ABXY button mapping incorrect for Nintendo Switch Pro Controller

[Meorge]

Tested versions

Reproducible in Godot v4.3.dev (b15105a)

System information

Godot v4.3.dev (b15105a) - macOS 14.3.1 - Vulkan (Forward+) - dedicated AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT - Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-10700K CPU @ 3.80GHz (16 Threads)

Issue description

The mappings for the A, B, X, and Y buttons on the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller are off. The A and B buttons are switched, as are the X and Y buttons. I've attached a short video of my pressing the buttons on the controller and seeing what the editor picked up.

Godot.Switch.Pro.Button.Mapping.Issue.mov

Steps to reproduce

1. Use a very recent version of Godot (presumably one since Fix controller vibration in macOS and migrate to GameController API #80709 was merged).
2. In a fresh project, go to Project Settings > Input Map, add a new action, and open the Event Configuration window for that action.
3. Connect a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller to the computer.
4. Press the A, B, X, and Y buttons on the controller, and see what button Godot registers.
   • If you press A, Godot will register Joypad Button 0 (Bottom Action, Sony Cross, Xbox A, Nintendo B), despite it being the Right Action button.
   • If you press B, Godot should register Joypad Button 1 (Right Action, Sony Circle, Xbox B, Nintendo A), despite it being the Bottom Action button.
   • If you press X, Godot should register Joypad Button 2 (Left Action, Sony Square, Xbox X, Nintendo Y), despite it being the Top Action button.
   • If you press Y, Godot should register Joypad Button 3 (Top Action, Sony Triangle, Xbox Y, Nintendo X), despite it being the Left Action button.

Minimal reproduction project (MRP)

N/A

[jplewe]

I get similar mapping errors with an Xbox One controller on Mac, using a similar system and Godot 4.3.dev setup, as in #68976

[Calinou]

I get similar mapping errors with an Xbox One controller on Mac, using a similar system and Godot 4.3.dev setup, as in #68976

Which 4.3.dev commit are you using? #80709 was merged after 4.3.dev3 was released, so I suggest building master from source and testing this again.

[Meorge]

I tested my Xbox Wireless Controller (model 1708) on 4.3.dev3, and its inputs appear to be working as expected:

CleanShot.2024-02-28.at.09.52.07.mp4

On v4.3.dev.gh [b15105a], the Xbox Wireless Controller's ABXY buttons all seem to be mapped correctly for me as well. However, Godot no longer recognizes controller inputs when it is not focused:

Xbox.Controller.on.v4.3.dev.gh.b15105a35.mp4

I'm not sure if this is something I should open a new issue for...? 😅

[Calinou]

However, Godot no longer recognizes controller inputs when it is not focused:

This may be a design decision in the GameController API. cc @bruvzg

However, many people may actually welcome this new behavior, even though it's inconsistent with other platforms: #16832

[bruvzg]

It should be possible to enable background listening (it's off by default on macOS 11.3+).

[Meorge]

I was able to clone, build, and run the Godot source today for the first time! 😁 I might see spots in the code that could be responsible for the button mapping issue, so I'll see if I can fix it.

[jplewe]

I get similar mapping errors with an Xbox One controller on Mac, using a similar system and Godot 4.3.dev setup, as in #68976

Which 4.3.dev commit are you using? #80709 was merged after 4.3.dev3 was released, so I suggest building master from source and testing this again.

You are correct, this version fixes the xbox one controller mapping issue for me. Thanks!

[Meorge]

Okay, so upon a little further investigation, I have good news and bad news.

The good news: this doesn't appear to be a bug in Godot or #80709 !

The bad news: it's just how Apple decided the Pro Controller should be mapped. 🙃
In this video, I'm pressing A, B, Y, X in order. But the controller test website displays the same wrong mapping, until I go into the Game Controllers section of System Settings and manually remap the buttons.

Switch.Pro.Controller.Mapping.Messed.Up.By.Apple.mp4

I assume Apple did this with the intent of preserving the "semantic meaning" of the buttons - the right button is "confirm" everywhere, the bottom button is "cancel" everywhere, etc. But it's quite frustrating that this no longer has a consistent physical mapping across controllers. How should the Godot side proceed with this?

If anyone else happens to be familiar with the GameController API and knows a good solution to this, then that would be great! Otherwise, over the coming days, I may see what I can learn about it and if there's a way to query the controller for the hardware-level buttons instead of going through the inputs after they've been processed by the API and profiles. Don't know if that'll lead anywhere, but I suppose it's worth a shot.

[bruvzg]

SDL have remapping for these buttons hardcoded (based on controller name), we probably should do the same:

https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL/blob/0c6a1b636e42b7193027383d75f509a9e5d00214/src/joystick/apple/SDL_mfijoystick.m#L1786-L1806

[bruvzg]

#89001