Alan Wake 2 on a Mac with a controller
The Alan Wake 2 layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
On a Mac: No Mac version. On PC it is sold only through the Epic Games Store, and GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming do not carry it (checked September 2026). On a Mac it streams from a Windows PC you own, which normally passes your pad to the game's own support.
Yes, you can play Alan Wake 2 on a Mac with a controller, by streaming it from your own Windows PC. The game's own scheme is the one to use when the stream passes your pad. This layout plays its keyboard controls for when it does not. Alan burns the dark with a flashlight before he shoots, so the focus is a bumper here: a finger does it while the thumb aims.
On this page: 8 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Move and look. The left stick moves, the right stick looks, and the left stick click is sprint.
- Shoot. The left trigger aims and the right trigger shoots. Reload (R) is the left face button.
- Light. Flashlight focus (scroll up) is the right bumper and the torch toggle (E) the left. The top face button loads batteries (Q).
- Survive. Dodge (Space) is the bottom face button and interact (F) the right.
- Menus. D-pad up opens the map (M), down the Mind Place or Writer's Room (Tab). Create opens the inventory (Ctrl) and Options pauses.
Focus the light with a finger and aim with a thumb, and the darkness burns off before you shoot.
Tune it
- The case board. The Mind Place is already on D-pad down.
- Look. It is a horror game. Lower the look rows' Speed from 16 to about 12 and 9.
A slow look keeps the scares where the game put them.
If the stream passes your controller
When your PC stream hands the game your pad, Remedy's own scheme is the one to use. Leave this preset off in that case, or every shot fires twice. If the flashlight comes up with the preset off, the stream has your pad and the layout can rest.
If your controller is not working in Alan Wake 2
When Alan Wake 2 does not react to your controller on a Mac, climb this ladder, smallest step first:
- Check that the Mac sees the controller. Open the gamepad tester and press a button. If nothing lights up there, the problem is the connection, and a controller that is connected but not working covers that first.
- Press a button after the stream has started. A stream only picks up a controller that is paired with the Mac, and a browser shows a controller to a page only after a button press. Start Alan Wake 2, then press any button. Streaming from your own PC has its own checks, in how to stream PC games to a Mac with a controller.
- Play it from keys. If Alan Wake 2 still ignores the pad, activate this layout. It sends the keyboard and mouse controls Alan Wake 2 already reads. Turn the game's own controller option off while it runs, or a press can arrive twice. The layout works whether or not Alan Wake 2 ever sees the controller.
Get it in two clicks
- Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
- Search for Alan Wake 2 and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
- Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.
To check the controller itself first, the gamepad tester shows every button and stick live in your browser.
Alan Wake 2 controls: every button and the key it sends
The Sends column is Alan Wake 2's default keyboard and mouse controls, as this layout expects them. If you changed a key in the game's settings, change the same row in InputConfig.
| Controller | Sends | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Left stick left | A | Move left (A) |
| Left stick right | D | Move right (D) |
| Left stick up | W | Move forward (W) |
| Left stick down | S | Move back (S) |
| Right stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 16) | Look right |
| Right stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 16) | Look left |
| Right stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 16) | Look down |
| Right stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 16) | Look up |
| Left trigger | Right click | Aim weapon (RMB) |
| Right trigger | Left click | Shoot (LMB) |
| RB / R1 | Scroll up | Flashlight focus / boost (scroll up) |
| LB / L1 | E | Flashlight / torch toggle (E) |
| X / Square | R | Reload weapon (R) |
| Y / Triangle | Q | Flashlight batteries / reload light (Q) |
| A / Cross | Space | Dodge / evade (Space) |
| L3 (left stick click) | Shift (Left) | Sprint (Shift) |
| B / Circle | F | Interact (F) |
| Back / Share / Select | Ctrl (Left) | Inventory (Ctrl) |
| D-pad up | M | Map (M) |
| D-pad down | Tab | Mind Place / Writer's Room (Tab) |
| Start / Options | Escape | Pause menu (Esc) |
Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.
Questions
Does Alan Wake 2 run on a Mac?
Alan Wake 2 does not run natively on a Mac, and GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming do not carry it. Stream it from a Windows PC you own. This layout covers a stream that does not see the pad.
Why is my controller not working in Alan Wake 2 on a Mac?
First check the Mac itself sees the controller, with the gamepad tester. If it does and Alan Wake 2 still ignores it, activate the Alan Wake 2 layout in InputConfig, which sends the game's keyboard and mouse controls from the controller.
Can I play Alan Wake 2 on an M1 Mac or a MacBook Air?
Yes, through a stream. Alan Wake 2 runs on the other end, on a cloud service or your own PC, so the Mac only plays the video and sends your input. An M1 MacBook Air streams it like any other Mac.
Does Alan Wake 2 run in CrossOver on a Mac?
I have not tested Alan Wake 2 in CrossOver. CodeWeavers keeps a compatibility list where players report how each Windows game runs. If it runs and the controller is not seen, this layout plays it from the keys and mouse.
Related
Completely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.
Updated