 controller. Therefore, it is possible to operate with the optimum operation method (assumed by the creator) without making any special key settings. However, it does not support buttons, sticks, etc. that are higher than the Xbox 360 controller.
A major feature of the Xbox 360 controller is that it can be used in XInput format. Other popular PC game controllers only support DirectInput format.
X Box has also been selling some XInput corresponding controller other than the 360 controller.
Correspondence status on the game side
Until now, games that support game controllers generally support the DirectInput format. In recent years, the number of games that support XInput has increased, and the number of games that support only the XInput format is also increasing.
- How can I find out what type of controller the game supports?
- DirectInput format
- Relatively old games
- Button names are listed with names such as "Button1" and "Button2" in the control option settings during the game.
- XInput format
- Button names are described as "A", "B", "X", "Y", etc. in the control option settings in the game and the explanation in the game.
- The in-game control options screen is represented by a picture of the Xbox 360 controller
- Although it is mainly overseas games, you can check the list of games compatible with Xbox 360 controller (XInput) here and here .
- DirectInput format
X Box 360 controller driver
The Xbox 360 controller is recognized as an XInput controller using the Windows driver (official driver) . The XInput controller has a DirectInput compatible function and can be used in both the above DirectInput format and XInput format.
In Windows Vista or later, the driver is included in the OS, and the driver can be installed and used automatically just by connecting the XBOX360 controller.
As a specification of this driver, there are the following restrictions when using it as a DirectInput controller.
- Left and right triggers cannot be used at the same time
- Does not support vibration function
These problems with DirectInput may be solved by the DirectInput output function of XInput Plus .
If the DirectInput output function cannot handle it, you can solve it by installing a driver (unofficial driver) created by volunteers. However, if this driver is installed, it cannot be used as an XInput controller .
How to install an unofficial driver is not explained here. If you search, you will find many sites that explain in detail.
(Unofficial drivers are great because they allow you to make various settings such as changing key bindings at the driver level. Thanks to the authors here.)
X Box 360 controller to be used on a PC?
- The game you want to play supports DirectInput
- If you are not happy with the features of the official driver, try the DirectInput output feature of XInput Plus . If that doesn't work, you can fix it by using an unofficial driver.
- The game you want to play supports XInput
- Used with the official driver. If you install an unofficial driver, you cannot use it with XInput, so you need to switch to the official driver.
What does XInput Plus do?
XInput Plus uses the official driver and works with games that support XInput. Roughly speaking, various functions are realized by interrupting between the input state of the official driver and the game, processing the input state and passing it to the game.
When using in DirectInput format, it corresponds by converting the output of XInput to DirectInput by the DirectInput output function .
