Marvel’s Spider-Man was one of the unexpected gaming delights of 2018. The Spider-Man franchise hadn’t been performing too well in the gaming sphere for a number of years at that point, so a great Spider-Man game was going to take its developer pulling out all the stops. That’s exactly what Insomniac Games did, thankfully, and we got what might as well be the definitive Spidey experience, with excellent web-slinging, great combat, and a surprisingly heartfelt story to boot.
In late 2020, two years after the original release of the game, Spider-Man Remastered launched for PS5, bringing the game to parity with the newly-released Spider-Man: Miles Morales in technical terms. August 2022 saw Remastered launching on PC, and although the release was generally solid, fans began pointing out issues they were experiencing with the game. One of these is an error message that says the PC controller hasn’t been detected.
This can happen with all kinds of controllers; you may, for example, experience your PS4 controller not working with Spider-Man Remastered if you’ve hooked it up to your PC. Alternatively, Xbox controllers, third-party options, and all kinds of other hardware can experience errors and issues with Spider-Man. Here’s our guide on how to fix the Spider-Man Remastered controller not working error.
Change your Steam Input settings
The protocol that allows Steam to use different controller types with games is called Steam Input, and you’ll find it under the Properties menu for your game. Simply right-click Spider-Man Remastered in Steam, then select Properties. From there, go to Controller, and you should see a drop-down menu under Steam Input. Try the other two options that the game is not currently set to; these will probably be either Disable Steam Input or Use Default Settings. Hopefully, this will put an end to your PS4 controller not working with Spider-Man Remastered and you’ll be able to play to your heart’s content.
Try a different controller
If this doesn’t work, then your next step is to try a different controller. You should be trying both wired and wireless options for each controller you’re using, if possible; if you have a DualShock 4, for instance, try connecting it via Bluetooth and then via USB, and see if either connection fixes the problem. Cycle through different controllers, too, if you have multiple different controllers available. This will help you to diagnose the problem and see whether it’s isolated to certain controllers or common across all of them.
Try different DualShock 4s
If you’re lucky enough to have multiple PS4 controllers, then you should try another controller to see if the issue is replicated across DualShock 4s or if it’s isolated to a single unit. This goes for any kind of controller you’re trying to use with Spider-Man Remastered. If you’ve got two Xbox controllers, for instance, try using both of them, and the same goes for DualSense controllers. By performing experiments like these, you’ll be able to discern whether the problem is with the game or with the controllers you’re trying to use.
Restart the game
We know this one sounds obvious, but it’s always a good idea to try restarting the game. Exit your current session and close Steam down completely. Make sure the Steam process has ended by checking it in Task Manager. Once you’re sure it’s all closed down correctly, re-open Steam and restart Spider-Man Remastered. See if your controller is working now that you’ve performed the restart process. You’d be amazed at just how many times this actually fixes the issue.
Restart your PC
If restarting the game and restarting Steam don’t work, then the next stage of the process is to restart your PC altogether. Make sure you’ve saved your game (and any work you currently have open), then restart your computer. Once this is done, fire up Steam and open the game again. Hopefully, you’ll notice that your controller is working now and you can use it to swing through the streets of New York. Many Spider-Man Remastered controller issues can be fixed with simple procedures like this one, so hopefully yours is one of them!
Reset your controller
If you’re using a PS4 controller, then you can try resetting it to see if this fixes your controller problem. All you need to do is find the Reset hole, which is on the back of your DualShock 4. Find a small pin or long, thin object and push it into the hole for a few seconds. After about 5-10 seconds, you can remove the pin, then try and connect your controller to your PC again and see if it works. Remember to try both wireless and wired connections to isolate whether the problem is unique to one or the other.
Try DS4Windows
While Steam should natively support the DualShock 4 controller, there may be certain instances where it fails to recognise your PS4 controller for some reason. If this happens, then you might want to give a program called DS4Windows a try. This app installs drivers so that your PC will recognise DualShock 4 controllers no matter what. You may notice that the button prompts on Steam change if you’re using DS4Windows; they might default to Xbox controller prompts, which may take some getting used to. However, this is arguably preferable to your controller not working at all!
We hope this guide on how to fix the Spider-Man Remastered controller not working error has been helpful. Hopefully, you’ve been able to rectify the issues with your controller and are now experiencing the excellent story this game has to offer!
